A Christian Who Lives Remembering That the Day Will Surely Come When My Body, Too, Will Not Remain in the Tomb but Will Disappear

A Christian Who Lives Remembering That the Day Will Surely Come When My Body, Too, Will Not Remain in the Tomb but Will Disappear

 

 

 

“Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, these women came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared.  And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.  Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.  And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.  Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, the men said to them, ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but is risen!  Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and rise again the third day.”’  And they remembered the words of Jesus.  Then they returned from the tomb and told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.  (It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles.)  And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them.  But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he departed, marveling to himself at what had happened” (Luke 24:1–12).

 

 

(1)  As I read and meditate on today’s passage, Luke 24:1–12, in the Korean Bible, I became interested in the words, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” [τί ζητεῖτε τὸν ζῶντα μετὰ τῶν νεκρῶν (ti zēteite ton zōnta meta tōn nekrōn?)] (v. 5), and the words, “And they remembered the words of Jesus” [ἐμνήσθησαν τῶν ῥημάτων αὐτοῦ (emnēsthēsan tōn rhēmatōn autou)] (v. 8).  As I meditated on these words, I thought that if they had remembered what Jesus had already told them, they would not have “sought” the risen Jesus, “the living One,” “among the dead.”  Then, as I read and meditated on today’s passage, Luke 24:1–12, in the Greek Bible, another thought came to me: “Then they would not even have needed to prepare the spices…” (v. 1).  I became curious about what artificial intelligence would think of this thought and how it could be applied to us as modern-day Christians.

 

(a)  “Your meditation is an excellent insight that very sharply and deeply penetrates the heart of the biblical text.  Regarding what you have meditated on deeply by connecting the text with the nuances of the original language, I would like to share an analysis from the perspective of artificial intelligence (theological support), along with specific points of application for modern Christians.

 

1.   AI’s response to your thought: “It is a very accurate and biblical insight.”

 

Your inference that “if they had remembered the Word, they would not have needed to prepare the spices” corresponds precisely with the spiritual condition of the disciples that the Gospels as a whole point out.

 

The contradiction of the spices [ἀρώματα (arōmata)]: The spices the women prepared were intended “to slow the decomposition of the corpse.”  In other words, their action presupposed that Jesus would remain dead.  If they had fully remembered and believed the Lord’s words concerning His atoning death and resurrection, there would have been no need in the first place to go through the trouble of preparing spices to apply to the body of the One who would rise again.

 

The futile labor produced by the absence of remembrance [μνάομαι (mnaomai)]: Immediately after rebuking the women by asking, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” the angels urged them to remember: “Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee (that the Son of Man must rise again on the third day)” (vv. 6–7).  It was only when they “remembered” His words [ἐμνήσθησαν (emnēsthēsan)] in verse 8 that they finally left the tomb and began moving in the right direction—a life of being witnesses.

 

In conclusion: As your insight suggests, their zeal—preparing spices early in the morning—was a touching expression of love.  Yet because it lacked remembrance of and faith in the Word, it became a spiritual waste and futile labor: “seeking the living One in the tomb.”

 

2.  Meditative applications for modern Christians

 

This profound insight gives three powerful messages to us as Christians living today.

 

1)  “Zeal without the Word” is like the labor of preparing useless spices

 

Modern Christians, like the women, can possess fervent love for the Lord and great religious zeal.  We may serve, give offerings, and participate in countless programs, but if we fail to remember the living “word of Christ” that should guide our lives, our zeal can become as meaningless as the spices prepared from early morning to anoint the body of the dead Jesus.

 

Application: We must examine ourselves by asking, “Is the religious zeal I am exercising right now grounded in the Word, or is it merely ‘spices’ prepared by my own will to soothe my own sorrow?”

 

2)  We must not seek the living Lord in “the realm of the dead past”

 

The angels’ question—“Why do you seek the living among the dead?”—still applies to us today.  Many Christians confine Jesus merely to a figure in the Bible or to history from two thousand years ago—the realm of the dead. But the Lord is still alive today and is at work in the actual circumstances of my life.

 

Application: Areas in which we despair because we think everything is already over—broken relationships, failed businesses, spiritual stagnation, and so forth—are like “tombs.”  Instead of looking for the Lord in those tombs, we must trust the Lord who is present beside us now as “the living One [τὸν ζῶντα (ton zōnta)]” and encounter Him in our daily lives.

