In the passages of John, we see the Apostle Peter arriving at the scene of an empty tomb, hewed from the rock of a "BORROWED" tomb. I shared yesterday that the reason it was "borrowed" was that God already knew that he would not need it for long. Is that not amazing? God, had from prior to the foundations of the earth, already devised a plan whereby his only Son would be sent to die on a cross, but would only taste death for 3 days and then be gloriously raised from the grave. To this reality do we owe the gratitude for a promise that is forever true. That promise, is the foundation on which every Christian builds his/her faith. To know that Jesus had the grace and ability to bear our sins upon the cross and then to realize that he further threw aside the power of sin and the death as he burst forth from the grave clothes that day is absolutely amazing.
With that point made, I feel that Jesus was again confirming to us that "It is Finished"! You see, on the cross, he said "It is Finished", but what he was referring to was that every sin ever committed and ever to be committed was laid upon his shoulders. This picture was so gruesome that even the Heavenly Father had to turn his gaze away from the Son as he bore the brunt of our wrongdoings. But then Jesus, according to Colossians, took those sins and nailed them to the cross and thus made a public spectacle out of Satan himself. In other words, Satan became an embarrassment to the Universe as Jesus turned and took all that Satan did and declared again his eternal judgement to come.
There is actually more to the tomb scene that deserves attention also. The fact that those grave clothes lay wadded up to the side is amazing, but what is even more amazing is that the relevance of the "napkin" that lay folded at the place where Jesus head once lay. You see, culturally speaking, the folded napkin signified the same thing that it would have signified in those days in Jewish Culture. Let me explain: If a guest were to eat at a home and at some point in the dining experience have to leave or get satisfied with his meal, he would wad the napkin up and thus signify his readiness to be done. In other words, "I am finished". But this is not what happened in the tomb that day. In fact, Jesus did just the opposite. He took the napkin and the neatly folded it leaving it where the inquiring disciples were sure to notice. You see the folded napkin, culturally speaking, meant that the person who sat at the meal of the host, should he need to be excused for any reason, would then fold the napkin and thus signify to the host, "I AM NOT FINISHED". WOW-Did you just see that? Jesus was proclaiming the message here that he was indeed not finished. In fact, though his earthly ministry was ending, I believe he was pointing to the fulfillment of the coming ministry through the Holy Spirit and the eventual birth of the Church. So, in closing, Jesus is not only not done, but he is just beginning in many of our lives and our ministries. I choose to believe that indeed he is not finished, but that "he who began a good work in me is able to complet that work". I am thankful today that through the cross we have the forgiveness of sins and through HIS resurrection we have the promise of new life and life eternal through Jesus Christ our Lord.
--David B. Hughes
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