This is the two-hundred-fourth lesson in author and pastor Mel Lawrenz’ How to Live the Bible series. If you know someone or a group who would like to follow along on this journey through Scripture, they can get more info and sign up to receive these essays via email here.
“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”
So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) .” John 20:1-9
Almighty God,
On this day we rejoice in the glory of resurrection.
The tomb is empty.
Death could not hold the Lord Jesus. His body saw no decay. His enemies did not win. The earth could not contain him.
We are emboldened by the power of resurrection.
We are encouraged by the hope of resurrection.
We are enlightened by the truth of resurrection.
So help us, dear God, to have a daily expectation that we will encounter the living Lord Jesus wherever we live.
Help us to live in submission.
And empower us to bring this message of resurrection into every dark and desperate corner of this world.
In the name of the resurrected Lord Jesus.
Amen.
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Mel Lawrenz (@MelLawrenz) trains an international network of Christian leaders, ministry pioneers, and thought-leaders. He served as senior pastor of Elmbrook Church in Brookfield, Wisconsin, for ten years and now serves as Elmbrook’s teaching pastor. He has a PhD in the history of Christian thought and is on the adjunct faculty of Trinity International University. Mel’s many books include Spiritual Leadership Today: Having Deep Influence in Every Walk of Life (Zondervan, 2016). See more of Mel’s writing at WordWay.
The post How to Live the Bible — A Prayer for Easter, Resurrection Day appeared first on Bible Gateway Blog.