Easter Day 2011, Year A
Nothing
Can Stand in the Way of God's Gift and Presence
Sunday
Jeremiah 31:1-6
Psalm 118:1-2,14-24
Acts 10:34-43
* Matthew 28:1-10
Prayer of
the Day1:
God of mercy, we no longer look for Jesus among
the dead, for he is alive and has become the Lord of
life. Increase in our minds and hearts the risen life we share with Christ, and
help us to grow as your people toward the fullness of eternal life with you,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and
the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
The
Children's Choir sings ….
Gospel Introduction:2
Sorrow gives way to “fear and great joy” when two
women are sent by an angel to proclaim the good news: Jesus is risen!
GOSPEL (Matthew 28:1–10, NRSV)
The Gospel of our Lord, according to St. Matthew. /Glory to you O Lord.
After the sabbath,
as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary
went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel
of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on
it. His appearance was like lightning, and his
clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead
men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are
looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as
he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go
quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed
he is going ahead of you to
The Gospel of our Lord / Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon: Nothing Can Stand in the Way of God's Gift and Presence
“After the sabbath,
as the first day of the week was dawning....”
“It is 'the first day of the week,' that is,
the first day of the Jewish work week, the first day when … the disciples of Jesus, [are]
attempting to get back to normal after
a particularly [difficult] weekend.”3
The disciples are gathered in an upper room.
Paralyzed by grief and fear, they have been afraid to venture
out.
All their hopes, all their assumptions,
have turned out to be terribly wrong.
Optimistic joy has been replaced by the most-despairing sorrow.
Matthew is wondering if he can get another
job with the Romans after his stint with this criminal Jesus.
James and John are talking about returning
to their father Zebedee's fishing business.
Peter is talking with Andrew about finding
enough money to buy another boat and nets.
Simon the Zealot broods in his anger
and sorrow. …
The disciples are stuck in darkness and
despair, when suddenly the door is thrown open, and in bursts Mary Magdalene!
The uptight disciples jump!
“The tomb is empty!” she says breathlessly.
“I’ve seen Jesus!
I’ve heard an angel!
You've got to come!”
The disciples gather themselves, and
then realize it's only Mary: Mary the one who was
possessed4; Mary the one whom
the master had healed.
Simon smiles condescendingly, and says,
“Look at her. She's hysterical.”
Thomas
tries to explain more-gently: “She's
seen a shadow or something.”
“No!” Mary insists!
“There was an angel!”
The disciples roll their eyes at each
other.
“Good grief, Mary, sit down!”
“Peter, give her a drink of water.”
But Mary won't sit down.
And then John, being the youngest, and
therefore the disciple still most-open to hope,
lays his big fisherman's hand on Mary’s shoulder and asks her gently, “What did the angel say, Mary?”
“'He is risen!'” she answers.
“The angel said, 'he is risen'!”
Today we celebrate the most festive Sunday of the entire church year!
We go “all out”!
Around the world this day, organists set the
pace with their exuberant playing and choir anthems of exultation!
Around the world this day, hymns are sung with gusto!
Around the world today, processional
banners and crucifixes add an air of elegance to this most-important of days!
Around the world this day, the fresh fragrance of lilies
reminds us of new birth!
And all this matches the tone of Matthew’s
version of the resurrection!
For in the gospel according to St. Matthew, there
are earthquakes and angel proclamations!
There is lightning and awe!
Today is a festive, dramatic,
and most-important day!
For today we celebrate the reality that
because of Easter, life is different!
This new reality, this change, was
portrayed in a comic-strip advertisement for St. Peter's Cemetery.
The ad offered special rates for those
who only needed to lease a plot for three days!
That's
the new reality we've gathered to celebrate today!
Although we live amid dark wars and
disputes, and although the economy is unsettled and uncertain, today we gather
to celebrate an even-more-powerful reality!
Nothing can
stand in the way of God's gift and presence!
Not the political and military might of
the
Not the spectre of death!
Nor even our own unwillingness
and hesitancy to believe or to change!
This Easter day proclaims that nothing
can stand in the way of God's gift and presence!
Some of us are here this day fearful of the future.
It may be an upcoming diagnosis, or concern
about a relationship going wrong.
Our fear might be due to a disease taking its
expected course, or worry about pending unemployment.
Whatever it may
be, the Easter message for those of us fearful of the future is
the angel's message to the women at the empty tomb: “indeed
he is going ahead of you to
We can go into that unknown future secure
in the knowledge that the risen Christ goes into that fearful future
ahead of us, and will meet us there!
Some of us are here this day grieving.
Loved ones who had been with us are no longer at our
side.
The separation may be due to death, or the
separation may be due to loved ones being in another place, or the separation
may be due to some other circumstances.
Whatever the cause of our grief, the Easter message
for those of us who mourn, is the angel's
message to the women at the tomb: “I know that you are
looking for Jesus who was crucified.
He is not here; for he has been raised”.
The sorrow and pain of Good Friday
and Holy Saturday will one day be replaced with the joy
of Easter Sunday resurrection and reunion.
This Easter day proclaims that nothing
can stand in the way of God's gift and presence!
There is nothing in our past, no present
circumstance, nothing in our future, that
can stand in the way of God's gift and God's presence in our lives.
A Sunday School class had
been studying heroes of the faith.
At the end of the unit, the teacher asked “Of all the
Bible characters we've learned about, which would you most like
to be?”
Some said Samson – for his strength –
or Solomon – for his wealth.
Another said David – for his bravery in
fighting Goliath.
But one boy said, “I'd like to be Lo.”
The teacher wracked her brains, trying to recall the
biblical character named Lo.
Coming up blank, she asked the student to say more.
“I'd like to be Lo,” he explained, “because when Jesus met the disciples in
Because of God's saving act at Easter, we each
bear the name of Lo.
“Lo, I am with you always.”
Nothing can
stand in the way of God's gift and presence!
Whether you're here every Sunday,
or if you're here only because you were dragged by a spouse or boyfriend/girlfriend
... even if you're here only to please your parents, or to set a good
example for the kids ... for whatever reason you're here
... just remember this one thing: Remember this for
when your life falls apart and you are hurting desperately and
you don't know which way to turn!
Remember this:
God loves you, and there is absolutely nothing which
can ever separate you from God's love and presence!
That's
the message of Easter!
God is wildly and madly in love
with you!
Unconditionally,
and forever!
“Do not be afraid,” for “Lo, I am with you always.”
There
is nothing that can stand in the way of God's gift and God's presence in
our lives.
In
the words of the ancient greeting: P/ Christ is
risen.
R/ he is risen, indeed!
Thanks be to God! Amen!
1Sundays and Seasons, Year A, 2011. Augsburg Fortress 2010, page 161.
2Sundays and Seasons, Year A, 2011. Augsburg Fortress 2010, page 161.
3Pulpit Resource, Vol 36,
No. 1, January through March 2008, page 54.
4Luke 8.2 and Mark 16.9