Believing and Not Seeing

Our journey of Holy Week and Jesus’ last days before He died can ignite such emotion in our hearts. Through our worship, we were there in the crowd on Palm Sunday, we were there with Him at the Last Supper, we were there by the cross, we were there by the tomb, and we were there celebrating His resurrection. This journey reminds us of our sinful nature and of God’s redemption for us. Now that Jesus has risen, we must believe. We must have faith that He died for us, that He rose from the dead, and appeared to those He knew on earth. 

So what does it mean to have faith? It is such a small word, but it carries such depth and weight.  Faith can be described by words such as acceptance, confidence, assurance, truthfulness, and surety. The book of Hebrews describes faith as “being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (NIV)

In John 20: 27-29, Thomas had to see Jesus to believe that He had indeed risen from the dead. Jesus replies, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." Our journey of Holy Week helps us to be there with Jesus as He walks those last moments. But in reality, we weren't truly there. We weren't truly there when He appeared to the disciples. They were among the very few who did indeed see Jesus after He rose. 

We have to believe, to have faith, that He did rise that day. We haven't seen the risen Jesus like the disciples did, but we need to believe that He did rise that day so many years ago because Jesus has bridged the gap between man and God. Hebrews 10:19-23 says, "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, the body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful." (NIV)

May we find that faith this Easter season that draws us close to God in full assurance that He did rise from the dead and now lives.

Now What??

“They went out and fled from the tomb, trembling with fear and amazement.  They told no one; for they were exceedingly afraid.”

-Mark 16: 8 (translation from Dr. Preston H. Epps)

He is risen!  Tell it out with joyful voice!  Now that the stone has been rolled away and he who was crucified is now risen, the game has changed.  And our world will never, ever be the same again!

When we sit with that fact—Christ risen from the dead—we begin to see just how absurd, how ridiculous this notion actually is.  God has managed to take something as horrifying as the cross, managed to take something as mysterious and frightening as death, and has turned them into instruments of life.  It seems to good to be true.  And yet, it is.  At least that is what our faith tells us. 

We all know the story.  We sing those glorious Alleluias in packed churches on the Sunday of the Resurrection, but then what?  What are we supposed to do now that Easter has (seemingly) come and gone? Have we grown so accustomed to the story that it barely registers to us on days besides Easter (or maybe Christmas)?  Maybe some of us realize just how incredible a notion the bodily resurrection of Jesus is and have decided that it could not possibly have been true.  Or maybe some of us think that the story is over, that Jesus being raised is the end of God’s story and that there isn’t anything more for us to do.

This is clearly not what the author of the Gospel of Mark was thinking.  Originally, the Gospel of Mark ended with no visuals of the resurrected Jesus.  Years later, after both Matthew and Luke’s gospels had been recorded, two new endings were added to Mark.  But initially, the ending of the First Gospel featured Jesus’ female disciples going to the tomb early in the morning, only to find it empty.  An angel stands nearby and relays the message to them that Jesus has been raised.  They run away, exceedingly afraid.  And the gospel ends. 

This seems a most appropriate ending for us here and now.  Because we live in this world, the world of no resurrection accounts, no stories of the physical resurrected Jesus. We share this in common with the community of Mark’s gospel, which did not need proof of Jesus’ resurrection to understand the part that they were called to play in it, namely that it was their obligation to now spread the Good News of Jesus.  In short, they knew that they were the Body of the Risen Christ, called to show the Risen Lord’s love and redemption to their broken world.

You and I are the Body here and now.  We have been to the cross with Jesus, sat with him in the tomb, and beheld the glory of his resurrection this past Sunday.  But what will we do now?  How will we proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?  How will we be Jesus to a broken and hurt world? 

Easter is not the end of the story, it is the beginning.  It is the beginning of everything.  And you and I have a part to play in it.  We are called to be Jesus to this world.  The resurrected Christ is alive in you, and it is your obligation, just as it was to those women who beheld the empty tomb, to go into the world and spread the Good News of the Risen One.  What does that look like?  How will you share that Good News, that Gospel According to You?

