Our reading is on the second page of the hem sheet. The Gospel according to John chapter 20. We'll read the first 20 verses. The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.

Then she runneth and cometh to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together, and the other disciple did outrun Peter and came first to the sepulchre. And he stooping down and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying, yet went he not in. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lying, and the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulcher, and he saw and believed. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home.

But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping. And as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, and seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary.

She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni, which is to say, Master, Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father. But go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and to my God and your God.

Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord. and that he had spoken these things unto her. Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst and said unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he showed unto them his hands and his side.

Then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord. Thus far the reading of God's Holy Word. It is these last words highlighted in verse 20. Then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord. So I want to look firstly at the lead up to the then. then were the disciples glad, just to consider the lead up to that, and then secondly how the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord, and then lastly how we now see the Lord by faith through the Word.

But firstly just to think of the lead up, firstly the sorrows of the disciples. Our Lord had already sought to prepare them. He said that the world would rejoice, and ye shall have sorrow, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. And He also said, ye now therefore have sorrow, but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh away from you. that this was the time of their sorrow when they saw their Lord, their Saviour, taken and cruelly whipped, then taken and crucified.

We think of how much the Scriptures were fulfilled in that it should be a blood sacrifice. Even in the garden of Gethsemane He had swept great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Then his back was torn, as was prophesied in Psalm 129, the flowers ploughed upon my back, made deep, made deep their furrows. And then he had the crown of thorns that were pressed upon his head, so his head, the blood would stream from his head. And then his pierced hands, and then his pierced feet, and last of all, in his peers signed.

It could be no doubt when you're thinking of all the Old Testament scriptures that without the shedding of blood there is no remission. Here was the shedding of the blood of the Lamb of God. But the disciples have seen all of these things. They'd seen him yield up the ghost, they'd seen the great things, the great happenings, the darkness, the earthquake, the veil rend, and now here's the third day, and what change of feelings through that day.

It began in sorrow, and then there began to be the reports. The reports firstly of an empty tomb. They could see the tomb was empty. Remember the women coming up to the tomb, who shall roll us away the stone? But our Lord later on came to the disciples with the doors being shut. He did not need the stone rolled away to rise. He could have just risen through it, but it needed to be rolled back so that they could see the tomb was empty, so they could see the napkin lying. the grave clothes lying, so that Mary could see the angels.

So it was evident that the seal had been broken, the tomb had been opened, the soldiers had become as dead men. There were these infallible truths that were associated with the rising of the Lord that made it such a remarkable, incontestable event, an empty tomb.

But they had seen these things, they heard these things. Then we have those that had been on the way to Emmaus, and the Lord had met with them. And when he revealed himself to them, then they immediately returned back to Jerusalem. They came to the disciples, and the disciples were saying this, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon. So throughout the day there's these reports of the Lord rising, but by the end of the day it became so clear to them it really had happened, the Lord had risen indeed.

And as they're speaking that, then the Lord Jesus stands in the midst of them, says, Peace be unto you. Now we read that part here in John, but in Luke we read that they were terrified and affrighted so as soon as he appeared they weren't glad first they were supposing they had seen a spirit but then he said why are you troubled why do thoughts arise in your hearts behold my hands and my feet that it is I myself handle me and see for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as you see me have And when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they believed not, for joy and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish and of a honeycomb, and he took it and did eat before them.

So these are the happenings on the first day of the week. And then we have these words, Then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord. What emotions were brought together with that word, glad? If someone is glad, we think of what the Lord had said about the joy, about that sorrow, and then that turned into joy. So that gladness, there was joy there. Joy that the word of the Lord Jesus Christ had been fulfilled.

And they actually there were beholding and seeing Him through the cross, risen again, and before their very eyes. They had had sorrow, and now they had seen Him again, and their heart was rejoicing, and they had that additional which the Lord had said, how much more it would have heightened that joy to realize that they need not fear. They were in that upper room with the doors shut for fear of the Jews. But our Lord, if they remembered back their joy that they now had, not the Jews, not the Romans, no man is going to take that joy away from them.

