Easter
Sunday 04/05/15
Freeville/Homer
Ave UMC’s
Sermon Title: “Why the empty
tomb is our hope”
New Testament
Scripture: Acts 10:34-43
New Testament
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Gospel Lesson:
John 20:1-18
Friends, brothers and
sisters, “He Is Risen!” “He Is Risen Indeed!” I want to welcome you once again
to this year’s Easter resurrection service. This is the service in which, we
celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that we proclaim the truth that
death does not have the final word in our lives! God has the final word in our
lives!
That with God, there is no death, for as it says in the
Book of Revelation 21:5 “And the one
who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new” (Rev.
21:5, NRSV). With God, death is not final, rather with God, life is eternal.
This is why most Christian Churches have most of their main weekly services on
Sundays, as we celebrate the resurrection every Sunday. Making every Sunday
morning worship service, a “mini-Easter.”
For as it says in the
Gospel according to Luke 20:36, “Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they
are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection”
(Luke 20:36, NRSV). Christians, are “children of the resurrection” (Luke 20:36,
NRSV). We are called to be people of life, of light, and of holiness. We are
“Easter People.” We are “children of the resurrection” (Luke 20:36, NRSV).
When looking at the fact
that there is so much darkness, so much cruelty, so much violence, and so much
intolerance within the world in which we live, we are called to be “children of
the resurrection” (Luke 20:36, NRSV). In all of these ways, this is “why the
empty tomb is our hope.” For in Christ raising from the dead,
fully, and bodily, our eternal hope is cemented. Our reality then, is that
death is not the final word, but that God is the final word.
For
as the Apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:54 “When this perishable
body puts on imperishability, and this mortal body puts on immortality, then
the saying that is written will be fulfilled: “Death has been swallowed up in
victory” (1 Cor. 15:54, NRSV).
Today then, we the people called Christians, declare that
life, that light, that truth, and that the living God, wins. We declare that in
a world with so much pain and so much suffering, that in the end God will win.
That this earth is not all that there is, that we will who believe will be
restored to new life in God.
Easter then, for Christians, is the hope of life, of love,
and of God winning over darkness, evil, and suffering. It is our belief that
Christ rose from the dead, fully, and bodily, and this resurrection is “our
hope.” “Our hope” that goodness, love, and Jesus Christ will win over all known
evils, over darkness, and over suffering. This is “why the empty tomb is our
hope.”
For without the empty tomb, we have a person named Jesus of
Nazareth, who lived, taught, healed, forgave, and then died. If he was not
resurrected, then the hope of new life, of death being “swallowed up in
victory,” is just not there (1 Cor. 15:54, NRSV). This would mean that Jesus
was just a human, and that the forces of darkness, that suffering and
oppression won, and that God, that Jesus, lost.
For
these reasons, for Christians, this is “why the empty tomb is our hope.” For
without the empty tomb, without the resurrection of Jesus Christ, then we have
nothing. Everything he then said and did, would then be in vain, without the
victory of the empty tomb.
Easter therefore, is our
biggest holiday, it is our biggest celebration. It is our Super Bowl and our
Kentucky Derby. It is a celebration off Jesus overcoming death itself, so that
our sins would officially be forgiven. That through Jesus Christ, we can be
spiritually resurrected into new life. That through Christ, we can be forgiven
and restored to new life. That we don’t need walk in darkness, no, we are
“children of the resurrection” (1 Cor. 15:54, NRSV).We are “Easter People.” We
don’t believe that corruption, suffering, oppression, and evil win, no, we
believe in the resurrected Christ. We believe that God has the last word, and
that God will win over all known evils.
So
for these reasons, we who are called Christians, triumphantly shout on this
day, “He is Risen!” “He Is Risen Indeed!”
