Sunday Sermons(next sermon - 4/13)
Easter Sunday
March 23, 2008
Matthew 28:1-10
Sunday SermonsThe story starts out slowly as the sun emerges from the horizon with Mary Magdalene and the other woman named Mary going to the tomb where they has left Jesus dead and buried. In better times, they had thought this man Jesus was their Savior. They saw him heal the sick and feed the hungry, forgive sinners, cast out demons and even raise a dead man named Lazarus. But last Friday they watched in horror as Jesus was nailed to a cross. With their own eyes they saw Joseph of Arimathea take down Jesus’ dead body and place it in a tomb. That was when the world went dark.
And now on Sunday morning, the day after Sabbath, they made their way to the tomb.
When they arrived they were greeted with the second earthquake in the past few days—and with the earthquake came a descending angel that rolled away the stone of the tomb.
And the Roman guards—well, they were—for obvious reasons struck with fear and as the scriptures say, shook and became like dead men.
And this is a part of the story that always gets me, the angel says to the two women: “Do not be afraid!”
Let’s see…the person you look to as your savior is dead…the second earth quake in a couple of days…an angel as bright as lightning is standing in front of you…the stone that enclosed the tomb has been moved…and the angel says, “Don’t be afraid!” Right. And if that is not enough, the woman are told that the body of Jesus is gone…vanished…the tomb is empty. I’m thinks fear is a pretty natural response at a time like this.
Matthew then tells us that the angel says to the women to go and tell the disciples that Jesus has been raised from the dead and he will meet up with them in Galilee. With that the women hurry off in a mixed state of both fear and joy. Scared witless and overwhelmed with joy. But you know what…it gets better. Who should appear but none other than Jesus himself. And the women… Matthew tells us they fall to the ground—take hold of his feet and worship him. To this Jesus utters those familiar words, “Do not be afraid”
What is it with Jesus and these angelic messengers from above who are always telling us to “Fear Not”, “Do not be afraid!” “Have no fear!”
Think back to the story of Elizabeth and Zechariah, the old childless couple who are told by an angel, “Do not be afraid” and then the angel tells this barren woman that she is going to give birth to a son and he is to be named John and that he will be a prophet.
That story is followed by an angel appearing to a young woman named Mary who is told that she is going to give birth to a son who is going be the savior of the world—but what is the first thing out of the angels mouth, “Do not be afraid!” And then when Joseph encounters an angel in a dream after hearing about Mary’s unexpected pregnancy he is told, what? You guessed it--“Do not be afraid!”
If you were to open up your Bibles you will find roughly 75 references to “fear” and one of the things I have noticed is that any time a word shows up that many times it is an indicator that maybe it is important. It is an indicator that maybe we ought to pay attention and give it some thoughtful consideration.
And that is why I have come to believe that Matthew’s Easter story is for people who know fear and while most of us are probably not necessarily inclined to admit that we have fears, the truth is we do.
In fact I would suggest that fear is a dominant theme in history.
It is common to our humanity. Authorities tell us that infants have two primary fears: fear of falling and fear of loud voices. Gradually the number multiplies. We fear our fellow human beings and we fear being alone. We are afraid of the past and of the future.
We worry about what we see and we worry about what we cannot see. Anxieties come on us about ourselves and about our loved ones. Sometimes we dread living and dread dying. Fear can become so sinister as to stalk every path, thwart every effort, and crush every hope.
Whether we want to admit it or not, we live in a world filled with fear. Turn on the TV and I guarantee you if you watch the news you will be inundated with news reports that are bound to instill fear into our lives. Stories of tragic deaths, of health scares, economic turmoil, rumors of possible wars, frightful weather patterns and storms as well as a host other dreadful possibilities. And what do we do when faced with these fears? Most often we hunker down. We hide. We stay home, we lock our doors, we are suspicious of people we don’t know, and we turn in on ourselves, ignoring the needs of others, thinking only of ourselves.
In the midst of this fear mongering and frightful isolation Jesus enters our lives and what does he say to us? You got it—fear not! In other words—you were not created to live in fear. You were not created to hide behind locked doors. You were not created to live lives fearful of your brothers in sisters—fearful of scary noises in the night. I can almost hear Jesus saying, “I didn’t do this resurrection thing so you could live like the Roman guards who shake and act like dead men! I came back so that you might live life to the fullest, to live life abundantly. I came back so that you would unlock your doors, welcome the stranger, reach out to others, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the vulnerable and share the good news of God’s grace and love to every corner of the world.”
Today’s reading from Matthew, as I said, was written for people who know fear, but it was also written not to confirm or encourage further fear, but to bring joy.
This is a message of hope and it is a message of new life.
