John 20: 8 "So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then entered, and he saw and believed." 

What did he see?  He walked into the tomb after others had already preceded him in going inside and looking around.  Mary Magdalene and a few other women were the first to the tomb, and they walked inside.  The synoptic gospels tell us that they spoke with an angel who told them that He was risen, but nothing was said as to whether they believed.  Mary told Peter and John, then they ran to the tomb.  John got there first, but then waited for Peter. Peter arrived and went inside and saw the "grave clothes" in their place and the face-cloth rolled up separately from the linen wrapping.  These all gave the appearance of order and not chaos.  Nothing in what he saw gave evidence of a grave robbery or any other suspicious activity.  No response was indicated from Peter besides his seeing these conspicuous details.  John saw these things and noted them, and yet he came to an immediate assessment: he believed. 

What did John believe?  Even though he was not aware of the scriptures as of yet, he believed that Jesus was alive (John 20: 9)!John had been in the garden of Gethsemane with Jesus when He prayed and was arrested (Mark 14: 33, John 18: 1-11), then he was there when Jesus was tried by the Sanhedrin (John 18: 15-16), and he also stood near the cross by Mary (John 19: 25-27).  John was there to witness his final words and His death  (John 19: 30), as well as later when His side was pierced (John 19: 34-37). Thus, it is logical and seems to indicate that John was probably there at the garden tomb when Jesus was laid to rest inside, and the stone was rolled into place (John 19: 40-42).  All the evidence was clear that Jesus died. He died triumphantly and was buried properly.

Mary was overwhelmed with grief at the death of Jesus and struggled in her sorrows, clouding her eyes and her heart.  Peter struggled in the last few hours of Jesus' life by denying Him and then overwhelmed by guilt for failing Jesus (Luke 22: 60-62). Guilt so filled his heart that he just could not process what he saw nor what it meant. However, when John walked into the empty tomb, his eyes were wide open and so was his heart; the only conclusion to be drawn was that Jesus was no longer dead--but alive.  When we seek to live a life that is clean, our ability "to see" and believe is affected; the barriers of grief and guilt are less likely to cloud our vision or our faith.  If your heart is clouded with grief or guilt, ask the Lord to cleanse your heart from all unrighteousness (1 John 1: 9).  Instead, May He fill our hearts with gratitude for His Grace.  And may we ask Him to help us see and believe!

In  Christ,
Tommy Middleton

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