Jesus has risen

​4-7-21
Since we are still celebrating our Savior rising from the dead, I have chosen John 20:11-17, "Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept, she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"
Mary was crying. Someone had taken away the body of Jesus.  How was she going to finish preparing his body if she could not find him?  Then Jesus spoke, and everything changed.  In joy, she grabbed his feet.  She was not going to let him go. Jesus gave her a message to give to the disciples. The message is critical for us today, for in his message, he says, He is ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God."
Through Jesus' death, Jesus created a way for all sinners to be children of God.  This is why he says, "My Father and your Father, My God and your God." We are joined with him through his death and resurrection. He is the first to go from death to life but will not be the last.
Please pray with me the prayer for today: Lord, you called me by my name in my baptism.  Teach me to recognize your voice so that I will distinguish it from all other voices, for it is your voice that allows me to know that you live.  In your holy name, I pray.  Amen