Sermon - 4/20/03
Easter Sunday
Missing Easter - John 20:1-18
Have you ever been afraid of missing Easter? The season of Lent has always been special to me - after all, Lent is the season for Jesus Christ Superstar, my favorite musical. And, as a story of the last week of Jesus' life, Superstar always helped me relate to Holy Week, to feel like I was really going through those last days with Christ. There's something about the special services we have during Holy Week that helps me connect, helps me plug in to what we're celebrating. On Palm Sunday with the branches waving, I've sometimes felt I would not be surprised to see Jesus entering in the church, walking down our aisle here, so real was the joy of our celebration. On Maundy Thursday, we take part in remembering that special last meal that Jesus shared with his disciples. As the disciples did, we gather around the table, to become the body of Christ, to take part in God's grace communicated to us in human form. We watch as Jesus, filled with fear and loneliness about what he must do, prays in the garden, and we're there in the morning with him as he is betrayed by one of his own. And on Good Friday, we hear about the trial and crucifixion of Jesus, a scene full of such drama that it seems easy to picture - the false accusations, the manipulations of the truth, the crowd almost eager with the thought of a death to watch. All through this journey, I can follow, feel myself a part the great drama, the Holy Story.
But it's Easter morning that's a problem, the part of the story that's a little harder to step into. For now instead of following the presence of Jesus, the actions of Jesus, the teachings of Jesus, suddenly the focus is on the absence of Jesus - he is not there in the tomb, he is not there when Mary Magdalene, Peter, and the beloved disciple come looking for him. It is that Jesus is not in the tomb, not dead, that is important on Easter morning. How can we relate to such a story? How can we put ourselves there by the empty tomb, and what will it mean for us, how can it be important to us? And so, sometimes, I've felt like after all the buildup, I've missed Easter, missed something that I was supposed to see on Easter morning, somehow missed the point of it all, as if I'd overslept and come too late. After an intense Holy Week, the end of the story sometimes seemed not so impressive. Have you ever missed Easter?
I think my experience is somewhat like that of the disciples Peter and the beloved disciple. In our gospel lesson today, Mary Magdalene makes her way to the tomb to attend to Jesus. When she finds the stone rolled away from the tomb, she runs to bring back with her Peter and the beloved disciple. The two men run back to the tomb, in a seeming race, eager to see what Mary is talking about. When they arrive at the tomb, they walk in, look at everything, see that Jesus is not there. They do not understand what they are seeing, or what they are not seeing however, and they simply return to their homes. They tell no one, they say nothing to Mary, they make no reaction whatsoever. They are among the first to see the tomb empty, to witness the event foretold, but they miss the point. They miss Easter. It is to these two disciples that I relate so well. I find myself standing at the tomb on Easter morning, and wonder what the fuss is about - the tomb is empty - but what does that mean?
Mary, on the other hand, has a totally different experience at the tomb than do her companions. While they run to arrive at the tomb, but quickly leave once they find the place empty, Mary stays, Mary lingers at the empty tomb a bit longer. She stands there weeping, grieving. Overcome by the events of the past days, months, years - everything that has changed in her life since meeting Jesus playing over in her head - she just needs a moment to soak everything in. She stays at the tomb just a little longer, lets the emptiness sink into her mourning soul. It is then, then, that she leans in and sees the risen Christ. She does not recognize him right away, but she stays, she waits, she asks questions, and wonders about what she is experiencing.
Woman, says Jesus, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for? She replied, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him. Jesus answered, Mary.
In that instant, in that single word, everything changed for Mary. Rabbouni! Teacher! In that moment, she recognizes her teacher, her healer, her friend - not dead, not defeated, but alive, present here with her, speaking her name. Unlike the two disciples, Mary does not return quietly home, but leaves the tomb rejoicing, telling everyone, announcing the good news. "I have seen the Lord," she says, and she told them that Jesus had appeared to her and spoken to her. Mary does not miss Easter - she experiences it fully. She sees the empty tomb and the risen Christ. For her, the days of suffering and mourning have their ultimate payoff in the presence of the living Christ - the trial, the crucifixion, the agonizing time in between. They all point now to this meeting with her teacher, and her joy is complete.
What has Mary done to make her Easter so different than the Easter morning of the two disciples. They walk away from the tomb confused, perhaps let down, not understanding what is going on, not understanding what all Mary's fuss was about. But Mary leaves rejoicing, filled up, more alive than she has ever been. Unlike her companions, Mary was able to wait through the original discomfort and uncertainty of her first arrival to the tomb. She waited, she lingered, she just was in the presence of this holy place, this sacred tomb, long enough to see Jesus. The empty tomb is only one part of the Easter story - the risen Christ is the other part. An empty tomb alone says nothing - the tomb alone is not Easter. That Christ has power over death with life is the Easter story, and we, with Mary, must wait to experience it.
On this special morning, be careful - don't miss Easter. Don't walk away, disillusioned, from the empty tomb, wondering what you missed. Don't find yourself feeling empty, like you didn't quite get it, in the midst of family celebrations and special meals with loved ones. Don't rush out, like the disciples did, feeling that what you came to see wasn't as special as you thought it would be after all. Don't hurry away. Just stay here, wait a little, stand here at the door of the empty tomb. The risen Christ is here today. Will you wait to see him? The risen Christ is in our midst. Don't you recognize him? Christ is alive, Christ is risen. You won't want to miss him.
Let us pray: Gracious God, we wait for the risen Christ to fill this place, fill our hearts, fill our lives on the Easter morning. . . . . Come into our presence this day, loving God. We are waiting for you. In the name of the Resurrected Christ we pray, Amen.