Early on the first day of the week several women go to Jesus’ tomb and find the stone moved and the body gone. Angels (or messengers) tell them Jesus has risen and to go tell the disciples. Matthew (28:1–10) adds an earthquake and a single angel rolling the stone; he highlights the women meeting the risen Jesus who gives them courage to go. Mark (16:1–11) in its earliest manuscripts ends abruptly with the women alarmed and silent (later verses include appearances and reports). Luke (24:1–12) describes two men/angels and Peter running to see the empty tomb. John (20:1–18) focuses on Mary Magdalene, her grief, and the intimate moment when Jesus calls her by name—she recognizes him and is sent to tell. All four agree on an empty tomb and a mandate to witness, though they differ in details and emphasis.
This moment tells us something essential: the risen Jesus is both cosmic Victor and personal Presence. He defeats death’s finality and yet shows up in the everyday grief of those who loved him. The weight of the moment is heavy—this is not a sweet moral or a nice metaphor but a decisive act that changes history and our destiny. At the same time, grace is plain: Jesus meets fear, confusion, and sorrow without condemnation and commissions those very people to carry the news. The challenge is real—we are called to trust and to testify even when fear lingers.
Today, bring one “tomb” into the light: name aloud a loss, fear, or stalled hope (write it down if speaking feels hard). Read John 20 slowly and listen—let Jesus call you by name. Then take one small step of witness: tell a friend, send a message, or offer a generous act that embodies resurrection hope. Small obedience trains us to live in the reality that death has been broken and new life is breaking through.
Matthew: 28:1-10
After the Sabbath Mary Magdalene and the other Mary visit Jesus’ tomb, where an angel rolls back the stone, tells them Jesus has risen, and instructs them to go tell the disciples that he will meet them in Galilee while the guards tremble and become like dead. As they hurry to obey, Jesus himself meets them, they worship him, and he reassures them and repeats the command to tell his brothers to go to Galilee to see him.
Open VerseMark: 16:1-11
After the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome go to anoint Jesus' body but find the stone rolled away and a young man (an angel) who tells them Jesus has risen and will meet the disciples in Galilee. They flee in fear, and although Mary Magdalene later sees the risen Jesus and reports it to the grieving disciples, they do not believe her.
Open VerseLuke: 24:1-12
On the first day of the week the women who had followed Jesus went to the tomb and found the stone rolled away and the body gone, and two men in shining clothes told them Jesus had risen as he had foretold. They reported this to the apostles, who mostly dismissed it, though Peter ran to the tomb, saw only the linen wrappings, and was amazed.
Open VerseJohn: 20:1-18
On the first day of the week Mary Magdalene finds Jesus’ tomb empty and tells Peter and the beloved disciple, who see the empty grave clothes and believe; Mary remains weeping, encounters two angels and then Jesus (whom she briefly mistakes for the gardener), recognizes him when he calls her by name, and is sent to tell the disciples that she has seen the risen Lord.
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