They Just Went Home (Easter Day 1)

Easter Monday: They Just Went Back Home

PRAY: Ask God to speak to you from His Word.

READ: John 20:1-10

1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved,and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” 3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.

UNDERSTAND: What is the main idea of this passage?

The disciples followed Jesus for three years. During that time, Jesus repeatedly told them that He would be crucified and resurrected on the third day. But they missed it. They didn’t really understand what Jesus meant. They didn’t want to believe that the Son of God would be killed. They wanted Jesus to conquer the world and restore peace to Israel. This is why Jesus had to repeatedly tell them what was going to happen. But even though they were told, they did not understand. So after seeing the empty tomb, they just went back home. You can know the story of the Gospel and still do nothing with it.

APPLY: What is this passage calling me to do?

Maybe you have heard the Gospel numerous times throughout your life. But, like the disciples, you struggled to understand what it means for you. Here’s the good news. There is an appointed time when our eyes are opened and we fully submit our lives to Christ. At that point, everything begins to change.

Is there anything about the Gospel that you don’t fully understand?

What are you doing with what you do know? - Read James 1:19-27

PRAY: Ask God to help you understand and live out the Gospel.