Lectio Reflection – John 20:1-9 (Year A, 2026)
Easter morning always brings us to the heart of our faith, yet the Gospel itself is remarkably restrained. There is no description of the resurrection moment. Instead, we are given something quieter, more subtle-and perhaps more demanding: the empty tomb.
I find myself drawn not so much to what is seen, but to what is not seen.
Mary Magdalene comes early, while it is still dark. That detail matters. Darkness is not simply the time of day-it reflects the inner state of those who loved Jesus. The crucifixion has shattered their expectations. Hope, as they understood it, has died.
And yet, Mary comes.
There is something deeply faithful in that simple act. She does not yet believe in the resurrection. She is not expecting victory. She comes in grief, in confusion, perhaps even in despair-but she comes. And I often wonder in my own life: do I still come to the Lord when I do not understand what He is doing?
The Stone Rolled Away
The stone has been moved. The tomb is open.
Now, it is important to recognise that the stone is not rolled away so that Jesus can come out. The resurrection has already taken place. The stone is rolled away so that we can see in.
And what do we see?
Nothing.
The absence itself becomes the message.
In a world that constantly seeks proof, certainty, and control, the resurrection begins with an emptiness that invites faith rather than compels it. The tomb does not explain-it calls.
The Journey of Belief
Peter and the beloved disciple run to the tomb. There is urgency here. Something has stirred within them-perhaps confusion, perhaps hope, perhaps the beginning of faith.
The beloved disciple arrives first but waits. Peter enters. Then the other disciple follows.
And we are told something very striking: “He saw and he believed.”
Yet immediately after, the Gospel adds: “They did not yet understand the scripture.”
So what kind of belief is this?
It is not full understanding. It is not certainty. It is the beginning of faith-a response to something encountered, not fully grasped.
I think this is very important for us. We often think that faith comes after understanding. But here, belief precedes understanding. Faith is not the conclusion of a process-it is the beginning of a journey.
The Faithfulness of Presence
What strikes me deeply in this Gospel-and in the broader resurrection narrative-is the quiet fidelity of those who remained.
Mary Magdalene comes.
The beloved disciple runs.
Peter follows.
They have not fully understood. They have not yet proclaimed. But they are present.
And I think this speaks powerfully into our own lives. Faith is not always about clarity or strength. Sometimes it is simply about remaining-about showing up, about continuing to seek, even when everything seems uncertain.
Easter Faith: Not Certainty, but Encounter
The resurrection is not presented as an argument to be proven. It is an encounter to be received.
The empty tomb does not force belief. It opens a space in which belief can emerge.
And perhaps that is where Easter meets us most personally.
We all have “tombs” in our lives-places of loss, disappointment, confusion. Places where we thought something had ended. The resurrection does not always remove those experiences. But it transforms them.
What appears empty may, in fact, be the beginning of something new.
Always a Beginner
One thought that returns to me often is this: in the spiritual life, we are always beginners.
The disciples had followed Jesus, listened to him, witnessed his works-and yet here they are, standing before an empty tomb, only just beginning to believe.
And I take comfort in that.
Because it means that faith is not about having arrived. It is about continuing to respond. It is about allowing the Lord to lead us, again and again, into deeper understanding.
Easter is not the end of the journey. It is the beginning of a new way of seeing.
A Question for Prayer
As you sit with this Gospel, I invite you to ask:
- Where are the “empty tombs” in my life?
- What is God inviting me to believe, even if I do not yet understand?
- Am I willing to come, like Mary, even in the darkness?
Closing Prayer
O God,
who on this day conquered death
and opened for us the path to eternal life,
grant that we, who celebrate the Resurrection,
may be renewed by your Spirit
and rise in the light of life.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Bishop David Walker