 

3)  The only key to overcoming spiritual stagnation is “the restoration of remembrance”

 

The turning point when the women’s sorrow and despair changed into joy and mission was not when their circumstances changed, but when “they remembered the words of Jesus” (v. 8).  The reason discouragement and fear enter our lives is not that God has remained silent, but that we have forgotten the words of promise He has already given us.

 

Application: When facing a crisis in life, rather than becoming preoccupied with preparing human solutions (“spices”), we must make it our priority to review and remember the Word of God already given to us and the promises recorded in Scripture—to engage in the work of remembering [ἐμνήσθησαν (emnēsthēsan)]” (Internet).

 

(i)    Here, when I read about “the futile labor produced by the absence of remembrance [μνάομαι (mnaomai)],” I was reminded of how the Apostle Peter, in 2 Peter, sought to “remind and stir up” the believers so that they would remember the Word of God (2 Pet. 1:12–13, 15; 3:2) (cf. Internet). 

 

·        Indeed, the Apostle Peter himself was the very person who, in Luke 24:12, ran directly to the tomb and saw the empty linen cloths.  Because Peter had personally experienced the despair and futile labor that result from “forgetting” the Word, in 2 Peter—which he wrote in his old age almost like a final testament—he repeatedly emphasized “remembering” and “stirring up” with such intensity.  Artificial intelligence has summarized the theological meaning and depth of “remembrance” in 2 Peter in three points (Internet):

 

      a.  Why Peter emphasized “Remembrance” as though his life depended on it

 

In chapters 1 and 3 of 2 Peter, even though Peter knew that the day of his death was drawing near, he devoted all his energy to “reminding” the believers of the truth they already knew and “stirring them up” to remember it.

 

2 Peter 1:12–13: “…though you know these things and are established in the present truth, I will always remind you of these things… I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you.”

2 Peter 3:1–2: “…I stir up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you may remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and the commandment of the Lord and Savior given through your apostles.”

 

The Greek concept Peter uses here is likewise hypomnēsis (ὑπόμνησις—remembrance, reminder), the noun form related to the concept of mnaomai (μνάομαι—to remember) in Luke 24.  Peter understood precisely that believers collapse spiritually and are shaken by false teaching not because they do not know the truth, but because they “forget” it.

 

b.  The parallel between Luke 24 and 2 Peter

 

In Luke 24, when the women and the apostles forgot the words Jesus had spoken during His earthly life, they searched for the living Lord in the tomb—the realm of the dead—and fell into the meaningless labor of preparing useless spices intended to prevent the decomposition of His corpse.  In parallel with this, 2 Peter warns that when believers in the last days forget the Word of God, they too will be swept away by worldly lusts and the temptations of false teachers, becoming spiritually blind and repeatedly engaging in the futile labor of a fruitless life.

 

On the other hand, both passages show that the only key to breaking through a spiritual crisis is likewise found in “the restoration of remembrance.”  Just as the women, when finally reminded by the angels and remembering the Lord’s words (Lk. 24:8), broke free from the despair of the tomb and rose to become the first witnesses of the resurrection, the Apostle Peter confidently declares that when believers continually remember the Word of truth through his letter (2 Pet. 3:1–2), they can resist false teaching and live holy lives in preparation for Christ’s return.

 

Ultimately, both passages strongly suggest that the success or failure of the life of faith depends not on receiving some new stimulus, but on refusing to forget the Word already given to us and actively remembering it in the midst of daily life.

 

c.  Deeper application for modern Christians: “A Community of Spiritual Awakening”

 

Faith is more about remembering the Word we have already received than learning new information.

 

Many modern Christians are constantly searching for new grace, new seminars, and new stimulation.  But the Apostle Peter says that they already know the truth (2 Pet. 1:12).  What we truly need is not new knowledge, but the continual work of being “stirred up” so that we do not forget the promises already written in our hearts and in Scripture.

 

We need “community and spiritual practices” that will stir us up and remind one another.

 

Human beings are creatures prone to forgetfulness. The women needed the angels to remind them, and the believers in the early church needed Peter’s letter. Today, we likewise need the daily habit of meditating on the Word, sharing in small groups, and walking with fellow believers who can give one another the holy reminder: “Why are you discouraged, having forgotten the living Lord?”

 

In conclusion, just as the women in Luke 24 overcame the despair of the empty tomb when they “remembered” the Word, Peter confidently declares that believers in the last days can overcome the temptations of the world and spiritual stagnation when they continue to “remember” the Word (Internet).

