Joseph Prince - Let Not Your Heart Be Hijacked by Fear (01/20/2026)
In this Easter sermon on John 20, Joseph Prince emphasizes that the stone was rolled away from Jesus' tomb not for Him to exit—since His glorified body could transcend matter—but for witnesses to see the empty tomb, confirming the Resurrection. Details like the undisturbed linen cloths refute theft theories, and the apostles' transformed boldness proves the reality of the risen Christ. Mary Magdalene, despite lacking faith initially, was overflowing with love for Jesus, leading her to be the first to encounter the risen Lord. Jesus' first words—"Peace be with you"—bring shalom wholeness, health, and well-being, declaring that through His finished work, His Father is now our Father, and His God is our God.
The Stone Rolled Away for Witnesses
«Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb». The stone was removed not for Jesus to come out. Jesus can transcend time and space. Even though Jesus had a body that is matter, but that matter was greater than the matter he created. As much as the Creator is greater than his creation, all right, his body is matter, but it can transcend bricks. It can transcend, it can appear and reappear in a bolted room. Are you listening?
So Jesus does not need the stone to be removed to come out. The stone was removed for people outside to look in. Until today, you can still look in, in Israel, in the garden tomb, to see that the tomb is empty, hallelujah.
Mary Magdalene Reports to the Disciples
And the Bible says, «Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved».
And we all know that’s John. By the way, there are five times in the Gospel of John himself where he calls himself the disciple whom Jesus loved. And in all five times, it is in the imperfect tense, which means it’s not «loved, » past tense. It is actually the disciple whom Jesus keeps on loving. Imperfect means keeps on loving, amen. It has no end. But out of five times that the phrase appears, four times it says agapao, the disciple whom Jesus loved with a God kind of love. But here is the first place it says, «whom Jesus phileo, » okay? Phileo means, like, fond of.
So he also calls himself not only the disciple whom Jesus loves with the highest kind of love, but Jesus is fond of me. Hey, isn’t that great, amen? Then he says both Simon Peter and him were told by Mary, «They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have laid Him». So none of them believed he rose from the dead, amen. Mary had a heart of love but no faith. Her heart was full of love for Jesus, but she had no intelligent faith. She didn’t believe he rose from the dead. She believed somebody stole the body. Somebody brought his body somewhere, at least, and laid him somewhere else.
Peter and John Race to the Tomb
So next, «Peter therefore went out, and the other disciple, and were going to the tomb. So they both ran together». They both started running together, Peter and John. «And the other disciple, » John, «outran Peter and came to the tomb first». There are no insignificant details in the Bible. I believe the reason why John overtook Peter is not because John was younger. It’s because at this point in time, Peter was not restored yet. Guilty feet have got no rhythm. It’s hard to run with guilty feet, amen? Does this sound like an old hymn? «Guilty feet have got no rhythm. Though it’s easy to pretend, I know you’re not a fool. Should have known better than…»
Okay, anyway, does that remind you of an old hymn? Still didn’t get it. Okay, never mind. All right, anyway, he outran Peter and came to the tomb first. «And John, stooping down and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying there; yet he did not go in». Now, he saw the linen clothes. But notice this word, «Lying there». Very, very important. He could have just said he saw the linen clothes. But not just… not that. He saw the linen clothes lying there, as if no one has touched it.
Evidence Refuting Theft
Number one, if there was a thief, why would the thief take time to unwrap the body, take the body, and leave the expensive linen clothes? Just like, you know, it’s still brand new, and linen is very expensive. Why would a thief even take time to unwrap the body? And by the way, it’s hard to unwrap. Have you seen a cocoon, like a mummy, you know? Have you seen this kind of thing in the British Museum and all that? It is still in the same shape. But by the way, for them, there’s a body inside. But it’s like when Jesus came out, his body was glorified. He transcend that whole thing, still is an empty shell. It’s like an empty cocoon. It’s still lying there, but there’s no one inside. He saw the linen clothes lying there, hm?
You know, when you think about it, later on, the Pharisees, the enemies of Christ, they said to the soldiers who saw the angels, and they fell like dead men. They told the soldiers, «If you will go around saying that their body was stolen, we’ll give you lots and lots of money and we’ll take care of your generals as well, okay? We’ll know what to talk to them about». And they took that and they publicized a lie saying that someone stole the body. Again, if someone steals the body, why leave the linen clothes behind?
