Wednesday, May 12, 2021
Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. Mark 16:6
Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. Mark 16:14-16
He Is Risen
The three women who had witnessed the crucifixion of Jesus had to wait until the Sabbath was over (which was sundown on Saturday) before they could go to the tomb and embalm Jesus’ body. It was too dark on Saturday evening, so they had to wait until Sunday morning. When they got there, they were the first ones to witness they empty tomb and hear the words that changes everything for all of us – He is risen! He is not here.
He is risen is not just an Easter verse. It should be the verse we build our lives on. It should be the verse that we say to remind ourselves of His promises, His power, and His personal sacrifice so we can have everlasting life. It is the foundation of our faith and it is the seal on our adoption. It is where all our hope lies. All the circumstances that bring sorrow cannot steal our hope in a resurrected life with Him. It means that this sad life is not all there is! There is a Savior who walks with us as we await His glorious return. It is the resurrection that gives us resurrection. It is the gospel good news that He instructed the disciples and us to deliver to the rest of the world.
Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
Christians know this passage as The Great Commission. Jesus was with the 11 remaining disciples as they were gathered for a meal. He was about to leave for good, ascending into heaven. But He had an important job that He needed them to carry out in His absence. He needed them – and all believers – to share His good news with the world so all would have the opportunity to have the forgiveness, salvation, and resurrected life He offers. He commanded us to go and proclaim the gospel. This is not a suggestion, but a command. The souls of the unsaved are important to Jesus and He wants that to be important to us as well and to realize that there is an urgency.
The urgency is that time is ticking and there are those who have not heard the gospel. We should have an urgency in our hearts to tell them all the good news that has saved our own lives. Then there are those who have heard and do not believe. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. The focus here is on belief. Many people wonder if this is saying that if you are not baptized, you will not be saved. That is not what this verse is saying. The verse is really saying if you believeyou will be saved. If you don’t believe and are baptized, you will not be saved. You will be condemned. Believing is the key. Baptism is only a representation of our salvation. It is not a requirement, but a response.
What does Mark chapter 16 mean for us? It is the foundation of our faith and the promise of salvation fulfilled in the resurrection of Christ. It is a challenge to us as well to share this life-giving story to all. We can share this story by the way we live our life, and we can go out into the world with intention to share His good news. The lost need to hear this message of hope and it is our job to make sure they hear it.
And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.
1 Corinthians 15:17
