You have been Eastered RUMC 4/20/14

You have been Eastered

RUMC 4/20/14

The Sunday School teacher asked the class about the meaning of Easter, and the hand of one little boy shot up. "I know," he said confidently, "Easter is when we put up a pine tree and decorate it with lights, wrap presents for each other and sing lullabies to Baby Jesus." "No," said the teacher, "You've got Easter confused with Christmas...does anybody else know?"

With that, a little girl's hand shot up. "Easter is when you fill the house with the smell of cooking turkey, watch football all day, and give thanks for all our relatives who come for dinner." "NO," said the teacher, "Someone must understand the meaning of Easter."

Another little boy in the class thought he knew. "Easter is when we decorate the front of the house in American flags, go to a big parade, and shoot off fireworks all night." "No, no, no," cried the exasperated teacher, "Doesn't anyone know?"

 Finally, the quietest kid in the class raises her hand. "Easter is when we remember that Jesus died on a cross for our sins. He was buried in a cave.”  "Yes! That's right," interrupted the relieved teacher, but then the child finished, "And then after a couple of days the rock gets rolled away...Jesus comes out and if he sees his shadow, there'll be six more weeks of winter."

Those children are not the only ones confused about the meaning of Easter. As we sit here celebrating the most Christian of all the holidays many of our friends think that Easter is about new clothes, bunnies and brightly colored eggs. Of course, they are missing the whole point.

However, I think many in the church miss the point of Easter too. Let me suggest to you that if we think of Easter as an historical event we are cutting the legs off of Easter. If we think of Easter as a one-day holiday on the calendar, we have probably sold Easter short of its potential. Easter cannot be contained in one day. It cannot be explained in one sermon. Easter is the pivotal event in history that changed everything between God and people. It is nothing less than the greatest event in human history.

In his Ash Wednesday sermon, Pastor Joel referred to Gerard Manley Hopkins’ writing entitled, "The Wreck of the Deutschland". In which he wrote “Let God Easter in us.” That night I decided that my Easter sermon was going to be about Easter as a verb.  Or Letting God Easter us.

I want to tell you today that if we only use Easter as a Noun we are probably shortchanging both God and ourselves. You may have come here to celebrate Easter the noun, I hope you go home having encountered Easter the verb.  I hope you leave here having been eastered.

You see, to me Easter is not a noun, but a verb, an action word.

Those women at the tomb didn’t see the empty tomb, visit with the risen Christ and walk away as the same women did they. They were different people after they were Eastered.

Peter was just as cowardly as the rest of the disciples on the night Jesus was arrested, caving in as soon as someone got too close and said, “You were with that man weren’t you?” But after his visit to the empty tomb… after his breakfast with the risen Christ on the beach he was a different man. He was bold and courageous. Peter became a great preacher and evangelist. Not even the prospect of losing his own life  on his own cross stopped him from spending his life for Jesus. He was a different person after he was Eastered.

Saul was a Pharisee, a hard core Jew. He followed the law to the letter. He ate slept and lived the law. He spent his days persecuting Christians and stoning people like Stephen. After his encounter with the risen Christ, however, on the road to Damascus, Saul became Paul and was the greatest evangelist in the history of the Christian faith. He is the author of 2/3 of the New Testament. His deepest theological musings are the foundation upon which many of us build our own faith 2000 years later. Paul was an entirely different person after he was Eastered.

People don’t change like that unless something dramatic has happened to them.  They don’t change like that because they hear a story that a man was raised from the grave.  They don’t change like that because they hear one wild story. It is not that easy for people to change like that. Unless they have been Eastered.

“What does it mean to be Eastered?”

·        It means to experience the Risen Lord.

·        It means to have your eyes opened as Mary’s were.

·        It means to be empowered, emboldened, transformed as Peter was.

·        It means to be on fire with the Gospel, as Paul was.

Paul writes about what it means to be Eastered in Romans when he writes about “walking in newness of life,” “being united with him in a resurrection like his,” and “living with Christ.” But Paul also opens the door to show us the process of being Eastered.

He says “ Therefore, we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.”

He writes, “If we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.”

Paul is reminding us that the story doesn’t jump from Palm Sunday to Easter. Jesus didn’t go from riding on the donkey and hearing the crowds shout Hosanna to the resurrection on the First day of the week without going through the dark valley of crucifixion and death.

There is no resurrection without a crucifixion.

There is no Easter without Good Friday.

Celebrating Easter might be decorating eggs, coming to church, and going home. But being Eastered starts in the deepest darkest places of our existence. Being Eastered starts with Jesus meeting us in the hardest, saddest, darkest, places of our existence.

·        Earlier this week, an old couple received a phone call from their son who lives far away. The son said he was sorry, but he wouldn’t be able to come for a visit over the holidays after all. "The grandkids say hello." They assured him that they understood, but when they hung up the phone, they didn’t dare look at each other.

