The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 20:1-8,
"Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple [John, the author of this gospel], the one Jesus loved, and said, 'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!' So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed."
John writes in his gospel his memory of that morning when it was discovered that Jesus was raised from the dead. He says that although he outran Peter to get to the tomb when Mary reported to them that Jesus' body was missing, he stopped (the pause) and didn't go in the tomb until Peter caught up with him and went in ahead of him.
Why did John pause? It may seem a trivial detail, but I have found there are no trivial details in Scripture. Everything we read within the pages of our Bibles is there for a reason. What is the reason for John's account of his pause?
In March of 2005, Christopher M. Rossomondo wrote an excellent article on John's pause. It is found at a Roman Catholic website: https://oldarchive.godspy.com/reviews/The-Pause.cfm.htm Rossomondo provides three reasons he has considered. It is a great article until you get to the third reason, which you can just skip if you want (it is a reflection on the primacy of the first pope to enter the empty tomb before anyone else, so John had to wait - something most of us would reject out of hand.) Outside of that it is a great article. Here is a snippet:
"But what if St. John was afraid of the Empty Tomb because he realized what that would truly mean? What if in that moment St. John became aware of the reality of the Resurrection? His pause may have been the instant when he first grasped the possibility that Christ had been raised from the dead. Entering the tomb and finding it empty would mean that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the living God, and that his promises—all of his promises—would be fulfilled. The weight of that reality at once understood would give any of us pause."
"Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple [John, the author of this gospel], the one Jesus loved, and said, 'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!' So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed."
John writes in his gospel his memory of that morning when it was discovered that Jesus was raised from the dead. He says that although he outran Peter to get to the tomb when Mary reported to them that Jesus' body was missing, he stopped (the pause) and didn't go in the tomb until Peter caught up with him and went in ahead of him.
Why did John pause? It may seem a trivial detail, but I have found there are no trivial details in Scripture. Everything we read within the pages of our Bibles is there for a reason. What is the reason for John's account of his pause?
In March of 2005, Christopher M. Rossomondo wrote an excellent article on John's pause. It is found at a Roman Catholic website: https://oldarchive.godspy.com/reviews/The-Pause.cfm.htm Rossomondo provides three reasons he has considered. It is a great article until you get to the third reason, which you can just skip if you want (it is a reflection on the primacy of the first pope to enter the empty tomb before anyone else, so John had to wait - something most of us would reject out of hand.) Outside of that it is a great article. Here is a snippet:
"But what if St. John was afraid of the Empty Tomb because he realized what that would truly mean? What if in that moment St. John became aware of the reality of the Resurrection? His pause may have been the instant when he first grasped the possibility that Christ had been raised from the dead. Entering the tomb and finding it empty would mean that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the living God, and that his promises—all of his promises—would be fulfilled. The weight of that reality at once understood would give any of us pause."
Why do you think John paused?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
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