John 20:1-9 – I Believe it, but I Don’t Get it
This morning we are starting a post-Resurrection series, that is, telling stories about what happened after that first Easter. We certainly believe that Jesus was raised from the dead on that spring Sunday many years ago, but what happened afterwards? How did His disciples react? What words did Jesus leave them with? So from now until sometime in June, we will be studying from John 20-21. Today’s passage is John 20:1-10, and for something different, I am showing you a video about the passage. It’s from a movie called The Gospel of John, and it displays – word for word – the Bible, using the Good News Translation. Let’s watch.
I think we need to understand the emotional state of the disciples before we can grasp the meaning of this passage. Jesus was killed 2 days before, Friday afternoon. These guys had been following Him for several years, going around with Him from town to town, hearing His preaching, watching His miracles. He was their leader, but He was also their friend. These guys were in shock, really. They woke up Sunday morning with broken hearts.
Now, I have to say, the sequence of events that morning is a little fuzzy. As Christians, we can believe all the stories – from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – but putting them together in one unified narrative is a little tricky. This is perhaps how the events transpired that morning.
The female followers of Jesus – Mary the mother of James, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Salome, and others – went to the tomb early Sunday morning. They went to anoint Jesus’ body with perfumes and spices. Although they had seen from a distance Joseph of Arimathea taking Jesus’ body, perhaps they did not know that Joseph himself, along with Nicodemus, had prepared Jesus’ body. Or perhaps they wanted to do one last act of service themselves. Either way, they went to say goodbye to their loved leader.
But there was a problem: who would move the stone? The stone weighed a ton… literally. That would be a problem. But when they got there, they found that it was already moved. Apparently they didn’t feel the earthquake, when an angel rolled back the stone. Well, the guards posted at the tomb sure felt it – and saw the angel too. The angel just plopped down on the stone, and the guards passed out because of fear and shock.
So, by the time the women got there, the grave was open and empty, and the guards were unconscious nearby. The women entered the tomb. Suddenly the angel appeared, along with another one, sitting where Jesus had been. They stood up and said, “Don’t be afraid or alarmed. I know you’re looking for Jesus, who was crucified. But why are you looking for the living among the dead? He is not here – He’s risen! Remember the words He spoke when He was with you in Galilee? He said He would be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, but would rise again. Come and see where He was. Now, hurry – go tell His disciples, and especially Peter, that they will see Him in Galilee.”
So they women ran out, trembling, bewildered, confused and afraid. They said nothing to anyone until they reached the place where the disciples were staying. They told them the good news, with Mary Magdalene singling out Peter. At this point, we can follow John’s telling of the events… Peter and John ran to the tomb. Now, there’s a contrast between Peter and John that’s interesting. Peter got to the tomb second, but went in first. He saw everything first, and was left “wondering to himself what had happened” (Luke 24:12).
But then there’s John. He got to the tomb first, waited outside, and went in second. His response was different from Peter’s. Peter wondered what had happened, but John “saw and believed” (v8).
So both Peter and John saw the same thing. They both saw the empty tomb, they both saw the graveclothes, and they both saw the head wrappings. But they came up with different conclusions. Well, Peter didn’t come to a conclusion, but confusion. But John saw and believed. Two equally sincere believers responding very differently to the same thing.
How is that possible? Well, it happens all the time. That’s what makes denominations. Sincere, truth-seeking believers, with the same passage of scripture, reaching different conclusions. That’s why our brothers and sisters in the 7th Day Adventist church see eternal destinies differently. That’s why our brothers and sisters in the Wesleyan church see sin differently. That’s why even among Baptist churches, we see the role of women differently. It’s not so much that one group is right, and the other is wrong. It’s that we see things differently.
Folks, you need to extend grace to people who disagree with you. You can’t expect everyone to see things as you do. You need to stop thinking that you’re right, and everyone is wrong. I think it’s OK to think you’re right, but it’s another thing to think everyone else is wrong. Peter and John were equally sincere followers of Jesus, but they came to very different conclusions and convictions. So will we. Don’t be so arrogant as to presume your view is the only way.
What’s interesting about this, is that neither one, though, understood – v9. Peter wondered, John believed, but neither understood. Neither one grasped that this was what Jesus had been telling them. They didn’t understand that the Messiah would rise again, as prophesied in Psalm 16: “You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay.” They didn’t understand Jesus’ own words about Himself from years before: “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” (John 2:19)
So here’s John. He loved Jesus, He followed Jesus, He believed Jesus, but He didn’t understand Jesus. Not at the moment, anyway. I think if we were to be honest, we would all admit… this is us. Lord, I love You, I will serve You, but I don’t understand what’s going on.
Paul refers to this when he said in 1 Corinthians 13: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror…” We really spend much of our lives not understanding what God is doing. And you know, I think that’s OK. Really, we aren’t saved by knowing or understanding, but by believing.
I love the story in John 13, when Jesus is coming around to wash His disciples’ feet. Peter said, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” And Jesus replied, “You do not realise now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” Peter didn’t understand what God was doing, but that was OK. Folks, you need to understand that you don’t need to understand. That is, God is not obligated to tell you everything that’s going on, or everything that He’s doing. It’s OK not to understand.
But we want to understand, don’t we? We want to understand how to answer people when they press us for answers. We want to understand why things are happening in our lives. We want to understand why life sometimes seems unfair.
But if we did understand everything, what then is the use of faith? We wouldn’t need to trust, if we understood. We wouldn’t need to go out on a limb, if we understood. We wouldn’t need just to take God at His word, if we understood. You read Hebrews 11, the Hall of Faith, the heroes of the OT who followed God, even when they didn’t understand. By faith, Noah built an ark, not understanding God’s plans. By faith, Abraham left his home, not knowing where he would end up. By faith, Moses accepted his God-given duty to set His people free. By faith Gideon accepted his call to lead an army, to beat the enemies of God. By faith Elijah called down fire from heaven. Did these things make sense? Did these people understand? No. They trusted God. And that’s what God wants us to do, too.
I mean, think about what we know. For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever would understand everything He does… would not perish, and so on. For it is by grace you have been saved, through understanding what’s going on in your life… no, not that either. How about Romans 5:1 – Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by figuring out why God does what He does, we have peace with God.
No, no, no! We believe Romans 1:17 when it says, “For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last…” You see? Your success as a believer is not about how much you can comprehend God’s ways, but about following where He leads anyway. It’s not about understanding the facts; it’s about standing firm in your faith.
In the past 8 days, I’ve followed in faith 2 separate things that I felt God was leading me to do. I can’t tell you what they were, but I can tell you this: one thing, I didn’t want to do because of fear, and the other, because of pride. In one, I was afraid of what might happen, and the other, I didn’t want to do it for selfish reasons. Let me tell you, God blessed me above and beyond, in both situations. Because I trusted Him, I was able to see God move in my heart and in those around me. Because of faith, I got to see God working.
But if I had waited to understand what was going to happen, I would have missed out on both. I’m so glad I learned to trust Him. Likewise, you too… trust Him, even if you don’t get Him.