·        Earlier this week, a woman was called into her supervisor’s office to hear that times are hard for the company and they had to let her go. "So sorry.." She cleaned out her desk, packed away her hopes for getting ahead, and wondered what she would tell her kids.

·        Earlier this week, someone received terrible news from a physician. And they are sitting here wondering what it means to live with cancer.

·        Earlier this week someone else heard the words, "I don't love you anymore." And their lives seemed to fall apart.

·        Maybe you come today with your heart broken over the death of a loved one.

·        Maybe you come fighting an addiction.

·        Maybe you come worried about all the details of life like food and medicine.

·        Maybe you come hoping that someone will acknowledge you, someone will love you.

·        Maybe you come fighting the memories of past abuse.

·        Maybe it is all you can do to get out of bed in the morning and face another day with your mental illness.

Where are the darkest places of your life? Everyone has a dark place.

Where are the darkest places of your life.

·        If you want to be Eastered that is where you start.

·        If you want to be Eastered you don’t start with lilies and the proclamation that he is risen.

·        If you want to be Eastered you start in the darkest, scariest, hardest, loneliest, most desperate places of life.

No one is ever ready to encounter Easter until he or she has spent time in the dark place where hope cannot be seen. Easter is the last thing we are expecting in those places, but that is exactly where the risen Christ meets us. In those darkest, scariest, hardest, loneliest most desperate places is exactly where Jesus is waiting for us holding out his hand saying , come be Eastered with me.

Don’t’ think Jesus hasn’t been there before.

·        He is the one who cried from the cross, “my God, my God, why have you forsaken me.”

·        Jesus knew what it meant to walk in life’s darkest places.

·        Jesus knew very well what it meant to walk in the scariest places of human existence.

·        Jesus knew exactly what it feels like in the hardest, most lonely, most desperate places of life.

Because he has been there. That is exactly why when he extends his hand you can trust him. That is why when he says, “come be Eastered with me.” you can trust him.

 That is why when Jesus says

·        I can roll the stone of your pain away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your despair away, You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your darkness away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your hopelessness away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your loneliness away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your depression away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your rejection away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your grief away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your addiction away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your worry away. You can believe him.

·        I can roll the stone of your memories away. You can believe him.

That is why when he says I will go before you, you can trust him. Trust him and you will be Eastered.

No matter what darkness entombs your heart this morning, no matter what now constricts your life or being let Jesus ROLL THAT ROCK AWAY! Just roll it away! Trust that Easter is true. Trust that life (in spite of the many dangers and sorrows which always accompany it) remains a promise and a possibility. You are free this day – every day – in Jesus Christ You have been Eastered! Do you feel it? Reach out, take Jesus’ hand, and let him Easter you right out of the dark hopelessness of the tomb in which you have been living. Let Jesus Easter you today.

Now, when you have been Eastered, go to Easter someone else.

Go to your neighbors and your friends who live in darkness.

·        The darkness of addiction,

·         the darkness of anger,

·        the darkness of not being loved,

·        the darkness of mistrust,

·        the darkness of seeing no future,

 they all have their darkness just like we all have ours. Go to them and (No, you can’t roll their stone away,) but you can point them to the one who can! You can point them to Jesus who is Easter embodied. You can bring to them the possibility of being Eastered.

A first year student in seminary was told by the dean that he should plan to preach the sermon in chapel the following day. He had never preached a sermon before, he was nervous and afraid, and he stayed up all night, but in the morning, he didn’t have a sermon. He stood in the pulpit, looked out at his classmates and said “Do you know what I am going to say?” All of them shook their heads “no” and he said “Neither do I. The service has ended. Go in peace.”

The dean was not happy. “I’ll give you another chance tomorrow, and you had better have a sermon.” Again he stayed up all night; and again he couldn’t come up with a sermon. Next morning, he stood in the pulpit and asked “Do you know what I am going to say?” The students all nodded their heads “yes.” “Then there is no reason to tell you” he said. “The service has ended. Go in peace.”

Now the dean was angry. “I’ll give you one more chance; if you don’t have a sermon tomorrow, you will be asked to leave the seminary.” Again, no sermon came. He stood in the pulpit the next day and asked “Do you know what I am going to say?” Half of the students nodded “yes” and the other half shook their heads “no.” The student preacher then announced “Those who know, tell those who don’t know. The service has ended. Go in peace.”

The seminary dean walked over to the student, put his arm over the student’s shoulders, and said “Those who know, tell those who don’t know. Today, the gospel has been proclaimed.”

Those who have been Eastered go to tell those who have not been Eastered, and the power of Easter will bloom in our hearts, in our homes, in our community and our world.

I tell you, that you have been Eastered. Go now and Easter someone.