Mark 16:1-20
The power of the resurrection
The resurrection of Jesus did actually happen. When the women arrived at the tomb they found the huge stone, which had been blocking the entrance, rolled back. Jesus had been raised up. He was no longer there. They saw for themselves that the tomb was empty (vv.6–8).
Jesus repeatedly liberated and affirmed women – treating men and women as equals. Women were the last at the cross and the first at the tomb – the first to be entrusted with the news of the resurrection of Jesus.
It is significant that the first witnesses of the resurrection recorded in all the Gospels were women. Women’s testimonies were widely seen as unreliable (in most Jewish courts it was not even allowed). Yet in appearing first to them, Jesus affirms the importance and role of women in his new community.
This also gives the story the ring of truth of an eyewitness account. The early church would never have invented this feature of the story.
The fact is that the resurrection was, initially, as unbelievable for the first disciples as it is for many today. When other disciples were told of Jesus’ resurrection, they did not believe (vv.11,13) until they saw the risen Jesus for themselves. Yet when they witnessed his resurrection, either at the tomb or in one of the many subsequent resurrection appearances of Jesus (vv.12,14), their lives were transformed. They moved from fear to faith, from alarm to action and from despair to hope.
As a result of the resurrection you can face the future with confidence:
Confident about your eternal future
This life is not the end. There is life beyond the grave. As Jesus was raised from the dead, so in Christ you will be raised with him (see 1 Corinthians 15).
As Tim Keller writes, ‘Why is it so hard to do the right thing if you know it’s going to cost your money, reputation, maybe even your life? Why is it so hard to face your own death or the death of loved ones? It’s so hard because we think this broken world is the only world we’re ever going to have... But if Jesus is risen, then your future is so much more beautiful, and so much more certain, than that.’
Confident about your future life
Jesus is alive. He is with you as you ‘go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation’ (Mark 16:15). You, like the disciples, are commissioned to go out and preach the good news to the whole world. You can be confident that God’s power will be with you. You can expect powerful signs to accompany your message – driving out demons, speaking in tongues and healing the sick. This is what occurred (v.20) and this is what we should expect today.
Healing, for example, is not confined to those who have the special gift of healing but is for all ‘who believe’ (v.17). It is God who heals, but he involves you in his plans: ‘The Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it’ (v.20).
There are a variety of models in the New Testament, but they are always simple. Healing comes ‘in [Jesus’] name’ (v.17). The most common model is the one Jesus speaks of here – the laying on of hands: ‘They will place their hands on people who are ill and they will get well’ (v.18).
Thank you, Lord, for the resurrection of Jesus. Thank you that I can face the future with hope and confidence because you are alive and with me.