Number two, in all the preaching of the apostles in the book of Acts, the Pharisees will dispute their preaching, but never did one time, if the Pharisees stole the body, if the Pharisees stole the corpse of Jesus, the fastest way to put an end to the preaching of the disciples and the apostles is to produce the dead corpse of our Lord Jesus. But never one time, they will dispute the apostles, but never one time could the Pharisees produce the body. Are you all with me so far?
Amen, another thing, very interesting. All these men were fearful men. They were men like you and I. But something happened to them after the Resurrection. They became bold, no longer timid. They preached openly. They were hiding in the Upper Room. But now they went out and preached openly. Throughout the book of Acts, you will see them with boldness, they preach.
Now I tell you this, if all come together and they all say, «Let’s concoct a story of the Resurrection, let’s pretend he rose from the dead, » no matter how much you pretend, no matter how much you lie, there comes a time under the rack and the torture when enough pressure is put on you, all right, to save your life, you will spill the beans. But do you know that every one of them, except John, John lived to a good old age, but every one of them died for the gospel of Jesus Christ. They died for the name of Jesus, amen.
Three Levels of Seeing
Let’s move right along. «So John stooped down and saw the linen cloths lying there; yet he did not go in». Now by the way, see the word «saw» there? All right, you’ll see that Peter and John using three words on seeing, seeing. Saw, saw, saw. And all three are three different Greek words which I think if you understand, it’s going to bless you a lot. Because in church, there are three kinds of seeing that goes on, all right? This first kind of seeing, «John saw the linen clothes lying there, » is the word «blepo, » which is nothing more than just seeing with your physical eye. Like you see me now, I look at you now. That’s blepo, all right?
Bleep, it’s just a bleep, all right? You just take a look at me, I take a look at you. The physical eyes, all right? To see naturally. Then the next verse says, «Then Simon Peter came, following him, and Peter went into the tomb». So John was outside, stooping down. By the way, if you go to the garden tomb, which I believe is the real empty tomb of Jesus, do you know when you stand outside, you have to stoop down to see the place where Jesus lay?
So that again confirms it. So as John was stooping down, just blepo, just looking, Peter came in here, and he went in right ahead, all right? «And he went into the tomb: and he saw the linen clothes lying there». He also saw it. But this saw is a different Greek word. It is the word «theoreo, » where we get our English word for theory. Now, to see with logical reasoning, «Why is it empty? And why is the linen clothes lying there? And if a thief steals, why does he leave behind the linen clothes, which is more expensive? And why is it lying there as if it was done with enough time? No haste, no rush». A thief will always have symptoms and signs of the rush and the haste. Am I right? «This one, the linen cloths are still there. No signs of haste, no signs of hurriedness».
So he’s theorizing. That’s pretty good. It’s better than just looking. But let me show you the third one. «And he saw the linen clothes lying there, and the handkerchief that had been around Jesus’s head, not lying with the linen cloths, but folded together in a place by itself». Let me tell you this, if a thief is rushing, he unwrap everything, all right? Can you imagine the thief say, «Hang on, hang on. I must wrap this and fold it together. Yeah, my mother says must fold, no, kind of thing, » you know? So that very thing caused him to theoreo. When he looked at it, he says, blink, blink, you know? «What’s going on down here»? Are you with me so far?
All right, then it says, «It’s folded together in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, » who is John, «who came into the tomb first, he went in also; and he saw and believed». Now there’s a third word for «saw» in the Greek, and this word here is «eido». And eido is intuitive seeing, is to see by the Holy Spirit, is to see by the Holy Spirit. Like the New Covenant says, «No longer will they say, 'Ginosko, '» know the Lord, know the Lord, ginosko the Lord, or know by experience, «but all shall eido me». «All those who believe in me, they will know me intuitively». It’s a beautiful word, amen. Sometimes people see and yet they don’t see. Some people look at these verses that I’m sharing and they see. Blessed are your eyes, for they see, amen, okay?
