Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) John20:8-9
Peter and John ran to the tomb after the women told them that the tomb was empty. We know that Peter "walked away wondering to himself what had happened" (Luke24:12) but here we are told that John saw and believed. But, as John himself explains in v9, his belief was instinctive, a gut feel that this was not the end of the story.
So what is John saying in v.9? He is saying that later on they figured it out: --> It _had_ to happen!
Jesus _had_ to rise from the dead.
He is saying that the resurrection was an imperative.
Let's think it through...
* It was an ontological imperative (ontology is about the "being" of a thing or person.) If Jesus is part of the Trinity, was the WORD by which the world was created, if He was the perfect sacrifice and the fulfilment of prophecy, then resurrection is simply part of who He IS. He is the Way, the Truth and the LIFE.
* It was a theological imperative - how can the Author of Life lose His life?? How could the perfect sacrifice not be sufficient??
* It was a prophetic imperative - the Scriptures made it clear: "You will not let your Holy One see decay!" (Ps16:10)
* It was a truth imperative - Jesus said: "Destroy this temple and I will rebuild it in three days." Could He have been a liar??
It took a while for the disciples to get it, but eventually they did. It took them time because Jesus really died - and He died horribly - it wasn't a "pretend" death - He really died at the hand of our guilt and sin. Resurrection wasn't a short-cut, but it was a victory He was going to achieve. Because of who He is and because of His great love for us, He _had_ to rise. He _had_ to overcome!
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Theo Groeneveld theo@emmanuel.org.za
You can see past EmmDevs at http://emmdev.blogspot.com/
