Scripture | John 20:1-17 (NIV)

The Empty Tomb

20 Early 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. ² So 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!” ³ So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. ⁴ Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. ⁵ He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. ⁶ Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, ⁷ as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. ⁸ Finally 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.) ¹⁰ Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

¹¹ Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb ¹² and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. ¹³ They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” ¹⁴ At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. ¹⁵ He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” ¹⁶ Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). ¹⁷ Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

This Changes Everything

Pastor Thanael Certa-Werner

Happy Easter! He is Risen! He is Risen indeed. Today we join the billions of people around the world celebrating Easter. After the heartache of Good Friday, we come to the joy of Easter. While we’re taking a break from looking at Spiritual Strengths as a part of our goal for 2021 to become spiritually strong, we are keeping them in mind as we navigate the rest of this Holy Week. Today we look to Easter and ask, “what’s so important anyways?” But, before we solve this question, I invite you to practice our memory verse with me. “Trust in God at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge.” – Psalm 62:8

Last Thursday, which was Maundy Thursday, we looked at things that we don’t understand completely or things we don’t use to their full potential. Our example was the warming drawer on an oven – normally it is used for storing pots and pans. But if you’ve every noticed that when the oven is on, those pots and pans get hot, then you have discovered its true purpose – that it is for keeping food warm! We talked about how this illustrates the same problem in people’s perspective on Jesus. His life and purpose are and were so much more than the people wanted them to be. People wanted a king but needed and got a messiah.

But then Easter seems to be a similar thing – what’s its purpose? If we needed a savior, then why do we need Easter? Without it, Jesus would still have died on the cross for our sins and we would have been made right before God. So why do we need Easter? What does it really change? Is it just an excuse for eating candy and for getting people into the church?

To understand, let’s travel back 1,991 years to that first Easter. Jesus – the one Who they believed would save the world,  the one Who was supposed to end oppression by toppling the Roman Empire,  the one Who was supposed to defeat the evil of this world, was now dead and laying stone cold in a grave at the foot of the place He was crucified. All the hope of His disciples seemed dashed – those who loved Him were in mourning. One such person was Mary Magdalene. In our scripture for today, we see that she goes to the tomb – who knows why? Maybe just to be close to Jesus’ body again. When she arrives, horror of all horrors! Someone has stolen the body of Jesus! This is UNBELIEVABLE. Who would do such a thing!?

She goes running to the leader of the disciples as well as another, Peter and John, and tells them what happened and they go tearing for the tomb. Imagine if your mom had just died. The day after the graveside, you go back to the cemetery to find an empty hole where you had buried you mom the day before! What would you feel? Outrage? Confusion? Anger? Sadness? This is what the disciples were going through.

When the two guys arrive, the story’s true. What can they do? The body is gone. So, they go back home. But Mary stays, weeping in sadness because someone has stolen the body of precious Jesus. As she’s sobbing, a kind looking man approaches her and asks her what’s wrong. Mary thinks, He must be the gardener who looks after the garden. Maybe, just maybe He knows what happened here. Yet, when He calls her name, she knows who this Man is. Jesus’ body has not been stolen. He is no longer in the grave because He is no longer dead!

This is the most powerful moment in the whole New Testament. Not because there is a huge amount of teaching in it, not because it is overly moving, but because it is the moment when it all finally makes sense. Imagine if all we had of the New Testament were the parts where Jesus was alive until He died. Imagine if all we knew was that Jesus was crucified and that was it! Even though Jesus would have taken on the sin of the world, and even though He would still have defeated death, none of us would know it!

Even more importantly, the teachings of Jesus would not make much sense. In that moment, when Mary realized for the first time that Jesus was alive, that He had risen, she also understood for the first time what Jesus had been teaching all along. It finally clicked. The same is true for the other disciples. As each of them experienced the risen Christ, their eyes were opened to the true meanings of Jesus’ teachings. For the first time, they could actually understand what Jesus had been saying all this time.

The reality of our faith is, it only makes sense through the lens of Easter! On Good Friday, Jesus died to give us life but on Easter, He rose to give us hope and understanding. In Easter, just as Jesus was resurrected into life eternal, we are made new. Our understandings are made new, our faith is reborn, our life is put into perspective of life eternal, and we are given new life. This newness is why Christians have historically baptized people on Easter. Lent has been used as a time of preparation and instruction of the faith – just as Jesus had used the time of His ministry before His death to give instructions to His disciples.

Yet, just as the disciples did not understand the teachings of Jesus to the fullest until His resurrection, so too do those baptized not really understand until they are made new by the waters of baptism. It is the experience of the risen Christ which has the power to truly open our eyes to the workings of God in our midst. Without Easter, we cannot experience God in the way that we do.

So today, we are not only celebrating that Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sins. We are also celebrating that He has given us hope and understandings by rising from the dead. We celebrate the Christians who have testified to this resurrection. We celebrate the Christians who have faithfully carried this amazing, awe-inspiring story forward. We celebrate the work of the Holy Spirit in opening our eyes, our hearts, and our minds to the truth of Christ. And we celebrate that in Baptism, we are made new – rising from the waters as Christ rose from the tomb, into new and everlasting life. And for that, thanks be to God! Alleluia! Yes. Amen.