Go & Tell that Love Has Come to Life: A Creative Retelling of the First Easter

In the darkness we were waiting / without hope, without light / ‘Till from heaven You came running / there was mercy in your eyes / … // To reveal the kingdom coming / And to reconcile the lost / To redeem the whole creation / You did not despise the cross / For even in your suffering / You saw to the other side / Knowing this was our salvation / Jesus for our sake you died. (from “King of Kings” by Brooke Ligertwood)

To read the first part of this story—Good Friday—read "Oh the Merciful Love of Our Savior: A Creative Retelling of the First Good Friday"

The First Easter through the Eyes of Mary Magdalene:

Friday Evening…

A few hours after the conversation between Jesus and the criminal who hung on His right, Jesus cried out, “It is finished!”

He took His final breath and bowed His head.

His chest rose no more.

A sense of darkness blanketed the land.

The reality of what just occurred registered within me only when a terrible wail rose beside me. It was Mary, the mother of Jesus. She collapsed to the ground, her face buried deep into her hands as sob after sob escaped from her lungs. Her sister knelt beside her and held her—both of them weeping together.

I stood there in utter shock. Mary, the wife of Clopas, was there beside me on the other side. She looked as heartbroken and hopeless as I felt. I couldn’t believe it. Jesus, the Messiah, the one who was prophesied to save us, was dead.

It is impossible to say how long the four of us women remained there, full of grief, heartbreak, and numbness as we looked on at the lifeless body of our Lord, hanging there in the distance on that great wooden cross; but after what seemed like both an eternity and a matter of minutes, a Roman officer arrived at the scene, ordering the soldiers standing guard to take down the body of Jesus. Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of our Jewish council, was with the centurion. The soldiers gave the body of Jesus to Joseph who immediately instructed his servants to wrap up it with a white, linen cloth.

I motioned to Mary and the sister of Jesus’ mother—his mother was still weeping, now silently, in the dirt. I wanted to see where they would take Him.

So as Joseph and his servants carried the body of Jesus away, we followed after him—Mary’s sister helping her to her feet and wrapping her arms around the grieving mother’s shoulders—keeping our distance.

The men carried Jesus’ body to a nearby garden where they placed Him in a new tomb. They sealed the entrance with a great stone. As we stood by and watched a Roman officer and his squad of soldiers burst into the garden.

“Joseph of Arimathea, we have come with orders to stand guard at this tomb.” the officer handed Jospeh a piece of parchment and smirked mockingly as he continued. “We wouldn’t want anything to happen to the body of such a prestigious rabbi.”

After taking a glance at the note, Joseph looked up and replied with a faint smile, “Of course sir, I understand the implications of what such a scene might do to the reputation of Rome. I shall leave you and your men to your duty.”

Joseph then turned and walked towards us, his servants in tow, as they made their way to the edge of the garden. As they passed, Joseph smiled weakly at us—you could see the heartbreak in his eyes—and said, “You women are welcome to return and prepare His body with spices for burial. I simply could not bear the thought of Him hanging on that horrid cross any longer than was necessary.”

With that, he turned again and walked out of the garden, with his servants, back towards the city.

Sunday morning…

After the Sabbath and the Passover festival had ended, Mary and I returned to the tomb.

Even before we came in sight of the tomb, I could sense something was off. Glancing over at Mary I could tell she could feel it too.

With trepidation, we entered the garden. We drew near to the sealed entrance—fearing that the soldiers guarding it would give us trouble—and seeing what lay before us, both Mary and I froze with shock and confusion.

The soldiers who had been left to guard the tom lay on the ground, unconscious as if they had been knocked out by some mystical force. And the stone! The stone that had sealed the entrance just days before was no longer in its proper place. Someone had rolled it away!

Looking at each other without speaking a word, Mary and I ducked inside the tomb.

Sitting there, where the body of Jesus should have been lying were two men dressed in dazzling white robes. Mary’s face turned stark white and I let out a little scream and stepped back towards the entrance. The two men stood up and lifting their hands gently into the air, they smiled softly at us. The one on the left spoke, his voice sounding as if it had come from heaven itself. “Don’t be afraid, because I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.”

