His is Risen……..Praise be to God!
Fear is a powerful emotion; fear can make a person run, or it can turn a person to face danger, or it can freeze a person in his or her tracks. The Roman soldiers who were standing guard at Jesus’ tomb had made it through the worst part of the night; the light of day was beginning to chase away the darkness. They knew that there was much less, a possibility of a sneak attack, when it was light; still they were not ready to let down their guard. Then there were their superstitions that often ran ramped through their minds; they were not as powerful in the light of day. But this particular morning, two nights into their watch, after a long night of standing guard over this controversial religious leader’s grave, the soldiers on guard, were beginning, at least a little, to relax, waiting for their replacements to relieve them of their post, looking forward to going back to the barracks and getting some needed sleep. And then, and then the unexpected happened, not an attack, something totally inexplicable, the earth seemed to move beneath them (an earthquake), the tomb opened as the large stone rolled away and something like a person descended from the skies and sat down upon the stone that had once locked the tomb that held this religious guy, Jesus in his grave. These were soldiers; they had faced death in battle and were not prone to fear, but that morning fear took them over, they could not move or even yell out for help; their superstitions were all coming to life; frozen by fear all they could do was sit and watch and listen. And, they saw and heard all that went on. New fears crept into their minds, had they been involved in a killing of a being connected to a god; what were they going to say to their superiors; nothing that they were seeing and hearing would their superiors believe; what would be their punishment for failing to keep the tomb secure?
The sun was now rising; it was a beautiful morning, but not for these soldiers. Unable to move they simply continued to watch as two women approached the tomb; the women looked to be carrying spices and ointments, probably to prepare the body properly for its burial. The women seemed to look up at the being sitting upon the stone; they also knew fear and the look of terror showed in their eyes, but for them it didn’t last; the soldiers heard as “the being” comforted the women; and still the soldiers could not move as much as a finger. Fear is a powerful thing. The women, they were not so sad as they first were; the being told them something like this Jesus guy was raised from the dead. The women left, looking like they were on a mission; one of them left behind the stuff she was carrying. Only after they had been long gone and after “that being” no longer sat on the stone, were the soldiers released of their fear. The women were now on a mission; the women, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, were sent by the angel (that was “the being” seen by the soldiers) to call the disciples together and to have them go to Galilee to meet Jesus at the place he had told them before all the events of Good Friday took place. But the women would not go to the disciples immediately as they were stopped by Jesus himself. There is a fear that helps you to let go of all grief and worry, a fear that intensifies love, and so it was that the two Mary’s, they threw themselves to the ground at Jesus’ feet worshipping Jesus and praising God. Fear, the fear of God, is nothing like the fear the soldiers experienced, the fear of God accepts the wonder and power of God, but also finds joy and love in the relationship that can grow with God, with Jesus.
I think of the fear overshadowing our Easter celebrations today; it makes me and I would guess you also, do things we never did before; I know for myself that I now use my hand sanitizer every time I get in and out of my car; I started taking my temperature every morning before I get my shower; I don’t go many places; I’m not visiting our members for fear I might carry that virus to them on my hands or clothes and get them sick; I don’t even visit my kids and grandkids. This kind of fear is the kind that psychologists describe as a good fear; the kind of fear that helps people with self-preservation. We stay home and wash our hands and so on, because we know that it will help us stay healthy and virus free and keep us from getting others sick. I pray though, for each of us, for each of you that you will enjoy the kind of fear experienced by Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, by the disciples later and by the 500 others stated in the Bible as having been given the joy of seeing Jesus, the resurrected Jesus, face to face. We celebrate the resurrection in joy with this hope; this morning we celebrate it looking out to the East, watching as the sun rises before us, thinking of those witnesses who experienced the resurrected Jesus first hand, who have all gone before us, Mary and the disciples and many more who told of the resurrection and we (maybe more than them) rely upon the gift of faith that is given us by the Holy Spirit, so that we may fear (in a good way) and believe in Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
Look out upon the sunrise and remember, that sunrise 2000 plus years ago, when the soldiers were frozen in fear, and Jesus was raised from the dead and the two Marys’ had their hearts, that had been broken, mended and their joy restored. The Temple authorities driven by their fears, could not keep Jesus in the grave; the Romans who feared an uprising if they did not execute Jesus, could not keep Jesus in his grave; all the forces of the devil, afraid of Jesus’ gifts of forgiveness and mercy and love, no matter how hard they tried, could not keep Jesus in his grave; we, now, must not allow ourselves to put away the gifts of the resurrection by letting our fears of viruses and terrorists and crime and whatever else we might fear, put Jesus back in his grave by keeping us from sharing the story of the resurrection and the joy of the love of Jesus with people near and far. Celebrate Easter in the best way that you can, even if you are alone in your homes. Shout out for all to hear, wherever you are, “Jesus Christ is risen today! Alleluia!”