 

(2)  Second, I wanted to compare today’s passage, Luke 24:1–12, with its parallel passages—Matthew 28:1–10, Mark 16:1–8, and John 20:1–10—and learn the comprehensive summary of the storyline. This is because doing so would help me see the overall picture of today’s passage.

 

(a)  The accounts of the early morning of Resurrection Day, scattered throughout the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), are described somewhat differently according to the perspective of each Gospel writer.  Artificial intelligence has organized these four parallel passages into a “comprehensive summary storyline (the overall picture),” weaving them together three-dimensionally according to chronological order and the flow of events (Internet):

 

1.   Comprehensive Summary Storyline of the Parallel Passages in the Four Gospels

Stage 1: The Early-Morning Journey and the Stone Being Rolled Away (Common to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John)

 

Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other women (Mary the mother of James, Joanna, Salome, and others) head toward the tomb carrying spices to anoint the body of Jesus.  On their way, they worry, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb for us?” However, before they arrive, a great earthquake occurs, and an angel of the Lord descends and has already rolled away the stone from the tomb.

 

Stage 2: Discovery of the Empty Tomb and Mary Magdalene’s Run (Primarily John)

 

When the women arrive at the tomb, they are startled to see that the stone has been rolled away.  They enter the tomb, but when they discover that Jesus’ body is nowhere to be seen and that the tomb is “empty,” they become deeply troubled.  At this point, Mary Magdalene immediately assumes that someone has stolen Jesus’ body, and she quickly runs ahead to where Peter and John are in order to inform the apostles of what has happened.

 

Stage 3: The Angels’ Proclamation of the Resurrection to the Women Who Remained (Primarily Matthew, Mark, and Luke)

 

After Mary leaves, an angel (or angels) dressed in dazzling garments appears to the women who remain at the tomb.  After causing the guards at the tomb to tremble with fear, the angels proclaim to the women, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but has risen.”  They then urge the women to remember what Jesus had already told them in Galilee—that He must die and rise again on the third day.  Only then do the women remember the words of Jesus.

 

Stage 4: Peter and John Examine the Tomb (Primarily John and Luke)

 

Meanwhile, after hearing Mary Magdalene’s report, Peter and the other disciple (John) run frantically toward the tomb. John arrives first and stoops down to look inside, while Peter, following behind him, goes directly into the tomb.  Inside the tomb are the linen cloths that had wrapped Jesus’ body, while the cloth that had covered His head is folded and lying separately in another place.  The two apostles confirm that the body is gone and, marveling at what has happened (with John believing), return again to their homes.

 

Stage 5: The First Encounters with the Risen Jesus (Primarily Matthew and John)

 

After the apostles leave, the risen Jesus appears first to Mary Magdalene, who has remained alone near the tomb weeping.  At first, Mary thinks He is the gardener, but when He calls her by name, “Mary,” she recognizes the Lord.  Meanwhile, Jesus also meets the other women on the road as they are running to tell the apostles what the angel had said, filled with fear and great joy.  The women take hold of Jesus’ feet and worship Him, and Jesus commands them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee.”

 

Stage 6: The Apostles’ Unbelief and the Women’s Testimony (Primarily Luke and Mark)

 

The women who return from the tomb—Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and others—vividly testify to the eleven apostles and the other disciples concerning the first news of the resurrection that they have seen and heard.  However, the apostles initially do not believe them because the women’s words seem to them like nonsense (an unbelievable tale).

 

2.  Although the resurrection accounts in the four Gospels deal with one great event, each Gospel writer presents a different spiritual emphasis according to his distinctive theological perspective.

 

Matthew 28 focuses on “the authority and victory of Jesus who came as King.”  It describes the majestic scene of a great earthquake and an angel rolling away the stone from the tomb, while contrasting this with the chief priests’ bribery of the guards in an attempt to conceal the resurrection.  It also emphasizes the scene in which the risen Lord personally appears to the women on their way and greets them with an authoritative word of peace.

 

Mark 16 candidly reveals “human fear and the weakness of the disciples” when confronted with the news of the resurrection.  It vividly captures the human reaction of the women who, after hearing the news of the resurrection from a young man dressed in white (an angel), are overwhelmed with astonishment, trembling, and fear, and flee from the tomb. Through this, Mark highlights the awe human beings experience before the supernatural event of the resurrection, as well as the limitations of the disciples’ faith, which initially made it difficult for them to believe.

