They asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”
Mark 16:3
Let’s reflect again on the stone that was placed in front of Jesus’ tomb. Pilate had ordered that the tomb of Jesus be made as secure as possible (Matthew 27:65). He didn’t want any stories floating around about an empty grave and a resurrected rabbi. So a large stone was rolled in front of the grave, and guards were positioned.
On Easter morning as the women walked toward the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body, they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” To the women, that unmoved stone meant that Jesus was dead and that his body was in the grave. And if that were true, as the apostle Paul later wrote, our faith would be futile, and we would still be dead in our sins (1 Corinthians 15:17).
As the women walked along the path to the tomb, they were sorrowful and apparently had their eyes on the ground. They didn’t notice anything about the tomb until they got up close. “But when they looked up, they saw that the stone … had been rolled away.”
Many people today live as though the stone is still in front of the grave, as if Jesus is unable to help us in our need. Sometimes we worry; sometimes we have questions about the pain and suffering in our world.
But let’s not be disheartened and discouraged. Look up! See the moved stone! Live in victory! Jesus is alive!
Lord, I believe you have conquered death. I praise you that nothing could keep you in the grave. Help me to believe this truth every day of my life. In your name, Amen.
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