It’s Resurrection Sunday — Easter, and welcome to Hank’s Place
Does Jesus REALLY care for me? Does He have feelings toward you? Lot’s of people wonder – “Do I really matter to Jesus?”
Lets go back to that first Resurrection morning – earlier, those women from Galilee had witnessed Jesus’ death on the Cross. His own mother, Mary Mag, Mary mother of James and Joseph, mother of the sons of Zebedee, Salome, Joanna.
They came to the tomb – early! With spices. No one expected Jesus to be alive. But there were those angels: “Why do you seek the living among the dead – He’s not here. He has risen like He said. Go tell His disciples that He is going ahead of them to Galilee.”
Mary Magdalene remains in the garden while the other women head off. Overcome with grief. And Jesus appears to her. Get the picture. The Lord of all Creation. Likely leading captivity captive. And Jesus still has to complete the Plan of Salvation: bring His blood to THE mercy seat in Heaven, the real one.
But He STOPS. He hits the ‘pause’ button on The Plan of Salvation. Why? To stop and comfort a women. Women were not highly regarded in those days, and this one had a past. But she was a woman grieving over His death. BECAUSE HE CARED FOR HER, HER FEELINGS, HER LIFE, my friend, and HE STOPPED. It’s THE SAME FOR YOU AND ME!
Maybe the angels in heaven were wondering about the delay, what’s holding up KING JESUS? Matthew says Jesus appeared to the women, but John clarifies it was Mary Magdalene. And Jesus tells her to go and tell My BROTHERS to go to Galilee. He will meet with them there. Where it all began. Where He called them 1 by 1. Tying the beginning and the end of Jesus earthly ministry together! Replacing sorrow with JOY.
There’s more! Two disciples were on the Emmaus Road headed out of town – Jesus has some fun with them and they come scooting back to Jerusalem.
Did Jesus get up to the True Mercy Seat of heaven and come back – or what? I don’t know. BUT I do know once those two got with the rest of the disciples in Jerusalem, JESUS DIDN’T WAIT for them all to get to Galilee. He has got to share His JOY with His BROTHERS – right away! Can you see it? BECAUSE HE CARES for them. THEIR FEELINGS MATTER! And He wants to turn their sorrow into JOY. And He does!
So there is Jesus, appearing to the women, the women who were with Him at ‘the END’ got notified of the NEW BEGINNING – ahead of anyone else!
There’s Jesus, appearing to the men who were with Him at the beginning – and He pauses THE OFFICIAL BUSINESS of heaven if you will, of RESURRECTION SUNDAY, to comfort those in grief and to CELEBRATE with His family! BECAUSE HE CARES!
So friend, YOU MATTER! How you feel – matters! What concerns you – matters to Jesus. We have just heard it. So, rejoice this Resurrection Day – knowing Jesus cares for YOU. And that you have — COME ALIVE!
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