And some of you may need to be reminded of this. You know, I can think back to times when I've been so blessed and favoured in my soul, had such joy in my soul, then times of darkness have come, sorrow has come, but the Lord has visited again, and that eternal joy and that hope of what that joy was a foretaste of will never be taken away from His people. Man cannot take it away. The Roman Catholics couldn't take it away from the martyrs, even though they burnt them in the fires, They couldn't take away that joy, that day that they would be with the Lord and be with Christ and feast with Him.

So there was relief in that gladness as well, that the Jews, the Romans and death had no power over the Lord. He truly was the seed of the woman that should bruise the serpent's head and take away the power of death the sting of death, the fear of death taken away. So what a feeling there was there of that joy and gladness.

And it's good for us to think here is a picture of the effect of the Lord revealed to his people. The Lord cannot reveal himself and show himself to his people and leave them unmoved and unaffected. It will, as we view and believe in Him, cause us joy, cause us, as we really believe, to rejoice in those things that the Lord is showing to us.

So I want to think, thirdly, how we now see the Lord. Because, of course, we will never see Him like the disciples did on earth, when He rose from the dead. We do not see Him in that way. But how is it we see Him? You see, our Lord said to Thomas, Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed. Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. And we think of in Hebrews, We see not yet all things put unto Him, but we see Jesus. Well, how do we see Jesus? We see Him by faith and through the Word. And we know that we do by the effect.

Now think of those two on the way to Emmaus. I just passingly referred to them as they came back. But think of them on the way to Emmaus. On the way to Emmaus a stranger joined with them. They did not know that that was Jesus. It could not be said that they had seen the Lord. They had, but they didn't know. So anything that they felt did not arise from what came from their eyes, only arose from what he was speaking and what he said.

And so he began. And in all the scriptures concerning himself, the Psalms and Moses and the prophets, all of those things, ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into his glory? What was the effect? Really He was showing them Himself in all the Scriptures.

Their heart burnt within them. They had that joy, they had that which really touched them through the Word. And I believe there's some of you that can say Amen to that. You have felt that as well. I remember years ago, many years ago, 45 years or so ago, And when the Lord began with me, and when I first saw him reading through the passage of Jacob wrestling, there wrestled a man with him to the breaking of the day.

And I wasn't expecting it at all, but the Lord so shot on that word, man. That is a pre-incarnation appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ. And of course, Jacob had his name changed from Jacob to Israel, And the reason given, because thou hast wrestled with God and with man, and hast prevailed. There is the Lord Jesus Christ, God and man, in one person, one divine person.

And I can't feel that same effect I felt there, but the joy, the warmth, the wonder of actually seeing on the sacred page the Lord there. And so when I think of those two on the way to Emmaus, I thought, I know something of what you felt. I have experienced that. I've known that through those Old Testament scriptures too. And so we can have that through the New Testament, through the Word of God, through the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the Spirit's work to take the things of Jesus and reveal them unto us. And we will know that by the effect that it has. the softening, the drawing, the love, the affection, the taking away of our hard and stony heart and bringing a leap of joy and anticipation that here is my beloved.

You think of in Song of Solomon when he put his hand by the hole of the door. It moved her to go out to open the door. When he withdrew himself, she was stirred enough to go out and follow after him and desire him. And the Lord says, and come unto me, except the Father which hath sent me, draw him."

Beautiful thing, to be drawn to the Lord and to have that love and to have that gladness when we see Him. So may this be a blessed Lord's Day, revisiting again the wonder of our risen Saviour and Lord. May it touch our hearts and bring back to remembrance too times maybe years ago when we have truly been blessed. I can think of Easter times that in my own home and on my own, the Lord is so blessed, so drawn near to me as I've been in the Spirit through the days of the Easter weekend and they've been sacred times and maybe some of you have got times that you can remember as well that have been really blessed times with brethren, maybe many of them now in glory already and you hope to be followers of them.