Easter Sermon/April 23, 2000
What a contrast exists between today's service with its joyful hymns, the fragrance and beauty of the flowers, the morning light, the words of life, the strength of the brass, the choir's anthem - and Friday evening when only a fraction of those gathered this morning, gathered in shadows and darkness, with the altar stripped, the lights low, the songs spoke of his sacrifice, of his suffering, of the sin that nailed him to the cross, of his death. On Friday preachers the world over, proclaimed the incredible outpouring of love that not even the most hellish powers of the universe could crush - loving and forgiving to the bitter end - and that is Good News, and we call it Good Friday - but even so, we still left this place in the darkness -- He was still dead -- His love and grace was amazing, yes - but he was still placed in a tightly sealed and secured grave --and we left with the haunting thought that maybe the love he loved with was permanently sealed in that grave forever. So we left in darkness; we left in silence!
That was Friday. Today is Sunday! It's a whole new day! Or is it? Is it really? Is there a substantial difference - other than all of these glorious trimmings that decorate this day? I mean is there a difference? Or is this just Friday masquerading itself? In spite of our singing and celebration here this morning, I think it's easy to get stuck on Friday. We've got so much invested in Friday. If the world we're placing bets, the odds on Sunday bringing resurrection would have so long that only a complete fool would have made a wager. A million, no a billion to one! The smart money would have bet on Friday! The smart money bets on Friday because Friday is the sure bet! We've gotten so used to Friday that's it's hard to conceive that things really could be any different. Now, we are here this morning. That's for sure! But how much of us is here, really? There are many parts of us still stuck back on Friday.
On Friday evening our high school youth presented a wonderful drama that proclaimed the Gospel message - and several times as the drama drew to a conclusion the question was posed, "Is now the end of the story." For so many Friday is the end of the story. I think it's real easy to never emotionally leave Friday, and never really get to the glorious truth of this new day.
You see, we know about Friday, you and I. I believe we know about Friday only too well! We know Friday intimately!
- FRIDAY OCCURS when we quote Murphy's Law and as if it's the ultimate truth of life. You know how it can sometimes be? Friday can be any day! Friday can be everyday!
- IT'S FRIDAY when bad things happen to good people.
- IT'S FRIDAY when the lonely feel they have no one who cares about them.
- IT'S FRIDAY when the depressed think it will never get better.
- IT'S FRIDAY when dreaded diseases don't disappear and new ones seem even worse.
- IT'S FRIDAY when death-beds keep their victims, and we grieve the loss of our greatest loves.
- IT'S FRIDAY when those estranged from lovers wonder if love can ever be known and felt again.
- IT'S FRIDAY when good and evil have a conflict inside of us and we feel shredded apart.
- IT'S FRIDAY when temptation pulls and tugs at us seductively, and we give in to things that are ultimately destructive.
- IT'S FRIDAY when we are overwhelmed with powers and passions that divide us from loved ones, and even ourselves.
- IT'S FRIDAY when fear forces us to imagine that we are ultimately, each of us, finally alone in this universe, and consciousness will inevitably give way to oblivion.
- IT'S FRIDAY when our intellectual sophistication hides a vision of the miraculous, so much so, that we no longer expect great things from God, or from anybody else for that matter.
- IT'S FRIDAY when the cynics sit with their cronies and say, "As things have always been, so they will always be. Nothing or nobody can ever really change."
- Oh yes, we know Friday, we know only to well. Friday comes around for most of us more than once a week!
Just last week, on Wednesday I found out that a friend of mine who is a wonderful pastor, her husband was diagnosed with a virulent form of lung cancer that has spread to his spine. On Thursday, another friend of mine was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer. And just last night I got an email from another pastor friend who said he baptized a baby last evening at an Easter Vigil Service who has less than a month to live stricken with a fatal disease of which the word is 14 letters long that I can't pronounce. Our weeks are full of Fridays that we can scarcely put into words.
Those who surrounded Jesus during his final days knew all about Friday too!
IT WAS FRIDAY when Pontius Pilate thought he had this thing with Jesus resolved, even washed his hands of him!
IT WAS FRIDAY when Barabbas was high-fiving everybody in sight because of the coup he had just pulled off! Scott free, and he a criminal! -- while Jesus, so good, so loving, was sent to the gallows!
IT WAS FRIDAY when the Pharisees laughed and cheered at their success of putting Jesus away; lots of back-slapping, winking at each other and gloating over their "victory."
IT WAS FRIDAY when Peter denied his best friend, his Lord -- swore he never knew this Jesus of Nazareth.
And even though it was Sunday when Mary Magdelene came to the tomb -- it may as well have been Friday, for she too, was still stuck on Friday. She came to pay her respects; she came to grieve at death's door; she came to remember better days. It's no wonder that even when Jesus was standing right in front of her she didn't recognize him! -- of course not! OF COURSE SHE DIDN'T RECOGNIZE HIM! How could she? She was still caught up in Friday's pain and grief! Friday still ruled her life; Friday still set the agenda. She was looking at things through the darkened lenses and the salty tears of Friday. She expected nothing new, so she saw nothing new!
I need to tell you the "Story of the Transformed Chair." It's a true story.