In
looking at the Book of Acts reading from this morning, we can ask ourselves,
who benefits from Christ? Who can be called “children of the resurrection” (1
Cor. 15:54, NRSV)? As the reading from the Book of Acts begins this morning in
Acts 10:34-35, it says, Peter said, “I really am learning that God doesn’t show
partiality to one group of people over another. Rather, in every nation,
whoever worships him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts
10:34-35, CEB).
So God is for everyone,
and Jesus died for the sins of not just some, but every single person, both
past and present, without any exceptions. The Book of Acts reading for this
morning then says of Jesus Christ, “He is Lord of all” (Acts 10:36b, CEB). The
Book of Acts reading also says of Jesus Christ’s resurrection, “but God raised
him up on the third day” (Acts 10:40a, CEB).
In
the Apostle Paul’s Epistle or letter to the church in Corinth, or the
Corinthians for this morning, Paul says in 15:3-4, “I passed on to you as most
important what I also received: Christ died for our sins in line with the
scriptures, he was buried, and rose on the third day in line with the
scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3-4, CEB). The Apostle Paul is saying then, that Christ
died for us all, and was indeed raised to new life. That death did not have the
final word, but that God had the final word. The Apostle Paul then tells us
that the risen or resurrected Christ, then appeared to the apostles and others,
before ascending into heaven.
So
the “empty tomb is our hope.” As Christians then, as we continue to feed the
poor, to push against violence, terrorism, corruption, the abuse of women and
children, and all known evils, we believe that God has the final word. We
believe that as “children of the resurrection,” that there is no death with
God, but life, resurrection, hope, and eternity (1 Cor. 15:54, NRSV).
In
our gospel according to John reading for this morning, we have the narrative or
the story of the empty tomb. The gospel reading begins by saying, “Early in the
morning of the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene
came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb”
(John 20:1, CEB). Now remember that Jesus was placed in the tomb before the sun
went down, on what we now call “Good Friday,” as observant Jews could not work
on the Sabbath. As such, Jesus was placed in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea in
the late afternoon on Good Friday, before the sun went down, starting the
Sabbath. This means then, that for all of Friday night, and all of Saturday,
Christ lay dead, in a dark tomb. Mary Magdalene came to the tomb to likely
pray, or perhaps to see if the stone could be rolled away as to further honor
or anoint Jesus’ body.
Yet
when she arrived, the stone was gone, and she was startled by this. In fact she
didn’t enter the tomb, but instead she went and got “Simon Peter and the other
disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord from
the tomb, and we don’t know where they’ve put him” (John 20:2, CEB).
You
see no one was expecting a resurrection, as Mary Magdalene at first thought
that someone stole Jesus Christ’s body. So Peter, and the other disciple, who
we think was John, ran to the tomb. John then bent down, but did not go into
the tomb, as the gospel says that John “saw the linen cloths lying there, but
he didn’t go in” (John 20:5, CEB). Peter then came into the tomb, and he saw
the burial linens, and then saw that the face cloth that covered Christ. This
face cloth wasn’t with the other burial linens, “but was folded up in its own
place” (John 20:7, CEB).
It
took Peter, John, and Mary a little while to figure out that what happened to
Jesus. Then the gospel says, that Mary who remained outside of the tomb “saw
two angels dressed in white, seated where the body of Jesus had been, one at
the head and one at the foot” (John 20:12, CEB). The angels asked Mary why she
was crying, and she said that they had taken her Lord away. Then she turned and
saw Jesus, but at first she thought it was the gardener. When she realized that
it was in fact the risen Christ, she said “Rabbouni,” which means teacher in
Aramaic. Jesus then told Mary that she would be going to be with God soon, and
she “left and announced to the disciples “I’ve seen the Lord” (John 20:17-18,
CEB).
So
in an instant, the disciples, and Mary Magdalene, went from being heart broken,
hopeless, and being dead inside, to being hopeful, excited, and restored. In
these ways, when we are in darkness, when we think that there is no hope, this
is often when God shows up and gives us our own spiritual resurrection. As we
are “children of the resurrection,” and this is “why the empty tomb in our
hope” (Luke 20:36, NRSV).
