Christ is Risen!
Before I begin this morning, there's a little tradition that goes with Easter Sunday called the Easter Acclamation, or the Paschal greeting. Basically one person says'Christ is Risen,' and then the response is,'He is Risen indeed!' Given some of us might be a bit tired, especially if you were at the dinner on Thursday night, and back on Friday morning, or if you've spent the weekend indulging in Easter eggs, I thought we'd make today a bit interactive. So throughout the sermon, at various points I'm going to say'Christ is Risen' and when I do I want you to interrupt with the response,'He is risen indeed!'
Growing up, one of the books I enjoyed was the Guinness World Records. It's full of amazing facts and figures. Not just the fastest time for the 100m sprint, but useful facts like the largest chocolate Easter egg weighed 7.2 tonnes. As amazing or weird as these things are, to get in the Guinness Book, they had to be measurable, they had to be verifiable. No matter how fantastical they seem, they're still facts, reliable and trustworthy. When I worked in a bookstore I discovered the cousin, or rival to the Guinness World Records, a book called Ripley's Believe it or Not. These books are full of weirder, more unbelievable things, more the stuff of urban legend. There's no hint that they're verified in the same way as the World Records are, in fact the more unbelievable the better! I wonder which book you'd place the news that Christ is Risen? (He is risen indeed!) How did the disciples classify this news? More importantly how did they respond, how should we respond?
As we start John 20, we see Mary heading out to the tomb where Jesus' body was laid after it was taken down from the cross on Friday. Because of the Sabbath she, and the other disciples, hadn't had a chance to finish preparing Jesus' body for burial. They didn't have the opportunity to properly mourn or grieve. Mary can't even wait for the day to start properly, she heads out while it's still dark. She doesn't yet understand what's happened, her mind is dark to the reality of what took place on the Cross, and what was about to take place.
Although it's dark, even before she gets to the tomb, Mary can see that the giant stone that covered the entrance has been rolled away. Straight away her mind jumps to the worse case scenario. Someone's taken his body! At this point in time, that's more believable to her than anything else. She doesn't yet believe that Christ has risen. (He is Risen indeed!) What can she do? Mary runs straight back to Peter and John and tells them what's she's seen and what she believes,'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.'
This leads to an epic footrace between the two disciples. They can't believe what Mary's told them so they burst out racing to see it for themselves. If you've ever had a race with kids, you'll know that sometimes you might think you've won, but then they go a few steps past you and claim that in fact they're the winner! That's what happens here. John's the younger of the two and he beats Peter to the grave. But whether out of respect, or fear, he just peers in from the entrance. But then Peter arrives and he doesn't hold back. He rushes past and so he becomes the first to enter the empty tomb. Emboldened, John also stoops down and enters in. Inside they don't just see the grave clothes, but also the cloth that had been placed on Jesus head, lying folded up and placed neatly to the side. John tells us that when he saw that, he believed. But what did he believe? Not that grave robbers had been in and taken Jesus' body. If that were the case the linens and spices, the things that were actually worth money are left behind. (It's like when you watch a cop show and they discover a victim has their wallet and jewellery intact, and instantly assume it's not a mugging). And John doesn't believe, that the authorities had stolen the body, because they wouldn't have taken the time to unwrap it at the grave.
No, John believes that Christ is Risen! (He is risen indeed). He saw the evidence with his own eyes and he believed. Though as he writes the gospel he's honest and humble enough to admit that at the time he didn't yet understand this from the Scriptures. He's admitting that even without seeing it the empty tomb for himself, there's enough sufficient evidence in the Bible, in the OT, to make a case for the resurrection. He might've been thinking of passages like this one from Psalm 16:
9Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10because you will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
11You have made known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
With their nascent belief in the resurrection, Peter and John head home, still perhaps pondering the implications of what they'd seen, still trying to reconcile it with their view of the world.
After they leave Mary returns to the tomb. She's already been there once that morning, so she probably wasn't up to running with the disciples! What's more she's overcome with grief. She's been crying the whole way and she stands outside the grave weeping and mourning. But this time she peers into the tomb from the entrance. But unlike Peter and John she doesn't see the grave clothes. Instead she sees something more incredible, two angels sitting where the body should've been. The angels can't believe what Mary's doing. '?Woman, why are you weeping?' they ask. From their perspective this isn't a time for mourning but for rejoicing! Christ is risen! (He is risen indeed!) But Mary's too confused to process any of this. Instead she merely repeats what she said to the disciples,'They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.' As soon as she finishes speaking her question is answered. Not by the angels, but by Jesus appearing next to her. Whether it's because her eyes are still full of tears, whether it's because the sun is coming up and blinding her, or whether Jesus' appearance has changed in some way, Mary doesn't recognise him yet. Then Jesus asks her the same question the angels did,'Woman, why are you crying?' and he adds another,'Whom are you looking for?' Are you really looking for a dead body, when you should be looking for a risen Lord? What kind of Messiah are you looking for? What do you believe Mary? It's clear Mary still believes that someone has taken Jesus' body away, so she asks him '? Was it you? Where is he? What have you done with his body? Can you imagine Jesus' expression? His confusion at her unbelief?