 

Luke 24 most powerfully emphasizes “the remembrance of the promised Word and its fulfillment in redemptive history.”  The angels urge the women to “remember” the words Jesus spoke while He was in Galilee, and Luke presents the moment when the disciples remember His words as a spiritual turning point.  Luke focuses on showing that the resurrection was not an accidental event but the complete fulfillment of the Word of God that had already been written and proclaimed.

 

John 20 deeply portrays “detailed eyewitness testimony and a personal encounter of love” through the perspective of an apostle who directly witnessed the scene.  John records the scene of Peter and John racing frantically toward the tomb and gives specific details about the condition of the tomb, including the linen cloths and the face cloth lying neatly arranged. Above all, John movingly portrays the intimate love of the risen Lord, who comes to Mary Magdalene as she weeps beside the tomb and tenderly calls her by name.

 

Ultimately, through their different emphases, the four Gospels provide a multidimensional testimony to the authority of the resurrection (Matthew), awe before the resurrection (Mark), the fulfillment of the Word (Luke), and intimate love (John), thereby bringing the richness of the gospel of the resurrection into its fullness (Internet).

 

(i)     Here, when I read about “the fulfillment of the Word (Luke),” I was reminded of Revelation 22:20: “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”  In other words, the Lord’s word of promise that we must never forget but must always remember is: “Surely I am coming quickly.” What kind of life of faith does a Christian live who is convinced that this word of promise will be fulfilled and who is preparing for its fulfillment?

 

·        If the women in Luke 24 prepared useless spices because they failed to remember the Lord’s words concerning His first coming—“He must rise again”—then the ultimate promise given to us today is: “Surely I am coming quickly” (Rev. 22:20). Continuing the earlier analogy of “remembrance and spices,” artificial intelligence has summarized in three points the characteristics of the life of a Christian who believes that this word of promise will certainly be fulfilled and who prepares for the Lord’s return (Second Coming) (Internet):

 

a.   Instead of Preparing Spices for This Perishable World, We Prepare an “Eternal Reward”

 

Just as the women who did not believe in the resurrection prepared spices from early morning in an attempt to delay the decomposition of a corpse, those who do not believe in the Lord’s return and the fulfillment of His Word live as though this earth will last forever.  They pour all the energy of their lives into accumulating the “spices” of worldly values that will eventually decay and disappear—honor, material possessions, power, and so forth.

 

The Christian who is convinced of Christ’s return: Because such a Christian knows that the Lord will come quickly and make this world new, rather than accumulating the spices of this perishable world, he or she invests in eternal values for the kingdom of God.  As the Apostle Peter exhorted, such a Christian lives “in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God” (2 Pet. 3:11–12).

 

b.   We Stay Awake in Prayer and Live Each Day as an “Eschatological Today”

 

A Christian who has engraved upon the heart the words, “Surely I am coming quickly,” does not fall into spiritual sleep.  Because such a Christian does not know when the Lord may knock at the door, he or she remains continually awake, living a life in which the lamp of the soul is kept filled with oil.

 

The Christian who is convinced of Christ’s return: For such a person, “today” is not merely another meaningless day passing by.  He or she maintains a “holy sense of urgency,” knowing that the Lord could come today, and an “eschatological purity,” desiring to have no reason for shame even if standing before the Lord tonight. Whenever worldly temptation or spiritual stagnation comes, such a Christian awakens himself or herself by confessing the words of Revelation 22:20: “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! (Maranatha).”

 

c.   We Overcome Present Reality with “the Greatest Joy and Hope,” Not with Fear

 

For those who do not believe in the Lord’s return or who are not prepared for it, the day of judgment is a day of terror and fear.  But for the Christian who is convinced of the fulfillment of the promise, the coming of the Lord is like a “wedding day,” when every tear and every pain will be wiped away and complete victory will be given.

 

The Christian who is convinced of Christ’s return: Such a Christian does not become discouraged amid present suffering, persecution, illness, or unjust circumstances.  This is because he or she is convinced that on the day when the Lord who said, “I am coming quickly,” returns, all evil will be judged and God’s justice will triumph completely.  Therefore, such believers consider the sufferings of the present time unworthy to be compared with the glory that will be revealed (Rom. 8:18), and instead demonstrate a life of rejoicing and persevering even in tribulation.

 

In Summary,

The Christian who lives vividly remembering the words, “Surely I am coming quickly,” is not preoccupied with preparing spices to apply to the perishable tombs of this earth.  Instead, like a pure bride waiting for the Bridegroom, such a Christian remains awake in prayer, clothes himself or herself with a holy life, praises “Maranatha” every day, and lives today in hope.

