Below is the Bible Study written by Jim Rudiger for his Sunday School Class which meets at Third Presbyterian Church, Norfolk, Virginia. It's based on John 20:1-23.
Prayer
Death is something that none of us ever want to think about or talk about, but, we all face it many times during our lives especially as we grow older. To some people, death is something that changes the rest of their lives as they come to grips with the lost. We love to talk about new babies being born and marriages. Why is death such an avoided subject? For Christians death raises three perplexing questions that sometimes causes us to question our belief. Why did he or she die so young? Why did he or she have to suffer? How am I going to get along without him or her? If we understand the answers to these questions, it will go a long way in how we as Christians deal with the lost of loved ones. Today’s study deals with these questions and hopefully provides us with a new incite into a Christian’s view of death.This is a special Sunday. Today, we transport ourselves back 1993 years to another very special Sunday morning. Last week we studied Palm Sunday. When we left off last week, the Temple priests were back to making money off of Temple sacrifices. That morning Jesus went back to the Temple and saw what was going on. Jesus gets angry at what the priests were doing to His Father’s house, so He turned over the money lender’s tables sending coins rolling all over the floor. This was the last straw for the Sanhedrin. Jesus had to go. Their problem was arresting him with as few people around as possible. This problem was resolved when Judas left the Last Supper early and went to the Temple to set up the arrest for thirty pieces of silver. On Thursday night after the supper, Jesus and his followers went to the Garden in Gethsemane where Judas kissed Jesus identifying him to the Temple police hiding in the bushes. He was arrested and taken to the home of the high priest.
The tomb was cut out of solid rock. At the entrance a groove was cut and a large round stone was fitted in the groove. The stone would be rolled over until it closed the opening. It was so heavy that it took several men to roll it into place. The tomb was closed this way to discourage grave robbers and animals from getting to the body. For Jesus, Pilate also had the stone door sealed into place to assure that the body remained in the tomb.
It was a Jewish custom to visit the burial place of a loved one for three days after death since they believed that the spirit of the loved one lingered at the body for that long. Remember, we learned that when we studied Lazarus. After three days, decomposition would start and the body would no longer be recognizable. Now the Sabbath was from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday. Jewish law did not allow any work being done on the Sabbath and according to the Scribal law, walking more than a hundred feet from your home on the Sabbath was considered work. So no one could travel to the tomb where Jesus lay on Saturday for fear of breaking the Sabbath law.
With this background, an amazing thing had happened. Lets see how John describes what happened.
John 20: 1 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. 2 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 have lain him.” Now it was Sunday morning. The Sabbath was over and it was safe to visit the tomb. The first Easter morning was about to dawn. John tells us that it was early in the morning. Now, the Jews divided the hours between 6:00 PM and 6:00 AM into four watches of three hours each. The word used in scripture for “early” was the word describing the last watch which would have made it between 3:00 AM and 6:00 AM.
Who does John say came to the tomb? Mary Magdalene. But, the other accounts lists other women. Why does John only mention Mary Magdalene? Mary Magdalene is a women who truly loved Jesus and appears to have been the most prominent female follower. She would have been the leader of any group of women visiting the tomb that morning. In verse 2 Mary says, “we do not know -“ indicating that there were probably more women there. After all, it would have been impossible for a single women to carry 100 pounds of spices all the way to the tomb in the dark.
When you hear the name “Mary Magdalene”, what do you think about her? We usually think of her as a person who had lived a shady life style. We assume that she is the woman who washed Jesus' feet and dried them with her hair. Jesus had saved her from her past life and she loved him for that salvation. To her is given the privilege of being the first person to see the resurrected Jesus.
It was still very dark as Mary Magdalene sets out for the tomb. It must have been hard for her to make her way to the tomb in the darkness, her heart breaking from the lost of Jesus. A morning mist was hovering over the ground and the sound of birds foraging for a morning meal added some comfort to Mary. When she arrived at the tomb what is the first thing she notices? The stone has been rolled away. Did Mary look into the tomb to check if the body was still there? By the tomb being open she considered two possibilities. Either the Jews have taken away the body as a further humiliation robbing his followers of their final goodbyes, or that grave robbers may have removed the body. How do you think she felt? She must have felt panic. What to do? What’s the first thing that she comes up with? She had to find Peter. He was the leader of the disciples. He would know what to do.
It had been a rough three days for Peter. He had been the one who was afraid to admit that he knew Christ and had denied him three times. By now, I am sure that the other disciples had heard about Peter’s yellow streak. But, even with that, Peter was still considered their leader. This tells us something about how much Peter was respected by the other disciples. Peter evidently had spent the Sabbath with John. Even though some of the other disciples who had heard of Peter's denial of Jesus might have come down hard on him, John took Peter in.
Mary ran back down the path to the city and found Peter with John and told them about the open tomb. Mary Magdalene tells Peter and John that something terrible has happened. The tomb is open. Remember, she had not looked into the tomb so she really doesn’t know if the body is still in the tomb or not. She says that “they” took the body. Who is the “they” she is talking about? The religious leaders or grave robbers.
