Holy Saturday by Kat Duck
Matthew 27:51-54
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. Now when the centurion and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”=================================
At the moment of Jesus’ death, there was an earthquake, the Temple curtain was ripped in two and graves were opened with those who had died emerging and walking into the city to appear before many people. Chaos ensued and members of the Roman guard said, “This was the son of God.” I can only image what the guards must have felt at that moment and what the residents of the town were thinking as the previously dead walked among them. The man they had crucified, who had died a horrible death at their hands, was not who they thought he was at all. He was someone for whom the heavens could open up and the stones could cry out. What it must have felt like to admit to each other that Jesus was the son of God!
From that time until this, from the moment of Jesus’ death until this very moment, people have been having amazing epiphanies when they realize who Jesus really is and how he can change lives in an instant. When I began to really understand who Jesus is and began to follow him rather than just to worship him, my life changed. Following is much more challenging than worshipping. While worship is fruitful and necessary, doing what Jesus said to do in his many teachings has been the way Jesus has changed my life. I have become more forgiving, more generous, more loving. I have a long way to go; my journey begins again every day, but I have taken the first steps. I am on the road and like those Roman soldiers, my eyes have been opened to who Jesus really is and how he can change every life that comes to him with open hands and a willing heart.