The Empty Tomb

 

“Would it be OK if I pray with you both?”  I asked my older patient and his wife.  Calvin had recently been enrolled in a hospice program and I could tell that both he and his wife were uncertain as to what that meant – other than that he didn’t have long to live.

“Of course,” Calvin said.  There in the exam room, I prayed for them both – asking for peace and courage, asking most of all for Jesus’ nearness in these last few months of Calvin’s life.

I finished and there was silence in the room.  Then, Calvin began to share a little with me.  “Dr. Waldron,” he said.  “I don’t want you to feel sorry for me.  I’ve had a good life and I still feel pretty good.  Most of all, I know where I’m going when I die, and I know who is waiting for me there.  The only thing that makes me sad is saying good bye to my wife, but I know that I will see her again.”

I smiled.  It was encouraging to hear the faith of someone who had served God for his whole love and continued to live in that faith, even as he faced death.

This little story came to mind as I thought of Easter and its meaning.  Something that happened a couple of millenia ago still is fresh and impactful today.

About two thousand years ago, a group of women woke up early one Sunday morning to take care of some post funeral preparations that they hadn't finished due to the Sabbath day.

As they made the short journey to the garden tomb, they conversed among each other about the horrors of the last week.  Then, one of them asked a question that almost stopped them in their tracks.  “How are we going to roll the stone away?”

They remembered the large stone that had been rolled in front of the cave that served as a tomb.  None of them were strong enough to move the stone away from the mouth of the tomb.

This slowed them, but still they continued.  Maybe there would be a gardener or someone else who would be able to help them.

At last, they came to the tomb, but to their surprise, they found the stone pushed aside and they were able to peer in to see the startling reality.  The tomb was empty!

In the thousands of years since this time, many have looked into that empty tomb.  Some see only emptiness.  Some see some sort of deception.  Those who truly know Jesus look into that space and see victory.

The tomb is empty and because of that, those who follow Jesus need have no more fear of death, because they are following the one who conquered death.

Calvin knew that he was dying and he was unafraid.  He had looked into the tomb and read its lack of an occupant as a message for him. The tomb is empty, Jesus is risen, and death is vanquished!