‘Come and See’
- Apr 3
- 5 min read
Matthew 28:6: “He is not here; he has risen! Just as he said. Come and see.”
For Christians, this is the shout and invitation of Easter that should transform us, because it announces the defeat of our greatest and last enemy, death and the glorious possibility of new resurrection LIFE!
This weekend, we celebrate the work of Christ that changed everything!
Christ has risen from the dead and He offers what no one else can: Easter’s new beginning!
Today, we can know and celebrate this new beginning of life, love and grace over sin, death and hell. Praise His name!
Paul would declare in Romans 8: 38-39 that, "neither death, nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Hallelujah!
The resurrection of Jesus begins with an invitation! This is for those 'afraid' and others 'joyful', for 'the ones that worshiped' and the ones that 'still doubted', for those with ‘no hope’ and those with 'deep assurance'.
God calls us out of our life of darkness into His new light, “Come and see the place where He lay.”
Today, we confront the reality that death could not hold Him and can’t hold us. So, it’s a new invitation to you to take another step into all that this day means. Christianity begins where religion ends... with the resurrection; a declaration that there’s life AFTER death.
This is good news that changes everything! While His salvation is for the ‘whoever’s’, His invitation remains deeply personal – Come and see.
It’s the 'Call of Easter' for us to witness the transformation of a site of death into a declaration of life, of victory, and fulfilled prophecy ("Just as He said!").
When the women went to the tomb, they thought they were revisiting their grief. But the tomb was empty and their world changed. "I know you’re looking for Jesus, He’s not here. He’s alive! Come and see."
Raymond Brown once said, “In this Gospel, where light and darkness play such a role, darkness lasts until someone believes in the risen Jesus.”
God’s invitation is extended to us today, of turning darkness towards the dawn, of death to the outburst of new life. Despite our failings, which are many, we need more than anything for our lives to be understood against the background of Easter and of new life secured in the risen Christ - a life of victory and total freedom and of never being the same again.
"Come and see" transforms the tomb from a place of grief into a position of glory and transformation. It’s the invite that causes us to look at our own brokenness and failures, and in the light of Jesus’ resurrection, to see that God can bring a future of life, light and hope out of such circumstances. Wow!
None of us are beyond the reach of such divine transformational love. Imagine today you hear God’s call to come out of your darkness, out of your past, out of your set unchallenged positions into His light and life.
"Come and see" is the invitation for resurrection to begin for each of us. No matter who you are or where you are, this is the call of Easter. Are you doubting, afraid, weary, angry, disappointed, confused, anxious?
Hear the words of 1 Corinthians 15:55-57 which wonderfully state, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
No matter who you are or where you are, this is the call to you to stop and accept His invitation right now - Come!
The first proof of the resurrection isn't a presence, but an empty space. The greatest emptiness of all. Today, we can be comforted because in this seeming nothingness, a greater truth is revealed! Jesus is alive! This isn't the "nothing" of a void, it’s the “nothing" of victory in Christ.
God does not fear our questions or doubt. He even invites us to look into the "empty places" of our lives, our failures, our griefs, and just see there’s no need to be trapped there. There are no more barriers. The stone was moved, not to let Jesus out, but to let us in; to actually see the evidence of absence. "He is not here; he has risen."
Yes, of course, the empty tomb provided proof that the Saviour had risen. But, for the Christian, it isn’t merely about proof. It’s the place where we encounter the stunning power of God. So, we come as worshippers marvelling at a God who is faithful in keeping His promises, powerful in accomplishing the impossible, and gracious in giving us new birth into an indestructible hope.
1 Peter 1:3 states,"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead."
The first century Christians did not believe in the resurrection because they could not find His dead body; they believed in the resurrection because they met the living Christ. We need to do the same today!
Thomas Merton said, “The reason we never enter into the deepest reality of our relationship with God is that we so seldom acknowledge our utter nothingness before him”… Quit keeping score altogether and surrender yourself with all your sinfulness to God who sees neither the score nor the scorekeeper but only his child redeemed by Christ.”
Because He’s alive, the graveclothes were left behind because He was finished with death. "Death no longer has power over him" (Rom 6:9).
Seeing and living beyond the grave clothes of our lives must mean meeting the Risen Lord personally again today! “Come and see!”
Today, we need again to accept the invitation to a life-changing encounter with Him. The empty tomb is a fact. Also, death, sin, and despair no longer have the final word.
It’s glorious to know that according to the old chorus -
Death no longer has dominion, Satan’s power is broken down,
Christ has triumphed, Hallelujah!! And He wear the victor’s crown!
Imagine Jesus taking what today is your tragedy, and turn it into triumph?
Easter is the greatest demonstration of God’s all-powerful, unstoppable, fear-demolishing; of a seeking, forgiving and life-giving great love.
Romans 5:8 puts it this way, "God demonstrated his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." He also rose again for us! Come and see!
Karl Barth writes, “Christians do not believe in the empty tomb, but in the living Christ. This does not imply that we can believe in the living Christ without believing in the empty tomb. It forms an indispensable sign which obviates all possible misunderstandings.”
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