Sunday, March 31, 2024

Resurrection of Our Lord
Isaiah 25:6-9
Psalm 16
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Mark 16:1-8

It shall be said in that day, ‘Behold, this is our God! We have waited for him, and he will save us! This is Yahweh! We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation!’

In the military, a person’s death cannot be officially announced until the next of kin is given the news. This also happens when someone dies outside a medical facility. The protocol is unique to each situation, but it most often includes an in person visit, with more than one uniformed person, whether military or police. An officer, often accompanied by a chaplain, will knock on the door. Imagine being the one to open it seeing several people in uniform standing on the doorstep. We know the news they bring is not happy. Military spouses pray that we would never have to face that horrifying experience. The experience is no easier for those who are sent to deliver the bad news. Who wants such a responsibility?

Isn’t it funny how we are equally careful with our good news? How many women with the knowledge of a pregnancy have to hide their joy until they tell all the right people? She can’t tell Aunt Gertrude before she tells Mother, because Mother will be upset that she wasn’t the first to know. A man can’t tell his co-workers about a fabulous new job until he’s told his boss that he has to resign. Good news is meant to be shared, but sometimes we have to hold on to our news until we’ve shared it with the people who matter most.

The story of Easter, the rising of Christ out of death into new life, is something that everyone should hear. We wonder why Jesus didn’t just show up in the marketplace or standing on the pinnacle of the Temple. Wouldn’t it have been easier, and more impactful for Him to do something spectacular in front of all the people in Jerusalem to ensure that the reality of His death and life was understood by all? As it happened, many people doubted the story they heard. The Romans thought the Jews had stolen the body. The Jews thought the disciples had stolen the body. It seems like those who doubted would have been silenced quickly if only they’d seen Him with their own eyes. But Jesus was very careful about who witnessed His resurrection.

Holy Week is an incredibly busy and stressful time for most churches. There are extra services with Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, sometimes an Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday usually includes extra worship. We expect something spectacular on Easter Sunday, with flowers gracing the sanctuary and special music. The church pews will be overflowing with people, many of whom only see the inside of a church at Easter and Christmas. It is important that we give them the Good News, done well. I don’t want to say that it is about presenting an impressive show that will make them want to return, but it is the reality of the world in which we live. We have a brief window to give people the Gospel that can change their lives, and it is stressful to plan worship that speaks to them in a way that shares the faith that brings us peace and hope, the faith we hope they will receive so that they might be saved.

The first Easter morning was much different, but no less stressful. Imagine what it must have been for the women. They watched Jesus die a horrific death just a few days before. They were alone to suffer their grief. His body had to be laid in the tomb quickly so as not to make the most holy day unclean. They were not able to do for Jesus’ body all that was their gift to do. Of all people, He deserved the physical anointing of those costly oils that would help stave off the odors of decomposition.

The anointing is not really that important for the dead, but it is vital for the living. I once heard a story about a person who died at home under the care of a hospice nurse. The family was nearby and when the person died the nurse took out some ointment and began to prepare the body. She asked the family if they wanted to help and showed them how to carefully rub the oil into the body. The family members were unsure at first, but eventually moved to the bedside and began the task. They were amazed at how soothing and comforting it was to do this for their loved one. In anointing the body, they were able to share in that last moment and say good-bye in a most beautiful way. The smell and sensation of the oils calmed them in this moment when their world seemed to end.

In the stress of Holy Week, it is almost shocking to read the scripture for Easter Sunday. It seems like the passage for Easter Sunday should be more dramatic, like it is in Matthew with earthquakes, angels, and terrific Roman soldiers. Instead, Mark gives us a glimpse of normal people attending to the normal tasks of those dealing with grief and loss. They are talking amongst themselves as they approach the tomb, asking a simple question about how they’ll get the stone moved so they can do their work. There is nothing special or hurried about the moment.

The outcome in Mark’s story is not what we would expect, either. In this text we are left dazed and confused. The women were not excited about the words they heard from the man in the tomb, they were frightened. They did not go immediately to the disciples and tell them what they found; they stayed quiet. We know that the story was shared, or we wouldn’t be celebrating the Easter miracle this Sunday. Slowly, but surely, as we read the accounts from all the Evangelists and other writers, Jesus was revealed as risen and alive to those He loved and to many others. In the passage from 1 Corinthians, Paul gives us a list of the witnesses: Peter and the disciples, a large gathering of the faithful, Jesus’ half-brother James, and the ones Jesus sent out to do the work He had begun. Paul lists himself as the last and least of all the witnesses because he saw Jesus much later and only after he had persecuted the believers.

We join that list, not as witnesses of His appearance two thousand years ago, but as witnesses to the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the lives of those who believe. We gather in church on Easter Sunday to celebrate this incredible truth. For many, this is a day meant to be solemn and holy. This is how one reporter defined Easter Sunday worship in a news story I heard a few years ago. Defined properly, this is very true. Unfortunately, the reporter was using the terms to mean that Easter worship is sober, somber, and grave with serious formality. It is a holy day, set aside for us to celebrate something incredible and special, and yet the reporter made it sound like it was all too good and extraordinary for ordinary people. What average person can stand amidst the holy and who wants to be grave and serious on a day filled with chocolate bunnies, Easter eggs, and Peeps?

