Son Rise,by Steve Creitz
Early Sunday morning, Peter’s phone buzzes with a message from a familiar pack: Jerusalem Publicity Secretaries Forum.”Hi,bro. Three days now. Your man isn’t resurrected. Are you safe? Are you ready for the mocking?” Peter can’t reply to this message with a genuine reason: he is avoiding any debates about religion at all costs.His reason is valid.
Grief veils all sweet memories. For the disciples, grief carried along with it;regret-why were they fooled to the extent of trusting “the young man” so much, and fear-how would they face the Priests and their doctrinal rivals. This could partly explain the disbandment of “Team Jesus of Nazareth”.[John 20:24,21:3]All of them had seen Jesus raise dead people back to life,walk on water,feed thousands,but this moment was the real litmus test of their faith in Jesus.
As the darkness fades into the morning light,a “bunch” of women burges into Peter’s and the rest of the disciples’ hideout with the unexpected tidings.Jesus is risen! [Luke 24:8-11].Yet still, Peter’s disbelief was justified in his own sense. He had seen it all;the scourgings,death,and the burial.”Life” had died.
Back to the matter of three days raised by Peter’s mate.
“Miktsat hayom kekulo” (a part of the day is as the whole of it). Therefore, the 3 days’ mark had been reached. It carried even more significance in Jewish tradition:The whole strength of the mourning is not till the third day; for three days long the soul returns to the grave, thinking that it will return (into the body); when however it sees that the color of its face has changed then it goes away and leaves it” (Gen. Rab. 100 [64a]; quoted in Beasley-Murray’s John, pg. 189-190).
Jesus’s resurrection not only brought hope of eternal life to mankind, but also trampled upon the evil and erroneous teachings about the Immortality of the soul,then,and now.
Just when the disciples needed it(the resurrection/comeback/remontada),it occurred. God’s interventions are always timely. The Heavenly Father’s interventions are never mixed with sinful human efforts.
Because He lives,I can face tomorrow…
1 comments
Thanks 👍