An Easter Sermon

Fear and Joy

A Easter Message – 2014

I have been attempting this week to come to an Easter place – to let go of the gloom of Good Friday and embrace this new day – the new life of Easter morning.  It has been a struggle – for an Easter place is a place of joy, of hope of glory and hallelujah’s – Easter is energy and courage and freedom, it’s about fully embracing the wonderful possibility of life and all it has to offer – it is a pretty tall order with still so much snow on the ground this late in April and the chill in the wind and the ice in the harbour.  Our spring like conditions have been a bit scarce this year and winter’s hold is slow to let go.  And I bet I am not the only one.  – I bet that there are a few of us here today – who wish all the hoopla and celebrating would just pass us by – and today could be a day just like any other.  And we can wander back home like the disciples and pull the blankets up over our head – and ignore the calls for hallelujah and rejoicing.  

I also think that there are also some in our midst who are so far away from Easter rejoicing because life may be quite difficult in this time – some may be caught up in worrying about family members - or concerned about health issues – or struggling in their relationships or – grieving the loss of a beloved partner – or anxious with the end of rewarding career – or struggling financially - there are many reasons why we would like Easter to be put off until we are ready for it.  There are many of us who are not in the Easter mood.  And yet this day comes – this day comes every year, reminding us – ready or not – that God is doing a new thing – the tomb is empty, Jesus is alive – resurrection happened and new life begins.

And you know thank God that it does – because even if we are so far away from the Easter feeling – this story reminds us that it is out there and that Easter is possible and not only that – this story reminds us that it is in the midst of sorrow and grief and pain and confusion and despair that’s where Easter strikes us– it is in that blackness and bleakness, the entombment that the first Easter happened.  And really when we look at the characters in the story they too struggled in that moment to fully grasp what was goingon before they could move to that place of Easter joy.

It’s dark – still night almost – and the Sabbath, the day of rest, the day devoted to God as come and gone.  Dawn has yet to arrive – but the woman – the two Mary’s according to Matthew, have a task to complete.  When Jesus was buried, not all of the death rituals were finished as they needed to get him into the tomb and the stone rolled in front before the sundown on the Sabbath.  The Sabbath is a day of rest and even the task of preparing bodies for burials were not done on God’s day.  So there are still pieces in the preparation of the body that need to be accomplished and it has fallen on the Mary’s to complete it. 

When they arrived at the tomb – remarkable and scary things begin to happen – I can’t imagine what these woman went through – first they would have been consumed in grief as their beloved Jesus had just died.  They probably would have come in anxiety as they did not know how safe it was to be a Jesus follower after he had just been accused and executed for treason – what if they were painted with the same brush?  And it is dark and they are woman travelling without a male companion through the streets of Jerusalem, at a time when the city was full of strangers and visitors gathered to celebrate the Passover.  So, I imagine that these woman were already walking in fear

But, there is more – because Matthews account of the events of that day include not only an earthquake but also a sighting of an angel descending from heaven and rolling away the stone.  A sight so scary that the men – the soldiers who are guarding the tomb – froze and became rigid with fear.  

The woman on the other hand faced their fears, approached the angel listened to his message of hope and joy – that Jesus had been raised – that he was not a corpse inside the tomb – but instead had gone on ahead to Galilee – they hear the message – they see the evidence – the empty tomb and they go to share the good news….

But on the way – on the way back to tell the disciples about this amazing  event that they have just witnessed to – there on the way – when they least expect it – they run into Jesus himself – I think that the reason the woman end up on the ground grasping at Jesus feet – is that this morning has been so full of so many surprises and they are so full of the emotions of fear and joy that when they encounter the Christ – all they can do is fall at his feet – they do not have any other energy for anything else.  Have you ever had a moment like that – when you are so overwhelmed with emotion – that all you can do is collapse – it happens in extreme grief – when suddenly without any warning a beloved partner or parent or child or friend is taken –it happens in extreme fear, when our life is threatened, it also happens to in extreme joy when someone we thought was gone returns unexpectedly, like Jesus appearing on the road in front of the woman.  Fear and joy drop us to Jesus feet.