Mary and I stood there glancing back and forth between each other and the two mysterious men. Mary’s face was full of confusion, as I’m certain mine was as well. Of course we’re looking for Jesus. I’m certain that everyone knows that this is where His body had been laid.

Then the other man added, seeming to sense our confusion. “Jesus is not here for He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay.” The man motioned to the stone slab that the two of them had previously been sitting on. The grave clothes that had wrapped the body of Jesus lay there folded up as if they had simply been nightclothes put away for the day. The other man then spoke once again, this time with urgency.

“Go quickly and tell His disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and indeed He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see Him there.’ Listen, I have told you” (Matthew 28:5-7, CSB).

I turned my head towards Mary to see if she believed. This couldn’t be real! Jesus was….alive?! How was that even possible?

Turning back to the men dressed in white, they once again smiled at us and then motioned for us to go—to go and tell the other disciples the good news.

So together, Mary and I stumbled out of the empty tomb—half in shock and half in joy. Mary ran out ahead of me, her face bursting into joy.

“Mary, He is alive!! Can you believe it!?! Jesus is ALIVE!! Let’s go tell Peter and John and the others!!”

As she ran out of the garden, heading towards the city, I called after her, “Wait!”

She paused and turned her face back, tilting her head as she listened.

“Wait!” I motioned toward her, “You go on, I’m not ready to leave just yet.” My heart was being pulled in two. I needed more answers, more proof before I could believe this news. Jesus was alive?! It seemed too good to be true. So I turned back and walked again into the tomb only to find it completely empty this time, for the two men had vanished.

Where did they go?!! I ran out into the garden once again and flung myself to the ground weeping. Didn’t I witness Jesus take His last breath? Didn’t I see Him die? How is He now alive?! Is He truly alive?!

Moments later—or maybe an eternity later—I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder. Looking up through my tears and wild strands of loose hair, I saw a kind-looking man. It’s the gardener, I suppose.

“Woman,” his voice full of tenderness, “why are you crying? Who is it that you’re seeking?”

“Sir,” I replied, standing up and trying to brush back my hair and stop the rising bubble of emotion in my chest, “if you’ve carried Him away, tell me where you’ve put Him, and I will take Him away.”

Turning away from the man, I shook my head in grief. Part of my mind, the part that wasn’t screaming out in sorrow, knew that what I was saying did not make much sense. Where would I take Him and what would I do with His body if this gardener gave it to me? And what if what those other men said is true? That He’s alive? Where would His body be then? I didn’t know. I just knew that my heart was breaking and I wanted the news that He was alive to be true, but I just didn’t think I had the strength to believe it.

“Mary.”

My heart jumped into my throat.

Hope sprang into my lungs.

Joy crashed over my thoughts.

It wasn’t just that this man knew my name, it was the way that He said it that turned me back around and flung me into His wide-open arms.

“Rabboni—teacher!”

It was Jesus, my Lord, my Creator, and my Savior! He IS alive!!

Pulling me out of His embrace, Jesus took up my hands and looked deep into my eyes.

He spoke with such overwhelming authority, yet with a deep, abounding love. “Don’t cling to me, since I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them that I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” (John 20:15-18, CSB).

So I went. I ran.

All the way back to the city I ran. Running as fast as my legs could carry me, I cried out with a deep inner joy that one could not even imagine.

JESUS MESSIAH IS ALIVE!!!

Up from the grave He arose / With a mighty triumph o'er His foes / He arose a Victor from the dark domain / And He lives forever with His saints to reign / He arose! / He arose! / Hallelujah! Christ arose! (from“He Arose” by Daniel Thornton)

And the morning that You rose / All of Heaven held its breath / 'Til that stone was moved for good / For the Lamb had conquered death / And the dead rose from their tombs / And the angels stood in awe / For the souls of all who'd come / To the Father are restored. (from “King of Kings” by Brooke Ligertwood)

Here is my Easter challenge to you (well it’s actually a command from Jesus!):

Go and tell one person that you know, who isn’t walking with Jesus, that He is alive! Then tell them how He’s saved you and changed your life!

I found my hope, His name is Jesus / The Anchor of my soul, the Savior of my life. (from “I Found My Hope” by LOVKN)