The First Easter Morning

They knew Jesus.  They had heard His teachings.  They had witnessed the miracles.  They had grown to love Jesus.  He was their Savior.

Seeing him suffer such cruelties and dying on a cross literally broke their hearts.  While many disciples fled, they stayed.  They knelt there at the foot of the cross.  And when He finally gave up His spirit and was buried, all they could think about was how to continue to show Him honor and respect.  

They made note of where His body was placed, and, after the Sabbath day had passed, they arose early before dawn.  Their love of Jesus was of great importance and took priority over anything else in their lives.  They rushed to the tomb with spices they had prepared.

These precious women were the first to discover an empty tomb.  Where was Jesus?  Where had their Savior’s body been taken?  As they were grappling with this chaos, two angelic beings asked them why they would be looking for the living among the dead.  They reminded these women of Jesus’ own teaching that He would be crucified and then rise on the third day.   And then they remembered His words. They quickly left the tomb to report what they had learned.

My heart leaps when I think about what those women felt that first Easter morning.  I love that Jesus chose women to be the first witnesses of His resurrection.  We must remember that this was at a time in history when women had no real standing. The law didn’t even allow for women to to serve as witnesses in minor legal proceedings.  And yet, these women were of great importance to Christ (regardless of who we are, we are important to Jesus).  There are so many lessons we can take from this account found in the gospel of Luke and apply to our own lives.  I encourage you to pull away from all the Easter festivities and take some time today and read Luke 24.  Don’t let this be just another celebration in your life.  Allow The Lord to use this time to draw you closer.

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This Easter, my prayer is that we love Jesus with the same intense love these women felt for Him.  That His presence is that real and evident in our lives each and every day.  That through obedience and following His guidance, we show Him that same level of honor and respect.  That spending time with Him each day will be of great importance and placed as a priority over everything else in our lives.  And that while we celebrate what He accomplished on the cross that day for us, that we never forget that HE IS RISEN!  I pray that we keep His words and His teaching always in our hearts and minds.  And when our world becomes absolute chaos that we remember His words, His promises, His love.  And just as those women ran away from the tomb to share what Jesus had revealed to them, I pray that our hearts are burdened for those that don’t know the truth and we feel that same sense of urgency to tell of His great love.

May you and your family have a Happy Easter!