Devotion for Easter 2008

My cousin once told me a story about her daughter watching one of those movies about the life of Jesus on TV. The young girl was about 6 or 7 and she was enthraled by it. She had watched it the year before, so she was familiar with the movie.

As the movie reached the part about Jesus' crucifixion and death, the young girl had tears running down her face. She watched as Jesus was placed in the tomb, and the stone was rolled into place. As expected, since this was broadcast TV, the station went to a commercial break. As the theme music fo the movie started again the girl wiped her ace with her sleeve and started bouncing with excitement and said, “Now comes the best part.”

Isn’t that why we celebrate Easter? To celebrate the good part of the last days of Jesus' pilgrimage on earth. To give thanks for Christ's victory over sin and death. To join our voices with millions of his followers around the world singing, "Jesus Christ is risen today!"

During this season of Easter I suggest that we focus on these words from John's Gospel, "Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark." John was simply reporting the facts. And yet, there is another way these words might be interpreted. After all, the writers of the New Testament as well as Jesus himself often used the imagery of darkness and light to signify something else. Mary Magdalene came to the tomb while it was still dark. Darkness could refer to a world without Christ, a world without hope, a world of sin and death, a world where God's promises had been forgotten and God's people felt forsaken. However, darkness is not the end of the story. The dawn broke. God's Son had risen. Alleluia.

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb while it was still dark and saw that the stone had ben removed from the tomb. (John 20:1)