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EASTER'S SURPRISE
~John 20:11-18~
In-person service at
Second Baptist Church
2412 Griffith Ave.
Los Angeles
William S. Epps, Senior Pastor
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1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” 3So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10Then the disciples went back to where they were staying. 11But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; 12and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. 13They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” 18Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. John 20:1-18
Introduction
This is Easter Sunday. Easter changes the way we look at death and consider reality. No event is as heralded as the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. No incident has generated as much discussion about the consideration that life overcomes death. No occurrence has aroused as much reflection as to the possibility that life continues beyond what we know as the end of existence. Jesus did much with his life to expose us to what we would otherwise have missed. He offered us understanding, insight and light, without which we would be meandering in confusion sadly disillusioned. He offered us salvation and the way to achieve what we could not acquire on our own. With his death, burial and resurrection Jesus has, as Paul says in II Timothy 1:10, “abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”
We gather here year after year to celebrate a discovery that has altered our lives immeasurably. Even though we know the story well because we have heard it so many times before, there is still something about repeating it that captures our fancy with new insight and seizes our spirit with fresh understanding. Every time we hear it understated nuances that may have been overlooked highlight the significance of history’s most spectacular event. There is an element of anticipation as we ponder the implications of the possibilities this timeless revelation discloses. We revisit it with expectation that our lives will continually be altered.
Consider what it means that Easter changes the way we ponder the
implications of the possibility of life extending beyond this ephemeral reality.
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Let us relive the moment once again as we have done so often. The experience of Mary Magdalene claims our attention. Mary Magdalene is described as one of the women from Galilee along with Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward and Susanna, who gave financial help and domestic service to Jesus and his disciples. She has been set free from what controlled her and she is now in charge of making decisions for her life. (Luke 8:1-3). She was present at the crucifixion along with Mary the mother of James and Salome. (Mark 15:40). She observed the burial of Jesus. (Luke 23:55-56). The fourth gospel, which focuses our attention today, gives Mary Magdalene pride of place as the first witness of the resurrection of Jesus. Sharing her resources for his ministry and being available to go with him where he went says something about the abundance of her affection, depth of her devotion and the length of her love.
Something dreadful occurred that devastated Mary and the acquaintances of Jesus. One in whom they have put their trust and on whom they have depended, was falsely accused and cruelly murdered. In two short verses it is described with graphic poignancy:
A crowd had gathered to see the terrible sight.
Then after they had seen it, they felt brokenhearted and went home.
49All of Jesus’ close friends
and the women who had come with him from Galilee
stood at a distance and watched. Luke 23:48-49
The lives of those who were adversely affected were at a loss for what to do. All they could do is stand and watch. We are told that all the disciples fled except John (who was at the cross with Jesus’ mother), Mary, the wife of Cleophas and Mary Magdalene. The women who followed him watched what happened. What courage it takes to watch what you would rather not face. They did not run in fear. They did what they could do, they watched. They did not hide in terror. They watched. Sometimes all you can do is watch.
Consider what it means that horrific occurrences leave us distressed, distraught and disturbed about what to do to manage what we are experiencing.
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Following this horrific death, Joseph of Arimathea went to Pilate and begged for the body of Jesus and along with Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes and wound the body of Jesus in linen cloths with the spices as was their custom. Then they put Jesus in a new sepulchre - one in which no one had ever been laid.
The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee
followed Joseph and watched how Jesus’ body was placed in the tomb.
56Then they went to prepare some sweet-smelling spice
and rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment.
Luke 23:55-56
The women referenced in the passage began, on what was left of Friday, to prepare spices and ointments to put on the body of Jesus. Preparation suggests that the time will come for you to perform what you are prepared to do. When the time came for them to do what they had prepared to do, it was the first day of the week.
Consider what it means to perform the custom of your community,
the ritual of your religion and the tradition of your tribe when you
are devastated by the death of a loved one.
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How fitting it is that on the first day of the week that a one of a kind, life-changing event occurs and a discovery is made. What better way to signal the start of something new than at its beginning? Events are dated by the measurement of time so that we can identify when something has happened as well as what has occurred. The first day of the week is an appropriate place to start again. That’s what makes this day so special. It does not end something but it begins something as the first day. The world observes Sunday as the first day of the week and on the first day of the week there was a magnificent first.
