“Why God Rolled Away The Stone” (Ready to WOrship S9E2)

January 25, 2019

Ready to Worship Season 9, Episode 2 for Friday, January 25, 2019

On this season of Ready to Worship we are examining the resurrection of Christ. I believe that examining the resurrection will help our worship to be richer and fuller.

Someone observed, “God didn’t roll away the stone to let Jesús out, but to let the disciples in.” I believe that the evidence supports this statement. Jesús didn’t need help getting out of the tomb. He could have passed through the stone that was rolled in front of the tomb without difficulty. On one occasion, in Nazareth, Jesús simply passed through the midst of an angry mob that was bent on killing Him by throwing Him off a cliff (Lk. 4:28-30). The mob was powerless to seize Him and to stop Him. On another occasion, Jesus would appear suddenly in a room even though the doors were shut for fear of the Jews (John 20:19). Evidently, on that occasion, Jesús simply passed through the walls. Surely, He could have done the same with the tomb. The tomb itself contained concrete evidence that Jesús didn’t need help getting out. When Peter and John entered the tomb, they found the grave clothes (wrappings) lying there just as they had been when the body of Jesús was in them (John 20:3-8). How did Jesús get out of these clothes without someone unwrapping Him? You may remember that when Lazarus was raised from the dead, he needed someone to loose him (John 11:44). Jesús did not need this assistance. It was the disciples who needed help. You likely recall that one of the concerns that women had who were coming to anoint Jesus’ body with sweet spices was how they were going to roll away the great stone (Mk. 16:1-3).

As we get ready to worship this week, let’s remember why God rolled away the stone. The stone was rolled away to let the disciples in and not to let the Lord out. Let’s think about the power that Jesus had to overcome the grave as we gather for worship this week!