It is true that Easter Sunday is a solemn and holy day, but not because it is formal, somber, and untouchable. It is sacred because it is God’s incredible gift for His people. It is the celebration that everything holy has been made accessible. It is joyous because there is no longer a wall between God and His people. Jesus broke the barrier between humankind and the divine. He restored our relationship with God and we mark that reconciliation with a party. Actually, we mark that reconciliation every Sunday as we remember and celebrate the risen Lord every week, but we have set aside Easter as a special festival day as we complete the story begun on Palm Sunday.

Why would the reporter think that Easter Sunday worship is solemn and holy? Or the better question is: why did she interpret that to mean it is somber and beyond the reach of the average person? I don’t know. Maybe it is the beautiful lilies we use to decorate that make the sanctuary smell like a funeral parlor. Perhaps it is the incredible nature of the Easter story of a guy who died and rose again. For the rational mind this is beyond the possibility of reality. Perhaps it has to do with the expectation that everyone will arrive in brand new dresses and starched suits. Maybe the impression of the reporter comes from the idea that Christians are better or more spiritual than others.

I suppose in some ways the world sees our Easter worship as the opposite of the worldly celebration of Easter. They have Easter bunnies and eggs, chocolate, and jellybeans. They have egg hunts and carnivals, feasts of ham and buffets with champagne. They have joy and happiness, we have church. Of course, we have all those fun things, too, but we have something more. What the world misses is that our joy is not from a sugar high or a belly full of good food. We go to church on Easter Sunday to rejoice and to thank God for the fulfillment of His promises. It is a sacred joy that can’t be found in Easter baskets and egg hunts. It is the joy of knowing that the world has been made new by the most incredible act of God. The world has been changed forever, and we are called to live as Easter people from this day on. As we live as Easter people, the world will see that it isn’t about somberness and perfection. It is about living in the forgiveness of God’s grace forever.

When we worship, we look forward to a feast greater than anything experienced on earth. In the passage from Isaiah, we hear the praise of the nations as they rejoice, “Behold, this is our God! We have waited for him, and he will save us! This is Yahweh! We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation!” Isaiah promises an extraordinary feast with the best of everything, and this feast is not for a few special people. It is for all who believe. The praise comes not just from the voice of the Jewish people, but it is the voice of all who trust in God for salvation. It is a future hope, but it also a present reality. In the Lord’s Supper, we share with our brothers and sisters in Christ a foretaste of the feast to come, a physical reminder of the promise. We gather to celebrate the Good News of Jesus Christ. While it is sacred and holy, it not sober, somber, or grave. It is filled with joy and blessedness. Alleluia! Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia! These words of rejoicing give us peace.

What is peace? We certainly can’t find it in the papers or on the nightly news programs. When we turn on the TV or scroll through our social media we are bombarded with information from home and abroad of violence, destruction, and loss of life. There seems to be no peace in our world today.

What is peace? Jesus knew peace. He didn’t live without threats of violence. One day the crowd tried to stone Him. The temple leaders accused Him of blaspheme and insurrection. He faced large crowds of hungry people with only a few fish and some bread without worry. He touched the sick, spoke to the outcasts, and ate with the sinners though they were all considered unworthy. He faced His trial without fear; He spoke only the words necessary despite threats from His accusers. He was crucified on a cross, but He had peace, the peace that comes from knowing God is close.

What peace are we praying for? Peace is not the lack of violence; violence is brought on by a lack of peace. The unending cycle of attack and retaliation will only be stopped when the hearts of the warriors find true peace. We have that peace; Christ’s peace is the assurance that God is with us, that He is at our right hand so that we will not be moved. We live in that peace singing praise and thanksgiving to God and we have been called to share that peace. God works in the hearts of those who are lost through our witness so that they will be transformed into people who trust in Him rather than seek their own kind of peace with weapons and threats.

Jerusalem wanted peace. The leaders of the Jews thought the status quo was good enough. They weren’t, perhaps, quite as independent as the nation under King David, but they were given enough freedom to live their Jewish faith. They feared insurrection because they believed the Romans would use it as an excuse to destroy what was left of their nation. They settled for their own power and prestige and knew that they would lose the most if there was a fight. Jesus wasn’t good for their future. Sometimes God gives darkness its moment so that the Light will shine ever more brightly.

The Good News is meant to be shared with others, but also with one another. This is why we gather to worship, so that we can confess our faith as one voice, to be encouraged to take the joy of Easter into the world.