The language used to depict the mood captures our attention with its clarity of expression. Early, before, and while, all capture the essence of the moment. It was early in the morning, before dawn, while it was still dark. Early, before the sun appeared summoning the dawn, annihilating the darkness and dissolving the night.
It was very early before the purple mist that filled the atmosphere with its nocturnal hue would be dissipated by the light of day. Sometimes, it does seem reasonable to do what we find ourselves compelled by some unction, moved by some stirring, pushed by some instinct and prompted by some motive. We are drawn to do some things early, before, while.
Well, as the story unfolds, Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb and seeing the stone rolled away she runs to Simon Peter and Jesus’ favorite disciple, presumably John, saying:
“...they have taken the Lord from the tomb!
We don’t know where they have put him.
John 20:2
Without investigating she runs for help presuming what she considered to be a reasonable conclusion. Those to whom she goes, run to the tomb to verify her statement. And they went away to their own home after verifying what Mary said.
Driven by the intensity of adoring love and the magnitude of abounding grief, she hurried to the place where the body of Jesus was laid. Anxiously anticipating affirming her allegiance, devotion, loyalty and love she made her way to the tomb. Whether she, along with the others, thought Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea did not do a thorough job is not clear. However, it is clear that she wanted to do her part. Mary made her way. She arrives and does not find what she was looking for so she could do what she had planned. What she finds disrupts what she wants to do. Isn’t that the way life is sometimes? We are disrupted by what we find, prevented from doing what we intend because we cannot find what we are looking for so we can do what we have planned?
She was looking for closure to an all too abrupt ending. She was looking to further declare her devotion to a departed friend. She was looking to add what she could to what had already been done. And she could not find what she was looking for to do what she had planned. There are times when we cannot find what we are looking for
to do what we have prepared to do?
Consider what it means when you cannot find what you are looking
for to get beyond what you are facing with one more attempt
to get closure to an all too abrupt ending.
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However, while she was looking for what she could not find she was found by what she could not deny. She did not find what she was looking for, but she was found by so much more. That is one of the major features of this story that clamors for our attention on this Easter morn. We are found by so much more than what we are looking for.
I. In the first instance we are found by heighten awareness that settles confusion and conflict. Mary was lingering at the place where she had been prevented for performing what had prepared to do. With tear-stained eyes due to grief deepened and magnified by a sense of failure to accomplish one last deed, she cries in disgust with herself and her situation. While she is succumbed by her helplessness, she hears a question which is directed at her, “Woman, why do you weep?” She responds intent on finding what she is looking for. “They have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have laid him.” Again, she hears the question, “Woman, why do you weep?” She sees a figure that she can not quite make out. She says, again intent on finding what she is looking for, “Sir, if you have taken him somewhere, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Then, she hears what heightens her awareness. She heard her named called by the One who could call it like no other. At that moment she became aware that she was found by more than what she was looking for.
Easter’s surprise is a heightened awareness that settles confusion and conflict. We too can hear what we need to hear to settle doubt and fear. We too can be found by more than we are looking for. We can be found by what we need to hear to settle our doubts and calm our fears. While death is potent, death is not omnipotent. Death cannot cancel the contribution a person makes in a lifetime nor limit the length of the legacy a person leaves behind. Death cannot erase the experiences you hold dear nor mar the memories you keep near.
Consider what it means to be found by an awareness that gets you
through the grieving process to a place of assurance of the value of life.
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II. In the next instance we are found by a helpful admonition that alleviates agony. She was told not to hold on to what she was looking for. “Do not hold me, I have not yet ascended to my Father.” She was clinging, as we do, to what she had to let go. Do not hold on to this; it fades of necessity. Do not hold on to it. Let it go. You see in a few days I have to leave this place. I am going to catch a cloud and ascend beyond time into eternity. I have to go to vouchsafe what I have secured for you. I have got to go. My Father is waiting for me to return and assume my place on the right side as a victor.