 

(3)  Third, I wanted to meditate on the words in today’s passage, Luke 24:3: “They did not find the body of the Lord Jesus” [οὐχ εὗρον τὸ σῶμα τοῦ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ (ouk heuron to sōma tou kyriou Iēsou)].  In particular, I believe that we Christians who live with faith in the resurrection should live with the firm conviction that the time will come when our bodies, too, will no longer be seen.  As I thought about this, Matthew 27:52–53 came to mind: “The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.”

(a)  Just as the declaration, “The body of the Lord Jesus was not found” (Luke 24:3), was the first step in bearing witness to the Lord’s resurrection, the thought that we who possess resurrection faith should likewise live with the conviction that the day will come when our bodies will no longer remain in the tomb but will disappear from it—the day of resurrection and transformation—perfectly corresponds with the central message of the “resurrection chapter” that the Apostle Paul proclaimed so powerfully in 1 Corinthians 15. Connecting this insight with the mysterious event of Matthew 27:52–53, artificial intelligence has summarized its spiritual meaning and the assurance it gives to modern Christians in three points (Internet):

 

1.  Jesus’ resurrection is the firstfruits demonstrating that the bodies of the saints will “no longer be seen” in their tombs.

 

Matthew 27:52–53 records that when Jesus breathed His last on the cross, the tombs were opened, and after Jesus had risen, many bodies [σώματα, bodies/corpses] of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, came out of the tombs, and appeared to many people.

 

The correspondence of this insight: This event was a “preview,” showing beforehand that Jesus’ resurrection was not merely a supernatural event involving Him alone.  Because Jesus became the firstfruits of the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:20), this event visibly demonstrated within history that the saints who believe in Him will also one day come out through the doors of their tombs, no longer remaining as corpses, but being transformed into spiritual bodies.

 

2.  The spiritual meaning of the conviction, “The time will come when our bodies, too, will no longer be seen”

 

For Christians, the grave is not the final destination of life but merely a temporary “sleeping place.”  On the day the Lord returns, just as the body of the Lord Jesus disappeared from the tomb, our bodies, too, will disappear from the grave forever, and we will be clothed with glorious resurrection bodies.

 

The awakening of those who sleep: The Bible describes the death of the saints not simply as “death” but as “sleep” (Mt. 27:52), because there will be a time of awakening.

From the body (σῶμα) to the glorious body (σῶμα): The Apostle Paul said, “It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption.  It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory” (1 Cor. 15:42–43).  Even though our physical bodies may be buried in the ground, decay, and disappear, on the day the Lord comes we will be clothed with glorious bodies like the Lord’s resurrected body, and our “corpses” will no longer remain in the tomb.

 

3.  The attitude toward life of a modern Christian who possesses this assurance

 

A person who possesses the ultimate resurrection assurance that “the day will come when my body, too, will no longer be seen” lives on this earth on an entirely different level.

 

Such a person enjoys complete freedom from the fear of death.

For the people of the world, death is the end of everything and a source of despair that leaves behind nothing but a decaying corpse.  But the Christian who possesses this assurance can stand confidently even in the face of death.  This is because the Christian knows that death is merely the process of temporarily taking off one garment in order to be clothed with a glorious resurrection body.

 

Such a person does not lose heart even amid physical illness and weakness.

Even when the body grows weaker with age, when one suffers from disease, or when one lives with a disability, the Christian does not lose heart.  This is because the Christian looks forward to the day when this earthly tent is destroyed and we will receive from God an eternal dwelling—a spiritual body made by God, not by human hands—the day when even the traces of this weak flesh, the corpse itself, will no longer be found because we will have been perfectly healed and transformed.

 

Such a person lives beforehand, in the present body, the life of the “holy city.”

Just as the saints in Matthew came out of their tombs, entered the “holy city (Jerusalem),” and bore witness to the resurrection, we who are convinced of the resurrection to come, though we still live on this earth, already live as citizens of heaven—as people of the holy city—showing ourselves to the people of the world as living witnesses of the resurrection.

 

In summary,

The “empty tomb of Jesus” in Luke 24 was followed by the “empty tombs of the saints” in Matthew 27, and on the day of the Lord’s return it will be brought to completion in “the empty tombs of all of us.”  This great conviction—“The day will come when my body, too, will not remain in the tomb but will no longer be seen”—is the most powerful weapon enabling Christians to smile even in the face of every kind of despair and every threat of death in this world (Internet).

