The Empty Tomb

All over the world tombs exist for the founders. Judaism’ principle founder Moses is buried in The Valley of Moab (Deuteronomy 34-:5-6), Islam’s Prophet Muhammed’s tomb is in the Green Dome Mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia, Buddha who was cremated has multiple shrines with his ashes, and Joseph Smith is buried in his Family Cemetery in Illinois. Only Christianity, our faith has people flocking to an empty tomb, for its significance is not that Christ is still buried there, but that He was buried there, but “He is not here, He is Risen.” (Matthew 28:6). 

Around the world people flock to shrines of their sacred and holy leaders, because they were all mortal men who died. In stark contrast, Jesus who is God and Man did not stay dead, He rose from death, “On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?He is not here; He has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words.” (Luke 24:1-8). The Empty Tomb with The Cross are the two pillars of the gospel, the cross proved God became mortal man and died a sacrificial death for all sin, the Tomb proves He is the Almighty Eloi (God) and he has dominion over death and came back from The Undiscovered Country when no one else has on their own, others Jesus raised from death, but only He rose Himself from death because He is The Son of God, as He said, “No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.” (John 10:18). 

When you visit The British Garden Tomb Site and see the rolled away massive stone and enter to see it is empty, a wave of the Holy Spirit comes over you as you meditate on the reality of words etched on wood, “He is not Here, He is Risen.” (Matthew 28:6). You come to Garden Tomb to see it empty because that is the truth, Christ is not there, He rose from death and ascended after Forty Days of meeting with five hundred of His disciples. 

The Empty Tomb is a promise to us as Christians. That death is not our end, that we shall be raised from death, “Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever,” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17) and “Those who are raised from the dead during this first time are happy and holy. The second death (lake of fire, hell, Revelation 20:10, 15) has no power over them. They will be religious leaders of God and of Christ. They will be leaders with Him for 1,000 years.” (Revelation 20:6). The rolled away stone and vacant inside is a testimony that “The Author and Prefector of our Faith,” (Hebrews 12:2) is not like other founders. He is God Incarnate, God The Son, who defeated death and came back from The Other Side. In this way the Tomb is not a tomb anymore, for He is not there! It instead is a Garden that proclaims the gospel message. Interestingly, Paradise or Paradiso which Jesus says to Desmas on the cross, “today you shall be with me in paradise,” (Luke 23:43) means garden, and so  it is poetic that our Lord Jesus reveals His power over death and eternal life at a garden! 

The Empty Tomb is a promise, a sign of our destination. That our bodies will not remain in coffins or sprinkled ashes, but be raised from death as our Lord has! Amen.