November 4, 2022

Mark 16: 1-4 (NIV)

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought spices so that they might go anoint Jesus’ body. . . . [O]n their way to the tomb . . . they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone . . . had been rolled away.

Difficulties and obstacles are God’s challenges to our faith.*

I see a good news/bad news scenario in this passage. The bad news: the women were worried that the stone blocking the entrance to Jesus’ tomb would prevent them from accomplishing their task. Worry is always bad news. The good news: in spite of their worries and in spite of not knowing how it was all going to work out, they proceeded with their mission. Going forth in faith is always good news.

Jesus spoke often about the perils and pitfalls of worry (as did Paul and Peter); he also mentioned that faith could move mountains. Like the women in these verses, we worry too much about those big obstacles that we can’t possibly move on our own. We can’t worry enough to budge those heavy obstructions. If we know we can’t move them, why can’t we trust God to move them for us?

What does that kind of trust in God look like? It looks like the women in our story – minus the worry. We demonstrate our faith by going forth in faith, equipped for the mission with the physical tools we need and the faith that God will roll the stone away – or send an angel to do it for us. 

We can either look at the circumstances surrounding us or we can see Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.*