Easter, Mary Magdalene And Red Eggs

Scripture: John 20:1-18

Theme: Easter, Mary Magdalene and Red Eggs

Proposition: Do we boycott all the things that have attached themselves to Easter? Instead all allowing the bunny, the egg hunts and all that stuff side track us - let's listen as the Ancient Church tells us about how the Red Egg speaks of Jesus' Resurrection, Victory, Salvation and New Life

INTRO:

Grace and peace from God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit!

Let us say the TRUTH once again this morning –

CHRIST IS RISEN!

CHRIST IS RISEN INDEED!

Whether the sun is brightly shining, rain drops are falling or even on those rarest of occasions when it is snowing, today is a day that we in the Church celebrate to its fullest.

Today is the day that we celebrate all over the world the truth that Jesus Christ is the Savior and LORD of all.

Today is the day we celebrate Jesus’ mission, His message and most importantly His Sacrificial Death and Glorious Resurrection.

Today is the day we celebrate that some 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ, the Son of God made a way for all people to be rescued, redeemed and restored into God's Holy Image.

At the same time, it is interesting how over the last 2,000 years or so there have been some rather fascinating things that have attached themselves to our celebration of Resurrection Sunday. Some of those things have been quite harmless while others have nearly twisted and turned the message of Jesus' Resurrection upside down.

By now, you have probably noticed that nearly everywhere you go you can see signs of Resurrection Sunday (Easter Sunday) in all kinds of ways and fashions?

For example:

+There are all types, shapes and sizes of Easter baskets filled with plastic colored eggs, chocolate candies and other goodies.

+ There are little stuff animals in the shapes of an Easter bunny, a lamb, a duck or some other cute furry animal.

+ Easter lilies are blooming.

+People have been preparing all kinds of things for Easter Sunday meals – cooked ham, roasted lamb, hot cross buns, pretzels, simnel cakes, coconut cakes, Easter chick cupcakes to name just a few.

Now, for the most part each one of those things is basically harmless. All the chocolate candy is wonderful to eat, the little stuff animals bring a great deal of comfort and the flowers provide a great deal of beauty.

The only time that I can see that any of those things might be detrimental is if we completely remove the Cross, the Tomb, the Angels, Jesus and His Resurrection and focus only on the Easter baskets, the candy, the flowers and the food.

I believe we can have all those other things as long as at the center of everything we do and say today is on the message of Jesus Christ and His Resurrection; His Victory over Death, Hell and the Grave.

I believe it is our privilege and responsibility to make sure that alongside our children/grand children hunting Easter eggs and eating all that chocolate that we tell them the true story of Jesus and His Resurrection.

Regrettably at times, the face is far too many children today get more excited about the coming of the Easter Bunny than they do about the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven through Jesus Christ.

And why shouldn't they?

After all, the bunny shows up weeks before Easter and welcomes babies and children to have their picture taken with him. And if we are not careful as parents and grandparents we will think more about our adventure with the Easter bunny than the true meaning of Resurrection Sunday.

So, what is the answer?

Some have through the years tried to get the Church to boycott the Easter bunny, the Easter egg hunt and all that wonderful chocolate and other candies.

I don’t blame people for taking that view. I just don't think that is the proper answer.

What I do think we should be doing is not boycotting or denouncing, but actively promoting the real truth about Resurrection Sunday; the Message and Mission of Jesus Christ, our Risen Savior and LORD.

I believe that we should be doing the same thing that the disciples did 2,000 years ago when they openly and with great power shared the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Then, I believe it would be good for us to do some detailed studies. That is to say, I think it would be good for us to look back into history and see why certain symbols began attaching themselves to the Easter Season. I think we would be pleasantly surprised by the study.

You see, all of this is similar to the issue that we have surrounding the Christmas Season. For years, many people have had a problem with the image and person of St. Nicholas or as he is called in our country Santa Claus. There have been some who want nothing more than to get rid of him.