"Practically Divine" - Week 8

Read Mark 16.

Early on the first day of the week, after rising from the dead, Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. After she had seen Jesus, she ran to tell his disciples, who were all emotionally devastated and weeping. Excitedly, Mary told them, ‘He’s alive and I’ve seen him!’ But even after hearing this, they didn’t believe her.

Mark 16:9-11 (TPT)

I love the Passion Translation, because it says the disciples were emotionally devastated and weeping. That’s the kind of emotion I expect from yesterday’s reading. These guys (and girls) had lived through a trauma.

But, Jesus!

He didn’t worry about the customs of the day when He appeared to a woman first and asked her to be the one to go and share the news.

He wasn’t afraid to ask for the disciples (even the one who’d denied Him) to come at once to see Him.

He refused to hold their unbelief against them but came to them in person to make sure they knew the Truth.

He’s so good! Life in Him is worth enduring whatever deaths must come.

Do you believe that? I can’t help but wonder if there may be one person reading with us this summer that doesn’t know this Jesus that lived, died, and rose again for each of us. I am not asking if you know about Jesus. I’m asking if there’s anyone reading with me that doesn’t know Jesus Christ personally.

Saying “yes” to Him does require a death. It requires us to give up the control we think we have over our own lives and hand over that control to Him. It requires that we confess with our mouths and believe in our hearts that Jesus us Lord. True life in Him means that we die to ourselves so that we can live in Him, and that’s a pretty awesome trade.

One last thing for us to ponder…. In another Gospel, it’s recorded that Mary didn’t recognize Jesus when He approached her in His resurrected body. She didn’t know who He was until He said her name. That makes me believe that resurrected life looks different!

Oh, how I want resurrected relationships, circumstances, and outlooks. I don’t want to hold on so tightly for them to stay the same. I want to loosen my grip, turn them over the Jesus, and let Him resurrect into something brand new.

May it be so, Jesus!

God, we are so grateful for the resurrection. Equally, I am grateful for Your willingness to continue resurrecting. Nothing is impossible for You, but we can miss out on Your power if we hold on too tightly to what we know. We want to trust You for everything You have for us. Do a work in our hearts and lives that cause us to look different in some way. Amen.