Alleluia!  Christ is risen.  Now what are you going to do about it??

Waiting for the Resurrection

In the darkness of the early morning, I have been awakened by the sounds of birds chirping as they begin their day. Although the forecast is for rain most of the day, the birds do not seem to mind or give it much care. Their eager chirps herald something much more consequential than the inconvenience of more rain and mud. All across my yard, I see signs of the resurrection of life- in my gardens, the shrubbery, even the fish pond. The goldfish and koi have finally come up from the bottom of the pond, where they lingered in the rock caves we built for them. Gone is the pond heater, which maintained a small vent hole in the ice and snow that covered the pond for months. When I walk towards the pond, the fish swim over to the side where I am, eager for a few morsels of food and attention. As daylight dawns, more birds join in the glorious symphony they are performing in the trees and bushes that surround my house. They know spring is here, the time of the earth's resurrection from its long winter sleep is upon us.

As Lent comes to its close, I find that I too am awaiting celebrations of resurrections. This week, we will celebrate the resurrection of a parishioner. Her time in darkness is behind her. She has ascended into the perpetual light of the kingdom of God.  I will journey to Cincinnati to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the death of a childhood friend. Her friends and family will gather together at the Jewish cemetery to remove the veil that covers her burial marker, allowing her soul to ascend to God. Holy Week draws near. Though it will draw us into the darkness of Jesus' passion and death, it will also bring us into the light of Christ' resurrection, a resurrection without which, there would be no springtime of our souls.

It is spring- the season to celebrate the rebirth of the energy of life that surrounds us, the time to celebrate not only our liberation from the cold harsh winter just passed, but most importantly the time to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus the Christ, who by his sacrifice ensures us of the eventual resurrection of our souls.

Preparing for Holy Week

     Last Tuesday in staff meeting the dean asked how we were preparing ourselves for Holy Week.  I realized in that moment that I was nowhere near Holy Week.  I was going through the motions - living unconsciously in this regard.  I decided in Godly Play fashion to immerse myself in the stories of Holy Week and find where I am and who I am in these stories.  I invite you to do this with me.  I will focus on just a few of the characters in this meditation.

     Holy Week will not be holy unless we know where we are in this story.  The only way to this is to take an inventory of our life.  When do we betray Jesus, deny him, or go along with whatever collective thinking we find ourselves in?  We will be seemingly loved that way.  How often do we follow this rather than the truth we have come to know through Jesus? 

     Could we possibly be Judas?  Judas must have been a smart, trusted and honest guy to have been chosen to be the treasurer of this movement.  He was the one to dispense alms to the poor.  He was a zealot and true believer.  He abhorred extravagant waste.  Judas had an end to achieve.  Perhaps in a weak moment he thought he had been wrong and caved in with the promise of money.  He may have wondered how this kingdom could come with a leader who always turned the other cheek.  When have we caved in at a moment of doubt and temptation?

     Could we possibly be Peter?  He was just keeping himself safe.  How could he possibly continue a life for God if he risked his own life by admitting his friendship with the prisoner?  So we rationalize and tell white lies or full lies.  At least we are safe from the crowds and can go about ministry the way we want to.  There are many times that we rationalize behaviors that are not in line with who God calls us to be.  Have we done that today or recently – or have plans to?

     Could we be the soldiers?   They were carrying out their orders in their job.  Their job put food on the table.  When have we been guilty of “doing what we were supposed to do” but in that process take part in the crucifixion of Jesus?  This is how they put food on the table.  Are we on the side of security or the side of rocking the boat if called for?

     Could we be one in the crowds?  How often are we consciously or unconsciously stripped of who we truly are to take on the mass identity?  It feels good to be part of a group, we can laugh or hope things get better, but do nothing about it.  When have we been guilty of this?

     Holy Week if it is to be holy demands an intense inventory of our most inner self.  It demands that we look at the many places and times where we deny, betray, go along with the masses, and crucify our Lord.  It demands repentance.  It demands death of all that is false – no matter how painful.  The Cross is the only path to resurrection.  I am blessed to walk this holy path with you.