John 20:11-18
Easter Sunrise
Grace—Tucson
April 5, 2026
The Important Easter Questions Imagine walking along that path that led to the garden. The branches of olive trees hang over the dirt path that leads to the final resting place of the Lord’s people. It’s early. The air is crisp as the sun is only starting to think about rising over the hill. A large stone that’s supposed to be over the mouth of a tomb is the first thing you can make out in the darkness. But it isn’t where it was a few days ago. It had been rolled into place and sealed on Friday, after the body of your dear friend had been placed on the tomb’s shelf. But now it’s been rolled back along the track, leaving the tomb wide open. This is not good. You turn around and you run, not walk, and you tell your circle of friends—his friends—that someone has opened the tomb and taken the body. Two of them run back the way you came—down the path, through the trees, and into the garden to see for themselves. You end up going back too. You had grieved a few days ago when he died, and now you’re grieving a painful second loss. Can you imagine that kind of heartache? There was a woman who didn’t have to imagine it because she lived it. She was Mary from the city of Magdala. Her situation had been ungodly. Truly. She was possessed by not one demon, not two, not three—seven demons had taken possession of her! How horrible! Jesus had given her a new life when he drove those seven demons from her. As she got to know him, he gave her a new life in an entirely different way. She trusted him as her Savior, the one who forgave her sins and promised her eternal life in heaven. She loved her Lord. So, you can understand her grief, can’t you? You might have stood outside that grave sobbing like she did. Would you have had the courage to bend over and tilt your head to the side enough to look at the place where the body was supposed to be? She did. And what happened after that is why we are here this morning. 1. Why Are You Weeping? What a devastating start to the day. Mary went to the tomb fully expecting to properly care for Jesus’ body that had been hastily put there before the start of the Sabbath. She stands there crying—no, not just crying—she’s sobbing. She can’t stop. She looks into the tomb, and if there were harps and halos, she completely missed them (there probably weren’t)! The angels who aren’t even recognized as angels by Mary (whose eyes are blurry with tears) ask what might seem like an odd question: “Woman, why are you weeping?” Wasn’t it obvious? She was clearly looking for the body that was not there anymore. Love and devotion and appreciation had driven her to the tomb to care for her Lord—and his body had been removed. “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I don’t know where they have laid him,” she said.