Sighting #1 The Women at the Empty Tomb: A Harmonized Resurrection Narrative[1] (Matthew 28:1-10, Mark 16:7-8, Luke 24:9-11, John 20:1-17)
As the first light of dawn broke on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Salome, Joanna, and other women prepared the spices they had brought to anoint Jesus’ body (Mark 16:1; Luke 24:1).
Just before they set out, a great earthquake shook the ground, and an angel of the Lord descended from heaven. Dressed in robes white as snow[2], he rolled back the stone from the entrance of the tomb and sat upon it (Matthew 28:2-4). The guards, witnessing this, trembled and became like dead men.
Unaware of the earlier events, the women made their way to the garden, discussing along the way, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” (Mark 16:3). As they arrived, they saw that the stone had already been rolled away from the tomb (Mark 16:4; Luke 24:2; John 20:1).
Bewildered, Mary Magdalene immediately left to inform Peter and John, exclaiming, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him!” (John 20:2). Meanwhile, the other women entered the tomb and saw two men in dazzling garments sitting where Jesus’ body had been. The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground.
One of the angels said, “Do not be afraid. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He lay” (Matthew 28:5-6; Mark 16:5-6; Luke 24:4-5). The angels instructed the women to go and tell the disciples, especially Peter, that Jesus was going ahead of them into Galilee (Mark 16:7; Matthew 28:7).
As the women left, still trembling and in awe, Peter and John, alerted by Mary Magdalene, rushed to the tomb. John arrived first but hesitated at the entrance, while Peter went straight in. They saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head rolled up separately (John 20:3-7). Astonished, they returned to their homes, still uncertain of what had happened (Luke 24:12; John 20:8-10).
Mary, who had followed them back, remained outside the tomb, weeping. As she looked inside, she saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. [3] They asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She replied, “They have taken my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him” (John 20:11-13).
Turning around, she saw a man standing there whom she assumed was the gardener.[4] When he spoke her name, “Mary,” she recognized Him as Jesus and cried out, “Rabboni!”, or “Teacher” (John 20:14-16). Jesus said, “Do not continue clinging to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” (John 20:17).
As Mary went to deliver the message, Jesus also appeared to the other women on their way back to the city. They took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. Jesus repeated the angel’s instruction: “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see Me” (Matthew 28:9-10).
As the news spread among the disciples and throughout Jerusalem, fear and doubt mingled with a glimmer of hope. The women, the first witnesses, carried the astounding news: “The Lord is risen indeed!” (Luke 24:34).
Note Jesus’ gentleness (“Greetings!”) and reassurance (“Do not be afraid!”). This will continue in the other sightings. He is not showing up in a huge flex of power (at least not as the people would expect the powerful to appear). Oh, he is strong, but he is not pompous, arrogant, and out to get revenge. To quote the title of a song I love, he is simply Jesus, strong and kind.
Many commentators have rightly noted that having women as the first to encounter the risen Jesus - particularly Mary Magdalene, whom he had delivered from demons - is striking in a cultural context where women’s testimonies were undervalued and considered unreliable. Jesus did not choose the powerful and privileged in his culture to be the first witnesses and the first evangelists. He chose the unexpected and overlooked.
It reminds me of how God was revealed last week in the stories of Hagar and Joseph: God cares for those others despise or dismiss. God stays with the powerless, those who are weak in the eyes of others. The God Creed is on display immediately after his resurrection.[5]
Sighting #2 Two Men on the Emmaus Road (Lk 24:28-32)
So they drew near to the village to which they were going. He appeared to be going further, but they constrained him, saying, "Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent." So he went in to stay with them. When he was at table with them, he took the bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.
And their eyes were opened and they recognized him; and he vanished out of their sight.[6] They said to each other, "Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the scriptures?"
One of those walking with Jesus was Cleopas, whom tradition says was Jesus’ uncle.[7] Tradition also says that Cleopas was like a father to Jesus after Joseph died. If this is true, that means Jesus left the tomb and immediately found his ‘earthly father,’ perhaps even going to his home to be with him and his wife and to break bread and bless them. I think that’s pretty cool.
