John 20:11-21

In 1945 during WWII, the American and British soldiers held in a brutal German POW camp heard the amazing news, via a newly captured allied soldier, that the war in Europe was in fact over. Germany was defeated and Hitler dead! But because communication was cut off to the camp guards by bombing and ground operations it was another 3 days before the guards heard, the soldiers were released and the brutal guards taken prisoner themselves. So, for those 3 days, the soldiers had to continue to endure poor diet, bad conditions and mal-treatment. But the certain hope of rescue buoyed their emotions and gave them real hope until the gates were knocked down by allied tanks. Hope based on the truth made their suffering a light and momentary matter.

The news of Jesus’ resurrection brought a rush of hopeful feelings and real, radical reversal to people who were buried in the mud of despair and grief. You can feel in your heart the deep disappointment seeping out of the words of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Feel their hurting and disappointed hearts when the resurrected Jesus walked incognito with them. (Luke 24:21), “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.” “We were hoping ….” But their hopes had been dashed on the rocks of death.

In fact, all the disciples were engulfed by gloom. They’d left everything: families, careers, financial stability, reputations and the approval of society to follow Jesus, pinning all of their hopes on Him as the Messiah. But now, He was dead. On top of the shock of watching Jesus’ horrifying and shameful death on the cross, Peter himself was weighted down with his own lofty promises and then his failure in denying the Lord three times, and in public! Truth be told, all of the disciples were guilty of abandoning Him and fleeing in fear.

It was to people buried in the mud of grief and disappointment that the cleansing waters of Jesus’ bodily resurrection washed in with radically life-changing hope. The fact that Jesus is risen, very much alive, and ascended to the Father, soon to return in love and with a trumpet and a shout for His own, this can break into our lives with exhilarating hope in the midst of our worst trials and hurts, if we pin our hopes them to our faithful triune God!