Mark 16:1-8
When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
This morning I’m inviting you to consider the main reason why we are gathered for Easter in the first place. That is, to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection from death to life; and, to recognize that very promise is held out for us, also.
This might sound like a no-brainer to you. Of course we are gathered to celebrate Jesus’s resurrection and the promise of our own resurrection. But have you really grasped that idea? Do you really believe that?
It’s not a given, and it’s certainly not an expectation here at Cross of Grace, that one would understand the Bible stories and faith tenants as being literally true. I constantly wrestle with how much of scripture is literally true and how much is true in a different, less scientific, more symbolic way. After all, what we understand today as capital “T” Truth (i.e., evidenced-based facts) wasn’t really a way people looked at the world until the Age of Enlightenment a couple of hundred years ago. Up to that point, a story that never actually took place in the exact way in which it was described would still be widely understood as “true” so long as that story provided meaning and value.
From the Enlightenment onwards, theologians, as well as the average Christian, have wondered and debated whether the events of Jesus’ life as told in scripture actually happened. For example, the virgin birth, Jesus turning water to wine, Jesus restoring the sight of the blind man, Jesus being raised from the dead, etc. At this point in my life and education, I have come to understand that things can be true even if they didn’t happen in a way that could have been documented or recorded. Meaning can exist beyond literal fact. But today, with you all, being honest and speaking from my heart…today I can do nothing other than proclaim what I believe to be literally true: Jesus rose from the dead and you will too.
I don’t have any sermon illustrations to share. No stories, no jokes, no funny pictures nor clips from a TV show. I’m not offering a nuanced “hot take” where I talk about the value of a figurative or metaphorical resurrection from the dead. Though it certainly is true that God can create new life out of any metaphorical deaths in our lives, be they ego, relationships, hopes, opportunities, and so on.
If literal resurrection from death doesn’t quite fit into your faith today, I respect that and have no desire nor any way to change your mind. In fact, I’m especially grateful for your presence and your worship this morning. And hopefully, you can still glean some degree of hope and inspiration from my message this morning.
But today, on this Easter Day, or what in the church we call “The Resurrection of Our Lord,” my call and conviction is to proclaim that Jesus––the human being who was God’s Son––was dead and buried in the tomb…until he wasn’t.
Days after Jesus breathed his last breath, his heart started beating, the neurons in his brain started firing, his lungs took in their first tentative sip of rotten-smelling tomb air, followed by a huge gasp in and a mighty exhale. As the oxygen rushed through his bloodstream, every nerve started tingling as your foot does after you move it after it has fallen asleep.
I believe that all this actually happened and that it is the same fate that awaits all who have received God’s promise of the resurrection of the dead and eternal life in God’s Kingdom when it comes here on Earth––this physical earth that God created, redeems, and will always love.
Here’s the truth, and be warned, it might make you uncomfortable: There are people worshipping with us right now who will not be alive by the time Easter rolls around next year. I don’t know who, and I’m not venturing any guesses. It’s simply a fact that at some point every year we gather to say goodbye to a Partner in Mission who has died. As your pastor, what else can I possibly tell you and your loved ones today, other than that one day you, too, will be resurrected in the same physical and literal way that Jesus was resurrected.
There is nothing else for me to tell you today other than “Where, O death, is thy victory? Where, O death, is thy sting?...[T]hanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:55, 57).
That is why we gather, why we worship, why we laugh and cry and shout “Alleluia!” We do all of that because of Jesus, literally raised from a literal death. We do all of that for our friends and family whose deaths we have mourned and whose deaths we will soon experience. We do all of that because in this world that is so confused, angry, anxious, and lost, we believe God is taking us somewhere good. We do all of that because God promises to create new life out of all the metaphorical deaths we experience, as well as the actual death that awaits us all.
Amen. Alleluia. Thanks be to God.