The breaking of bread also reminds us of the Last Supper. If the other walker was Luke, I am guessing he had some déjà vu. But apart from that, notice how the risen Lord serves them: he breaks the bread for them. Remember the importance of meals together. They signify fellowship and belonging. They affirm the value and dignity of the people with whom you are eating. Jesus is pleased to be with these people, as “dull and slow of heart” as they were.
Sighting #3 The Disciples (John 20:19-23)
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them[8] and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”[9]
The word for ‘breathe’ is only used once in the New Testament, and that is here. The only other time it is found in the Bible is in the Greek translation of Genesis 2:7 when God breathed life into Adam. Surely this is not a coincidence. We are supposed to hyperlink to Genesis 2:7.
Remember how the gospel of John started?
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God… all things were made by him.”
John bookends his Gospel with a shoutout to the beginning.[10] The Creator is in the process of a New Creation, with the Spirit of God from the Second Adam being given to the children of the first Adam. The first time, God gave physical life. The second time, God gives spiritual life.[11] Soon, Jesus will send them on a Great Co-mission with a new command to be fruitful and multiply in a new way: making disciples of Jesus.
Sighting #4 Jesus Appears to Thomas (John 20:24-29)
Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”[12] Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
What about those who find it hard to believe? How will Jesus treat them? Will he be dismissive? Impatient? Angry? Of course not.
Last week, the story of Jacob reminded us that God blesses, not punishes, the wrestler. Jesus patiently meets Thomas in his doubt, mirroring Jesus’ patience with his disciples all throughout the gospels. It turns out Jesus is slow to anger, abounding in mercy and loving kindness.
What We Can Learn Today
We, too, often don’t recognize Jesus. In the first two stories, Jesus was not immediately recognized. I wonder how often we don’t recognize Jesus being near to us?
Today this would happen in a different way, of course. Jesus is with us, all the time. “Bidden or unbidden, God is present,” said Erasmus. Jesus is always walking with us – we just don’t always recognize his presence. I like the chorus of a song called “There Was Jesus”:
“In the waiting, in the searching
In the healing and the hurting
Like a blessing buried in the broken pieces
Every minute, every moment
Where I've been and where I'm going
Even when I didn't know it or couldn't see it
There was Jesus. [13]
Are we looking for Jesus in our own lives and in the lives of others? Are we attentive to his presence, even when it’s not immediately obvious? Are we looking at our stories – where we were, where we are – and looking to see where Jesus was with us, “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving kindness and faithfulness, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin”?
Jesus brings peace. It’s interesting to me how Jesus over and over keeps saying, “Be at peace.” I was taught that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” and I am not here to dispute that. It’s just that there is some context that would have been helpful.
First, I will contend that ‘fear’ in that context ought to be understood as awe-filled reverence,[14] rather than a call to be terrified of my Heavenly Father. In fact, here’s the whole verse:
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.” (Proverbs 9:10)
This verse is saying the same thing twice, just in a different way. That reverential awe comes from knowledge of God, and the insight that awe brings starts us down the path to wisdom. Notice that even if this was about being terrified, it would still be the beginning of insightful wisdom about God, not the end.
John will specifically say in a letter to early Christians that the “phobos” kind of fear (from which we get the word phobia) had no place in our relationship with God:
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear (phobos), because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. (1 John 4:16-19)
Jesus shows up after his resurrection, Perfect Love in the flesh, and drives out terror while building up reverence in response to cruciform love. Just like the angels pronounced when he was born, peace follows his favor.
So I am wondering: in our quest to let Jesus work through us, do we bring peace where we go? That might be resolving conflict or injustice or stopping evil. That is one way to bring peace. It might be that when we show up, people know we aren’t going to create drama. It might be that we are a safe place for people to pour out their lives to us.
It just seems to me that if we are going to be like Jesus, we should be proclaiming the good news that a peacemaker has arrived when we show up as ambassadors of the Prince of Peace. “Thank God the Christians are here! We were waiting for somebody to bring peace.”
Jesus invites us into Co-mission. Each sighting included a directive: go to Galilee, announce the ascension, continue his mission. These instructions prepared followers of Jesus for their post-resurrection roles.[15] They were commissioned in that they were on co-mission with Jesus.