“I wonder,” supposes David Lose:  “if that isn’t also our reality. I mean, don’t we also live lives tinged by both fear and joy. Fear of what may happen to our children in a dangerous world; joy at the blessing they are to us and, we pray, they will be to the world. Fear of whether we will have a job in the year to come; joy at the colleagues that surround us. Fear about the fate of a loved one struggling with illness; joy in the gift that person has been to us. Fear about the future amid problems both national and global; joy in the present moment surrounded by those we love. Or to come a bit closer to home, fear about the future of our congregation and church; joy in our opportunity to gather as God’s people to celebrate on this Easter morning.

I think it’s striking that the announcement of resurrection doesn’t take away all their fear. Rather, it enables them to keep faith amid their fears, to do their duty and share their good news in spite of their anxiety. This is the very definition of courage. And, I would argue, courage is precisely what Easter is about. For while some preach that coming to faith in Christ should smooth all the rough places of life and still the tremors of this world, I believe that the gospel gives us the ability to keep our feet amid the tremors and enables us not just to persevere but even to flourish when life is difficult.

“Do not be afraid.” This charge -- repeated by Jesus when he encounters the women -- gives us insight into the very nature of our lives in this world. For there is, indeed, much to fear in our mortal lives. And yet the resurrection of Christ creates the possibility for joy and hope and courage and so much more. Why? Because it changes everything. In the resurrection, you see, we have God’s promise that life is stronger than death, that love is greater than hate, that mercy overcomes judgment, and that all the sufferings and difficulties of this life are transient -- real and palpable and sometimes painful, for sure, but they do not have the last word and do not represent the final reality.
Fear and joy, despair and hope, doubt and faith, these are the two sides of our lives in this world. But in the end we have heard the resurrection promise that joy, hope, and faith will ultimately prevail.”[1]

The good news of Christ’s resurrection does not take away our fear -- though sometimes we wish desperately that it would -- but it does offer us courage and hope by anchoring us in the sure promise that God will have the last word, and that that word is one of light and life and grace and mercy and love and peace.

Brian McLaren reminds us that:

“death is not the last word.
Violence is not the last word.
Hate is not the last word.
Money is not the last word.
Intimidation is not the last word.
Political power is not the last word.
Condemnation is not the last word.
Betrayal and failure are not the last word.
No: each of them are left like rags in a tomb,
And from that tomb,
Arises Christ,
Alive.”

This is Easter – in the midst of the joy and the fear – whether we are ready or not – Easter comes, the stone is rolled away – the tomb is empty – and God does the impossible.

This is Easter and it is about what God is doing in the world right here, right now!

 

Kay Heuy writes:  but all this isn't just about things that happened a long time ago and far away to people we'll never know and can't relate to, Isaiah and Mary Magdalene and Peter…no, this  happens all the time in our lives, too, right here and now. We know we all fall short of the hope that God has for our lives, we fail – a lot – and God loves us anyway. We face loss and death struggle with sorrow, loneliness, suffering   and God promises us new life, healing and wholeness anyway. Our relationships crash and burn, our kids worry us, there's never enough money, and God reassures us anyway, God offers us peace and wholeness and reconciliation. We turn away from God, and God offers us grace, anyway. 

Isn't this really why we're here this morning? Don't we come here from our problems and struggles in our fear and in hope to hear that God can overcome death, that God’s plan for us and the world is larger and more creative and more abundant than anything we can plan for ourselves.  Isn't it God that sustain us in hospital beds and waiting rooms alike, at gravesites and in the longest night of deep agony, doesn't this God, this resurrected Christ comfort us and challenge us, guide us and surprise and delight us and bring us joy? Aren't we then experiencing the new life of resurrection in the new age, the new creation begun on the first Easter Sunday morning? Every time we come to this table where all are welcome, every time we share this meal as a sign of our hope for that new creation in all its fullness, not just in the glimpses and promises we have so far, we encounter the living God, the personal God who loves us and remembers us and will not let us be lost in hopelessness, no matter how things appear right now.  This is Easter – the stone is rolled away and Jesus lives – Hallelujah and Amen.

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[1] David Lose:  Dear Working Preacher

Easter Sunrise Reflection

A Carried Away Church

Wow!  Well here we are – the crazy people once again on a cold beach huddled around a fire while all the rest of the world are still in their warm beds – some sleeping, some just lounging, some watching the kids scurrying around seeking out the goodies the Easter Bunny left behind.

