Read John 5:19-29

“Oh, man,” you mutter to yourself, “I did it again.” You open your eyes wide and stretch the tiredness out of your body. You look to your right and your soldier buddy is passed out against the huge rock turned tomb. The thought crosses your mind to wake him but the truth is that you’ve been standing at the entrance of this tomb for going on three days now. You’re still not sure what the big deal is but your commander’s orders are still burning into your mind: “Stand on both sides of the entrance and kill anything that comes close to you that isn’t Roman.” This dead preacher seems to be a big deal. You look in the distance as the sun is rising over the Israeli mountains. “Shoot,” your buddy says as he realizes that he had also fallen asleep. Seeing you, he is relieved to say, “Well, at least you’re up”. You look at him and nod towards the rising sun when it happens.

The earth shakes so violently that you are immediately dropped to your backside. In front of you, the trees seem to be completely sideways due to what could only be an earthquake. Just as you seem to catch your bearings, a light shines so bright you think the sun is 10 feet in front of you. You are so discombobulated that your eyes are as big as stones and your heart has long skipped a beat. After what feels like hours of the earth shaking and the light shining, everything stops.

Silence.

You make sure you’re in one piece and rub your eyes; that’s when you see the unthinkable. A man, who is walking away from you, turns to look at you. Your eyes turn to be as wide as a piece of fruit as you jerk your head towards the tomb to see that the entrance is exposed…the seal broken. In disbelief you look back at the man. As a smirk comes across His lips, He turns and leaves the garden. “It can’t be!” you whisper in disbelief.

Life from death.

In John 5, Jesus explains to His disciples that the works of the Son (Himself) are the works of the Father and how He is the only way to eternal life. Jesus goes on to explain that, when you believe in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins, you aren’t destined for wrath or judgment anymore. Instead, you pass from death into life.

From death to life.

Around this time of year, we celebrate the resurrection of Christ. Because of His resurrection, we will experience one as well. The Easter story is one that instills hope and excitement in our hearts. As we lead up to Easter, read on as our team looks at other passages in the Bible where someone passed from death to life. Through all of this, keep in mind that, through Christ, death doesn’t have to be the end. In Christ, we have hope for a better tomorrow…an eternity with Him.

Do you have hope in Christ for a better tomorrow?

Jake Lawson