Don’t Miss This

Read

Luke 24:5-6 “In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!’”

Think

It’s a simple question, but it changes everything. “Why do you look for the living among the dead?”

The women went to the tomb. That’s where you go when someone has died. So they went there, carrying their spices, preparing themselves for the rituals of burial. They were looking for a body. They were looking for an ending.

But they weren’t where they thought they’d be. And when they heard that he had risen, they were terrified.

Not thrilled. Not excited. Terrified.

Because a risen Jesus changes everything. A risen Jesus can’t be contained in a system. A risen Jesus can’t be controlled or managed or predicted. A risen Jesus isn’t a historical figure you study. He’s a present reality you encounter.

A dead Jesus is sad. A dead Jesus is tragic. A dead Jesus can be managed. People can write books about him. People can argue about his ideas. People can turn him into something safe and familiar. They can put him in a box labeled “great teacher” and move on with their lives.

But a risen Jesus? A risen Jesus demands response.

This is what the week does: it takes you from religious observance to relational reality. Palm Sunday through Good Friday, you’re engaged in a story. But Easter is where the story becomes your story. Where the past tense becomes the present tense. Where “he lived” becomes “he lives.”

Think about it like this. It’s like raw footage in the hands of a director. You can watch raw footage—it’s real, it’s documented. But until a director shapes it into a finished film, it’s just raw material. The resurrection is when God took the events of the crucifixion and said, “This isn’t just a tragedy. This is a victory. This isn’t just a death. This is the death of death itself.”

The women were looking in the wrong place because they were still thinking about death. But the angels asked a question that reframed everything: “Why do you look for the living among the dead?”

Because he’s not dead.

Did you notice something? The tomb isn’t empty because Jesus disappeared. The tomb is empty because Jesus rose. There’s a difference. If he disappeared, you could still worship the memory. But he rose. He ate fish. He invited Thomas to touch him. He walked along the road to Emmaus. He was real and present and alive. Not a ghost. Not a vision. Not a metaphor. A person. Breathing. Speaking. Living.

This changes the nature of faith. You’re not believing in a dead teacher. You’re relating to a living lord.

Think about it like this. It’s like a person who says, “I know how to cure this disease. Follow my method.” But they’re still dying. You might listen. But you wouldn’t trust them. Then they follow their own method, and they recover. They’re healed. Now their teaching is credible because they’ve proven it works. Their life is the evidence.

That’s the resurrection. Jesus said, “I am the life.” And then he proved it by coming back from death. He didn’t just talk about victory over the grave. He walked out of it.

Your sins aren’t final. Your failures aren’t fatal. Your past isn’t your prison. Because the one who conquered death is alive, and he’s offered you his life. Not a religion. Not a system. Not a set of rules. His actual, breathing, present life.

The women didn’t get what they were expecting. They went to worship the dead and they met the living. Their entire understanding got turned upside down. Everything they thought they knew about how the world works was demolished in one moment by an empty tomb.

It’s been said that the resurrection isn’t what gives the cross its meaning. The resurrection reveals what the cross always meant. The cross looked like defeat. The resurrection proved it was victory. The cross looked like the end. The resurrection proved it was the beginning.

Think about it like this. It’s like reading the last chapter of a mystery novel and suddenly understanding everything that came before it. Every clue. Every red herring. Every confusing plot twist. It all makes sense now. The resurrection is that last chapter. It makes sense of everything. The suffering makes sense. The sacrifice makes sense. The silence of Saturday makes sense. Because it was all leading here—to an empty tomb and a living God.

And here’s the thing that separates Christianity from every other belief system on the planet: the founder is alive. Every other religion points back to a teacher who lived and died. Christianity points to a savior who lived, died, and got back up. That’s not a philosophy. That’s a fact that either changes everything or means nothing. There is no middle ground with a risen Jesus.

So what do you do with that? You can’t just nod at it. You can’t just put it on a shelf and admire it from a distance. Either Jesus rose from the dead and everything he said is true, or he didn’t and none of it matters. But if he did—and the evidence says he did—then you’re not just reading a devotional right now. You’re standing at the edge of the most important decision of your life.

And if a risen Jesus is alive right now, then your whole life changes. Your decisions change. Your priorities change. Your hope changes. You’re not just following a philosophy. You’re walking with a person who has already beaten the worst thing that could ever happen to you.

This is the invitation. Not to believe in an old story. To encounter a present reality. Not to worship a memory. To know a living God.

Apply

Stop thinking of Jesus in the past tense this week. Not “he died for us”—“he is alive for us.” Not “he taught”—“he teaches.” Find a quiet place. Sit with him. Let the risen Jesus be real to you, not just to your head, but to your heart.

Pray

Jesus, you’re alive. Help me stop looking for you in tombs and start finding you in my everyday moments. Help me believe not just in the fact of your resurrection but in the reality of your life right now. I want to know you. Not know about you. Know you. You’re here. You’re real. You’re alive. And I’m ready to live like I actually believe that. In Jesus’ name. Amen.