He has risen
He has risen
Mark 16:6 - These words are an uplifting greeting on Easter Sunday, and the truth that defines our faith.
Image created by ChatGPT based on Mark 16:5
“And he said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him.”
Mark 16:6 NASB1995
After a nice long trip around the prophets, proverbs, and psalms, God has now pointed me towards the Gospels. Today’s message from Mark comes from that glorious Sunday, the third day, the day Jesus rose from the grave into His resurrection life.
The “he” in this verse is an angel in human form, described as a “young man clothed in a long white robe”. Matthew is much more direct in his Gospel, describing this being as an “angel of the Lord”, with an “appearance… like lightning” and “clothing as white as snow”. Mark has the angel in the tomb where Jesus was laid, Matthew has him sitting upon the stone which was rolled away from the tomb. The difference doesn’t matter — what does matter is that this was obviously a supernatural being at the tomb, announcing that Jesus was crucified and has risen.
The “them” described in the verse? Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James), and Salome, all the most devoted followers of Jesus. The three women were going to the tomb to embalm the body of Jesus since the Sabbath was past and they could now (under Jewish law) properly do so. They would have needed to have entered the tomb to anoint the body with spices and oils, so they were shocked on that Sunday morning to have found the stone already removed from the tomb’s entrance and the angel there to greet them!
The message of the “young man” or angel is at the core of our Christian belief. He knows that the women are looking for Jesus, and delivers the message that “He has risen.”
In a few short words, the angel points out that Jesus was crucified: He was dead. Now He is risen.
There is a difference here between what we’ve read earlier in the Bible about those who were miraculously brought back to life and the resurrection of Jesus. Back in 1 Kings 17:17-24, we hear of the son of the widow being brought back to life by Elijah. Jesus brings His dear friend Lazarus back to life as well (John 11:38-44). The difference contrasts resuscitation with resurrection. The people who were resuscitated continued to live in their same bodies, and eventually died again. Not so with Jesus! He lived again in a new body created for a life in eternity, and He is still risen, a resurrected man who is fully God.
Depiction of the empty tomb, photographer unknown. From FrAnthony.com
Going on, the angel tells them to “behold… the place where they laid Him.” He’s giving them the order, so to speak, to be the first witnesses to the resurrection. This commentary from Enduring Word is quite emphatic in pointing out the importance of the women seeing the empty tomb with their own eyes:
i. Those women were later grateful that the angel told them to see the place where they laid Him. It would have — it should have — been enough to merely hear the testimony of the angel. Nevertheless, when they saw it, it gave them ground to stand on even more solid than the testimony of an angel. “One eye-witness is better than twenty ear-witnesses; men will believe what you have seen if they do not believe what you have heard.” (Spurgeon)
When we see the place where they laid Him is now empty, we see that the Father did not forsake Jesus.
When we see the place where they laid Him is now empty, we see that death is conquered.
When we see the place where they laid Him is now empty, we see that we have a living friend in Jesus.
Finally, the word of the angel to the women: “He has risen” (in some translations, “He is risen”). These words are an uplifting greeting on Easter Sunday, and the truth that defines our faith. Once again from Enduring Word:
He is risen! The fact of Jesus’ resurrection is a matter of history. What it means can only be understood by what the Bible tells us. Therefore, it is important to consider what the empty tomb of Jesus and His resurrection means.
i. The resurrection means that Jesus was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead (Romans 1:4).
ii. The resurrection means that we have assurance of our own resurrection: For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus (1 Thessalonians 4:14).
iii. The resurrection means that God has an eternal plan for these bodies of ours. “There was nothing in the teaching of Jesus approaching the Gnostic heresy that declared that the flesh is inherently evil. Plato could only get rid of sin by getting rid of the body. Jesus retains the body; and declares that God feeds the body as well as the soul, that the body is as sacred thing as the soul, since the soul makes it its sanctuary.” (Morgan)
iv. The resurrection means that Jesus has a continuing ministry: He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He ever lives to make intercession for them (Hebrews 7:25).
v. The resurrection means that Christianity and its God are unique and completely different and unique among world religions.
vi. The resurrection proves that though it looked like Jesus died on the cross like a common criminal He actually died as a sinless man, out of love and self-sacrifice to bear the guilt of our sin. The death of Jesus on the cross was the payment, but the resurrection was the receipt, showing that the payment was perfect in the sight of God the Father.
Heaven On Wheels Daily Prayer:
Father, forgive me for forgetting too often what Christ’s death and resurrection means to me. I thank You for sending Your Son to die on the Cross to pay the penalty for my sins, and for the fact that He rose again so I, too, could receive His resurrected and eternal life. To You be all praise and glory, forever and ever, AMEN.