One Easter Morning

Once again, we come together into the mystery of the death and resurrection of Christ, as we prepare our minds, hearts and bodies for Easter – stepping into His new-life promises which arise from His victory over death and His gift of eternal life. Not surprisingly, the power and mystery surrounding this ancient, though hauntingly present and pertinent story of “Easter,” encapsulates the faith and strength of the dear souls whom we serve on your behalf in a world of barbaric Christian persecution. Increasingly, in today’s world of geo-political turmoil, the only hope for those in peril, in the face of the tyranny that both challenges and focusses such faith, is an unwavering conviction that Christ did indeed rise to life from a most cruel death.

What I find to be interesting (and strangely comforting) is that the first eye-witnesses to see the tomb (then closely guarded pending the body’s anointing) were mostly women…and not just any women as we will consider while reading Luke 23:50-56 (NKJV).

“Now behold, there was a man named Joseph, a council member, a good and just man. He had not consented to their decision and deed. He was from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who himself was also waiting for the Kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was hewn out of the rock, where no one had ever lain before. That day was the Preparation, and the Sabbath drew near. And the women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they observed the tomb and how His body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.”

So, a council member named Joseph (no relation to Jesus’ earthly father), who had obviously disagreed with the council’s decision to put Jesus to death, took some risk to dignify Christ’s burial in his private and secure tomb, accompanied by a group of women who loved Jesus and wished to care for His remains.

Women were not generally allowed to take such forefront roles in official ceremonies, but their witness – even today – adds a level of assurance and comfort that all surrounding events were at least legitimate and reliable.

Some of the most notable women involved in Christ’s burial included: Joanna, the wife of Chuza; Jesus’ aunt Mary, who was married to His uncle Clopas; Salome, mother of James and John; Mary, widow of Joseph and mother to Jesus; and most notably, Mary Magdalene from whom Jesus cast seven demons. It is remarkable and fitting that our Lord and Saviour’s earthly body would be so aptly and lovingly preserved by the unlikely hands of women who, in any other circumstances, would be deemed unworthy. This again was yet another symbol of the contrarianism by which Jesus revolutionized the elite systems of His day, confronting pride and displacing it with deep and eternal love.

Imagine the emotion and wonder these devoted women experienced when God’s heavenly messengers assured them of Jesus’ resurrection, as recorded in Luke 24:1-7:

“Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.””

I am grateful for the loving care that the women of Christ’s tomb bestowed upon Jesus on our behalf, and how their gentle and unbiased witness of the events of Easter over two thousand years ago affords us all the confidence to come alongside those who have also experienced death arising from the same teachings and beliefs we espouse today. May we all follow Joseph and the women who are the friends and relatives of Jesus, as they approach the empty tomb. Pray with us that those who suffer for their faith in Christ will be comforted and anointed by healing oils, the spices of life, and the fragrances of incense as we prepare our bodies, minds and souls to accept the power and forgiveness of Jesus’ resurrection.

- Doug