Eye Witnesses of the Unbelievable
Mary Magdalene and her friends felt numb as they walked through the streets of Jerusalem to the outskirts of the city early that Sunday morning. They stared down at the cobblestones and clutched burial spices to themselves.
Their beloved Friend, Jesus, had streaked this pavement with His blood two days before as He stumbled toward the place of execution with a cross on His torn shoulders. Those horrible scenes were still vivid in their minds.
Jesus’ death had meant the end for Mary—the end of forgiveness, love, hope. She didn’t want to live in a world that couldn’t tolerate the likes of the Rabbi from Nazareth.
As they walked up the hill toward the place of burial, Mary suddenly stopped. She realised that, in their confusion and gloom, they hadn’t thought of the stone.
“Who will roll the stone away from the entrance?” she asked.
The tomb was sealed with an enormous round stone that would be difficult for a strong man to move. How were they going to get inside to anoint the body of their Master? He’d been taken down from the cross, broken and limp, and laid in a vault carved out of rock. It hadn’t been a proper burial. These women wanted to perform this one last act of devotion.
Not knowing what else to do, they walked on. They would pay their respects at the site.
Meanwhile, back in the city, a man named Peter huddled in an upper room with his friends, with the door securely locked. Peter’s hopes and those of Jesus’ followers had been crushed by the death of Jesus. Their Master had allowed Himself to be crucified by religious bigots. Where was the kingdom of heaven He had spoken so glowingly about? Where was the new era of mercy and justice He’d claimed was beginning? No-where, it seemed.
The worst of men had triumphed. If the Almighty wouldn’t protect this spotless Lamb of God, how could they hope to survive?
Peter was uncharacteristically quiet. He agonised more than anyone else—he couldn’t forget the look he’d seen on Jesus’ face in the courtyard of the high priest, Caiaphas, when he denied he knew Jesus. He’d betrayed the Man who meant everything to him. Now it was too late to say he was sorry.
About this same time, another disciple, Thomas, wandered Jerusalem’s streets alone. Thomas was a sensitive, melancholy man. The horror of the crucifixion affected him deeply. Weeks before, he’d made a resolution to come to Jerusalem, prepared to die with his Master. He’d said as much.
Now that Jesus had been killed and so humiliated, Thomas just wanted to get away. He didn’t even want to be around the other disciples, his closest friends. If he looked into their eyes, he’d remember what they, too, had witnessed—the bloody cross and the spear driven into Jesus’ side.
So Thomas wandered alone, his cloak pulled over his head. Anonymous. Hopeless. Wrapped up in his dark thoughts.
the three witnesses
Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter and Thomas were about to meet the One they mourned in the most unexpected ways. They were about to become eyewitnesses to the most glorious event in history.
Some are inclined to dismiss the testimony of these witnesses. It is fantastic, it sounds like a legend or myth. But scholars who’ve studied the evidence surrounding the resurrection find it hard to doubt the testimony of these witnesses. The evidence is that they couldn’t possibly have made up the encounters that utterly changed their lives.
Mary Magdalene with her friends arrived at the tomb that Sunday morning to anoint the body of Jesus. To their utter surprise, the historian Luke says, they found the stone rolled from the tomb mouth. They went in, but didn’t find a body and “were greatly perplexed about this.”
Their first thoughts weren’t hopeful ones, though. They assumed someone had stolen the body, and this made them even sadder. As they retreated, they saw two men in shining garments, which made them afraid, but one said, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen!” (Luke 24:4-6*).
Here was wonderful news indeed! But it didn’t sink in. These women had last seen their Lord wrapped in linen, a pale, blue corpse. His body had disappeared, true enough, but a resurrection wasn’t the first explanation that came to mind. In fact, the account in Mark’s Gospel says “they went out quickly and fled . . . amazed. . . . They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid” (Mark 16:8).
Eventually they did. Gathering their wits about them, they decided to go and tell the disciples what they’d seen and heard. So they went to the upper room, knocked on the door and crept inside. They had important news to tell, but to the disciples the news “seemed . . . like idle tales, and they did not believe them” (Luke 24:11).
