Luke 24:1-12
Be Still: Thank you, Lord, that every day is resurrection day. I welcome your presence into this time and want to hear what you would say to me. Amen
Read: Luke 24:1-12
Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he is risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again’ (But they (the apostles) did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. (vv 5-7,11).
Encounter: Incredulity
Luke’s telling of the women’s visit to the tomb differs in some of its detail from Mark’s account. Much has been made of these discrepancies but eyewitnesses, particularly in stressful situations, do not always see or remember the same things. Commentators point out that the minor differences add to the authenticity of the narrative.*
The physical resurrection of Jesus is crucial to our faith and, with the crucifixion, forms the basis of the Gospel and the message that sin and death are defeated (1 Cor 15: 55-57). Some sceptics have examined the evidence for the New Testament stories and resurrection in order to disprove them; instead they arrived at the conclusion that the gospel events and the resurrection did take place as reported in the four gospels.**
The angel tells the women to remember Jesus’ previous words, that he would die and come back to life after three days (See Matthew 16v21, 17v22-23, 20v17-19 & 3 times in Mark’s gospel) The fact that Jesus knew what was going to happen, and willingly embraced it, gave his followers reassurance that this was all God’s plan and that things hadn’t gone badly wrong.
Luke tells us that the apostles didn't believe what the women told them. In those days, women’s testimony was not recognised in a court of law, which shows how women were generally regarded. For a short while the disciples continued in fear and confusion, when they could have been celebrating a most glorious victory.
Apply: We should be on our guard to ensure that we don’t pre-judge what others might say to us, because of their status or position in life. We also need to make sure that we listen carefully to and value what our fellow believers are saying - they may be God’s channel for something important that God wants us to hear. ‘Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the One who is speaking’ (Hebrews 12:25).
Devote: Sometimes, Lord, it is hard to take things in and understand. Help me to listen carefully and hear all that you want to say to me.
* Surprised by Hope, Tom Wright SPCK, Chapter 4
** Who Moved the Stone Frank Morison, Authentic Classics; Cold-Case Christianity J. Warner Wallace, David C Cook