John 20
John 20:1-31
1 Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.
2 Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”
3 Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb.
4 So they both ran together, and the other disciple outran Peter and came to the tomb first.
5 And he, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in.
6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb; and he saw the linen cloths lying there,
7 and the handkerchief that had been around His head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself.
8 Then the other disciple, who came to the tomb first, went in also; and he saw and believed.
9 For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.
10 Then the disciples went away again to their own homes.
11 But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb.
12 And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
13 Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”
14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.
15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, “Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him, “Rabboni!” (which is to say, Teacher).
17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’ “
18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.
19 Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
20 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”
22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
24 Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
25 The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “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.”
26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”
27 Then 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.”
28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;
31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
Believing is in need of revelation. Without the introduction of new information, all there is to go on is what is already received. Also, the new information is often not understood until there is an additional experience. Though told by Jesus Himself what would happen, that He would be gone for a while but then return, they could not even effectively remember it until they encountered His presence. They were overwhelmed by what they had already experienced in death, and even though Lazarus had risen before their eyes, they thought they had lost the One with the power of resurrection. Even when He appeared to them through closed doors, they still needed to see His hands and side. He then did something, though, that was significant for believing. He breathed on them and spoke reception of the Holy Spirit. This was the encounter that would affect believing like nothing else. With the reception of the Holy Spirit comes the encounter that turns information into transformed perception. What could not be understood is given substance with the fullness. For all that would follow there is a requirement of this blessing Jesus spoke of to Thomas. We no longer see Jesus as they did physically, but we are blessed to understand and believe as the Holy Spirit comes to fill with revelation.
Such an essential element in believing without seeing – receiving the fullness of the Jesus-breathed Holy Spirit. With every word that is written, there is a need for the additional revelation that comes only by the Spirit. The power to perceive and believe is discovered and applied as there is pressing beyond what is already known to find new realms of understanding directly from the Word by the Spirit. Apart from this encounter, it can be heard but never effectively experienced.
I had never pondered as to why the linen that was over Jesus’ face in the tomb, was folded when the disciples went to look for His body. It seems like a fact that really isn’t important to the story of Jesus’ resurrection, yet it made its way into the passage.
If Jesus’ body would have been stolen, they robbers wouldn’t have taken the time to fold the cloth. They would have kept it on when the took Him or they would have discarded as they hurried away. I truly believe this was a sign to what had happened there.
He had told them He would rise again, and even left them clues along the way, and I believe it was multifaceted. I believe that it was out of His compassion for them to leave them clues so that in the natural they would be comforted but that also in their Spirits, they would know that He had risen just like He said!!
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