They just couldn’t get their heads around it either. The empty tomb on its own wasn’t enough—not in the beginning. So Peter decided to check for himself. With John, he ran to the place of burial. John records that “Simon Peter came . . . into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there” (John 20:6).
he burial cloth was there, but there was no Jesus—no body. Peter, too, now went away, wondering what had happened. He couldn’t quite grasp what had happened. The empty tomb, staring him in the face, wasn’t enough to erase his despair. But that evening Peter experienced something that was.
Jesus appeared in the midst of the disciples and, after speaking to them, showed them His hands and wounded side (John 20:19, 20). As He stood among them, Peter and his fellow disciples looked into that familiar face. They found it hard to grasp and, according to Luke, thought they were seeing a ghost. Knowing this, Jesus asked for food—some fish and honeycomb—which He ate (Luke 24:41-43).
This was no pale, broken body—no corpse or ghost. This was the living Christ, snacking! The disciples had to believe; they had to accept this incredible fact: Christ really had risen from the dead!
The empty tomb hadn’t been enough to overcome their despair. But this latest surprise, this unexpected visit, erased their doubts. Jesus had indeed appeared to them, alive and well.
That still wasn’t enough. Thomas, at some point after Christ departed, came back from wandering the streets. But when the other disciples met him at the door with the breathtaking news, “We have seen the Lord!” Thomas responded: “Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe” (John 20:25).
Thomas had to see for himself; he had to touch for himself. When Jesus finally met Thomas some eight days later, he was still tortured by doubts. So when Jesus came into the midst of the disciples, He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at my hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing” (John 20:27).
So Thomas touched the wounds in Jesus’ side and hands and, finally, that was enough. Thomas had to believe. He added his testimony to that of the other disciples, acknowledging the risen Jesus, saying, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
His is the only appropriate response to the weight of evidence regarding Jesus’ resurrection.
responding to the evidence
There is hard evidence that the tomb was empty that Easter morning, but if that’s not enough, there is clear testimony of the women and more than 500 eyewitnesses of Jesus appearing alive and well after His death. And if that’s not enough, there is clear testimony from Christ’s closest friends that they touched and saw and heard Him themselves.
God hasn’t held back in giving evidence of the resurrection. He’s also been willing to answer doubters. But many times we hold back in responding honestly and appropriately—like Thomas. It may seem like something from the distant past, a religious myth or doctrine, but the resurrection is much more than that: It is the most glorious thing that ever happened on Planet Earth.
Here is a demonstration that Jesus can indeed be the Saviour of the world. It demonstrates He can be your Saviour. It demonstrates that we can have the hope of eternal life. It demonstrates that the tyranny of sin and death are broken.
See what happened to Mary Magdalene after she looked into the empty tomb that Easter morning—just before the message of the angels sank in and that Jesus had indeed risen.
She stepped back from the gaping tomb when she spotted a man, whom she presumed to be the gardener, among the olive trees. The man asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Whom are you seeking?”
She said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away” (John 20:15).
All Mary wanted was to express one last measure of devotion.
But then the gardener called her by name—“Mary!”—and she knew it was Him, Jesus, who had spoken. Rushing toward Jesus, she cried, “Rabboni!” or, “Teacher!” and fell at His feet and clung to Him. She didn’t want to lose Him again.
But how do we respond when the risen Christ appears, calling us by name? Like Mary, we need to rush to Him, fall at His feet and worship Him. Then, forever, cling to Him. And like Thomas we need to acknowledge Him as “My Lord and my God!”
That’s the message that rings out from an empty tomb near Jerusalem. It’s the message that rings out from Christ’s appearances. It’s the message that rings out from doubting Thomas. And it’s the good news that gives us hope today and assurance of a tomorrow.
* Biblical quotations are from the NKJV.
Adapted, with permission, from Satisfied. See special offer below.
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