What is our co-mission with Jesus? Well, there is the Great Commission (we will get to that soon). There is the Sermon on the Mount. There is the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-21). Then there is our more personal co-mission with Jesus, where he prepares us for something or someone or some place tailored for us. There is always a ‘go and tell’ that follows ‘whosoever will may come.’ It doesn’t have to be culturally grand. You don’t need a massive event or a huge social media platform. It can be your neighbor, your friend, a co-worker, a family member, a 3rd grader in Kid’s Ministry. But there is always a ‘go and tell.’
Jesus brings transformation. In the accounts we read today, encounters with Jesus shifted people from:
· Fear to trust
· Grief to joy
· doubt to faith
· confusion to recognition
· self-preservation to commission
How is Jesus’ ongoing presence (and the presence of the Holy Spirit) transforming us? What has beenmade new? That’s a good testimony for ‘go and tell.’ What is being made new? Hmmm. That’s a good, honest testimony for ‘go and tell.’
If people can’t see Jesus clearly in our lives— compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving kindness and faithfulness, and forgiving —are we truly living as ambassadors of the good news of the saving power of a risen Savior? Who around you can tell it’s happening? Are there witnesses around you that can testify on your behalf?
Let’s be Jesus to those around us—present, tangible, transformative—just as Jesus has been for us.
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[1] This is based on Peter Ballard’s harmonization of the accounts in the four gospels. “Harmonizing the Resurrection Accounts.” Peterballard.org
[2] The earthquake, the angel’s appearance “like lightning,” and white garments remind us of divine appearances (like in Daniel 10:5-6, Ezekiel 1:13-14, Exodus 19:18).
[3] The two angels at the tomb (one at the head, one at the feet) may allude to the cherubim over the ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:18-20), suggesting Jesus’ body as the new locus of God’s presence.
[4] This backdrop evokes the Garden of Eden, where the first Adam failed, leading to humanity's fall. In contrast, Jesus, often referred to as the "Second Adam," rises in a garden, symbolizing the restoration and renewal of creation.
[5] "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in loving kindness and faithfulness, maintaining loving kindness to thousands of generations, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.” (Exodus 34)
[6] “He vanished out of their sight. — Probably, during their surprise, he took the opportunity of withdrawing from the place; leaving them to reflect and meditate on what they had heard and seen.” (Adam Clarke)
[7] Probably the ‘Clopas’ whose wife was at the cross with Jesus’ mother, Mary.
[8] “Only here in the New Testament. The act was symbolic, after the manner of the Hebrew prophets. Compare Ezekiel 37:5.” (Vincent’s Word Studies)
[9] “See the notes on Matthew 16:19; Matthew 18:18. It is certain God alone can forgive sins; and it would not only be blasphemous, but grossly absurd, to say that any creature could remit the guilt of a transgression which had been committed against the Creator. The apostles received from the Lord the doctrine of reconciliation, and the doctrine of condemnation. They who believed on the Son of God, in consequence of their preaching, had their sins remitted; and they who would not believe were declared to lie under condemnation.” (Adam Clarke) This perspective aligns with Jesus' earlier teaching in Matthew 18:20: "For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." Here, the emphasis is on the collective authority of the Church community (that statement is about church discipline). In the same way, the Church is the means through which God's forgiveness is proclaimed. Some have described this as a declarative role rather than a judicial one. When the Church declares someone's sins forgiven, it's acknowledging a forgiveness that has already been granted by God.
[10] “This Gospel of the new Creation looks back at its close, as at its beginning (John 1:1), to the first Creation.” (Cambridge Bible For Schools And Colleges)
[11] The breathing of the Holy Spirit also recalls Jesus’ promise of the Spirit (John 16:7) and his earlier commissioning (Matthew 10).
[12] “My Lord and my God,” echoes Psalm 35:23 and 86:15 – which is a God Creed verse
[13] The version I heard was sung by Zach Williams and Dolly Parton.
[14] “In the context of worship, יִרְאָה is seen as a foundational element of faith, as illustrated in Proverbs 1:7, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge." This reverence is not only about acknowledging God's greatness but also about living in accordance with His commandments, as seen in Deuteronomy 10:12, "And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God by walking in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul." (Topical Lexicon at biblehub.com)
[15] Some have noted that Jesus telling Mary not to cling to him may reflect a shift from her prior dependence to a new mission as a witness.