And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.
Mark 16:5–6
In April of 1970, three American astronauts—Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise—were orbiting the moon aboard Apollo 13 when an oxygen tank suddenly exploded. In an instant, their mission changed from exploration to survival. Power systems were crippled. Air supply was threatened. For several days, the world watched as NASA engineers worked around the clock to bring them home. The situation looked so hopeless that President Nixon’s staff even prepared a speech for the nation in case the men died in space. But against all expectations, on April 17, the capsule splashed down safely in the Pacific Ocean. What had looked like certain tragedy ended in stunned relief and restored hope.
In AD 33, grief-stricken women made their way to a borrowed tomb. But unlike the hope restored at the ocean’s surface, theirs would be restored by an empty grave.
Think about what it must have felt like when some of the women who had followed Jesus during His ministry made their way to the sepulcher early on a Sunday morning. They were not looking for a miracle or a resurrection. Their plan was simply to place spices on the body of Jesus, a task they had not been able to complete because of the approaching Passover. Yet instead of finding death, they found an angel announcing victory—Jesus was not there. He was risen.
None of us will ever face a more powerful enemy than death. But death and the grave could not hold Jesus. When we feel discouraged and defeated, we must remember that He has already overcome. Since our greatest enemy has been crushed under His feet, why should we fear the daily problems of life?
The power—the unlimited, immeasurable, everlasting power of Jesus Himself—that raised Him from the dead is still at work today. And through prayer, that same power is available to us, no matter what we face.