Hear the admonition that informs your understanding with what to let go and what to hold on to. It is difficult but not impossible for us to disassociate our loved one from this vessel of clay and dust. Our hearts still cling to this body because it is difficult but not impossible for us to disassociate it from the loved one who dwelt in and animated it for us. It is only the worn out garment which the loved one has cast aside. While we revere it because of the tender memories and fond affections that have been gathered around it through many years of association, we consign it to its original element, ashes to ashes, earth to earth, dust to dust - trusting the One we believe and know can keep all things committed to His care and keeping and looking forward to the fashioning of that perfect body in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior.
Hear the admonition that informs our understanding with what we need to let go. When we exit this ephemeral reality and move to that bourn from whose shore no traveler returns and our bodies undergo a molecular decomposition and return from whence they came. Let it go. Let it go. Let it go. Life does not exist in a corpse. Let it go. “The dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). Let it go.
Let what decays go. Death is not the end but the beginning. We can now experience
the presence of the Lord differently through the power of the Spirit. We can experience the meaning of our loved ones lives like never before. Let go of being neutralized by grief, by guilt, by helplessness, by negligence, by regret, let it all go.
Let go what you can’t keep and embrace what you can’t lose.
Consider what it means to let go what you can’t keep
to embrace what you can’t you lose.
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III. Finally, in the last instance we are found by a hallowed aim followed by a hallelujah affirmation that absolves all anguish. “Go tell my disciples.” Now she has an aim that will direct her beyond what she was looking for. Now she has a testimony that will more than suffice for her life. “I have seen the Lord,” she told the disciples. Now she has a purpose and a testimony.
We are found by a hallowed affirmation that assuages our anguish.
“Go tell my disciples.” Mary now has a sacred/consecrated aim/purpose that will direct her beyond what she was looking for. Now she has a testimony that will more than suffice for her life. “I have seen the Lord,” she told the disciples. She now discovers that death, rather than discontinuing Jesus’ life, expanded His existence to be more encompassing of reality in all of its fullness.
You are energized by the inspiration of the life you experienced to perpetuate what that life has done for you. You have to share it, tell it, let everyone know what you experienced.
The affirmation that dissolves our anguish is that we have something to do. We have been commanded and commissioned to tell what God has done for us in Christ. Relate the meaning of your loved one to others. The best way to honor those we love is to live fully beyond life’s worst as a testimony that their life has invaluable worth. Our focus is redirected into meaningful activity. We have something purposeful to do. We have something to share that will make a difference about the life we view.
God alleviates our agony with the assurance that this is not all there is. There is something more. There is more to life than we can see and still more of life that is yet to be.
Conclusion
There is an expression from several cultures which says, "what you lose in the fire, you find in the ashes." How applicable to life is that. Physics teaches us that energy can't be created or destroyed, just transformed into something else. When the destructive forces of life that seem insurmountable consume you in their flaming grasp, remember all is not lost. Whether it is physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual there is a law in physics called, "the conservation of energy." Life experiences, even the destructive ones, have a transformative power.
The proverb embodies the idea of the phoenix, the mythical bird that perishes in the flames only to be reborn from the ashes. Rather than focus on your loss, embrace what you have gained. Death is potent but not omnipotent. There are somethings that death can’t do. Death cannot cancel the contribution a loved one make in a life time, nor limit the length of the legacy a loved one leaves behind. Death cannot erase the experiences you hold dear, nor mar the memories you keep near. Death, rather than extinguishing life, expands existence to be more encompassing of reality in all of its fullness without any barriers, hindrances or obstacles.
Found by courage amid fear
Found by hope in spite of despair.
Found by joy in the midst of sorrow
Found by light even in the darkest night.
Found by love when hate has done it worst
Found by life even in death.
Found by more than we’re looking for.
Let this Easter remind you that you have an assurance that allays your anxiety and fears about life and death. You have an admonition to alleviate our agony and anguish. You have a purpose to perpetuate what has been experienced by the life you cherished. Rejoice with words of the composer, who says, “Death where is your sting? Sting where is your grave? Grave where is your victory? Yeah! He got up. God raised him up and he’s go all power in his hand.
Consider what it means that God alleviates our agony with something to do,
a purpose beyond the painful predicament of loss with the
assurance of permanent gain of what’s been received.
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