In This Life and the Next

"Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'" -Mark 16:6-8 (NIV)

I confess. You've probably read this devotional before. I originally wrote it last year at about this time. The truth is that I don't have time to journal this morning. I'm at Elk River Coffee Company placing the sign of the cross on anyone who desires it with some of my clergy colleagues. What's Ash Wednesday and what are we doing at the coffee shop? Read about it here. And keep reading the devotional. Even though I wrote it last year, I pray that it blesses you today.

Over the last several days many people for whom our church has been praying have received discouraging reports. I've found myself weeping on several different occasions because people I love have been rocked to the core with bad news.

Maybe that's why I needed Mark 16 today. It's a resurrection text, which seems rather odd to be reading at the beginning of the Lenten season. But it speaks of a great truth.

Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome are on their way to the place where the crucified Christ has been buried. They're worried. They're worried that his decomposing body is beginning to smell. They're worried that a huge stone is blocking entrance into the tomb and that they won't be able to enter. But they're greeted by a messenger of God who proclaims that Christ has risen and has gone ahead of them into Galilee. This messenger promises the women that they will see Jesus again.

Like the women of the text, maybe you've recently witnessed or received some discouraging news. Maybe you're worried. Maybe you're afraid. Maybe what you need more than anything else this morning is a message from God: that Jesus has defeated death, that he goes before you with the promise of a better future, and that you will see him again.

Even with such a promise, perhaps you're still afraid (the women in the text are). But may God grant you the grace that, in the midst of worry, discouragement, and alarm, you be assured of God's great love for you. Christ is risen. And you will see him. This isn't just a promise that is fulfilled after you die. It's a promise that will be fulfilled both in this life and the next.



Tomorrow's Reading: Luke 1

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