He's Gone!

ApriI 11th. I’ve had it marked on my calendar since last year. Warmer days. The trees budding out. The not so long ago bare fields are turning green. It only means one thing to the hunter…turkey season. Turkey hunting fanatics are already doing some preseason scouting and making their opening morning plans in hopes of harvesting one of these magnificent “thunder chickens.” Myself included.

A few days ago, a friend of mine, Joe Finney and I went to a place just before daylight to listen for turkeys. He’d seen a large group of turkeys several times at that location and we were there to hopefully catch a glimpse (and maybe get some video footage) of them while on the roost. Joe had pin-pointed where a big gobbler had been roosting and we quietly made our way into his roosting area. As the sky started to lighten and we could see into the trees, we soon realized he was not there. He was gone! Then, just as quickly as we wondered where he had gone, he announced his presence from a tall hardwood tree down the ridge from us with a loud “gobble.” I could see him standing in all his glory, in a half-strut out on the limb. He gobbled a few more times then flew down off his roosting spot to the ground where he went about doing the things that turkeys do.

We were surprised that the old tom turkey was not where we expected it. Can you imagine how it must have been to go to the tomb where Jesus was buried after his horrible crucifixion on the cross and find that he was gone? He was not there! He had been placed there in that tomb and three days later, several ladies who went to the tomb where he was buried found that Jesus was not there. It was clearly not what they had expected. They were carrying burial spices. It was obvious that what they expected was a body laying there in that tomb. What they did find was an empty tomb and two angels that spoke to them and said, “Why do you search for the living among the dead? He is not here, he has risen.” Jesus had done exactly what he had predicted, yet his followers were in disbelief.
This empty tomb, the very resurrection of Jesus is everything on which Christianity is built around. If the resurrection did not happen, then Christianity is nothing but a big joke. The resurrection is not a joke at all and nor is it a secret, but a historical fact. There are many historical records found in the scriptures of Jesus meeting with, touching, eating with and talking with people after he rose from the dead. On one occasion a crowd of over 500 people saw him after the resurrection. In fact, a 1990 Gallup Survey revealed that 84% of people surveyed believed in the resurrection of Jesus.
What does it mean? It means Jesus is who he says he is. He never claimed to be a religious leader or great prophet, but He said that he was the Son of God. It means he has the power that he claims to have. He was killed by the Romans, made sure he was dead, placed in a tomb that was sealed with a stone and guarded 24 hours a day. Yet, Jesus claimed that he had the power to lay down his life and the power to take it up again (John 10:18). He had the power to rise from the dead and he did. It also means that Jesus will do what he says he will do. So then, what does it really matter to us? It means our sins can be forgiven, we can have a purpose for living, and that we can have a home in heaven. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live. Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die-ever!” (John 11:25-26).
Where is it that you look for things to fill your life, or better yet, fill you with life? We should ask ourselves the question that was asked to those who found the empty tomb. “Why do you search for the living among the dead?” We often times look for the living among the dead. We want to feel alive, to feel love, to feel energy and the exuberance of life, but we look in the wrong places; places with no life in them. I recommend looking to the one that is life. Jesus in fact, says that he is the way, the truth and the life.

So the next time you’re out hunting or fishing and the turkeys, ducks, deer or largemouth are not where you expect to find them, let it remind you that Jesus is alive... “ He has risen.” He’s like the turkey I saw out on the limb, gobbling and announcing to the woods that he is alive. Jesus does the same thing. He calls to us letting us know he is alive, coming to seek and to save the lost and doing the things that only He does: giving peace to the restless, giving hope to the hopeless, joy to the unhappy, and offering mercy and grace to all that believe in Him. Happy Easter and good turkey hunting!