And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By His death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. 21 And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting Him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. (Hebrews 10:19-22)
The Women
Mary of Magdala drew a sharp breath as she, Salome and Mary, mother of James hurried along the crowded street. It seemed like every few seconds, someone stepped in front of her or surreptitiously pulled her aside to ask in heavily veiled tones, “Did you really see Him; is He really risen?”
She was still reeling from her encounter with the Master. It felt so real and yet surreal at the same time. She had let out a breathless “Rabboni!” when she realized He was the One they had been addressing all along. Even though the unusual brilliance of the sun had veiled His face when they assumed He was the gardener, her heart had thumped loudly and she had felt a strange breathlessness before realizing it was Him. The immeasurable joy and peace that flooded her in that instant was forever cemented in her heart. He was alive! Everything He had said about Himself was true! She had never doubted Him, for she trusted Him implicitly, but to live it out in this real-time manner and to have seen His nail-scarred hands and feet brought an inexplicable joy and equanimity she lacked the words to express. He had not yet ascended to the Father but He had taken the time to come to reassure them of His love, sovereignty and intact redemption plan! She could not get over the power, glory and beauty that had pulsated from His resurrected presence! The other women who had been with her and witnessed the whole exchange expressed the same awe and wonder!
Her current stupefaction was not derived from that however. Her current state of bemusement arose from her sudden rise to celebrity status. Prior to now, she had been society’s reject, shunned by “respectable” people because of her history as the woman of notoriety and disrepute from whom the Master had cast out seven demons with one authoritative command. Even with the widespread news of her liberty from the demons that had promoted her prior lifestyle of decadence and lasciviousness, society remained unmoved and unforgiving. They had treated her with cold contempt for daring to be a public follower of Jesus in light of her previous lifestyle. Many avoided or ignored her when possible, and most were uncomfortable around her. Every once in a while, a vile person would make a lewd comment or pass at her. Thankfully, she was always in the company of at least one of the other women or of the male disciples, so was always able to move on without incident. A couple of times after her initial conversion, she had made the poor choice of attempting to go out on her own, in one instance using a dark alley as a short-cut in her hurry to get back to the fold. She escaped both incidents only by the mercy of God and from then on learned the wisdom of moving around in the company of her new-found family.
The news of her encounter with the Master at His empty tomb this morning seemed to have spread like wild fire across Jerusalem. For the first time in her life, she was the center of positive, scandal-free attention. It was incomprehensible! As she and the other women passed by, she could feel the curious stares of many, even detecting signs of grudging respect in some. Some gazed at her with their usual ill-concealed disdain, clearly doubtful that the Master would deign to have a woman of her kind be the first to herald His resurrection. Others looked at her with open curiosity coupled with with disbelief, probably assuming it was either a rumor or an attention-getting scheme on her part. Mary didn’t care what anyone thought. All that mattered to her was that Her beloved Savior had risen, proving that He was indeed the Messiah and hope of the world! She would shout that from fifty thousand rooftops fifty thousand times if she could!
The Guards
A giant of a man glowing with blazing iridescence and wearing shimmering white apparel held a 7-foot golden sword as he stood at the entryway of the tomb. He had appeared out of nowhere, effortlessly rolling the giant boulder away as though sliding a curtain to one side. He proceeded to plop down on it with such grace that he may as well have been sitting on a throne – his countenance was so regal! He was about 12 feet tall, heavily sinewed and bulging with muscles. His eyes appeared to flicker with an iridescent array of colors as he gazed at the guards without expression. Pinned to the ground in terror and an overwhelming sense of awe, the guards quaked like leaves. Just seconds before the man’s appearance, a deafening earthquake had shaken the foundations of the hill for miles round.
The Chief Guard noted in his semi-conscious state that several women appeared on the scene crying and asking what had been done to their Lord. The giant of a man looked at them with a gentle smile, a warmth and kindness that belied his brute strength emanating from his person in rustic red beams. His voice resonated like the sound of several bells ringing simultaneously as he told them their Lord was not there but had risen, enjoining them to hurry to tell their male counterparts.
By the time the guards had stopped trembling enough to regain their balance and sense of reality, both the fearsome-looking man and the group of women were gone. The Chief Guard, uncharacteristically petrified for a man who had been exposed to the gravest of dangers, forced himself to the entrance of the cave to peer inside. Indeed, the tomb was empty, but the grave clothes were all intact and neatly folded to the side. It took all of his military training to steel himself against turning around and running for dear life. He rapidly retreated to where the other guards still stood trembling and wide eyed, staring at him in shocked disbelief. “He’s gone” he stated tersely. They all turned sheet-white, except for the new solider, who was rapidly progressing from various shades of red to poultice blue in sheer terror. This could very well be their last assignment – punishment by death was a very strong possibility with this new development.
