It hasn't felt like Holy Week to me this year. Maybe it's because Easter is so early this year, maybe it's because I no longer work in a church so I am not as mindful of it, or maybe it's just me. But I have had to remind myself that this is Holy Week. So I have been reading the crucifixion and resurrection stories in the Gospels, reminding myself of God's amazing love for us.
One passage in particular stuck out to me. It is a rather obscure couple of verses in Matthew. I do not recall ever hearing a sermon on these verses, but yet, the power of Jesus' work on the cross is mightily revealed in these verses. The verses that grabbed my attention were Matthew 27:52-53. Jesus has just given up his spirit, the curtain in the temple tore in two, and there was an earthquake. Then Matthew writes in verses 52 and 53, "The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people."
Wow! I know I must have read that many times in my life but I can't really fathom just how wild that must have been. Imagine being in Jerusalem and one day seeing a bunch of people that had been dead coming through the city again alive. What a crazy scene. The life that Christ brings through the cross was so powerful that it broke open some graves and brought folks back to life even before Christ was resurrected.
It reminds me of eight years ago when Jessica and I were in Washington, DC over Thanksgiving. (Thanks Dad for the free trip!) (Funny side note: We had spent Thanksgiving Day touring the various monuments and museums. However, being Thanksgiving, there were no restaurants open there around where we were. So for our Thanksgiving lunch we ate at the little deli connected to the Holocaust Museum. Probably the most random place to ever eat a Thanksgiving lunch - and why exactly is there a restaurant as part of the Holocaust Museum anyway?) But anyway, one day we made it out to the National Cemetery. As we were looking out over all the white tombstones in the cemetery, I remember a lady and her friends discussing how crazy it will be when Christ comes back and the dead in Christ rise. She was describing how so many of the graves we were looking at would tear open as the people would rise to meet Christ in the clouds. A pretty amazing picture!
Well, this passage and this memory have helped me reflect on the significance of this week and on the amazing love that Christ has for us. God loves us so much.
1 comment:
I had completely missed the verse about the graves opening and people walking around until Kay Ellen said something about it prior to Easter. I said "No way!" but she showed me the verse. I don't know how I had missed it all these years.
As for the DC trip, you're welcome.
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