God's Display of Power

From our reading today, the Scripture remarks on the reactions of the disciples to the empty tomb and risen Christ.

The Scripture records that John came upon the empty tomb and “saw and believed.” Mary Magdalene, after speaking with the risen Christ went to the other disciples and said, “I’ve seen the Lord.”

This past Friday night, at the close of our Good Friday service, we left reading of Jesus’ scarcely attended funeral. Joseph of Arimathea and Nickodemus carried the dead body of Jesus to an empty tomb.

Meanwhile, all of the other disciples hid in fear, confusion, and uncertainty of the future. For the past few years they had left everything they previously had to follow Christ and now he was dead and so was all of their hope for the future . . . but then John and Mary Magdalene come back to the disciples and shout they have seen and believed!

At their weakest moment,

God showed up.
And God displayed his mighty power!

In the book of Psalms there are a several types of Psalms called Precatory Psalms or Psalms of Lament.

Such Psalms record the frustrations of wearied people of God; they ask God where he is and how long will he stay away from their need; they cry out and long for God to show up in their lives and display his power; they want to see God alive and powerful.

Don’t we get that way in our lives? We believe in God, but when our lives start to collapse and those we love start so spin out of control we call out to God and ask him where he is; we want God to intervene and display his Power!

We Cry out, “Where are you God?”
We pray, “I want to see you and know that your alive and active in this chaotic world and my life.”
We petition God, “Show up and display your power in this world and my life.”

……………….

On one particular solo getaway I ventured upon an empty public beach. I had a rented little purple Dodge Neon (quite masculine!). I bought the full coverage insurance . . . I know that one doesn’t have to buy such insurance; your insurance and sometimes the credit card you use to rent a car with have provisions for car rental insurance coverage. Nevertheless, for a few extra bucks, I purchased some extra peace of mind. I like to think that I could bring back the car in a box and not have to worry about my insurance deductibles and premiums sky rocketing because of wrecking a rented Dodge Neon (maybe such a car is not so masculine?)!Here I was on the empty beach . . . I hadn’t thought about peeling out in the sand until I saw the NO PUBLIC DISPLAY OF POWER sign.

After all, I’m naturally a quite and introverted guy. I mostly go about my life silently contemplating and wondering. A PUBLIC DISPLAY OF POWER would have never entered my imagination or intentions until I saw that sign.


We post up signs all over our lives asking God to show up and DISPLAY his POWER. We want God to show up in our lives so that we know that he is alive and able. We want to know him and the power of his resurrection.

Paul said, “I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and fellowship of his sufferings . . .”

We want the power of God in Jesus that healed the sick in our lives!

We want the power of God that caused the blind to see again in our lives!
We want the power of God that raised the dead in our lives!

That is where the truth of Easter, the resurrection of Christ, point to God’s activity and ongoing power and involvement in this world and in our lives.

2000 years from the first Easter we see and believe in Christ by faith.

In some ways, the truth of Easter (Jesus’ resurrection) is just a glimpse of the start of God coming and displaying of his power and activity in our lives and in this world.

When we look and see the truth of Christ’s Resurrection what do we see?

How does Jesus’ resurrection, being raised from the dead never to die evermore, impact our lives?

Because of Jesus’ resurrection we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Jesus’ resurrection gives us hope. Hope is important because it inspires action; hopelessness immobilizes one spirit.

Our hope in Christ is a sure thing, but sometimes in this life the light at the end of the tunnel seems such a far way away. And while we know and see by faith that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, we know too that we still have to go through the tunnel. We know the truth of Easter but we still have to go through the season of Lent.

Sometimes the tunnel of life gets so hard and we take our eyes of the light at its’ end and forget that there is light at all. Forgetting that there is light at the end of the tunnel is hopelessness.

Maybe that’s your story today. Life sometime ago got so hard and difficult, and you’ve forgotten that there is a light available to you. You’ve become immobilized by tough circumstances, illness, and deep depression. You’ve lost your way in life and you can’t see Christ’s light.

If that’s the case, I want to gently remind you that although your life is crushingly hard and it seems like despair is going to win out . . . Don’t let it because there is hope! Christ is raised from the dead and wants to reign in your heart!

And the more we focus of the truth of Easter, the resurrection of Christ, the more his ongoing display power, activity, love, and life become brighter in our lives and in this world.

Because of Jesus’ resurrection we are not alone.

Christ is with us. He never leaves nor forsakes us.

Even though we go through deep chasms of doubt, illness, and despair in this life- he is with us.

Even though we go through the valley of the shadow of death -he is with us and he will not let our lives end in the grave.

He will not let our souls forever rest in Sheol. When we believe in his life and know his resurrection and participate in the fellowship of his sufferings he will life us up and raise us to a newness of life in the end of this mortal life.

Because of the truth of Easter, Jesus’ resurrection, we have hope and we are not alone.

Do you need to see God show up and display his power in your life? It starts with seeing his power in the resurrection of Christ and in his ongoing love, grace, and mercy by his Spirit in the lives of those who profess his name.