What brings you here?  What motivated you this morning? All of you are here voluntarily – it is your choice to freeze your buns on this beach….

I remember my first sunrise service – it was in my early twenties – and I was a seeker, trying to figure out this God stuff and trying to determine if it had any meaning in my life – I read about the worship in a bulletin and decided to go not knowing what I was walking into – I walked into the church – it was warmer than here – although not much as the heat was not on – it was an earlier Easter that year, and the sun had not risen – it was in the grey of dawn that I joined those gathered around the communion table at the front of the church – it felt strange to be standing around the table as it was a place that I had never been to before – all of my church experience to that time I was in the pews – we stood through the prayers and the music and the reflection – and towards the end of the service the bread and cup were shared – and it was then that I first experienced communion in a more personal way as the bread was broken from a loaf that was handed from person to person – and as I looked around at this small gathering of faithful followers, I noticed that the sun had risen – and the eastern window that was parallel to the communion table was ablaze in the glow of orange and yellow.  The sun had risen – the son had risen – and it pierced my heart and I got it – and something shifted and a veil was lifted, and in that moment – Hallelujah – Christ is risen, he had risen indeed!

There have been many Easter sunrise services since the last one – and ever since I have been in ministry the services have moved in the great outdoors – So, on a shore such as this one, on the north shore of Lake Huron the good people of Blind River are worshiping there right now – and they will all go back to the church hall and have a lavish ham breakfast prepared by the local pharmacist and his family (that is there Easter tradition)  On the banks of the Sauble River, in Tara another crew of faith-filled folks have already finished for they gathered at 6:30 and I am sure that they are all back at the church warming up and sharing breakfast together.  And here we are, – on this beach around this fire – entering into the resurrection mystery one more time.  

On that first Easter morning – before anyone had any idea what Easter even meant, while it was still dark – some of Jesus beloved disciples went to his tomb – he had not been gone for long – a few short days, but they ache because of losing him in such a tortuous way –  such a sudden way was way beyond belief – they were still in shock – for just a week ago they had come in celebration with such high hopes into the city of Jerusalem and here and now – it was over – Jesus was dead – arrested, tried, nailed to a cross and his body place in a dark tomb – and there he lies – or does he?

In the dark, the disciples come – to a tomb that held darkness… In the dark the disciples came, not understanding that they were going to be witnesses to God at work in a way that God had never worked before…that they would be the first witnesses to God changing the way we understand the world.  Into the dark the disciples came…

Resurrection begins in the dark - but out of that darkness comes a glimmer of something more – a flash of newness, a spark of hope, a radiance that only can come from God – and so regular ordinary people such as Mary and Peter and John and James lives are transformed – are resurrected to new life – and regular ordinary folks like you and me are standing on this cold beach on 20^th of April – Easter Sunday 2014 – anticipating the resurrection moment when God gets in and death has been conquered, and light shines out of darkness.  

Clarence Jordan writes:  “The proof that God raised Jesus from the dead is not the empty tomb,
but the full hearts of his transformed disciples.
The crowning evidence that he lives is not a vacant grave,
but a spirit-filled fellowship.
Not a rolled-away stone, but a carried-away church.”

We know that Jesus lives, that resurrection happened, that God triumphed over death not because the tomb was empty but because we are here – we showed up to this beach – we came out of the darkness to witness to the 2000 year old event – we know that Jesus lives and with God all things are possible and the light of God can penetrate even the darkest darkness not because the stone was rolled away, but because the people who first witnessed to these events were transformed and changed and their lives become about proclaiming this good news to the world.  We know that Jesus lives and God gets in and life comes from death not because an angel said so but because that the potential for transformation is as possible for us today as it was for Mary and Peter and John and James 2000 years ago.

This is Easter morning – and Jesus is alive – the resurrection happened – Thanks be to God.  Amen

Parades and Persecution

Parades and Persecution

Palm Sunday Worship – April 13, 2014

This is a community that loves parades, how many parade do the communities of the Bruce Peninsula have each year? – homecoming,  Canada Day, Santa Clause Parade, Wiarton Fall Fair, Tobermory Chi, Chi Mong festival – am I missing any?  There is something about dressing up or decorating a bike or car – or grooming your team of horses that gets a crowd going.  In the community that my father lives in the Fall Fair parade is the one opportunity the pre-teen kids get to ride their four wheelers on the road – it is a very loud procession as these kids rev their engines up and down the street.  Who doesn’t love a parade?  

