“You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”
JOHN 20:29

Resurrection Hope John 20:1-31

If Jesus’ story had ended at the cross, hope would have died with him. But it didn’t. Death could not contain him. Sin was defeated, along with its effects. The root cause of our suffering and disability has no permanent grasp on us anymore. However, this is not always easy to believe as we live our everyday lives. It is hard to wake up with hope each morning, knowing that before we lay down at night we will have suffered unbearable physical pain, heart-wrenching emotional stress, or some embarrassment that most people have never even contemplated.

It was hard for Jesus’ disciples to have hope too. Jesus’ followers were devastated when he died. They were afraid and vulnerable. What would happen to them? Would they be hunted down like criminals? Even worse, their belief and hope were shattered. Jesus was supposed to be their deliverer, but now he was gone. Did he deceive them, or was he simply wrong about himself? The pain and doubt must have been immense.

Then, Sunday came. Jesus’ body was no longer in the tomb. Could they really dare to hope that the one who raised Lazarus from the dead (11:1-44) was himself resurrected? Did he really have power over death itself? Yes, it was true! He was resurrected, his wounds were healed, and he was made whole again. Hope had been restored. “How could they have doubted?” some might ask. But, like us, the first followers of Jesus were not without their faults.

This is our hope: Just as Jesus was raised and restored, we will be raised and restored too. We do not know what our transformed bodies will be like. But we do know that there will be no sickness, no disease, and no pain (Rev 21:4). We know that Jesus defeated death so that we may be restored to God’s intended state and purpose for us. Hope is restored.