So those are three words for seeing. The first one, blepo, just plain seeing. Theoreo, seeing with logical reasoning, theorizing. And then the last one is revelation seeing, seeing intuitively. And John was the first one that believed. John saw and John believed. I mean, Jesus appeared to Peter later on first, all right? The first man was Peter. The first woman was Mary Magdalene he appeared to. But John was the first one to believed. Because the Bible says, next verse, «For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead».
Mary Magdalene’s Encounter
Let’s go on. «Then the disciples went away again to their own homes. But Mary, » Mary Magdalene, «stood outside the tomb weeping, and as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the tomb». Now, I want to tell you something. This is the Gospel of John. And when Jesus was dying on the cross, Jesus looked down, and Jesus says, «Mary, behold your son. John, behold your mother». In other words, adopt my mother as your mother, all right? And he told his mom to adopt John, his disciple, as her son.
Isn’t it wonderful that the Lord make provisions like this? Honor your father and mother, amen. Even when he’s dying, he make sure that his mother is taken care of. And the Bible says that John, that was the same John that wrote this Gospel. Don’t you think that he loved Mary, the mother of Jesus more? And he would actually have positioned himself in such a way that he would talk about Mary, the mother of Jesus here instead of Mary Magdalene? And yet he mentioned Mary Magdalene. And the Lord has designed it in such a way that the first woman that saw him rise from the dead is not Mary, his mother, but Mary Magdalene, most likely a prostitute.
The Bible doesn’t say that, but the Bible says Jesus cast seven devils out of her. A great sinner was the first woman, all right, that saw Jesus rise from the dead. Now, «Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb». She looked into the tomb and what did she see? «She saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain». So it’s like she saw the Ark of the Covenant when she looked inside. Remember the Ark of the Covenant that I love to preach on? There are two cherubim, one on either side, amen?
She looked down, and many of you have been there. You look into the garden tomb and you can see the two parts where… in fact, we have pictures, but we won’t take time to show you because I don’t want to preach a long message, you know, I want to let you go early. You’re about to see a miracle happen, okay. So you see two angels. I heard you laugh quite loud there, Shomel. So you find Jesus sitting… or rather the angels sitting on either side. And angels in the Bible, usually in the Old Testament, they never sit down.
«Pastor Prince, when the angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah, Samson’s father, he was sitting down». That’s not an angel-angel. That is the Lord Jesus in his appearance. He’s called the Angel of the Lord. Angels are always standing. Why? Now you see them sitting. Why? The work is finished. They are sitting on either side as if to mark the place where the blood of Jesus was still fresh where he lay. That means what? Redemption has been accomplished. Man is forgiven. The way to God is open. God is now reconciled and man is reconciled to God, hallelujah.
But look at this woman, Mary Magdalene. Her heart is so full of Jesus, her heart is so full of love for him that the Bible says she saw two angels. «They said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping? ' She said to them, 'Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.'» She didn’t even mention his name. You see, when your heart is full of Jesus, you expect everybody to know him. That’s the characteristic of love. Her heart is so full of love, she expects everyone to know who is my Lord. I love it.
You know, let me tell you this. Her faith wasn’t there. She was looking where the dead body of Jesus was. So she had no intelligent faith, but her heart was full of love. You know what? I believe God can deal with people whose heart is full of love for Jesus who don’t have their doctrine right. I would rather have people whose heart is full of love for Jesus, but their doctrine may not be right rather than have someone who know the doctrines, all right, but their heart is lacking in love. «Preach it, Pastor Prince, » amen? So, why did she love him much? Because she had been forgiven much. Jesus cast seven devils out of her, amen.
Jesus Appears to Mary
So, look at what happened. They asked her, «Why are you weeping»? Now, these are two angels talking to her. You know what she did? Next verse. «Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there». She turned away from angels. I don’t care they are angels. She only have eyes for the Lord, amen? «And when she turned around, she saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know it was Jesus, » all right? She said to him, «Jesus said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? '» I think it’s so beautiful that the very first act of the risen Christ was not something majestic like which he did later on, to go to heaven, sprinkle the blood. The very first act of Jesus is to dry the tears of a woman. I think that’s precious. His very first act was to take time to dry the tears of Mary here.
