Easter Sunday "The Empty Tomb"

Did you ever see or collect bugs when you were a kid?

Or maybe, u didn’t just get the bug, but also the shells that the bugs left behind.

The cicadas & the cocoons & the cracked & empty birds eggs.

These signs of nature are all beautiful and fascinating to us.

They tell us of mystery & new life. They tell us Of the return of spring & summer….of the power and miracle of transformation & renewal.

We see in the Gospel of John, the divine-human version of the cicada shell.

In John 20, Mary & Peter see only the burial cloth. They see a shroud all neatly piled up and sitting there.

Like the cicada & the snake and the empty cocoon, the grave stands empty.

“He is not here, he has Risen as he said!” proclaims the Angel sitting by the grave.

Except this isn’t just a normal Spring ritual of death & renewal…of transformation & new life. This is a once-in-creation miracle.
This is the very power of God at work in the world….Bringing Death from life.

I like the way author Lindy Black put it:

“As wilderness preceded the Promise land; foolishness precedes wisdom; emptiness precedes fulfillment & suffering precedes joy.

So death precedes resurrection & darkness the light.”

The tomb was just the cicada shell with the neat slit down its back.
The living being that had once been inside of it was gone.

The singing & the love was going on…
Going somewhere else,
Which may be why Peter and the other disciple did not stay very long.

Clearly, Jesus was not there.

He had risen, just like he said.
Somewhere or other I heard of a Sunday School teacher who had justfinished telling her third graders about how Jesus was crucified andplaced in a tomb with a great stone sealing off the only way in or out.Then, wanting to share the excitement of the resurrection, and thesurprise of Easter morning, she asked: "And what do you think were Jesus'first words when he came bursting out of that tomb alive."A hand shot up into the air from the rear of the classroom. It belonged toa most excited little girl. Leaping out of her chair she shouted outexcitedly, "I know, I know, I know.""Good," said the teacher, "Tell us."Extending her arms high in the air she sang out: "TA - DA!"

You think that is what Jesus said to Mary?

No! He said: “Mary” He knew her name.
Then he said… “Be Not Afraid…..”

You see, He had outgrown his tomb & come back to emrace her as the Living Lord.

The risen one had people to see and things to do. His business was among the living, not the dead.

And….Every time he came to his friends …..they became stronger, wiser, kinder, more daring.

Every time he came to them, they became more like him.

That is what a spiritual encounter with the Risen Christ does to us.

Just like the disciples who went from scared & scattered exiles to bold & passionate proclaimers….

So, too, do we get transformed.

Because He Lives, I can face tomorrow. Because He Lives, all fear is gone…….

Our night becomes day. Our despair turns to hope. Our, blindness changes to site!

A guy named Fred R. Anderson says:

“Easter is the eighth day of creation.”

That means & is….
A new Day. A new Order. A new Realm.

The German theologian Jurgen Moltmann says:
"God weeps with us so that we may someday laugh with him."
That is the Good News!!

I end with this story….There was a cartoon showing a man about to be rescued after being ship-wrecked on a tiny deserted island.
The sailor in charge of the rescue team stepped onto the beach and handed the man a stack of newspapers.

"Compliments of the Captain," the sailor said. "

He would like you to glance at the headlines to see if you'd still like to be rescued!"

Sometimes the headlines do scare us. Sometimes we feel that evil is winning,

But then along comes Easter, to remind us that there is no grave deep enough,

no seal imposing enough, no stone heavy enough, no evil strong enough to keep Christ in the grave.

Because He Lives, I can face tomorrow!
Because He Lives, All Fear is gone…..

Brothers & Sisters, go forth from this place knowing that Christ is alive.....and with us!
Now & Always! Amen!