Saturday: False Defeat
Scripture: Luke 23:44-56
Key verse: Luke 23:48—“When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what
took place, they beat their breasts and went away.”
A profound disciple of Jesus once said, “If you follow Jesus
long enough, he’s going to disappoint you.” The ladies who followed him to his
tomb found this statement to be true as they prepared his burial spices. You
can imagine their feelings all day Saturday as they sat in confusion, grief,
and fear. All that they had hoped for in Jesus seemed lost. They were indeed
disappointed in Jesus, but only because they didn’t understand the whole story.
Has God ever disappointed you? Have you ever placed your
hope in a prayer that went unanswered? Are you stuck in a life situation that
seems hopeless while God seems silent? Remember in that time that, like the
women who helped bury Jesus, you don’t know the ending to the story.
There’s a t-shirt that says: “Spoiler Alert: The Tomb Is
Empty.” Today, we benefit from the knowledge that Jesus did not remain in the
grave. Instead, he defeated death, rose to life, and surprised these women with
a new hope that surpassed all their previous dreams of what could be.
We know this ending, and yet we still lose heart. But we can
trust God today that the ending he has prepared for us is better even than our
hopes. Will you choose to trust God with whatever you face today?
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank
you that the tomb was not the end of Jesus’ story.
I believe that the
troubles I face right now are not the end of my story, either.
I place my day and my
life in your loving hands, trusting that you have good planned for me.
Thank you for the hope
of the empty tomb, Father. Amen.