The great thing is that we see Jesus dealing with her gently and kindly. He doesn't chastise her, but reveals himself in the gentlest and most intimate of ways. He simply says her name,'Mary,' and immediately she recognises him. Immediately her tears turn from sorrow to joy, as she realises that Christ is not dead, but he has risen. The good shepherd knows his sheep and he calls them by name, and they recognise his voice. Mary cries out in response,'Rabboni, my dear Teacher' and she grabs hold of him. If you've ever thought you'd lost someone, you know the feeling. You want to grab them and hold on and not let go.
But Mary must let go. Now's the time for joy and sharing the good news. Jesus has an important job for Mary to do. She must go and tell the other disciples what she's seen, and that Christ is'ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' (v17). Do you see the great news here? It's not just that Jesus is alive, but that because of his death and resurrection our sins have been forgiven, and we can be united with God! We're brought into God's family, made part of his Kingdom. We truly can be brothers and sisters in Christ because of his death on the Cross and his resurrection and ascension. Because of this personal encounter with the risen Jesus Mary believes. She's seen him with her own eyes, now she believes. So Mary rushes off to tell the other disciples that Christ is Risen! (He is risen indeed!)
Despite the news of the empty tomb from Peter and John, despite this even greater news from Mary, the disciples still seem to be caught up in disbelief. They're in shock and wonder, still trying to piece things together later that night. They've locked themselves away, perhaps in the same room that they shared the Passover with Jesus on Friday, when all of a sudden he appears! A locked door is no more of a challenge for him than the grave clothes were! Jesus appears in their midst and says,'Shalom '? peace be with you.' This is more than just a word of reassurance, a'don't panic guys it's just me.' He brings them the peace he promised to give, the peace of reconciliation with God! To prove it really is him, Jesus shows them his hands and his side. They can see without a doubt that he was the one who was crucified, that their King lives! And just as he promised their grief would turn to joy, their anguish and despair is swallowed up by astonishment and delight! They too now believe that Christ is Risen! (He is Risen indeed!).
Actually, one of them doesn't believe. That's Thomas. For whatever reason he wasn't with the other disciples that night. So when they tell him,'We have seen the Lord,' he doesn't believe. He wants to see it for himself. He needs to see in order to believe. It's easy to be critical of Thomas for this, but we need to remember that the other's hadn't believed the testimony of Peter, John & Mary, and that all Thomas is wanting is to see the same things they did! The next Sunday he gets his chance. Again Jesus appears to them, but this time he turns to Thomas and shows that he knows exactly what he'd said. He proffers his hands and his side to Thomas and says,'here you go, touch them if you want.' In a way we should be grateful that Thomas was so sceptical, as we might've missed the greatest response to the news that Christ is Risen (He is risen indeed!) That's Thomas' declaration,'My Lord and My God!' It's not just faith that Jesus has risen, but belief in the deeper revelation that Jesus is God! And we would've missed Jesus blessing on us,'Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.' It's a blessing for us. We can no longer see Jesus in the same way, physically present among us. But that's not to say we can't believe. We've ample evidence to do so!
We've got the testimony of those like John, who was an eyewitness to these events, who saw the signs and wonders that Jesus did, who saw the risen Lord. And we don't just have John's word for it. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:
3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. (1 Cor. 15:3-8)
Along with their testimony, we've got the witness of the Scriptures. Remember John hinted back in verse 9 that there was ample promise in them to understand that Christ would die and rise again.
But what if that's not enough? What if you want more? To see him for yourself, before you'll believe? We might not be able to see Jesus physically anymore. But on the night before he died, Jesus promised that after his ascension he would send the Holy Spirit. It's a promise he reminds the disciples of in verse 22. And he promised that the Spirit would guide us into all truth, speaking the words of Christ to us, revealing the Father and the Son to us. We can see Christ now through faith and through the work of the Holy Spirit revealing him to us as we read his word. We can see Jesus as the Holy Spirit reveals him in the lives of others, as we see lives transformed by the gospel. We can see Christ in and among his people, in his body, the church. If you need any more proof, look around you!
John wants us to believe, so that we can have life in his name. Jesus said, '?I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'