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Easter Sunday

John 20:1-18

Rev. Marlaena Cochran

As mentioned, my name is Marlena, and I am a minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church. I've had the great privilege of being here for almost a year now, maybe once a month or so, as you are in your season of transition. And I also am grateful to be here amidst all the blooming and flourishing things around us, and so my spring allergies are also in full bloom. So if my voice sounds a little bit different to you this morning, or if I pause to take a drink of hot tea, this would be the reason why. But I'm very grateful for all the beautiful, blooming things that are around this day.

 So as we come to our Scripture for this morning, let us say our Prayer for Illumination.

And as we say this, I am reminded that for many of us, the Easter story is familiar. It is something we have heard over our years in the church and of following Jesus. And so my prayer today is that as we come to this text, we may hear something fresh and new for us this day. Because we are different people each year, and God is doing a new work in us each and every day. So I do pray for fresh eyes and ears as we come to God's work

Divine Redeemer, bearer of life, open us to the wisdom of your word today, and enlighten us with your truth. Liberate us from all that distracts us and turns us from your path. Guide us and ground us in Christ's everlasting hope. Amen.

 So Christ has risen. He is risen indeed. This was a mantra of the early church many times, and when a leader from the front would say, Christ is risen, the people would say, He is risen indeed. So Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Amen.

 So this Easter morning, I'm going to invite us to pause for a moment. Christ is risen.

What does this mean for us? What stirs in our hearts as we say these words? I've been reflecting this week on the final stanza of a blessing, a blessing which is included in your bulletin. And the final stanza is this. All you need to remember is how it sounded when you stood in the place of death and heard the living call your name. That's all you need to remember is how it sounded when you stood in the place of death and heard the living call your name. And I've been thinking about that as I have been reflecting over the events of this Holy Week, from Palm Sunday to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. I've been thinking about this in regards to our personal journeys through the season of Lent.  These seven weeks of naming and noticing. Naming and noticing our sin and all the ways that we fall short of who God dreams for us to be. And amidst that, hearing the invitation to return towards God.

And I've also been thinking about this just as I look over my life recently, the last several months or year, both individually and communally. Christ is risen and all we need to remember is how it sounded when we stood in the place of death and heard the living call our name. So, I invite you to hold those words as we come to our scripture this morning, which can be found in John chapter 20.

And we'll first read verses 1 through 10.

 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. So she reminded 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. So Peter and the other disciples started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there, but did not go in.

Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally, the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. And he saw and believed. They still did not understand from scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead. And then the disciples went back to where they were standing. The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

So, it was on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, while it was still dark outside, and Mary Magdalene went to the tomb. Easter starts in the shadows. Easter starts in the darkness. Resurrection begins when it's often difficult for us to perceive what is happening. And Mary Magdalene, she is a follower of Jesus, possibly healed by Jesus. And she is in a group of women who provided for Jesus' ministry throughout the last three years of his life. Mary Magdalene was also a witness to the crucifixion and to the burial of Jesus. And when the other disciples are fleeing for all kinds of reasons, she remains by his side. Through his suffering, his death, and his burial.

It actually reminds me of the spiritual that we often sing on Good Friday. The spiritual that says, Were you there? Were you there when they crucified our Lord? Were you there when they nailed him to the tree? Were you there when they pierced him in the side? And were you there when the sun refused to shine? And were you there when they laid him in the tree? And we sing that song and we are invited to ask when we have been there. And Mary was there. She bears witness to all of these things. So she is a model of steadfast courage and love for us. And so my first question for you this morning is what is your source of courage, strength, and perseverance? What helps you to be there amidst all the seasons and situations and circumstances of life? So Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb.

And we can only imagine her grief as she walks there. Jesus is dead. And I think often we need to pause more in this reality.

We need to pause more on Holy Saturday. This day between Good Friday and Easter. And be with the disciples as they wrestle with this. That Jesus is dead. And all the thoughts and feelings that they may have during that day. So why did Mary go to the tomb? Maybe she was there to finish preparing Jesus' body for burial. And maybe she was there just so that she can continue to be near to Jesus as possibly as she can be. And so imagine how she felt when she came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed. And she doesn't know what to do with this so she runs to Peter and John exclaiming, they have taken the Lord and we do not know where they have put him.

 And her words tell us something about what she believes has happened to Jesus' body at that moment. She doesn't know where Jesus is. And imagine all the possibilities that might have gone through her mind. And her feelings of helplessness and despair. And so Peter and John run to the tomb and indeed they find it empty. And they see the linen cloths folded up.

Where Jesus once laid. And then John doesn't tell us much more. He just says, then the disciples went back to where they were staying.

But Mary, Mary stays behind. And she stays behind weeping beside the tomb. And I wonder if we have ever been in a situation where we have believed that we have reached the limit of what we can take. That we have reached the limit of our sorrow and our suffering. And if so, then all we need to remember is how it sounded when we stood in the place of death and heard the living call our name.

