For them who failed!

Mark 16:3-7 
And they were saying among themselves, Who will get the stone rolled away from the door for us?

And looking up, they saw that the stone was rolled back; and it was of great size.

And when they went in, they saw a young man seated on the right side, dressed in a white robe; and they were full of wonder.

And he said to them, Do not be troubled: you are looking for Jesus, the Nazarene, who has been put to death on the cross; he has come back from the dead; he is not here: see, the place where they put him!

But go, say to his disciples and to Peter, He goes before you into Galilee: there you will see him, as he said to you.

I usually write in Bahasa then translate it to English, but somehow today I would like to share one of beautiful insight from God thru today Bible reading at Church.

Before I started, let me wish you a happy Passover day. Christ has risen for all to see that He is God who visited the earth.

So different from people and most movies perspetive of God. They think when God is coming then it will be form as heroic character, powerful, amazing fighting actions and win all the battles against bad guys. But when God came to earth about 2 thousands years ago, He was a little baby in a manger, weak and dependent to His human parent. Although He perfomed many miracles in His earth time, He did it all for helping people, not fighting bad goverment or troops or bad people, he was the hope for the poor and the sick, nothing as great as King David or King Salomon in their days. And at the end for the anti climax, He was just human that cruxified at the cross of Golgota.

God did not came as what people expected Him to be. But God came to earth as what we need Him to be, and thats God deepest desire.  To bring us back originally as He planned before, to be in Heaven with Him.

Not any of us can entering Heaven with our goodness or godliness, because heaven is holy and clean from sin, but as you read the scriptures, no one is holy and clean from sin. Our flesh itself sin contaminated, from generation to generations we passed and passes our fathers and great grand fathers sin. We are a broken glass, cannot be fixed even we stick it. In heaven, no broken glass accepted, not even a scratch. Heaven is perfect.

Romans 3:23 For all have done wrong and are far from the glory of God;

Romans 6:23  For the reward of sin is death; but what God freely gives is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.

But the main difference is the resurrection day! Which is proof that Jesus is God in human form. And the teaching He gaves us was clearly explain the life of heaven, where He came from and return too. He revealing God to us in very close and intimate ways, face to face! And only by faith to Jesus Christ then someone can have their sin redeemed. Only by acknowledge Christ in your life, then you will be saved, that the price!

Romans 10:9-10 
Because, if you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and have faith in your heart that God has made him come back from the dead, you will have salvation: For with the heart man has faith to get righteousness, and with the mouth he says that Jesus is Lord to get salvation.

Thats the opening to explain you the background. Now I would like to get focus on the resurrection day of Christ.

It was a third day Christ was died and buried. He was buried as Jews tradition, it is in a stone cave. Usually the cave door are leave it open or else close with something easy to open. Jews buried only with cloth and no jewelries or any precious things like egypt, so none will stole from the cave. And also, it is forbidden to Jews to touch dead body,  they will be unholy for a day because of that and cannot join any religion ceremony.  Thats why these people who came to Jesus tomb were came after Sabbath.

But the problem with the tomb is the doorway has closed with big heavy stone. Why? Because the Jews leaders told Pilate about what Jesus said before, that the prophecy of Messiah will be resurrected on third days. They afraid that the disciples of Christ will stole the body and says He is risen. So the local Roman goverment sealed the cave or tomb with big stone and goverment stamp.

But when they arrived, the tomb has opened, the big stone has rolled over, and there is a man with white robe showing that Jesus is not there anymore, more surprisingly,  he said that Jesus has risen.

To be noted, I find it something quite interesting from the words of that man with white robe. He mentions name. One for sure is Jesus. But the other one is ... Peter!  The most active and - if I may say - short minded person. I wonder why?

Let's recall a little bit about Peter. He seems the head of the class of Jesus twelve disciples. The right hand of Jesus. Peter seems always there with Jesus every time and every where. I also recall the other two, John and James at Getshemane and the mountain when they met phrophet Moses and phrophet Elijah.

Peter is the only person who dare to step out of the boat under storm to walk on the water with Jesus.

Peter is the one who told everyone that Jesus is the messiah.

But this high rank student, was the one who deny Jesus three times before sun rise because of afraid being captured together with Jesus. He was actually brave enough to watch Jesus closely to the court yard of Jews high priest in the time.

But Jesus has warned him about it, using the cry of the cock, Jesus already foreseeing Peter would deny Him. And then after the cry of the cock, Peter realised that he denied his loving master, he run away with broken tears.

And then I realised.  What this message mean saying Peter name is completely to address the healing and hope to broken Peter. The "rock" that is now in peaces, cannot lifted his face amongs his fellow disciples. Actually all of them the same, they all afraid and run, but Peter....oh our Peter, the one walking on the water, how come?

I believe many of us like Peter, a broken and a failed one. How many times we promised to live in godlines, to do the words of God, to praise Him in our life, but we fails. We may also fails in many other aspects in life. We fails in relationship, we fails in trust, we fails in holiness. We sin and fail.

The ressurection news addresed specifically to the broken and failed like Peter. The scripture we read today might not mentioned my name, but I know, he named me too. This for us the believers who sometimes fail and broken from many things. Yes, God is addressed His ressurection for you who fails!

I wouldn't doubt if Judas the traitor wasn't killed himself, then it will not only Peter name mentioned, it will also Judas. But for sure, any of us should be like Peter who's crying to confess of his sin and regreting how failed he is. Without repent, there is no way God will forgive. Why? Because God want us to value how bad and dangerous sin is, it took the Son of God to die on the cross for redeem (pay) it.

When people wants God come to punish the bad/criminal guys, instead, the fact is God came to saves the broken and fails people like you and I. God still will punish sinners, but only for them who wont grateful for His calling of salvation thru faith in Jesus Christ.

He has done all the conditional of sin penalty, and paid all to save everyone of us. So His calling should be a huge joy for a person like you and I, a chance to be saved.

But in the other hand, when we reject His calling, it is the worst response that disrespectful of God own sacrifice.

Yes He is calling each of us! He knows our life, He want to heal us, He want to love us back, He wants to grasp our hand and make us stand on our feet again, He wants to build us from just a fail student becomes the great apostles!

Come to Him, come to Jesus Christ, confess your sin, talk to Him your failures, and ask Him to forgives you, and you will be saved. Just simple pray with your own words to express your need of Him, then you can see how He will save you.

For He want us in heaven with Him someday. Amen. -md