From the earliest days of the Christian faith, believers gathered together to share their witness and confess their beliefs in Jesus. It did not take very long before they were praying familiar prayers or repeating the words of Jesus. Since much of their religious experience came from the Old Testament writings, we can even see their hymns by reading the Psalms. The letters of the Apostles were shared over and over again, establishing proper understanding of this new revelation of God. They began to form creeds, poetry, and songs that brought together the doctrines they had learned in a way they could easily remember and teach. By repeating these confessions of faith, the Gospel truth became deeply imbedded in their hearts and minds. When asked about their Christian faith, they could easily share the message in words that were seen as credible because the whole Church shared them.

Scholars generally agree that the passage from Paul is one of the earliest Christian creeds. It has been around since the earliest days of the church, having become a part of Christian worship within just a few years of Jesus’ death. By sharing this simple statement about the death, resurrection and appearance of Jesus Christ as the Risen Lord, the truth of salvation was written on the hearts and minds of the believers, giving them the strength and knowledge to continue Jesus’ work of calling people into the Kingdom of God.

The Gospel passage from Mark is hard to read because it ends so abruptly. The final sentence says, “They went out, and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had come on them. They said nothing to anyone; for they were afraid.” The women were too afraid to say anything to the others. Obviously, someone figured it out. Matthew and Luke tell us that they did tell the disciples. John tells the story from Mary’s perspective. But in Mark, we are left hanging.

There are eight more verses that neatly tie up the story, but there is some controversy over whether those verses were part of the original text. There is another verse that is found between verses 8 and 9 in some manuscripts, that says, “And all that had been commanded them they told briefly to those around Peter. And afterwards Jesus himself sent out through them, from east to west, the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.” Again, this verse helps to alleviate the abruptness of Mark’s story.

These verses are helpful, but ending at verse 8 serves a purpose, especially for those who heard Mark’s story in the beginning. See, Mark was a storyteller. It is thought that he was reporting the story through Peter’s eyes. It began orally, a story shared over and over again among the believers, and it developed over time. Mark was young, the son of the woman who welcomed Jesus and His disciples in the Upper Room for the Passover meal that instituted the Eucharist. He was surrounded by the faithful when Jesus died and rose again. The disciples hid in the Upper Room when they thought it was all over.

You know how it is: when someone we love dies, we tell stories. “Do you remember that time when Jesus...?” “Jesus always liked to say...” They worked out their grief through those stories just as we do. They worked out their understanding through those stories. And the storytelling surely went on after Jesus appeared to them, and then long afterward. Mark knew as he listened to Peter and the disciples that the experience of being with Jesus was something to be shared. Mark overheard their stories, learned them by heart, and then repeated them to others. He could not believe in Jesus and remain silent. Neither can we.

Mark put all those stories into writing so that they could be shared with the growing groups of believers. I can imagine a group of people sitting around a living room, anxiously waiting to hear about the One that was raised from the dead. They were seekers in search of the truth. As Mark tells the story, we are held mesmerized by the immediacy of Jesus’ ministry. We sit on the edge of our seats in hopeful expectation. We can sense the fear and amazement of the disciples. We can feel the anger of the leaders. We are aware of the confusion and doubt in the crowds.

And then, after about two hours of storytelling, Mark says, “They went out, and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had come on them. They said nothing to anyone; for they were afraid.” How would you react? I can see those first listeners erupting with questions and opinions. What happened next!?! Something had to happen after the women were afraid or we would not be Christian today.

But let us, for a moment, see that by ending so abruptly, Mark was inviting the hearers into the story. What happens next? Suppose you are like those women at the tomb. What do YOU do? Do you take the story to another, or do you run and hide out of fear? Do you join Mark, Peter, and Paul as witnesses so that others might believe?

We might think we have no credibility. Why should anyone listen to us? Like those women, who were not considered respectable witnesses, we may think we have nothing worth saying. Even Paul had reason to doubt whether anyone would listen to him. After all, he had persecuted the Christians.

Paul wrote that his word could be believed because it had been given to him by Jesus, just as it had been given to all the apostles who had been witnesses not only to the resurrection but also to the life of Jesus. He is also credible because he used the Old Testament promises and prophecies given by God to prove that Jesus was who He said He was. The thing we celebrate this week is not some holiday that comes just one Sunday a year filled with candy and bunnies and eggs. It is the culmination of God speaking to His world, fulfilling His promises fully and faithfully. It is Good News that has been passed to us by all those who came before, and now it is our turn to experience and share the joy that comes with Easter.

When we are preparing our activities for our churches, we often ask ourselves, “What are they looking for?” We want to know what our visitors want so that we can encourage them to return. People may want Easter egg hunts and BBQs, basketball leagues and teen dances, and they may be fun, but they will never be transformed by our programs and activities. The chances we have to reach those who do not believe are so rare, but the Good News has the power to create faith in hearts that need that which is sacred and holy, joyful and blessed. Programs and activities might bring people to the pews of our churches, but they will never save a soul. Only Jesus can do that. We need to tell His story, not only in our worship but in our daily lives. Only Jesus can give us feed us the feast that has been promised to us on Mount Zion, the feast that will last forever. Behold, this is our God who has saved us. Let us rejoice! Alleluia!