 

(4)  Fourth and last, as I meditate on the words, “The apostles did not believe them because their words seemed to them like nonsense.  But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw only the linen cloths.  And he returned home, marveling at what had happened” (Lk. 24:11–12), I want to receive the lesson these words give us. In particular, I would like each of us to reflect personally on the words, “Their words seemed to them like nonsense, and they did not believe them” [ἐφάνησαν ἐνώπιον αὐτῶν ὡσεὶ λῆρος τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα, καὶ ἠπίστουν αὐταῖς (ephanēsan enōpion autōn hōsei lēros ta rhēmata tauta, kai ēpistoun autais)] (v. 11), and consider how we should listen to God’s Word of truth and, by faith, prepare for Jesus’ return.

 

(a)  “The response of the apostles when they heard the testimony of the women who brought the first news of the resurrection was tragic.  The original-language Bible exposes their condition with the expressions ‘hōsei lēros’ [ὡσεὶ λῆρος—like absurd nonsense] and ‘ἠπίστουν (ēpistoun—they persistently did not believe).’  The highest-ranking leaders—the apostles—who had heard the Lord’s words from the closest possible position treated the greatest truth in the world as ‘nonsense.’  As we project this shocking scene onto ourselves today, I would like to share three lessons concerning how we should receive the Word of God and prepare for the Lord’s return” (Internet):

 

1.   My years of faith and my position in the church do not guarantee “faith that believes the Word.”

 

The most frightening aspect of Luke 24:11 is that those who regarded the women’s words as nonsense and stubbornly rejected them were not unbelievers in the world, but the “apostles” whom Jesus Himself had personally chosen.  For three years they had witnessed miracles and listened to His preaching, yet at the decisive moment they were completely blinded spiritually.

 

Reflection upon ourselves: Today, we too can mistakenly assume that our positions as pastors, elders, senior deaconesses, or deacons, or our decades of Christian experience, prove the genuineness of our faith.  Even though we hear the promise of the Second Coming—“Surely I am coming quickly”—every week in the church, we must examine ourselves sharply to see whether, in the actual attitudes of our lives, we are treating those words as a “nonsensical story,” hearing them with one ear and letting them pass out the other, just as the apostles did.

 

2.  The limitation of a faith that stops at “Wonder,” as seen in Peter’s “running” and “returning”

 

When none of the apostles believed, Peter suddenly got up and ran to the tomb (v. 12).  He stooped down, looked inside, and saw only the empty linen cloths remaining. Scripture then records that he “returned home, marveling at what had happened.”

 

Reflection upon ourselves: Peter clearly had more passion than the other apostles and even went personally to the scene to verify what had happened.  And he “marveled.” But that was as far as he went.  He merely wondered at what had happened; he still did not reach the point of remembering the Lord’s words or possessing faith that was convinced of the resurrection. Instead, he returned helplessly, without restoration, “to his own home”—that is, to the routine and safety zone of his former life.

 

Lesson for preparing for the Second Coming: When hearing the Word concerning the Lord’s return and the end times, many Christians remain only at the level of intellectual curiosity or emotional wonder, saying, “Wow, that is amazing,” or, “The end of the world really must be near.”  But if, without a transformed life—repentance and spiritual watchfulness—we simply return to our former way of life, concerned only with our own comfort and security (“home”), then we are no different from Peter’s powerless footsteps as he trudged back home after seeing the tomb on the morning of the resurrection.

 

3.  The only way to transform “nonsense” into “the truth of life”: placing the Word under “the dominion of remembrance”

 

There was only one difference between the women and the apostles.  Through the angels’ reminder, the women “remembered the words of Jesus” (v. 8), while the apostles still “had not remembered.” When remembrance is not functioning, the perfect truth of God is reduced to mere human “nonsense.”

 

Our attitude in preparing for the Second Coming: If the promise “I am coming quickly” is not to sound like absurd hearsay in our lives, we must awaken our souls every day so that this Word completely governs our thoughts and values (2 Pet. 3:1).  Whenever the news, information, and financial logic of the world become so dominant that the Lord’s promise begins to fade from our minds, we must intentionally engage in the spiritual battle of meditating on, memorizing, and remembering the Word.  Only then, when the Word is heard, will we be able to respond with “Amen” rather than stubborn unbelief (Internet).