Easter Devo

March 27th, 2016

Devotional

“The Grave Robber: The Seventh Miracle” - John 11: 32-44 and John 20: 1-18

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Where He Was Laid” - John 11: 32-37

Mary believed - she believed that Jesus could have saved her brother when he became ill - in fact that was one of the reason she and Martha sent for him to come. But, Jesus didn’t make it in time. Now she was getting her feeling out to Jesus “if you would have been here, my brother would not have died.” You can almost hear the passive aggressive nature of what she was saying because of her grief piercing through her voice.

But Jesus didn’t confront her on that. Instead, he asked to see where the body had been laid. And he wept. The shortest verse in scripture but arguably one of the most powerful - Jesus wept for the one he loved and lost. 

Have you ever felt like this with Christ in your life? Like if Jesus would have just showed up the first time you prayed that everything would have turned out differently? Have you ever thought about Jesus weeping for you because he loves you so much? 

Have you ever felt like God’s timing wasn’t right, only to discover that God’s timing was perfect?

Have you ever gotten passive-aggressive with God? How have you dealt with those tendencies? 

Prayer: God of resurrection, all too often, we confess that we believe that our ways and timing are better than yours. Help our unbelief, O Lord. Help us to trust you more each and every day, especially in the face of difficult circumstances. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Come Out!” - John 11: 38-44, Romans 10:9

If someone told you the story of Lazarus for the first time, how would you respond? Sometimes we let the familiarity of Bible passages wear on us and we forget how radical and beautiful they can be when we hear them for the first time. How would you respond if you were gathered in the crowd that day and Lazarus came out of the tomb, bound in over one hundred pounds of cloth and preservatives? How would this reveal to you the glory of God?

I believe that we see the glory of God around us each and every day in a variety of ways, but we often ignore it, because we have come to expect, if not even demand, that God provide for us in these ways instead of seeing them as blessings from God. How can you renew in ourselves that sense of awe at the glory of God? 

What do you think God is aiming for in our lives?

What is God calling you out of?

What is the difference between confessing with your mouth and believing with your heart in Jesus? 

Prayer: Almighty God, you do not force us to believe in you - instead you allow us to choose each day whether we will see you, glorify you, and follow you. Help us to respond anew to you, O Lord. Help us to believe in you fully. Amen. 

Wednesday: “They Have Taken Him” - John 20: 1-8

I’m not the most athletic of persons. In fact, I have successfully managed to avoid most gym classes and foot races. But I remember when I was a child that you ran simply because everyone else did. If others were running a certain direction, they must be going to see something - something you didn’t want to miss.

The disciples also ran in today’s scripture passage. They ran not because there was something that they didn’t want to miss, but because they had just heard news they didn’t want to believe “They have taken the Lord.” Ironically, the Roman guards had been scared that it was Jesus’ followers who would steal his body and now, as if a mean joke has been played, it seems like someone else has taken and hid the body of the one they loved.

We too face questions at the face of the empty of tomb. In fact, some of us may have even come to worship this morning driven by the question - is this even true? Or how is my life changed by the risen Christ? Why does this day matter? The claim of a man raising from the dead seems questionable itself, let alone to say that man was truly God.

What questions do you face when you look at the empty tomb?

What questions have drove you to worship on Easter morning?

Prayer: God, we cannot begin to grasp all of the questions and emotions that Mary and the disciples felt when they discovered the empty tomb. The who, what, where, why, and how. Lord, as we stand facing the empty tomb today, we have the benefit of knowing about your resurrection, but we still come with questions. Meet us in our time of need and reassure our questioning hearts, O Lord. Amen. 

Thursday: “Why are you Crying?” - John 20: 11-15

It doesn’t matter at what point in our life we looked into the empty tomb, saw, and believed. It doesn’t matter if we have all of the facts straight in our head or can recite every Bible story. What does matter is that we, too, believe. Believe that Christ’s mercy and grace triumph all. Believe that death doesn’t have the final word. For over the years many people have come to faith by looking into the empty tomb. We have faith in the seemingly unbelievable. But in the words of Pastor Clayton Schmit, “Faith comes first as a gift. Sorting it out comes later.”

Mary stands up, still crying and is met by another person she thinks is the gardner. He took asks her why she is weeping and she begs him to tell him where he has taken her Lord. But then Jesus calls her by name, “Mary” and she grabs him, clinging too him. 

Sometimes looking into the empty tomb is not enough to start our faith journey. Sometimes we are so caught up in our own pain, that we cannot see the message of hope through our own tears. We too are asked “Why are you weeping?” and have so many answers that we cannot give voice to. So much that is blocking our ability to see and believe. 

What thoughts do you have concerning Clayton Schmit’s statement “Faith comes first as a gift. Sorting it out comes later.”?

What do you weep over? Does it draw you closer to him or distract you from seeing him in the world around you?

Prayer: God, we have tears that need to be released this day. We weep for the pain that we carry around that others do not know about. Weep for loved ones gone too soon. Weep for a world at war. Weep for children that go to bed hungry. Help us, dear Lord, to see you through all of our tears. Amen. 

Friday: “Mary” - John 11: 16-18

We need Jesus to call us by name. We need to listen for the voice of Christ, when coming to see is not enough. That voice may sound different for each of us. It may be the voice of a friend inviting us to serve on a mission trip. Or a spouse inviting us to come and worship with them. It may be the voice of a teen asking if there is more to life then what we weep over in the world? Questions and invitations may be placing us in the path where Christ can meet us and speak to us. We may not recognize his voice at first, but slowly and surely over time, we notice that it is a voice that is unlike any other. The voice of our teacher that speaks to us in a deep way.

Rather we see and believe or hear the voice of Christ speaking our name, we are left with the same question  - are we going to go, like Mary, and proclaim the good news, “I have seen the Lord! He is Risen” or are we simply going to return to life as usual? Are we going to live as Easter people who follow God, no matter how many questions we may have, or are we going to return home and pretend that today never happened? Are we going to go out and let our voices ring? Are we going to live as if we are empowered by the Lord? Will we go on to live victorious? Will you live like the resurrection means something for your life?

Easter people know that while we live in darkness, weeping now, its not the end of the story. Easter people know that while we have questions, they drive us to look even more closely at the tomb that proclaims of the resurrection. May we go forth as Easter People, going forth to proclaim, “He is risen, indeed!”

How did you come to believe in Christ? How has the claim that “He is Risen” transformed your life?

How are you going to live into being an Easter Person? What does being an Easter Person mean to you?

Prayer: We want to be Easter people! We want to be people who prayer prayers that proclaim the power of your resurrection. Help us to respond to you calling us by name, precious Lord, and help us point others to your transformative truth and power. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Finding Rest in God - Pt 1” - Genesis 2:2-3 and Exodus 16: 23

Family Activity: Build an empty tomb out of play dough together. Many families have crosses in their homes. Put the empty tomb you make somewhere you can see it. What does the cross remind you of? What does the tomb remind you of? How can you celebrate Jesus’s resurrection together this week?