The Chief Guard debated what to do. He knew reporting this development to his commander would mean immediate death for all of them. On the other hand, withholding such important information could result in even graver consequences once it was found out. Perhaps if he told the Jewish leaders, their gratitude and creative cunning could provide a means of escape for him and his men. Yes, that’s what he would do. He would report to the High Priest first and see what came of it.
Hades
Satan smiled with cold satisfaction as he took a sip of the blood-filled goblet by his side and surveyed his empire of dark forces. He watched as his supervising demons shrieked, dancing and cavorting with maddening frenzy at the dissonant racket his musicians produced as they celebrated their success. His only regret regarding in the otherwise successful mission was that the Son’s body and blood were completely inaccessible; he had not been able to get anywhere near Him, talk less of being allowed to extract His blood. What a slap in the face that would have been to the Father and forces of light. Heaven would have cowered in even greater shame and defeat than it surely was now. How unfortunate.
His officers (powers, principalities, and other high-ranking dark lords) didn’t perform the orgies their less dignified lower-ranking officers did; they rather huddled in groups, long talons similarly wrapped around blood-containing goblets while their sunken yellow and red hatred-filled eyes surveyed the unbridled wickedness on display. Each agent hoped his role in bringing the Son of God down would earn him a higher position of prominence with Satan. Each plotted on how best to outsmart and backstab his comrades to ensure he secured the revered promotion – even as they consorted, cajoled, and congratulated one another for their great victory. Imprisoned human souls watched the whole scene in abject horror as they realized that their final hope of salvation and liberation from this horrid holding place was gone forever.
Without warning, the object of their celebration appeared in their midst, right in front of Satan, concurrent with a deafening roar that thundered and reverberated from across the stratosphere. Satan’s vision became cloudy as he went hot and cold at the same time. His throat, chest and lungs constricted dangerously and he frantically began to claw at his collar. Without warning and on their own accord, his knees buckled and he found himself on the floor lying prostrate before the King of Kings. Unknown to him, all his servants had suffered the same humiliating plight.
The King levitated in their midst in resplendent splendor, clothed with indescribable glory, eyes burning with fire as they bored into Satan and his minions. The radiance of His glory was so magnificent that Hades’ darkness could not come close to or attempt to engulf it; it could only bow in complete submission to it.
Neither Satan nor his minions could understand how they could be lying flat on their faces yet clearly see the King so resplendently before them. In one instant, His piercing gaze conveyed the fact that He had known of their destructive scheme for His demise and humanity’s destruction all along, and had willingly played along. It had all been a part of His and the Father’s redemptive plan even before Adam’s fall. Satan felt like an idiot and sick to the pit of his stomach. How could his perfectly crafted plan have failed so miserably? He had been so certain it was fail-proof, having employed every trick and dark force to seal the deal. He was drenched in sweat and trembling uncontrollably.
To his utter horror, the King stretched out a nail-pierced hand towards him. Satan recoiled inwardly, instinctively knowing what it meant. He panicked. This could not be happening! He had been working for an eternity to secure this very thing, he could not lose it now! He willed himself to scamper away, but couldn’t move a muscle. The weight of the King’s presence and the piercing power of His gaze rendered him paralyzed and utterly impotent against the same One he had murdered a mere seventy-two hours ago. How could this be?
In a lightening millisecond, the King drew closer. This time, Satan’s terror could not be contained. The quiver of his trembling body could be heard clear across the stratosphere. Of their own accord, his hand unclamped The Keys of Hades and Death and handed them to Him. In the same moment, He felt his body convulse in a deep bow to Him in his already prostate state. The deafening silence was suddenly interrupted by a thunderous, reverberating cheer. The spirits of the righteous dead began to celebrate with joyous applause as they realized the tables had turned and their liberty had just been secured!
Just as suddenly, the King was gone, along with the multitude of righteous spirits that Hades had been holding captive.
The aftermath of the visit lingered for what seemed like an eternity. The light in the perimeter of the space He had occupied dissipated agonizingly slowly, as though reinforcing its dominion over darkness. Satan and his comrades remained impotent, paralyzed and prostrate, their faces flat on the putrid ground till the last ebb of light had dissipated. Satan’s mortification knew no bounds.
The Resurrection
…“I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in Me and believes in Me will never ever die. Do you believe this …?” (John 11:25-26)
But God released Him from the horrors of death and raised Him back to life, for death could not keep Him in its grip. (Acts 2:24)
Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint. Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as He said would happen. Come, see where His body lay. And now, go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead, and He is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see Him there. Remember what I have told you.” (Matthew 28:2-7)
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! It is by His great mercy that we have been born again because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead! Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance – an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay! (1 Peter 1:3)
For Your Life-Giving Pleasure
The Anthem (Todd Dulaney)
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=q8ZDqSROjqU&feature=share
Living Hope (Phil Whickam)
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=u-1fwZtKJSM&feature=share
Revelation Song (Phillips, Craig & Dean)
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=f_eRfL_NME8&feature=share
I Speak Jesus (Charity Gayle)