Such a story recently played out for one Ukrainian family — at least, until the rumors began to reach them. Witnesses claimed to have seen this soldier alive. Could it be true?
In February of this year, following a prisoner exchange, this same family heard his voice once again. Overcome with emotion and relief, they rejoiced to hear from his own mouth what seemed impossible. This soldier, for whom they’d held a funeral and mourned, was alive indeed.
A video released of the moment that call was received by his mother and other relatives was so emotionally striking, it’s stuck with me for weeks. What a gift in times of war, and with some remarkable parallels to another warrior — one who was truly dead and buried, only to come back to life again.
The Bible tells this story. Jesus, the Son of God, came to fight for his people, to battle for peace in the war between man and God. Seeing that humanity preferred our own ways to God’s, and that ignoring God led only to captivity and death, Jesus, though wrongly accused, went into captivity, while a well-known criminal called Barabbas was released instead. In a very different but also unexpected prisoner exchange, Jesus was crucified in his place.
No DNA mix-ups here. A Roman spear to the side made sure of it. In a public spectacle, Jesus was confirmed dead. Friends and family gathered his body, buried him in a tomb and mourned.
Just days later, the rumors began. Witnesses reported seeing Jesus alive. Could it be true?
Mary, one of Jesus’ friends, didn’t initially recognize him — until she heard him speak her name. Overcome with emotion, she ran to tell others. Another, called Thomas, said he wouldn’t believe it unless he saw proof. Thomas, too, saw Jesus and heard his invitation to see his scars, including that spear mark, for himself. More and more people rejoiced to see Jesus alive, to hear his voice again, until they began to number in the hundreds. Jesus was risen indeed!
Remarkably, that prisoner exchange was not for the benefit of Barabbas alone, but for anyone who trusts Jesus in this battle on our behalf. Having defeated death, he now calls us to follow him and know the peace of God through him. And because of his resurrection, we can also look forward to an otherwise impossible resurrection of our own into a world fully restored and as it should be. No more stories of mothers losing their sons — even temporarily — to war, all because the war between man and God was fought and won by the God-man, Jesus, who was dead and buried, came back to life and will come back again.
Scripture References: Matthew 26:47-28:10; Luke 22:47-24:43; John 18:1-21:14; 1 Corinthians 15:3-57 (ESV)
Art: unsplash.com
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for reading, and for sharing your thoughts. Have a great day!