Every Spring at my church in Anchorage we had a church rummage sale. People brought all kinds of stuff to the church and we had this big sale and raised a whole bunch of money for a designated cause. We sorted through our stuff and Marcia gave a number of items, one of which was an old chair, that had been sitting in the garage. It was kind of moldy and musty and had this hideous green upholstery on it. And even though it had some nostalgic value, being her grandma's old chair, she gave it to the church sale.
When she gave that chair a little voice went off in my head, "I hope she doesn't regret giving that chair away," as Marcia was very close to her grandmother. So what I did was, after she gave it to the church sale, I conspired with a couple of ladies who were running the sale. I rescued the chair! I bought it back, and I brought it to members of the church, a couple, who are in the custom furniture manufacturing business. I asked them if they could restore the chair. They said, "Oh yes!" So , I picked out a nice piece of fabric with which to cover it, and left it with them. A few weeks before Christmas they called and said the chair is done. I drove over to the shop to get it. When I got there the owners were busy, so I sat down and waited. After a few minutes they came out of the office and Gina said, "How do you like the chair?" I said, "Chair? What chair?" I had been sitting on it waiting, and didn't even know it was the same chair! It was beautiful! It was transformed! But, the old image of the ugly worn chair was still so vivid in my mind's eye, that I didn't recognize the new transformed chair. I gave the chair to Marcia for Christmas as a surprise. She recognized it instantly, and it brought tears to her eyes and great joy to her heart!
You see that's what our being here is finally all about this morning. Our presence here this morning forces a question. And the question is, WHICH DAY RULES YOUR LIFE? FRIDAY OR SUNDAY? Which day? Which day to you carry with you and invest in and trust in and live by? Which day? Crucifixion Day or Resurrection Day?
God knows that we are going to have our Fridays. We cannot avoid them, no way! Life is broken. Pain, grief, loss, injustice, disease, suffering, depression, death, sin are only too real -- that's for sure. And then Jesus even tells us to take up a cross for his sake! BUT EVEN SO, which day is going to rule your life? Which day is going to set the agenda for your life? That's the question that your presence here this morning raises! Which day?
His resurrection, at first had them running in circles - -confused -- because, you see, they thought that Friday set the agenda! They thought the story had ended on Friday! They didn't know the story continued on! They thought Friday had the final word! They didn't even know there was such a thing as a new kind of day called - - Resurrection Day! They had no idea that this morning was not just another rerun of Friday -- not by a long shot!
You see, up until then, death had always worked -- and worked really well! But this time it only held for barely a day and a half - three days the Bible tells us counting Friday and Sunday morning! A used tomb is not supposed to go back on the open market, it just doesn't ever happen that way! Death is supposed to last longer than this --it's supposed to be permanent... the final solution. It's supposed to WRITE the last depressing chapter... SING the last despairing verse... and SPEAK the very last discouraging word!
But, in the face of all of Friday's harsh realities -- comes this new day -- and what this new day dares us to do is to CHANGE OUR THINKING! It's called the thinking of resurrection faith. It's called the agenda of resurrection faith, and God has set the agenda in the risen Jesus Christ.
And the first thing this faith dares us to do is to trust that death has been DEMOTED from permanent to temporary... and that life has been PROMOTED from tentative to certainty! That's the first thing we celebrate today! God has done it in Jesus. We call it Easter! It's a done deal! It's God's slam dunk in the face of death!
But you see, there's one more thing. And this second thing is a miracle yet to happen And its as great as the miracle of raising Jesus! And it's just this: Can the living come alive? CAN ANY OF US WHO ARE STILL LIVING OUR LIVES BY FRIDAY'S DEATH-DEALING AGENDA REALLY COME ALIVE? Can any of us whose spirits may have died or be dying in one of a million ways, have new life and new hope rekindled within us? Can we really live again before we die? Can we, who are most of the time only half-alive, become fully live?
You see, the Easter promise is not only for
when we die. The Easter Promise is also for today! You can go home from here
today knowing and trusting that God can raise you to new life right away. You
can really begin to live right now, until you die, and then live again!
You can go home today trusting that Christ's Spirit is alive and is
stirring within you, and can raise up new life
right now.
For example:
- Something suggests to you that you can let go of those bitter thoughts, those harsh feelings towards another that have been lingering inside of you; those petty and stubborn attitudes that insist on getting their own way and ruling your consciousness - because you know Friday doesn't have the last word!
- You perhaps recognize the possibility to forgive, to see things and people in a new way, to accept the imperfections in the people around you - because you know Friday doesn't have the last word!
- Someone is down in the dumps, and you come along -- and instead of avoiding or running -- you meet them in their dark, despairing place because you know, you just know that Friday does not have the last word! And your very presence and willingness to be there picks them up, and they begin to feel like somebody special again!
These are just little things, but even so, all of them and so many more is Easter! It's letting Sunday and the risen Christ set the agenda instead of Friday. It's the light of the resurrection poking through the dark clouds of Friday.
To live on Sunday means you don't let the things of your worst Fridays write your story. It may feel like Friday all week long, but, you see, God knows of Sunday and there's a wink in the eye of God! In our everyday deaths of being alone, discouraged, misunderstood, disappointed, exhausted, broken, grieving -- there is this first blush of new life! God can bring new life! Easter is the witness! Easter seals it!
In Christ, God has knocked the wind out of death! In Christ, God has gutted the absolute power of Friday's death- dealing agenda.
Jesus lives! He's the first! We will follow. It's a promise; A holy surprise!