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 4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. 5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:  Luke 24:4-6

This passage of Scripture has always spoken so powerfully to me. Mary and her companions had come to anoint the dead body of Jesus in his tomb. Upon arrival, they were stunned to find the tomb empty, and then even more stunned when two heavenly beings appeared and asked them this question, "Why do you seek the Living One among the dead?" The two angels go on to say that He had already told them that He would rise from the dead. It was His promise. Yet, here they were, at the tomb, forgetting the reality of His promise, and looking for Him where He'd told them He wouldn't be. 

We can be really hard on biblical characters and what we see as their lack of faith....until we come upon the same kind of places and challenges. We fail in the same places, and perhaps no more than in our continuing search to find Him in the midst of "dead things." Dead formulas for what we see as successful Christian living.. Dead traditions that rose from the hearts of men and not Him. Dead legalism that disguises itself as personal holiness. In all of them we think we've found Him, but He is not there. All these kinds of things are found in a tomb. They are never found in the presence and life of the risen Christ. Even so, we continue to look for Him everywhere but where He is.

I'm a strong believer in our need to daily immerse ourselves in His presence through meditation upon His Word and in intimate prayer. I also believe that as His people we need to be found doing good unto both our brethren within the church and those who are found outside His Body. Yet even these can become dead things to us. We can begin to think we find life, His life, through a regiment of Scripture study and daily prayers. Yet we can read chapter upon chapter of His Word and never encounter Him. We can literally pray without ceasing, but never actually talk with Him, just at Him. In all of this, we're seeking the Living One among the dead things of religion rather than the powerful experience of a personal and intimate relationship with Him.

It's Easter week. There will be Good Friday services, Sunrise Services, and Easter Morning services. It is usually the most heavily attended service of any church's year. Yet many will come seeking the Living One among the dead. Faithful attendance at a church fellowship can be just as dead as never being there at all. We come for the rituals, or the singing, even for the activities geared towards children. If these are why we're present, then we're no more present than those who don't come at all.

There will be many proclamations this weekend of "Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!" Is He truly risen in your heart and life? Or, do you continue to seek Him out in the dead things of religion? He has promised us resurrection life now. May we, each of us, truly enter into it. Let us leave the tombs we've been searching in, and go to where He is....which is standing right before us.

Blessings,
Pastor O