"The Third Day"

“The Third Day”

 

And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.  Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?  He is not here, but is risen!  Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’”  And they remembered His words.            Luke 24:4-8

 

Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James and some other women, arose early on the THIRD DAY following the DEATH of their Beloved Master, Teacher, and Friend.   They hurried to the tomb to properly prepare His body for PROPER BURIAL according to Jewish customs.  But when they arrived at the tomb, the stone had been ROLLED AWAY from the opening, they went inside the tomb, and did NOT find the body of the Lord Jesus.

 

They were very perplexed about this.  What happened to the body of their Lord? They knew full well that He was DEAD when they laid Him in the tomb, so what could have happened?  Then two men in BRIGHT, SHINING garments stood by them.  The women were SO AFRAID, they dropped to the ground and put their faces to the earth.  Then the men asked them, “Why do you SEEK the LIVING among the DEAD?  He is NOT here, but He is RISEN!  Don’t you REMEMBER how He spoke to you, when He was in Galilee, saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of SINFUL men, and be CRUCIFIED, and the THIRD DAY rise again?’”  Then they REMEMBERED His words. Their grief had caused them a brief lapse of memory, until they were reminded of the very words of the Lord. 

 

The THIRD DAY must have been BITTERSWEET to the women as they PONDERED the words of Jesus, and hurried on to tell the disciples ALL the things they had encountered, and to let them know that HE has CONQUERED DEATH, and is RISEN from the GRAVE.  The Apostles did not BELIEVE the women, and had to see it for themselves. 

 

The women, however, REMEMBERED the words of Jesus, and RAN to TELL the disciples the GOOD NEWS!    We too, KNOW He’s ALIVE and because He’s ALIVE, we too will be FOREVER ALIVE with Him in Heaven.  That is, IF you have given your HEART and LIFE to GOD.  If you have not done that, then you are destined for an ETERNITY in Hell, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY of ESCAPE.  However, God has provided a way for you to ESCAPE HELL and GAIN Heaven.  You MUST TURN AWAY FROM your sinful lifestyle and TURN TO God, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, CONFESSING your sins to Him, and asking Him for His FORGIVENESS, BELIEVING, with ALL your HEART, that Jesus died for YOU, and is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God.  Then ACCEPT His gift of SALVATION, and TRULY CELEBRATE RESURRECTION DAY, as a BLOOD BOUGHT, REDEEMED CHILD of the LIVING GOD.  And RUN and TELL SOMEBODY the GOOD NEWS!  Do it NOW, while you still can.  He’s waiting and coming SOON!!!