Today is all about the parade – the parade of palms as we witness Jesus coming triumphantly into Jerusalem and the people of that community being so excited and delighted that he was there that they went out to greet him, laying their cloaks and palm branches on the ground.  I love Palm Sunday parades – there is an excitement to this day that is different than the rest of the year.  I loved participating in the palm parades of my childhood in church, even the music of today is has a different rhythm, than other hymns.  Excitement is in the air – can you feel it?

David Lose wonders if:  “that’s what it was like for the first crowds who welcomed Jesus. Actually, I’m fairly certain it was far more exciting (for them), as many had probably heard Jesus teach or watched him heal or feed or comfort. Those who had no first hand experience of Jesus had probably heard the stories of others and came with excitement. What did they look for on that day so long ago? A prophet? Yes, but more than a prophet. A king? Perhaps, though they had no idea what kind of king.

I think they wanted a taste of heaven, a palpable feeling of the kingdom of God they’d heard him talk about. A break from the dismal routine, a sense that life mattered and that there was something beyond what they could see and hear, a relief to misery, healing for what was broken, hope to replace discouragement…and more.”[1]

A taste of heaven is the potential of what we can experience when we encounter the Christ – so this palm parade is packed with potential and possibility.   Who doesn’t love a parade?

Ride on, ride on, the time is right:

         the roadside crowds scream with delight;

         palm branches mark the pilgrim way

         where beggars squat and children play.

Jesus parades into Jerusalem at the height of the Passover festival season – – the excitement of Jesus coming into town creates this wondrous spontaneous joyful parade experience– and the crowds gather and shout and sing and celebrate – hosanna in the highest – blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!  So what changes?  What happens after the triumphal entry – what causes the crowds to shift from adoration to loathing? How do we go from celebration to execution in less than a week? 

The procession into Jerusalem according to Matthew – leads right to the temple gates and Jesus goes in and witnessing the chaos and disarray of the sellers and moneychangers doing their business in the temple grounds - Jesus reacts – reacts in a physical way and pushes tables over – throws out the money changes and the sellers and in the process angers even deeper the temple authorities.

He then goes and teaches – and makes outrageous statements about who God is and how God wishes people to live their lives radical things he speaks - things like – the widows mite is more valuable to God than all the gold the rich man left - and then he told stories about wicked tenants that killed the landlord’s son when he came to collect the rent – and the chief priests and Pharisees realized that he was talking about them.  And when he was asked about what was really important to God – Jesus dismissed all the 623 rules /the laws that the temple upheld about food and cleanliness and how to handle dead bodies and divorce and the proper way to sacrifice a goat and said –come on folks – there is only a couple of these rules that really matter to God and it is pretty simple-  love God completely – with all your heart, and all your mind and all your soul and after that love yourself and love your neighbour.   And all the rest will take care of itself.   And the people start to wonder about the rest of the laws – are they not important too?

Sung – vs 2        Ride on, ride on, your critics wait,

                                    intrigue and rumour circulate;

                                    new lies abound in word and jest,

                                    and truth becomes a suspect guest. 

And so when Jesus indicated that quite possibly that the physical presence of the great and glorious temple would be destroyed – what was heard was sedition – and on it went throughout the first three days of the week – stories about bridesmaids and parables of talents –became words of treason and treachery and somehow what Jesus had to say – these ideas, these words these stories they were dangerous – dangerous enough to be called subversion – dangerous enough to be called treason - dangerous enough to challenge the authorities – dangerous weapons of destruction – these words, these ideas these stories were enough for a crowd of ordinary folks – the Hosanna singers – enough for them to become the crucifixion crowd.

But maybe it was not all as it seemed during the parade – and maybe they were looking not to adore and worship Jesus but instead had expectations that Jesus may not have lived up to for them.  So when these ordinary folks that called out Hosanna as Jesus came into town – that we may have heard it as a sign of celebration and excitement.  It was probably more… the word Hosanna is not what we may think it is for although – we probably hear it as a celebratory word – it is a subversive word – so when the crowds call out:

“Hosanna to the son of David! 

blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!”