 And so our Scripture continues verses 11 through 18.

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. And as she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white seated where Jesus' body had been. One at the head and the other at the foot. 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. And at this she turned around and saw Jesus standing there. But she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for? And 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. And then Jesus said to her, Mary. And she turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, Ramona, which means teacher. And Jesus said, do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the father. Go instead to tell my brothers and tell them I am ascending to my father and your father, to my God and your God. Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news. I have seen the Lord. And she told them that he had said these things to her. The word of the Lord.

So as Mary is weeping by the tomb, she makes a move and she decides to look into the tomb. And she sees two angels, not just the burial cloths that Peter and John saw, but two angels. And they ask her, woman, why are you crying? And I don't think their question is critical. I think it's a pastoral and compassionate question. For the best thing that we can do with a grieving person is to kind of enter his or her space with heart. Which is exactly what these two angels do. And I think it's also interesting that the angels don't seem to startle Mary or overwhelm her. Often in the scriptures when people encounter an angel, the first thing they say is, do not fear. For they can see the reaction of the people in front of them.

But they don't say this to Mary. And so Mary responds to them very singularly focused. And she essentially says, I don't know where Jesus is.

And then Mary turns around. And she sees Jesus, who asks her the same pastoral and compassionate question. Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for? And again she essentially says, I don't know where Jesus is.And I think we can understand baby Mary here. Her tears were swollen eyes and heart. It's the early morning hour and it's a shaded garden. And then the fact that one does not expect to be talking to a resurrected person. And so she doesn't see what is literally right in front of her. And then Jesus says her name.

And then she turns around and she sees the risen Jesus. Something about hearing her name opens her eyes. And she can see.

So Mary Magdalene is the first person ever to experience the personal presence of the risen Jesus. And again the line from the spiritual. Were you there when he rose up from the dead? And I wonder if we can resonate with Mary here a little bit.

Times when we are grieving or maybe feel at a loss. In times when we can't see what is right in front of us. And then there is a moment when we hear our name. The voice of the living. And it opens our eyes to see differently. And I think in this moment that Jesus permits Mary to give him a hug. To embrace him in some kind of way. To prove that he is real. Jesus will do this later on in the chapter with Thomas. As he invites him to touch his hands and his side. And then the risen Jesus sends Mary on a mission. He sends her to tell the others that he is risen. Which is why Mary is often called the apostle to the apostles. And this mission reminds us that the Christian faith is not just about Jesus and me. I don't know about you but sometimes in my life that's all that I want. s it for me to be about Jesus and me. But the Christian faith is about Jesus and his mission. Is about Jesus and other people.

And sharing our experiences and sharing our life of faith with other people. So John does not give us a description of how the disciples reacted to Mary's announcement. But later in the chapter if you keep reading the disciples will see Jesus. With their own eyes. And they will hear him. And they will hear his voice.

And so all we need to remember is how it sounded when we stood in the place of death. And heard the living call our name. So this morning on this Easter I'd like to ask you a pastoral and compassionate question. How are you doing this Easter morning? How have you heard the risen Jesus call your name? And how are you at feeling hope, peace and joy? For this is a joyous day. If I'm honest with you feeling joy is rather difficult for me. I've learned this in my life through reflection and talking with others. Because feeling joy requires hope. And I will confess that there are many times when I feel anxiety rather than hope. I tend to catastrophize. I tend to plan for the worst. I tend to borrow problems from the future. And in my journey over these last several years I've been greatly encouraged by a book called, “Prayer in the Nights by Tish Harrison Warren. Where she takes the Anglican college prayer phrase by phrase. And unpacks it for us and reflects upon it for us.

And the phrase that she reflects on that's been very meaningful to me is the phrase shield the joyous. And she wrote joy takes courage. Our vulnerability is plainly on display in suffering and grief. But we also taste it simply by knowing that we live in a fallen world where we often cannot see around the bend. And so I trick myself into believing that if I don't take up joy or celebration. That maybe, just maybe it won't hurt so much when grief rises like the tide. I hedge my bets and wait for the other shoe to drop. And I protect myself from pain by avoiding the wonder and beauty around me. I try to shield myself from disappointment by not embracing joy. And so to feel joy, to feel hope is to borrow grace. And to know that God will be there whatever lies ahead. And so Easter Sunday invites us to embrace joy.

To steepen it. To feel it. To know that God is with us. No matter what life may be all around us. And it reminds me of a hymn we sing on Easter. Or an old gospel song.

Because he lives, I can face tomorrow. So my invitation for all of us this Easter Sunday is to feel joy. And then how do we respond when we hear the living call our name? Have you ever heard Jesus call your name? And what did that feel like? I was sharing some of this with some friends this week as we were reflecting on this Scripture.

And my friends, one of my friends is 82 and she's a very wise woman of faith. And she shared with me one of her favorite Scriptures. Which I think speaks to this as well as to our journey of feeling joy. The Scripture comes from Romans 15. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him. So that you may overflow with hope.