I find the experience of the first women at the tomb interesting. The text reads,

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. (Luke 24:1-3)

Here's what’s interesting to me: The women going to the tomb expected one thing but experienced another.

The text tells us, “...the women took the spices they had prepared…” which shows that they expected to anoint the dead, lifeless body of Jesus. But, as they arrived, they experienced something completely different. A risen, living, resurrected Lord. Friends this is the experience of every person who comes into contact with the Risen Jesus. An expectation, and a completely different experience.

When we first come to Jesus, we expect that we have to prove ourselves but experience a grace and acceptance that we’ve never experienced before. We expect to work our way into the kingdom but experience that we are already in through faith in Jesus. We expect Jesus to be judgmental, and vindictive, but experience a God of love, who gave his life for us.

For those of us who have been walking with Jesus for a while, we think we have him figured out, and we expect him to be one way, but in our interactions with Jesus, we experience something more beautiful and more wondrous.

Here’s my invitation for you today: like the women at the tomb, go to Jesus. And as you do, prepare yourself to experience a love, a grace, a wonder, and a hope that you have never experienced before.[1]

- Pastor Evan Davies

[1] Art piece by Katy Olsen.