Daily Scripture: John 20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Miryam from Magdala went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. 2 So she came running to Shim‘on Kefa and the other talmid, the one Yeshua loved, and said to them, “They’ve taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they’ve put him!”
3 Then Kefa and the other talmid started for the tomb. 4 They both ran, but the other talmid outran Kefa and reached the tomb first. 5 Stooping down, he saw the linen burial-sheets lying there but did not go in. 6 Then, following him, Shim‘on Kefa arrived, entered the tomb and saw the burial-sheets lying there, 7 also the cloth that had been around his head, lying not with the sheets but in a separate place and still folded up. 8 Then the other talmid, who had arrived at the tomb first, also went in; he saw, and he trusted. 9 (They had not yet come to understand that the Tanakh teaches that the Messiah has to rise from the dead.)
10 So the talmidim returned home, 11 but Miryam stood outside crying. As she cried, she bent down, peered into the tomb, 12 and saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Yeshua had been, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 “Why are you crying?” they asked her. “They took my Lord,” she said to them, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”
14 As she said this, she turned around and saw Yeshua standing there, but she didn’t know it was he. 15 Yeshua said to her, “Lady, why are you crying? Whom are you looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you’re the one who carried him away, just tell me where you put him; and I’ll go and get him myself.” 16 Yeshua said to her, “Miryam!” Turning, she cried out to him in Hebrew, “Rabbani!” (that is, “Teacher!”)
Reflection Questions:The center "tree" in the stained glass window is the cross Jesus died on (cf. Galatians 3:13-14, where Paul described the cross as a redeeming tree). But beside the cross in the window design stands the risen Jesus—he did not stay dead! As the resurrected Christ offered the human family the potential for new life, John again connected the story to life's beginnings in Genesis, reporting that Mary at first saw Jesus as "the gardener."
- Mary thought she was going to the tomb to finish preparing Jesus' body for burial. Why not weep? Expressing grief over a loss is healthy. Yet two angels ("in white," not the color of sorrow) asked her, "Why are you crying?" Has God ever helped you see a painful or negative experience in a different light? What are you facing now that needs the touch of God's life and hope?
- Scholar N. T. Wright said, "If someone in the first century had wanted to invent a convincing story about people seeing Jesus, they wouldn't have dreamed of giving the star part to a woman. Let alone Mary Magdalene." Yet Jesus trusted Mary, and made her the first witness to his risen life. What does that tell you about how Jesus saw the value of all people, women and men, in his new creation?
Lord God, thank you for defeating death through Jesus' resurrection. Help me to embrace your peace and purpose, as Mary did, and to keep growing into new life in Christ. Amen.Insight From Dr. Amy Oden
Dr. Amy Oden is Professor of Early Church History and Spirituality at Saint Paul School of Theology at OCU. Teaching is her calling, and she looks forward to every day with students. For 25 years, Amy has taught theology and history, pursuing scholarship in service of the church.
Are you involved at Church of the Resurrection? Have you thought much about what the name of the church means? As I read John 20, I keep thinking about the name “Church of the Resurrection.” If a group of people wanted to live their lives in light of God’s 24/7, no-matter-what, unfailing Love, they might say, “We are people of the resurrection,” or they might call their church “Church of the Resurrection.” In fact, one description on cor.org (under “Our Story”) says, “At Resurrection, thousands of people continue to find hope, restoration and joy.” This is a great description of the events in John 20.
We celebrate the resurrection today, because Love has the last word. The resurrection proclaims that the only real power in the universe is the 24/7, no-matter-what, unfailing Love of God that remains after we humans have done our worst, like put Jesus to death on a cross. The world says that real power lies with those who are strongest, mightiest, or who show up with the most ammo, that violence and domination are sources of strength and victory. In Jesus’ time, the Roman Empire had the most power, the most weapons, the most bragging rights. Yet even Rome’s attempt to silence God’s radical, self-giving Love by killing Jesus did not have the last word.
Here at Church of the Resurrection, our whole church family stands as a sign of this world-changing good news. We live our lives in light of God’s 24/7, no-matter-what, unfailing Love and share that love with the world, in lots of different ways, with lots of different voices. We are people of the resurrection!
Church of the Resurrection
Are you involved at Church of the Resurrection? Have you thought much about what the name of the church means? As I read John 20, I keep thinking about the name “Church of the Resurrection.” If a group of people wanted to live their lives in light of God’s 24/7, no-matter-what, unfailing Love, they might say, “We are people of the resurrection,” or they might call their church “Church of the Resurrection.” In fact, one description on cor.org (under “Our Story”) says, “At Resurrection, thousands of people continue to find hope, restoration and joy.” This is a great description of the events in John 20.
We celebrate the resurrection today, because Love has the last word. The resurrection proclaims that the only real power in the universe is the 24/7, no-matter-what, unfailing Love of God that remains after we humans have done our worst, like put Jesus to death on a cross. The world says that real power lies with those who are strongest, mightiest, or who show up with the most ammo, that violence and domination are sources of strength and victory. In Jesus’ time, the Roman Empire had the most power, the most weapons, the most bragging rights. Yet even Rome’s attempt to silence God’s radical, self-giving Love by killing Jesus did not have the last word.
Here at Church of the Resurrection, our whole church family stands as a sign of this world-changing good news. We live our lives in light of God’s 24/7, no-matter-what, unfailing Love and share that love with the world, in lots of different ways, with lots of different voices. We are people of the resurrection!
Church of the Resurrection
gpsonline@cor.org
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224 United States
____________________________
____________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment