Lent Devotion – From the Cross to the Grave – Week 3

The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
Matthew 27:51b-53

When the Ground Gives Way

Have you ever gotten a phone call that made the world stop? A piece of news so unexpected or difficult that it felt like the solid ground beneath your feet had suddenly turned to sand? In those moments, our carefully constructed lives are shaken, and we feel an overwhelming sense of powerlessness and fear.

On the day Jesus died, the whole world was shaken—literally.

It’s easy to read these words as just another dramatic detail in the grand story of the day our Savior died. But Matthew recorded this for a reason. The earthquake wasn’t a random coincidence. It was a sign of God’s awesome power and his righteous judgment against the sin-sick world that nailed Jesus to the cross. The splitting rocks declared that the hardest, most final barriers of sin, death, and the grave itself were being shattered by Christ’s sacrifice.

But God didn’t just show his power through destruction. He showed it through new life. This earthquake released “the bodies of many holy people” from their tombs. Think about that for a moment. These long-dead believers were raised at the moment of Jesus’ death. They served as a living, breathing embodiment of the promise of resurrection to all who believe. This was a tangible sign that Jesus’ victory wasn’t just a spiritual concept but rather a reality that broke into our physical world, defeating the enemy of death. The earth shook once more when Jesus’ body was raised from his tomb on Easter morning, and, at that time, these risen people walked into Jerusalem, providing living proof of Jesus’ victory over death for all time.

So, what does a 2,000-year-old earthquake and a handful of resurrected saints have to do with you and me today as we juggle work deadlines, pack school lunches, care for our families, and simply go about our daily lives?

Everything.

When your personal world is shaken by that scary phone call, deep disappointment, or any other earth-shattering news, remember the cross. The earth shook when Jesus died and rose once again so that your faith wouldn’t have to. The ground gave way beneath Jesus so that he could become our unshakable rock, our firm foundation.

And when you feel like you’re living in a tomb of grief, anxiety, or exhaustion, remember the resurrected saints. They are God’s promise to you. They are a glimpse of the final victory. Christ’s death and resurrection are for us, now and always. We look ahead with faith to the day he raises us to life through him.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for shaking the earth to show your ultimate victory over sin and the grave. When our own lives are shaken, anchor our faith to you, our unshakable rock and our firm foundation. Help us to live each day in the confident hope of the resurrection you have won for us. Amen.

Written by Alycia Cameron