Stress Test Devotional May 4
May 04, 2024
LUKE 24:22-24 | 22 Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, 23 and when they did not find his body there they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see him.
1 CORINTHIANS 15:13-14 | 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised, 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain and your faith is in vain.
The Resurrection was a unique event that would have brought shock and awe to anyone, in any culture, in any generation. But part of the male disciples confusion was rooted in a reluctance to credit female witnesses. The women had not gone into lockdown, and several had braved the horror of the cross, unlike the men. But when a number of them witnessed the empty tomb and conveyed the angel’s message about the Resurrection, the men dismissed this as an “idle tale,” a hysterical story of wishful thinking. Even when Peter and the others verified the empty tomb, they doubted the credibility of the report of the angelic assurance. This story must be true, since no first century Jewish male would invent a tale starring women!
The empty tomb was a necessary but not sufficient reason to believe in the Resurrection. If the body was there, the Resurrection was not real. Other religions have founders and we know where their graves and bodies reside. But without the Resurrection appearances, the empty tomb is ambiguous. Only the two things together make sense of the Easter events.
What is your credibility criteria?
Gracious God,
Don’t let prejudice blind me to the testimony and truth others can convey.
Amen.