«So she 'mistook' him for the gardener, and she says, » mistook in inverted commas, «'Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I’ll take Him away.'» She expects him to know who is the «Him». Like I told you, when your heart is full of love, right? You don’t even have to explain. You know, she expects the whole world to know who Jesus is. «Tell me where You have laid Him». Now, does she believe in the resurrection? No. Is her heart full of love for him? Yes. All right, next verse. «Jesus said to her, 'Mary! ' She turned to Him». There’s a way of saying it that only the Lord can say it, «Mary»! «And she turned to Him, said, 'Rabboni! ' which means my Master».
Now early on, when he first saw her, he says, «Woman, why are you weeping»? Here he calls her name, Mary. When he call her «Woman, » it is God addressing his creature. When he calls her Mary, it is the Savior calling his sheep. One is creation, one is redemption, amen? «Jesus said to her, 'Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, „I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God“.'» So for the first time, he used to say, «My Father, my Father». Now he says, «My Father and your Father, my God and your God». People, because of what Jesus did at the cross, his Father is your Father and my Father, his God is our God, hallelujah!
The Risen Christ’s Peace
The same God of miracles, the same God of Moses that opened up the Red Sea, the same God of Elijah that took Elijah back in a whirlwind, the same God who is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who anointed him with the Holy Spirit, who went about doing good, healing all that were oppressed of the devil, unstopping deaf ears, opening the eyes of the blind, cleansing the lepers, and raising the dead, this same God is your God, amen.
You have a title to him. He hears your prayer. When you pray, you don’t have to pray the way Elijah prayed, don’t have to pray the way Jeremiah prayed. Jeremiah was good for his own prayer. Elijah was good for his own prayer. Don’t pray like Moses prayed. Don’t even pray like Peter prayed. Pray the way you want to pray. Pray from your heart. God wants to hear your voice. He wants to hear your heart, amen?
So coming back here, okay, «Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to 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, for fear, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst». I love that, in the midst. «And said to them, 'Peace be with you.'» Whatever fear you may have, in this case, the disciples were afraid of men, amen? They were afraid of dying. That’s what I’m saying just now, that after they saw the risen Christ, they’re no longer afraid of dying even for his name’s sake.
But here their fear was… you might have fear about being left alone, fear of losing someone you love, fear of losing your money, fear of the future, fear of not being able to accomplish something, fear of losing someone’s good opinion, fear over your health, fear over your child’s health, and notice the Lord appeared right in the midst of their fear, and he never even rebuked them for their fear. And he said, «Peace be unto you». I’m telling you, the risen Christ, he’s risen not to impute sin to you. He’s risen to impute righteousness to you. Isn’t it beautiful? He says, «Peace, shalom». And it means more than just peace of mind. Shalom means wholeness, integrated. It means health, well-being in every dimension of your being: spirit, soul, and body.
Peace is not just peace of mind. It’s peace in your body. You are at ease. Everything in your body, there’s no dis-ease, disease. It’s all at ease. Everything is integrated. Everything is in its place. That is shalom. And he said to them, «Peace be with you». You know, I want to say this to you. Jesus, when he says, «Peace be unto you, » he’s saying, «Health be unto you, » «Well-being be unto you and your family». He said it in the Last Supper, he says, «Peace I leave with you. My peace I give unto you. Not as the world gives, I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled». That’s our part. «Neither let it be afraid, » and then that health will reign in your body, that health will reign in your child’s body, that peace will happen in your family. «Let not your heart be troubled».
Closing Blessing
The Lord bless you and your families with the blessings of Abraham, the blessings of Deuteronomy 28. When you travel, you will not travel alone. The Lord will go before you and the Lord will be your rear guard. He will walk through with you even though you’re going through a valley. He will walk through with you to the other side. Throughout this week, the Lord make all your crooked places straight. But remember to give him the praise and the glory. At the end of the week, it might seem like uneventful, it might seem like there was no protection because everything was as normal, but the Lord has protected you. The Lord keep you and your family safe from all evil, from infection, from disease, from sickness, from terror, from all the power of the evil one through the blood that he shed at Calvary’s cross. The Lord favors you and place you at the right place at the right time. The Lord lift up his countenance on you and your children and grant to you and yours his wonderful shalom peace, health, and well-being, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and all the people said amen and amen.