“SOMETHING, NOTHING EVERYTHING”
Rumc 4/4/10
Easter 2010
The Easter story says the women went to the tomb that day looking for SOMETHING: SOMETHING sad, SOMETHING painful, SOMETHING tragic. They were expecting to find a body tucked away in a sealed and guarded tomb. In fact, they were expecting to complete Jesus’ burial arrangements. Yes, that is what they expected. Just normal routine taking care of the dead.
The leaders of the Jews expected SOMETHING different. They were afraid that “SOMETHING” might happen. Hear the words of Matthew.
The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ’After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”
“Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting a guard.
So, the Jews were looking for SOMETHING, they were afraid of SOMETHING. The chief priests and the Pharisees were afraid that the body might go AWOL and then what a mess they would have because the followers of this teacher would claim he had risen from the dead. The Jewish leaders came to that first Easter expecting SOMETHING- SOMETHING sneaky, and deceptive. SOMETHING that would cause them problems.
We come to Easter today expecting SOMETHING too, don’t we? As I planned worship for this past week it is all designed to point us to SOMETHING; to move us long the road to SOMETHING. To prepare us for SOMETHING. And that SOMETHING is this morning. That SOMETHING is the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. That SOMETHING is the hope that as we celebrate today we will not only celebrate a story but we will celebrate Christ truly and honestly risen in our lives, making us new people in him. I have tried to create a sense that SOMETHING is going to happen, SOMETHING important.
You come expecting SOMETHING too. You expect certain hymns, certain kinds of music, a certain kind of preaching. No one comes to Easter worship expecting that they will hear a sermon on the virgin birth. You come expecting lilies, and hallelujahs and robes and a sermon about Jesus’ resurrection.
The world approaches the resurrection of Jesus expecting SOMETHING too. Some expect to discredit the resurrection and us. They hope that they will be able to disprove the resurrection on historical or scientific grounds. Some expect that they will be able to disprove it on theological and philosophical grounds.
Others approach the resurrection with hopeful skepticism. Skeptical that it happened, but somewhere deep inside hoping that this thing (that may or may not have happened) will provide hope for their lonely lives. They hope that just maybe there is SOMETHING to this. Just maybe there is SOMETHING important going on here and even if there isn’t, just maybe we are the kind of people who really could love and accept and care for them without judging them and without seeking to take advantage of them.
Everyone: the disciples, the leaders of the Jews, Christians - even the non-Christian world comes to Easter and the resurrection expecting SOMETHING.
The truth is Easter is about NOTHING. Now don’t get me wrong. When I say Easter is about NOTHING I mean that in the best sense of the word!
I’m kind of like Oscar Wilde who said, “I love talking about NOTHING. It is the only thing I know anything about.”
At its very core, Easter is about NOTHING!! What did the women find when they got to the tomb. The stone was rolled back and when they looked inside, they found. . . NOTHING! That is the whole point of Easter. They found NOTHING!
I heard about an ad from a Lutheran church that I liked very much. It said, “The tomb is empty … No bones about it.” That sums up it, doesn’t it? Easter is about NOTHING! NOTHING in the tomb; No body, no bones, no stench of death no Jesus, NOTHING to anoint, NOTHING to hide, NOTHING to grieve over, NOTHING to remind them of the pain of Friday; NOTHING, NOTHING, NOTHING!
And isn’t that exactly what the leaders of the Jews were afraid of NOTHING? They were afraid that they would find . . . NOTHING.
Easter is at its very core a celebration of NOTHING! It is a celebration that NOTHING…. NOTHING… NOTHING. NOTHING can separate us from the love of God in our Lord Jesus Christ- Neither life nor death neither angels nor principalities, nor things present nor things to come, neither heights nor depths nor anything else in all of creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Neither betrayal, nor capture, nor denial, nor trial, nor beating, nor whipping, nor spitting on the son of God will ever separate us from God’s love. Neither a cross, nor nails, nor thorns, nor pain, nor suffering . . . not even killing God’s only beloved precious son in the most inhumane way we can imagine . . . NOTHING can keep God from loving us. And to prove it, when we go looking for SOMETHING, what do we find. . . NOTHING! Easter is a celebration of that NOTHING.
Friends it is because of that NOTHING that we have EVERYTHING.
I was reading I Corinthians 15 this week, that famous passage where Paul reasons out loud about the resurrection and the implications if it did not happen. Evidently some believers in Corinth were teaching that Christians would not rise from the dead when Jesus returns to the earth. Paul answers by saying, “That’s foolish because if Christians do not rise from the dead what you are really saying is that Jesus didn’t rise from the dead because those two things go together–his resurrection and ours.”
Then he says it twice: “If Christ has not been raised.” “If Christ has not been raised.” (I Corinthians 15:14,17) THEN
1. Our preaching is vain. (14)
2. We are despicable liars. (15)
3. Our faith is vain. (17)
4. We are still in our sins. (17)
5. there is no eternal life. (18)
6. We are to be pitied more than all men. (19)
This NOTHING is the central fact of our faith. The fact that the women found NOTHING is what guarantees that we have EVERYTHING that is important.
Because of this NOTHING we know that Jesus Christ is who he says he is. That He is the son of God who lived on this earth as one of us, taught, healed and died for each one of us. And was raised so that forgiveness and salvation and eternal life would be available to every one of us. And that ,means EVERYTHING.
Because of this NOTHING we know that God is faithful and powerful and is able to make EVERYTHING out of NOTHING.
Because of this NOTHING, we know that EVERY sin, EVERY fear, EVERY guilt, EVERY trial, EVERY suffering, EVERY trouble, EVERY pain has been conquered by God.
In our society there are two great religious holidays–Christmas and Easter. For most of us Christmas is the bigger and greater season of the year. It’s the time of year when we gather with family and friends to sing carols, decorate the tree and exchange gifts. Christmas is the climax of the whole year. Easter? Well, for most people it’s just another long weekend, another chance to get away for a few days.
Even Christians view Easter as a second-rate holiday! And I understand that because the Christmas story is part romance, part family, part mystery with the wise men, part underdog shepherds. Somehow we’ve gotten our thinking badly mixed up. If Easter had not happened, Christmas would have no meaning. If the tomb is not empty, the cradle makes no difference. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then he really is just a misguided Jewish rabbi with delusions of grandeur. If Easter is not true, then Christmas is only the story of an obscure baby born in an out-of-the-way village in a forgotten land 2000 years ago. It is Easter that gives Christmas its meaning. Let me take that one step further- it is Easter that gives life meaning.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that Jesus Christ truly is uniquely the son of God. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that every sin has been conquered. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that we worship and serve a most loving and gracious God. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that in the end, God always wins- even over death. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that our tombs of doubt have been conquered too. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that our tombs of fear and failure have been conquered too. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that our tombs of shame and guilt have been conquered too. And that means EVERYTHING.
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say that whatever tomb you live in-- wherever your dark places are-- wherever your weak places are. . . Those caves have been conquered too. They have been broken open and found to contain NOTHING. No power, no judgment, no shame, no punishment. And that means EVERYTHING.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say “I know that my redeemer lives” and that means EVERYTHING.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Because the women found NOTHING in the tomb, we can confidently say to the world we “serve a RISEN savior he’s in the world today I know that he is living whatever foes may say” and that means EVERYTHING.
No comments:
Post a Comment