The Broken Link

I am surprised to be who and where I am today. The person I was at 19 is no longer visible, although there are still signs of him that surface from time to time. When I gave up resisting God, and quit fighting Him, I had exhausted all other possibilities for happiness. I knew then that I had to submit to His control over my life -- that under my own direction, my life had been filled with bitterness and sorrow. I had hurt people, used people, and lied to the point of embarrassment. I was filled with guilt and self-loathing. I was weak-minded and a slave to my desires. It was so dark for me.

Mark 16:1-8
“When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. 6 "Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'" 8 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.”

The earliest copies of the Gospel of Mark conclude with verse 8. It is the wide consensus of biblical scholars today that verses 9-20 were added at a later date than the time of the original writing. I think people were uncomfortable with the conclusion at verse 8, which leaves the women afraid of what had happened. People like to have tension resolved, so somebody finished the story for Mark.

The women had been through a lot. In the past week they had witnessed the pinnacle and the downfall of their Master. He had entered Jerusalem six days before with the crowds nearly rioting in their praise of Him, and three days later were calling for His death. Their leader, whom they believed to be the Messiah, the Chosen One of God, was dead. What would happen to them now? Had they been mistaken in their belief?

We know the rest of the story. The women bump into Jesus soon after and the rest is history. It was the women to went to the Twelve and were the first to proclaim the words, “He is risen.” The Church began its search and rescue operation in the world, shoving back the forces of darkness and putting Satan in his place as the defeated one. And a message of hope went out into the world, traveling over land and sea, over centuries, to reach someone at the end of his rope, who desperately needed something to hold on to. That person was me.

As a Christian, I am linked to a vast chain of people who have been rescued by Jesus. The message of hope and love I received was passed down through thousands of years. But it all began with those two women at the tomb, who ran to tell others of what they had seen. It is now my obligation to do the same, lest I be the broken link in the chain of God's rescue of humanity.