To be a Christian, to be a follower of Jesus is to live with hope—not some wishful thinking hope, not an emotional hope or a hope of sheer idealism. But a hope grounded on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. A hope that has been time tested throughout the history of God’s people—the kind of hope that sustained Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, Ruth, David, Paul, the prophets, and especially Jesus. Our hope is a staunch, steadfast disposition of the soul grounded in the belief of the One who built a nation out of a band of Hebrews languishing in Egyptian bondage, who led the through the wilderness to a land of promise, who later rescued them from exile in far away Babylon, who sent from their ranks Jesus of Nazareth, whom we Christians know as the Messiah. This God is our refuge and strength, indeed, Redeemer and Lord. Ours is a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
For those who follow Jesus there is the gift of hope, but like I said, not some fluffy sentimental hope, but a hope that changes everything, a hope that is looking forward, toward the present and the future. God gives us this hope along with the assurance that death is not the last word and that to follow Jesus is to live life abundantly.
This hope not only cast out fear, but it changes everything.
I read recently that 87% of Americans believe in the resurrection of Jesus.
And as a pastor I ought to be thrilled by that. But I have to admit that my joy is somewhat tempered because I believe the real question that ought to be asked is one of:
What difference does it make that Jesus is risen?
What difference does it make when you walk in the office or classroom in the morning?
What difference does it make to your work as a mother or father?
What difference does the resurrection make when you are struggling with all those fearful things that lurk around every corner and that go bump in the night?
What difference does the resurrection make when you are struggling to find hope, when you are lonely and discouraged, or when you are trying to figure out if your life matters?
The real question of Easter is: Have you discovered the risen Savior in your own life?
Is he changing everything about it?
Sure 87% of us believe the Savior is alive, but how many assume he doesn’t want to get involved? There’s the question—not just is he alive, but is he invovled?
On that Easter morning two women encountered an earthquake, an angel, and empty tomb, and they encountered their risen Lord and Savior. It was a morning filled with both fear and joy. It was a morning that changed their lives in ways they would never have imagined. Easter changed everything—they were transformed—life would never be the same.
Several years ago there was a controversy in the Church of Scotland. A 39-year old man named James Nelson had nearly completed his course of study for ordination. What made this controversial was that some years before, he had murdered his mother.
He was sentenced to life and served nine years before being paroled. Along the way he had a profound Christian experience and submitted himself as a candidate for the ministry. As the final step of his ordination process, he was to undergo what was called “trials for license,” which invovled preaching and acceptable sermon before the presbytery, but some protested. They felt the moral purity of the ministry would be compromised. Others however said that this was the greatest evidence they had ever seen of the redeeming power of God. Finally, he was accepted into the ministry on the provision that he works as a chaplain at a prison.
For his part, James Nelson said, “I could not believe that God could be gracious to someone like me…but I know that he has indeed been gracious enough to love and forgive a repentant sinner, gracious enough to call that sinner to tell others the good news.”
A convicted murderer found new life and proclaimed the good news. But this wasn’t the first time a murderer found new life. Consider if you will Moses, David and Paul. God’s grace changes everything. Easter changes everything. God offers new life to everyone, and the resurrection is our promise of new life here and now.
Both the angel and Jesus told the two women go tell the others; Jesus has risen as he told you he would, he has arisen and he is going to Galilee where he will meet the disciples.
This morning this same message is directed to each of us. Because Jesus has risen—nothing is the same, everything changes and what we do with this fearful and joyous good news determines how you live with this earth-shattering thing called hope and the promise of new life.
The good news this morning is there is still hope for the unresolved business between the parent and adult child. There is still hope for those struggling with broken bodies and broken spirits.
There is still hope for those who grieve the death of a loved one.
There is still hope for those surviving and serving in war torn lands.
There is still hope for those who live surrounded by fear.
There is still hope for you because Jesus is waiting up ahead.
And if you believe that, if you have hope, it changes the way you live today.
In the year 387, an old preacher climbed into his pulpit in Antioch on Easter Sunday.
It had been a hard year for the city. Another hard year. Food was in short supply and the taxes had been raised again. Out of desperation the people took to the streets in riots.
In response to the rebellion, Rome conscripted most of the men to fight in distant wars, while women and children remained behind to scavenge for food. The people despaired, believing their lives would never improve. When they came to church, they were looking for empathy but were surprised to hear the preacher (John Chrysostom) say the following: “Your resignation assumes that God is dead. Do not be so certain.
He, who embraced death, has defeated its power over us. He, who went down to hell, liberated every city held by hell’s despair. Christ is risen! Open the doors of your comfortable despair that the great storms of hope may blow life into us once again.”
Over 1600 years later, still so much of society is designed to help you get comfortable with your fears and despair. To this Jesus says, “Do not be afraid!” Later on in this chapter Jesus also says, “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” These are good words to hear on an Easter morning—they are good words to hear each and every day. The question is--will it make any difference in your life?
Let us pray…Cast away our fears O Lord. Fill us this Easter morning with renewed hope and your promise of new life. Not just ordinary mundane life, but abundant life, life transformed by your grace and presence. Send your Spirit to help us fling open the doors we have been hiding behind, help us to leave behind those fears that have left us frozen and imprisoned. May the good news of the resurrection transform our lives beyond simply believing but to walking with you each and every day to the ends of the earth. In Jesus name we pray. Amen
