United Church of Pittsford

John 20:1-22

The Easter story begins with a sad, sorrowful, broken-hearted, grieving Mary Magdalene heading off, all by herself, early in the morning while it was still dark,for the tomb where the body of Jesus
had been laid.

When she finally arrives, to her horror, she discovers that the tomb is empty, that the body is gone!

Immediately, she races back to where the disciples were staying . . .
and breathlessly reports the horrible news to Peter and John . . .
between tears of anguish, and choked-up sobs of sorrow, fear, and defeat.

In stunned disbelief, Peter and John quickly head for the tomb
to see for themselves.

When they arrive, they discover, to their horror, that Mary’s wild-eyed,
hysterical account was, in fact, accurate.

It wasn’t bad enough that their beloved rabbi and friend
had been horribly crucified by the fearful and hated Romans . . .
to add insult to injury, some grievous grave robbers had desecrated his tomb and hijacked his remains.

They were inconsolable . . . deathly afraid that they just might be the next victims on the Roman’s list of rebellious subversives . . .
broken of spirit, and helplessly and hopelessly defeated and depressed . . . they wearily trudged back to their hiding place,
still under the protective cover of darkness.

What happens next is more shocking and more amazing
than anything and everything that had ever transpired since Mary first met Jesus!

First, a vision of angels, who ask her why she was crying . . .
and then, a remarkable encounter with the Risen Lord.

Once she recognizes Jesus, she excitedly rushes toward him with open arms . . anxious to embrace her loved one returned from the dead.

Initially, she calls him rabbi, but once the miracle of his existence sinks in . . . she calls him her Lord!

Now aware that Jesus is the Messiah sent by God to save the people . . . she dashes back to where the disciples are hold-up.

Ecstatically, Mary tells them that she has seen the Risen Lord . . .
and delivers the message he had asked her to share with them!

In this way, Mary Magdalene becomes the very first witness to the resurrection . . . and the very first evangelist, to share that good news
with a group of unbelievers, who happen to be, of all people,
the Lord’s chosen disciples!

Now, it isn’t like Jesus hadn’t warned them about what would
eventually happen to him!

And, he had made a point of telling them that after three days,
he would rise from the grave.

But if that made any sense at all to them . . . and scripture makes it clear that they were not about to ask him for an explanation,
they most likely assumed he was simply speaking in general terms
of the resurrection of the dead at the end time . . . a concept, an idea, a belief, that Jesus shared with the Pharisees.

Even after Mary’s passionate testimony, the disciples
remained skeptical . . . cloistered in their hideaway for fear of retribution for identifying with Jesus.

Quite frankly, the thought of Jesus as risen from the dead remained a farfetched, difficult to grasp, hard to believe, much less understand idea, concept, notion, theory . . . until he passed through their locked door and broke into their lives!

At that point, the tangible Jesus, most readily remembered through his teachings,his example, his life . . . became the spiritual Risen Lord and Savior of their lives . . . an intrusion that empowered and emboldened them to leave the comfort, the safety, the security of their cloistered existence, and through the wisdom and the strength of the indwelling Spirit, initiate a religious revolution that has lead to our being
present in this place, at this particular moment, at this time in history.

So many people today honor and respect Jesus as an insightful
and inspiring teacher . . . a rabbi, if you will, who eloquently spoke, and dramatically demonstrated in his brief life divine truths,
that if followed, lived-out, observed . . . would make for a better world.

However, without the wisdom and strength of Christ’s indwelling Spirit . . . his radical, challenging teachings, and his bold and courageous example, remain little more than a farfetched, difficult to grasp, hard to believe, much less understand idea, concept, notion, theory . . . a principle to admire, but never fully duplicate.

It is when the intellectual awareness is transformed into a spiritual experience . . . when the Risen Lord brakes into one’s quiet, comfortable, safe and secure life . . . that real change takes place, where new life begins!

There was a young woman in our congregation in Rhode Island . . .
a happily married wife of ten years, and a mother of two young children . . . who terribly, tragically, horrifically lost her husband.

This poor woman and her two little ones helplessly stood by at the edge of the surf on an abandoned beach, and watch their beloved husband and father desperately struggle for his very life in the pounding waves of a nasty storm . . . and finally sink to his death.

For months, she was nearly paralyzed with sorrow and grieve.

Fortunately, her parents and a number of her siblings also lived in Cranston, and were able to provide care and love for her and her children.

There was great anger directed toward God . . . along with a profound sense of doubt, disappointment, disillusionment . . . and a debilitating feeling of abandonment and defeat.

Slowly, she was able to get back on her feet . . . and eventually,
through much patient and gentle encouragement, return to church.

Later, she would testify that she stopped talking about and
thinking about Jesus . . . and began talking to Jesus . . she began confiding in him, confessing to him, counting on him, leaning on him,
and allowing his Spirit to guide her thoughts and heal her soul.

No longer was Jesus a concept, an idea, an ideal, an example and teacher with a collection of weighty instructions for faithful living,
that he was able to enact in his daily life.

Instead, her faith became a personal, powerful, spiritual, mutually loving, and healing relationship!

Two years later, she strolled into my office one day and announced
that she had fallen in love . . . something she could not even imagine just a few short years before.

Soon, this new man in her life was a vital and active member of our congregation, and eventually, I was honored, thrilled, and most pleased to be able to officiate at their wedding.

That is Easter hope!

Methodist Bishop, William Willimon has said, “The resurrection
doesn’t simply mean that Jesus rose to eternal life.

“It doesn’t simply mean that we hope to see our loved ones when we die.

“It also means that the very first thing that the Risen Lord did
was return to the same cowardly and misunderstanding disciples who had so disappointed and forsaken him.

“He swooped through their locked door and empowered them
with his Holy Spirit.”

This is Easter hope . . . because that very same Risen Lord swoops through the locked doors of our hearts . . . those locked doors
of doubt and fear, those locked doors of helplessness and hopelessness, those locked doors of pain and loneliness and isolation, those locked doors of depression and defeat . . . and blesses us
with the wisdom and strength of his Holy Spirit.

Our faith, our hope, our trust in the Lord is based on this Easter miracle . . . the very same one that overwhelmed Mary,
and transformed the lives those original disciples.

It is not based on what we think, surmise, or believe . . .
it is not based on some principle or dogma, or set of teachings
calling us to a better way of life . . . it is based on the miracle of new birth, of rebirth . . . initiated by the indwelling presence and power
of Christ’s Holy Spirit.

That first Easter morning began as a sad and sorrowful day,
a painful, awful, heart-wrenching, and disastrous day . . .
yet, by the time the sun had risen, and the Son of God had risen,
new life, rebirth had come, not just for the Son, but for Mary,
and for those frightened and disheartened disciples!

That is the Easter hope . . . that the same can happen for us,
when we stop talking about and thinking about Jesus, and begin talking to Jesus . . when we begin confiding in him,
confessing to him, counting on him, and allowing his empowering Spirit to guide our thoughts and heal our souls.

Amen.