John 20, Acts 10:34-48
Mary is the first one up and moving that first Easter morning. She comes to the tomb before the sun is up, before anyone else is up. She sees that the stone as been rolled away and so she runs. She runs to get some of the men and they run with her to find the tomb empty. They fear that Jesus' body has been stolen. The men don't know what else to do but to go home. But Mary stays.
Mary just won't leave until she finds what she is seeking. Once, she was demon possessed, perhaps mentally ill and because of Jesus in her life she became a wise, persistent, loving disciple who now waits by the tomb alone. Waits for what? Perhaps she knows that God hasn't brought her this far just to leave her behind.
And so she stays and waits. And watches. And where the other disciples see linen cloths, she sees angels. Where they see emptiness, she sees her beloved teacher.
Jesus calls her by name, "Mary." Jesus whispers, "there is more" not to distract us from life, but to free us to live more fully. Jesus says, "Do not hold onto me, Mary. Return to life." Jesus says, "Let go of me and go and tell my brothers that I am returning to my Father and your Father. Go back to life, Mary. Know there is more, and let that knowledge free you to love more, to live more, to live with joy."
Mary did go back to the disciples to tell them of this amazing wondrous thing that has happened.
For 2000 years Christians has tried to understand what the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ means.
Peter was one of the first to preach the resurrection. He was one of the first to try and make sense of it.
A Gentile by the name of Cornelius had invited Peter to speak at his home. Peter stood before the family and said,
This is God's own truth, nothing could be plainer: God plays no favorites! It makes no difference who you are or where you are from - if you want God in your life, the door is always open.
You know the story of what happened in the land of Judea. It began in Galilee with John the Baptist's preaching. Then Jesus arrived from Nazareth, anointed by God with the Holy Spirit, ready for action. Jesus went through the country helping people and healing everyone who was beaten down by the evil of the world. He was able to do all this because God was with him.
And we saw it, saw it all, everything he did in the land of Judea. We saw how those in power in Jerusalem killed him and hung him from a cross. But in three days God raised him from the dead. God had him alive and out where he could be seen. Not everyone saw him - he wasn't put on public display. Witnesses had been carefully handpicked by God beforehand - us! We were the ones, there to eat and drink with him after he came back from the dead. He commissioned us to announce this in public, to bear solemn witness that he is in fact the One whom God destined as Judge of the living and dead. But we're not alone in this. Our witness that he is the means to forgiveness of sins is backed up by the witness of all the prophets."
No sooner were these words out of Peter's mouth than the Holy Spirit came on the listeners. The believing Jews who had come with Peter couldn't believe it, couldn't believe that the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out on "outsiders" - Gentiles, but there is was - they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God.
Then Peter said, "Do I hear any objections to baptizing these friends with water? They've received the Holy Spirit exactly as we did." Hearing no objections, he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
Peter tells us that Christ brings forgiveness of sins, for all who believe in him. Peter tells us that Christ died and God raised him from the dead. But Peter does not say that Jesus died in order that our sins are forgiven. Peter sees Jesus resurrection as the final proof that Jesus was truly sent by God. He does not read meaning into the death of Christ. But people have had 2,000 years to mull this over. First, Paul writes in his letters that Jesus died in order for our sins to be forgiven. He does not say how the crucifixion results in forgiveness of sins, or why the resurrection occurred. The Bible itself stops well short of a full explanation. Yet, it is clear that Jesus' execution and resurrection made a powerful emotional impact on the writers of the Bible, just as it continues to do to us today when we hear the Palm Sunday and Good Friday passion narrative, and the subsequence Easter celebration. Regardless of any spiritual explanations, the story makes us love Jesus.
We love Jesus because he was killed for bringing the message that sets us free, and we love Jesus for coming back from the dead to give us proof of life after death. So let us experience the resurrection today as Peter and Mary so many years ago. That is, without the centuries of analysis, but with pure joy. Joy and happiness that Jesus is alive. Jesus is not dead, but alive for us today and for always - our friend, our liberator, our healer and our hope. Amen.
