Gospel of John
The tomb is empty. Either the supporters or enemies of Jesus have come and taken the body, or He is risen. These questions and the empty tomb stand as an objective hallmark of the kingdom of God and the work of Jesus as was predicted.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 1 Peter 1;3-4.
Not only does the resurrection of Jesus – the undeniable reality of the empty tomb demonstrate that death could not hold Jesus (Acts 2:24), that it verifies the work of salvation and our faith (1:Cor 15:17), but it also now establishes our living hope and heavenly home and inheritance that is kept for us. Some would say that Christianity keeps us so heavenly minded that we are of no earthly good. It is really exactly the opposite. We recognize that this life is temporary, is important for living a life with honor and faith, but it is not an end in itself.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 11 Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. 1 Peter 2:9-12.
Foreigners and exiles as it were, but a people with an eternal mission and hope. Stay well this week.
