Christ the Lord is Risen Today!
Happy Easter to all of you! We had a glorious service this morning at Grayson United Methodist Church to celebrate the Resurrection of our Saviour and His triumph over the grave. Each of the four Gospels tells the Resurrection story, each slightly different from the others. The text here is from the Gospel of John, ch. 20, vv. 10-18, and it is one of my favorite texts in all of Scripture.
Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”
“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
“Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”
Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.
What a wonderful thing to be able to tell, “I have seen the Lord!”
In case you’re wondering, my two other favorite scriptures are Mark 5:21 - 34 and Romans 8:38-39.
