by Matthew Betts

As he approached the end of his life, Jesus knew that the coming of God’s kingdom depended on his death. His whole life had prepared him for this. He has experienced the one moment of weakness in the Garden of Gethsemane and had been overwhelmed by fear, but he is now steadfast and has chosen to save us all.

Jesus’s death would have been witnessed by his family and close friends. At the ending of Jesus’s life, John writes that Jesus simply says: “It is finished” as he breathed his last. 

Before reading further - please spend a few minutes reflecting on this moment.

After the crucifixion, Jerusalem would have returned to how it always was – bustling and full of activity once more. Some would not have even heard about the tragedy that had occurred at Calvary. We know that the Apostles are hiding and fearing for their lives. The darkness of grief they felt would have been made all the darker by feeling that they had also failed during the trial of Jesus. They had, of course, hoped and believed that if they followed Jesus, he would have founded his kingdom – but now it had ended so brutally with his death. They no longer have any hope and are devastated. 

But then something changes. The promises and reassurances of Jesus, which the Apostles had misunderstood, were now about to be fulfilled. 

Several women who had witnessed the crucifixion and had helped with his burial had made a promise to themselves: on Sunday (the earliest opportunity), they would anoint and prepare Jesus’ body with spices. These spices were used to offset any odour that resulted from the body’s decomposition. The fact that they agreed to do this, means that they had no expectation of the immediate resurrection of Jesus from the dead. On the way there, they had wondered how they were going to roll away the heavy stone – and were unsure until they arrived and found the stone had been rolled back already. This must have been an immense moment of fear for the women. 

How would you have felt?

Inside, they saw a young man dressed in white. He said: “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look inside is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” Utterly frightened, Mary Magdalen and the other women headed to speak to the eleven. 

Now everything changes in the story of Jesus’ followers. Peter and John go out to look – and the body has indeed gone. They return to the other nine apostles and Mary to let them know. Over the next forty days, the truth of the Resurrection is revealed by Jesus himself. He visits the apostles and many other disciples several times. John tells us that Jesus appeared many more times than what is recorded in his Gospel, but the best guess is around ten or twelve times. There were probably more times, because even Saint Paul mentions another time not recorded in the New Testament. 

The Resurrection is, of course, more than just some appearances – it is the start of a new era of God’s eternal purpose. Now finally, the Apostles can all enjoy the hope of the resurrection. They are transformed and go out to spread the Good News assisted by the Holy Spirit. They now lived on hope, hope that with the living Christ they would become more like Him in showing love to others. Hope too that when death came, they would find a still more magnificent life in another place with Jesus. 
This hope of Easter spread by the Apostles is important even today. 

Let’s celebrate. He has risen! Happy Easter! Go out and spread the Good News.