Peter and John didn’t waste time questioning Mary, but ran to the tomb. John was much younger than Peter and got there first. Some feel that John was the youngest of the disciples since he lived until the end of the first century. He may have been in his late teens at this time. In their run to the tomb what do you think was going through their minds? Was it so dark that Mary's eyes played tricks on her? Maybe she went to the wrong tomb after all it was dark. Neither man was expecting a resurrection as John arrived first at the tomb and looked in, but he did not enter possibly thinking that this was sacred ground. Peter, huffing and puffing, finally gets there. He was winded and out of breath, but when he sees the open tomb and, given his impulsive nature, he pushes past John, bows his head and steps into the tomb. For a moment Peter stands in amazement surveying the empty tomb. No one is there. His foot steps echoing in the barren room. Then he notices that the linen is still folded as if the body were still in it. The face cloth is still where the head would be. If there had been grave robbers, the linen would have been bundled up and thrown in a corner. But, everything was in place just as if the body had evaporated.
John 20:8 Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went, and saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples returned to their homes.John enters and immediately starts analyzing what he sees. If the grave had been robbed, the robbers would have taken the body wrapped in it's linens and not taken the time to unwind it in the tomb. John suddenly begins to realize what has happened. Jesus has risen from the dead - physically and spiritually. He remembered that when Lazarus had been raised by Jesus, he came out of the tomb still wrapped in the burial linen. The body of Lazarus would die again. Jesus passed through the burial clothes. His new body would not see death. This is the true resurrection. John believed and he becomes the first disciple to believe in the resurrection. Even though John believes and convinces Peter, they still don't understand exactly what has taken place. Jesus told them repeatedly that he would arise from the dead. The old Testament had spoken of this. But, faced with the real life situation, questions arise. Where is he - in heaven or still here on Earth? What does he look like? What will happen now? How will we convince people that it has happened? John and Peter perhaps overwhelmed at the events returned to their home to maybe discuss what had happened and try to piece things together and decide what their next move should be.
Hey. What has happened to Mary? When Mary had told them about the open tomb, they had run off leaving her at John's house. She follows them to the tomb but by the time she gets there they have already left. She still doesn't know what has happened to Jesus, so she starts to cry. She then stoops over and for the first time looks into the tomb and what does she see? For starters, she sees that Jesus isn’t there. Up to this point she only knows that the tomb was opened and she feared that something might have happened to the body. To add to her fears, there were two men dressed in white sitting on the place where the body of Jesus had lain. "Why are you crying?" they ask. With tears streaming down her cheeks, and choking back sobs she says, "They have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have taken him."
John 20:14 When she had said this she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to here, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him him to be the gardner, she said him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”
She then turns from the opening of the tomb and there standing in front of her is Jesus. Why do you think she didn’t recognize him right away? Her eyes were so filled with tears she couldn’t focus well enough to see who it was. To be honest, Mary didn’t expect Jesus to be standing there. To her, Jesus was dead, so, this couldn’t be him. He asks her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?" She was so upset that she is looking all around to see if the body was laying on the ground outside of the tomb. That’s what has all of her attention, not, this man standing in front of her. She assumes that he is the gardener. Maybe he saw something or knew what had happen to the body. What does she ask the man? "Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him and I will take Him away." How was a small women going to carry away the body of a man which weighs about 200 pounds? What would she do with it? These things didn't even occur to her; just find the body and she would come up with a plan to deal with it. She probably turned again to the open tomb. Maybe searching the entrance and floor for some clue as to where the body may have been taken. One thing is sure, she couldn't spend too much valuable time talking to a gardener.
John 20:16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ “ 18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.What does the gardener say? “Mary!” It was almost like a question ”Don’t you know me, Mary?” Mary's heart leapt in her chest. Immediately, she recognized her Lord's voice. She turns. The tears of sorrow are replaced with tears of joy. He is alive! "Teacher! It is you!" she exclaims and reaches to hug him. What does Jesus tell her? Jesus tells her not to hug Him because he had not yet ascended to the Father. Why does he tell Mary not to hug him when a few days later he invites his disciples to put their fingers into the nail holes in his hand and spear wound in his side? Some scholars feel that between this event and the later meeting with the disciples, He ascended to God and presented His blood as the atonement for our sins. Another and possibly a more reasonable interpretation is that Christ actually said to Mary, “Don’t hold on to me.” Meaning that she shouldn’t spend her life in the past remembering when he was a mortal. If her eyes are forever focused on the past, she won’t see the new life she has through the risen Lord. “Don’t waste time by hugging me. Go as fast as you can and tell my disciples that you have seen me - alive!”
Jesus then speaks of God as "My Father and your Father, and My God and your God." Notice that her relationship and our relationship with God is different now because of Jesus. We have become a son and daughter of God through faith in Jesus Christ. An adoption has taken place which places us directly into God’s family.
