“The First of Many” (Easter)

Scripture: John 20:1-18

We know so little about life and death. We live, certainly, but the intricacies and the interactions in life are still a great mystery. We breathe, we feel our heart beat, we experience some of the body’s energy and workings, but most of it happens without our ever knowing. And as life comes close to its end, and we know that death is approaching, the mystery grows even greater. And this unknown can be frightening, to say the least.

Years ago, our youngest son asked me what this life is all about. It caught me off balance, and I told him something like “It’s about walking with the Lord, and discovering his plan for our lives.” That wasn’t exactly what he was looking for, and definitely wasn’t as profound as I had hoped, but in retrospect, it was probably the best answer that I could have given. And I’m glad that he didn’t ask me about death, because I still haven’t got a clue about that one.

That first Easter morning was just as full of confusion and mystery as that day with Nate. The difference, though, was that the disciples were beginning with their confusion over Jesus’ death, and didn’t have a clue that Life was going to complicate their misunderstanding even further.

And the Lord’s closest followers were going through this same struggle on that “third day”.

Read John 20:1-9

In Mathew’s gospel (Matthew 27:62-66), we read that the Jewish leadership asked Pilate to secure the tomb so that his followers couldn’t steal his body. The stone that closed the entrance to the tomb had been sealed, and a Roman guard had been posted to keep everyone away.

As Mary made her way to the tomb to complete the burial ritual, her only thought, and fear, was of how she was going to get inside to do her work. Imagine her dismay when she discovered that the guards were gone, the tomb was no longer sealed, the large stone had been moved, and Jesus’ body was gone! Memory of Jesus words had completely left her mind – that after he had been killed, he would come back to life on the third day of death (Matthew 16:21).

Resurrection was the last thing on the believers’ minds, so if the Lord’s body was gone, as improbable as it was, it must be due to theft. After Mary delivered her announcement to the men, Peter, John, and she returned to try to figure out a reason for the mystery. But on that day, as confusing as their Lord’s death had been, life was even more perplexing.

These three people had been given very explicit positions in the gospel narrative. Peter is known for his expression of faith, as well as his failure and denial in faith; John is known more for his relationship and trust, the love and intimacy, that he shows in Christ; and Mary as the first evangelist and witness to Christ’s resurrection. Each was well suited to carry out their part, especially Mary.

And I expect that there is some of each of them in all of us, including their confusion and doubt.

Read John 20:10-14

For some unknown reason, as the others returned to their safe place, Mary stayed behind. Perhaps it was to mourn, perhaps it was to be close to the last place they had seen Jesus, perhaps she just didn’t know what to do next! Without thinking, she happened to glance inside the now empty tomb, and it was no longer vacant – it was filled with two glorious angels, who, it seems, had a message for her.

Now I don’t know about you, but if I had just gone through all that she had, I doubt that I would still be standing! They ask about her tears, she responds that her Lord’s body is missing, but this gospel never records the message that the heavenly messengers have for her. But the other three gospels do (Matthew 28:5-7; Mark 16:6-7; Luke 24:5-8) – that she is to tell the others that Jesus is risen, and will meet them all in Galilee. John, however, chooses to use her encounter with the “Gardener” as the pronouncement of his resurrection.

As the “gardener” and Mary begin their conversation, it is quite evident that Mary is still missing the message that God is sending to her – that this life is defined by neither our birth nor our death, but rather by what comes from our faith in Christ.

But faith tends to be a progressive experience for us, just as it was for this woman. First, she comes seeking the truth of Christ, and even though she witnesses the unrecognized truth of all that she had learned, it had all been forgotten. She shares her misgivings and concerns with others, but because of their own issues, they weren’t much help. But then, the Lord sent a messenger to her – one who knows the truth, one who could solve her dilemma with a simple sentence.
It’s not that people don’t want to believe. It’s not that they haven’t the capacity – the intellect - to believe. It’s just that the evidence, the testimony that is routinely offered by believers, doesn’t register in the person’s life. So what are we to do about sharing the message of Jesus Christ with others?
Second, we have to pray, that we are the one who the Spirit wishes to work through.
Third, we have to seek the Spirit’s help to become someone who can be trusted. If we don’t make sense, if our life isn’t reflecting the words that we speak, why should anyone believe us about Jesus?
Fourth, we have to offer a message that registers in the life of the one we witness to. Everyone has their own barriers to faith, everyone hears and reacts to faith in different ways, and everyone has a different trigger for their “A-ha!” moment in Christ.

It wasn’t the empty tomb that convinced Mary that Jesus was risen. It wasn’t the men who had spent so much time listening to Jesus teach who could convince her. It wasn’t even the two angels who came to her of the truth of that day.. It would be far simpler than that.

Read John 20:15-18

It wasn’t even the presence of Jesus, in the form of a stranger, who showed her the way. It was when she heard her name spoken that she finally knew.
John 10:3-4 tell us that it is the Lord’s “voice” that convinces us of his truth. For Mary, it wasn’t the physical evidence that changed her life, it wasn’t some deep theological explanation that convinced her of the resurrection, it wasn’t even some miraculous and unexplainable event that opened her eyes to the Truth before her. It was the calling of her name.

How many times had Jesus spoken her name since casting out those seven demons (Luke 8:1-2)? How many times had Jesus revealed something within her that changed her life? She knew his voice, and she knew that she could trust that voice to speak truth. But is it always our name that turns our life around?

For Cleopas and his traveling companion, it was when Jesus broke the evening’s bread, just as he did at the Passover Seder (Luke 24:13-35). For Thomas, it was the offer of the exact sign that he asked for that led the disciple to proclaim “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:26-29) For the fishermen, it was the excessive gift of exactly what they were unable to gain for themselves that allowed them to see the Lord clearly (John 21:1-14). And for me, after years of struggling to understand what it was the Lord wanted from me, it was the simple, but unexpected words “Trust me.”

What is it that opens us to hear the Lord’s call on our lives? For those believers, it was Jesus’ intervention in the middle of what they were doing that showed them the truth of Christ. For me, it was the prayers of three men, who were sent to me in my “darkness”, that enabled the Light of Christ to awaken me to his truth. Each of us has some need that must be exposed in our life, but only the Spirit knows what that may be. And the problem for each of us is that we never quit trying to be that awakening for others, when the Spirit may be ready to work through someone else.

Some plant, some water, some will harvest, but we all have a purpose in the Lord’s plan of salvation. Mary was the first to share the resurrection truth, and if she had been the last, the Church would never have been. If the disciples had been content to remain in Jerusalem, if they had refused to let the message of Jesus Christ be spread throughout the world, the Church would never have been. If Saul had chosen to remain committed to the Law of Moses instead of to the Truth of Christ, the Church would never have been. And if we choose to be satisfied in the comfort of our own salvation, and never take the risk to let the Holy Spirit work within and through us, the Church will never survive the next generation.

Mary would be the first evangelist among many. Are we willing to let it end with her? Or with the one who shared Jesus with us?
Or are we willing to be the first of many to come? Open the miracle of Easter, the Hope of Christ, the life that comes by faith, not by our high sounding words or by trying to prove just how wonderful and strong our faith is. Instead, we need to let our example of love and grace toward others be the stimulus, and when we do, watch the Spirit go to work, and marvel at what can come from it.

May the Spirit of the Risen Christ take the lead in your life today, and may each of us be the first of many more.