On this Easter or
resurrection Sunday, I want to share a story with you about a resurrection. This
story is called: “Phillips’ Egg,” by author unknown. Here is how it goes: “Philip
was born with Downs Syndrome. He was a pleasant child, happy it seemed, but
increasingly aware of the difference between himself and other children. Philip
went to Sunday School faithfully every week. He was in the third grade class
with nine other eight-year olds.”
“You
know eight-year olds. And Philip, with his differences, was not readily
accepted. But his teacher was sensitive to Philip and he helped this group of
eight-year olds to love each other as best they could, under the circumstances.
They learned, they laughed, they played together. And they really cared about
one another, even though eight-year olds don’t say they care about one another
out loud.”
“But
don’t forget. There was an exception to all this. Philip was not really a part
of the group. Philip did not choose, nor did he want to be different. He just
was. And that was the way things were.”
“His
teacher had a marvelous idea for his class the Sunday after Easter. You know
those things that pantyhose come in . . . the containers that look like great
big eggs? The teacher collected ten of them. The children loved it when he
brought them into the room and gave one to each child. It was a beautiful
spring day, and the assignment was for each child to go outside, find the
symbol for new life, put it into the egg, and bring it back to the classroom.
They would then open and share their new life symbols and surprises, one by
one.”
“It
was glorious. It was confusing. It was wild. They ran all around the church
grounds, gathering their symbols, and returned to the classroom.”
“They
put all the eggs on a table, and then the teacher began to open them. All the
children gathered around the table. He opened one and there was a flower, and
they ooh-ed and aah-ed. He opened another and there was a little butterfly.
“Beautiful!” the girls all said, since it is hard for eight-year old boys to
say ‘beautiful.’ He opened another and there was a rock. And as third-graders
will, some laughed, and some said, “That’s crazy! How’s a rock supposed to be
like new life?” But the smart little boy who’d put it in there spoke up:
“That’s mine. And I knew all of you would get flowers and buds and leaves and
butterflies and stuff like that. So I got a rock because I wanted to be
different. And for me, that’s new life.” They all laughed.”
“The
teacher said something about the wisdom of eight-year olds and opened the next
one. There was nothing inside. The children, as eight-year olds will, said, “That’s
not fair. That’s stupid! Somebody didn’t do it right.”
“Then
the teacher felt a tug on his shirt, and he looked down. “It’s mine, Philip
said. It’s mine.” “And the children said, “You don’t ever do things right,
Philip. There’s nothing there!” “I did so do it right!” Philip said. “I did do
it right. The tomb is empty!”
“There
was silence, a very full silence. And for you people who don’t believe in
miracles, I want to tell you that one happened that day. From that time on, it
was different. Philip suddenly became a part of that group of eight-year old
children. They took him in. He was set free from the tomb of his differentness.”
“Philip
died last summer. His family had known since the time he was born that he
wouldn’t live out a full life span. Many other things were wrong with his
little body. And so, late last July, with an infection that most normal
children could have quickly shrugged off, Philip died.”
“At
his memorial service, nine eight-year old children marched up to the altar, not
with flowers to cover over the stark reality of death . . . but nine eight-year
olds, along with their Sunday School teacher, marched right up to that altar,
and laid on it an empty egg . . . an empty, old, discarded pantyhose egg.” And
the tomb is empty!”
Friends,
brothers and sisters, we who bear the name Christian, are “children of the
resurrection” (Luke 20:36, NRSV). We
are people who believe that death, darkness, corruption, and pain, don’t get
the final word in this world, but that God gets the final word. On this day we
gather to celebrate the glorious resurrection of Jesus Christ, and on this day
and on all days, may we seek our own spiritual resurrections. May we grow
closer to Christ, and may we walk with Him daily, as in Him, there is no
darkness at all. In Christ we have hope, we have transformation, we have
renewal, we have light, we have life, and we have resurrection. This is “why
the empty tomb is our hope.” Amen.
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