Now what do we do?

Most of the earliest manuscripts of the Gospel of Mark that have been found, end at Mark 16:8. Here is how Mark 16:1-8 reads and how the early Christians would have encountered the end of the story…
When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, "Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?" And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back— it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you." And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
Here we encounter a very unique end to the story of the resurrection.
As we reflect on the significance of the resurrection event, Mark’s telling of the story leaves us with a lack of closure. There is no ascension. We do not read about them seeing the body of the risen Christ. As a matter of fact, they are afraid. They don’t know what is next or what happened for sure.
I believe that we have often become so comfortable with the resurrection story that we miss the tension that it brings. We miss the story of the death of the man they thought would save them. We miss the idea that many of these people had lost hope when Jesus died on the cross. They didn’t know the end of the story. They didn’t expect a crucified and resurrected Messiah.
Today as we focus on the resurrection of Jesus, take time to think back to what it must have felt like to be one of Jesus’ followers then. Think about how the two women must have felt as they discovered that Jesus’ tomb had been opened. They were not excited. They were alarmed. They were trembling. They were afraid.
Is that ever how we react to the empty tomb? Or do we just take it for granted? A story we have heard most of our lives.
Allow yourself to go back to that day. Stand there with the women as they wrestle with the news. Jesus has been raised from the dead. He is no longer in the tomb. What does that mean? What is the significance? Now what do we do?

shine!
Jason