ONE LOOK, THAT’S ALL IT TOOK!
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.’ Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went towards the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples
returned to their homes. John 20:1-10
The meditation of John
One look, that’s all it took!
One look,
and I knew beyond all doubt that God was at work,
that Jesus was alive!
I should have known it sooner, of course,
for he’d told us what to expect often enough,
but when the hammer blow fell
we simply couldn’t see beyond it,
tears blinding our minds as well as our eyes.
It was when Mary came bursting in,
beside herself with excitement,
that the mist started to clear,
that his words about death and resurrection
came flooding back,
rekindling a flame that had all but been extinguished.
I ran then as I’ve never run before,
hope lending wings to my feet,
heart pounding within me,
not just from the exertion
but from the emotion that had taken hold of me,
the curious mixture of fear and exhilaration.
I wanted so much to believe it was true,
only I was afraid it might be some cruel hoax
or fancy of the imagination,
a trick of the mind or, worse still, of our enemies.
But when I went in to the tomb
and found the abandoned grave clothes,
then I knew,
and my spirit soared in jubilation.
He was not there:
he had risen just as he promised,
death not able to have the final word.
And suddenly everything fitted into place,
the heartache, the hurt, the humiliation –
it was all meant to be,
all a part of God’s sovereign purpose!
Where we had seen darkness, he had brought light!
Where there had been death, now there was life!
Everything was turned around,
transformed,
renewed,
sharing in the wonder of resurrection.
One look, that’s all it took –
one look, and life was changed for ever!
Prayer
Gracious God,
we thank you that our faith
is not founded on theory or speculation –
on the ideas of theologians or the musings of philosophers.
It is rooted in what individuals have seen and heard,
in the living testimony of ordinary people like us,
in the testimony of countless generations of believers
who have encountered the risen Christ for themselves,
through his Spirit.
In him, you came, you lived, you died, you rose again,
making yourself known through the concrete events of history.
For all who saw for themselves and passed the message on,
receive our thanks.
And for all that we experience today
of your continuing love and your life-giving purpose,
we give you our praise in joyful worship;
through Jesus Christ, our risen, victorious Saviour.
Amen.