John 20:19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when the saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them ; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
The disciples are meeting. Where do you think this meeting is taking place? John said that it was where the disciples had met. In all probability the disciples continued to meet in the same upper room in which the Last Supper was held. But the meetings were held in utter terror, afraid that the Jewish leaders would discover where they were and come after them, also. I can imagine that everybody there was talking in hushed tones so that they could hear anyone coming up the steps. Mary had reported to them that she had indeed talked with Jesus and that he was alive. John had reported what he and Peter had found at the tomb. There was a lot to talk about these reports, but, they knew that the Jewish leaders wanted to put an end to this pesky sect. So, as they sat there discussing what had taken place, what happened? Jesus appeared in their midst. There had been no footsteps on the stair leading up to the Upper Room. No knocking at the door. In fact the door was still bolted in order to give them a few minutes to get out of there if the High Priest’s guards should break down the door. Jesus had entered the room without going through any apparent opening. This immediately brings up the question of what kind of being he was now. First it is obvious that he was able to pass through matter. The room was secured and yet he entered. If this is so, that he could pass through a closed door, why was it necessary to roll away the stone from the opening of the tomb? He could have just as easily walked right through that stone door like he did the door of the Upper Room. You see, the stone was not moved to allow Jesus to leave, it was moved to allow Mary and the disciples to enter and discover that he had already left. He must have had some resemblance to His earthly body. There were the nail holes in His hands. The pierced side. And yet, it took awhile for everyone to recognize him. It would appear that his voice was relatively the same and could be easily recognized.
How does Jesus greet them? “Peace be with you.” This would have been a common greeting in those days. It means more than “I hope you don’t have any trouble.” More like, “May God give you every good thing imaginable.” How does he prove that he is indeed Jesus? He showed them the holes in his hands and the wound in his side. There is no mention here of nail prints in His feet. The feet were not often nailed to the cross, but, were tied to the vertical member of the cross. How did the disciples react? Overjoyed
He then commissions them to make disciples of all men. What does he do to them? He breathed on them and said "Receive the Holy Spirit." What is significant about breathing on them? Remember in Genesis, God breathing into the nostrils of Adam the breath of life or when we studied Ezekiel 37:9 when the Prophet saw the valley of dead, dry bones and he heard God say "Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they come to life." Now the disciples would be filled with a new life through the breath of God.
Jesus then tells them something that is confusing to us Protestants. What does he say about forgiving sins? "If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.” Does this mean that you and I have the authority to forgive sins? As Protestants we don’t believe that any man can remove the sins of another. But another thing is equally true. It is the responsibility and privilege of the Church and we as disciples in the Church to tell men of God's forgiveness. Of all the people alive at that time, the apostles had the most right to bring Jesus' forgiving message to men. Why? Because no one else knew Jesus as well as these men. If they knew that a person was truly repentant in his heart, the apostle could assure the person that his sins would be forgiven. On the other hand, if the apostle knew for certain that there was no penitence in the persons heart, he could say with equal assurance that there was no forgiveness for that person. The forgiving sins statement doesn’t mean that there is power to forgive sins given to man but a power to proclaim that sins would be forgiven through faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus is laying down the duty of the Church, which is to say our duty, to convey forgiveness to a changed heart and to warn that by being unchanged, they are forfeiting the mercy of God.
Thomas was not there that night. Thomas was a very private guy and he needed to be alone as he reflected on the crucifixion. He was a man who wanted to mourn in private. Word got to him that Jesus had appeared to the others. This seemed too good to be true so he refused to believe the reports as just hopeful fantasies. In his heart Thomas was a pessimist but not a coward. When Jesus had said that he was going to Bethany after hearing about the death of Lazarus, his disciples didn't want him to go for fear that the Jews would capture him and stone him. It was Thomas who suggested that all of the disciples go with Jesus so that they all could die with Jesus. He was almost belligerent in his pessimism when he told the others that he would not believe that Jesus was alive until he placed his fingers in the nail holes and his hand into the pierced side. Pretty tough terms, huh?Another week elapsed. It was another Sunday and the disciples were meeting again. This time Thomas was there. Again, security measures had been taken. The door was locked. The shades drawn. And again Jesus makes a miraculous appearance. He greets them and immediately turns to Thomas and invites him to place his fingers in the holes in his hands and the wound in his side. These were the very requirements that Thomas had laid down as the price of his belief in the resurrection of Jesus. There is no scripture that tells us that Thomas actually carried out his demand. Instead, he falls to his knees and acknowledges that this is indeed Jesus Christ who was crucified but now lives.
So, how do we answer those three questions? Why did he die so young? Because it was in God’s plan that he sacrifice his only son so that we, while still sinners, will have eternal life. Why did he have to suffer? The sins we have committed and will commit caused the suffering, but Christ has spared us that suffering. How am I going to get along without him? Now here is the good news - we don’t. Because, we follow a risen Savior who is there for us every minute of every day. And Folks, that is the hope that was realized on that first Easter morning.
Prayer: Father, on this special day we give thanks that you loved us so much that you came to us, you lived with us, you offered yourself for us, you died for us and you rose again to prove to us that we are finally free of our sins. Amen.
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