Eyewitness News
In John 20, we are not simply invited to celebrate a moment—we are invited to consider eyewitness testimony. John carefully records what real people saw, heard, and experienced on that first Easter morning.
Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb while it is still dark and finds it empty. Her first response is not joy, but confusion: “They have taken the Lord.” Then Peter and John run to see for themselves. They find the grave clothes lying there—undisturbed, intentional, undeniable. This is not the scene of a robbery; it is the evidence of a resurrection.
Then everything changes when Jesus calls Mary by name. In a moment, grief turns to recognition, and she becomes the first to declare, “I have seen the Lord.”
Later, behind locked doors, Jesus appears to the disciples—bringing peace to their fear and showing them His hands and His side. And even Thomas, in all his doubt, is invited to examine the evidence. Jesus does not push him away—He draws him closer. And Thomas responds with one of the greatest confessions in Scripture: “My Lord and my God!”
John writes all of this for one purpose:
“That you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31)
Take a moment today to reflect on the empty tomb—and the living Savior who stepped out of it.
And like those first witnesses, may we not only believe… but boldly say: “I have seen the Lord.”
Rejoicing with you in the Risen Christ,
Pastor Patrick