What they doing is asking for change – calling out for transformation - Hosanna is a plea to God asking God to come and save them. The people are crying out for God to save them from Roman oppression. I'm told that hosanna is an Aramaic word, where most of the gospel of Matthew is written in Greek. This remains in it’s original Aramaic language.  In that time for the people to ask anyone other than the Roman Emperor to save them was an act of treason, so calling out to God to come and help them was done in a language that most of the Romans would not have understood. While the Romans would have realised that this was a different language they would not have sensed the potential for revolution that comes in that word: Hosanna!”[2]

Sung – vs 3        Ride on, ride on, while well aware

                                     those who shout and wave and stare

                                    are mortals who, with common breath,

                                    can crave for life and lust for death.

So the crowds are calling out for an act of treason.  And throughout the next five days of Jesus life, decision are made that change the world.  This is a week of pivotal moments – and like the characters in the story that witness the events of this week, we too have choices to make.   Like Judas choice to betray and Peter choice to deny – we need to choose what we believe and what we will stand for.  Like Caiaphas choice to plot to have Jesus arrested and the Sanhedrin choice to fear what they do not understand - we too have the choice to be open to new ideas, new understandings and not be afraid of what we do not understand.  Like Pilate’s choice to wash his hands and fail to make a decision and chose not to take a stand but instead to bend to the status quo – that is our choice as well.  We too have a choice to stand for and with the truth or to back down when our culture says it’s not a popular choice.

Do we follow Jesus parade through the streets of Jerusalem – do we stand beside him in the temple – do we share a meal at the Passover feast – do we stay and watch in the garden – and then witness the arrest, and subsequent trials where justice and mercy get lost or do we go inside our homes and shut our doors and ignore what is going on around us – and show up Easter morning to celebrate when all the difficult stuff –all the hard and painful stuff is finished?  We have choices  - do we hear this story as an interesting event that happened a couple of thousand of years ago to a group of people of another time and another place or do we hear this story as something that is relevant and timely to us in Lion’s Head/Pike Bay in 2014.  Does this story really matter? – will it make a difference? – can we see God at work not only in that week 2000 years ago – but here and now and in this week that is also called holy.... The message of Jesus is our message – the stories, the ideas the words – they are as relevant now as they were where they were first spoken – and they are as challenging now as they were then too– so do we hear – are we listening or are we too going to kill the messenger?

Sung vs 4           Ride on, ride on, though blind with tears,

                                    though voiceless now and deaf to jeers.

                                    Your path is clear, though few can tell

                                    their garments pave the road to hell.

Have you had of enough parades? – but wait - there is still one more to go. But this parade is not so much a celebration as a witness to an execution.   This next parade is a

·       parade of ignorance,

·       of cruelty,

·       of violence,

·       of torture

·       and ultimately of death – 

The parade to Golgotha processes through our Holy week rituals.  It is a risky parade to participate in – because you do not know what you will encounter on the journey.  You do not know if you will end up as the one who betrays or denies the Christ, .  You do not know if you can stay awake and watch – or if you can drink the cup and eat the bread, you don’t know if you will run the first chance you get when the going gets hard.  As perilous parade processes past and we have a choice about whether we will be participants or not. Do you have the courage to walk on this dangerous path? – knowing that it is not going to end well.  

Each and every step we choose to take during this week we call Holy gives us the opportunity to witness anew that even though we walk sometimes in darkness, even though the road is littered in deceit and sorrow and betrayal and denial – even though, it seems as if despair and death might win – it doesn’t!  and God is with us and God gets in and life is transformed and God has the last word!  Will we allow this story to touch our hearts, to challenge our minds, to confront our demons, to follow Jesus no matter how difficult the path becomes? Before you say yes, beware– we are about to be challenged, we are about to encounter some difficult truths and some ugly circumstances .  Because this parade is not about palms and rejoicing  - no this parade, this – this is a parade because we called out “crucify him” – this is a parade that leads to an crucifixion.

         Sung  vs 5          Ride on, ride on, God's love demands.

                                    Justice and peace lie in your hands.

                                   Evil and angel voices rhyme:   

                                   you are the man and this the time.

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[1] David Lose:  In the Meantime – “The Kingdom”, email newsletter – April 12/2014

[2] Swanson: Provoking the Gospel of Matthew Page 113