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Wolfhart Pannenberg,
one of the great theological minds of the 20th century grew up in an
atheistic home and was an atheist early in life. He finally converted to
Christian faith because for him it was the only
reasonable
explanation
for the radical reversal of these reasonable men and women who were facing
irreversible realities of life. It should have ended on Friday, but
something happened!
Peter, laboring under the crushing weight of his
own guilt, had it lifted by the risen Jesus himself that day on the beach
(John 21), and Peter became a bold and fearless witness to his risen Lord.
The risen Lord reversed the irreversible.
Mary Magdalene, heavy with grief, encounters the
risen Lord at the tomb. She is comforted by the risen Jesus and becomes one
of the first bearers of the good news. (John 21)
The risen Lord reversed the irreversible.
The risen Jesus appears to the two unnamed
disciples walking the road to Emmaus, probably just trying to get away from
it all. Their despair is lifted and they race off to Jerusalem to tell the
others. (Luke 24)
The risen Lord reversed the irreversible.
The risen Jesus appears to the whole group of
disciples hiding out in an upper room trying to figure out how to escape the
same fate of Jesus. He showed them his wounds and let them touch him so
they could know for sure.
The risen Lord reversed the
irreversible.
And then there was Paul, heavy-weight
persecutor of the early church, who was trying to eliminate the early
Christians. He has an encounter on the road to Damascus of the risen
Christ, and from that moment on spends practically every waking minute of
the rest of his life carrying the good news of Jesus Christ to the ends of
the earth.
The risen Lord
reversed the irreversible.
We all live with our share of irreversible things that can
paralyze us and prevent us from living fully in the moment; things before
which we feel powerless, except to sugar coat them over.
The gospels tell us that the great stone that
covered the opening of Jesus' tomb had been rolled away. That is what God
does. God
rolls away the stones of the irreversible things
that have damaged us so that we might have access to the risen Lord.
Peter could not go back and undo his betrayal,
but the risen Lord forgave him - the stone of guilt was rolled away.
Jesus reversed the irreversible.
The disciples could not go back and undo their
cowardice, but the risen Lord extended his grace - the stone of cowardice
was rolled away.
Jesus reversed the irreversible.
They could not just buck it up and magically wipe
way their sorrow and despair, but the risen Lord brought them assurance and
hope - the stone of grief was rolled away.
Jesus reversed the irreversible.
Paul could not undo the persecutions, suffering
and even death he had brought to early Christians, but the risen Christ
empowered a transformation in his soul that changed him forever - the stone
of his former misguided life was rolled away.
Jesus reversed the irreversible.
The risen Christ stands before you and desires to
roll back those stones of heart-aches and heart breaks that ensnared you;
those irreversible things that enslave you and beat you down. Through the
risen Lord, God has even rolled back the ultimate power of death and hell
itself. Trust Him! Believe Him! Live for Him!
He is risen! He is risen indeed! |
