I’d like for you to venture back w/ me this morning to those minutes, hours and days just prior to the resurrection of our Lord. What was it like & what were those who loved Jesus feeling? He had, after all just been killed in a most gruesome fashion: hanging on a cross. It was now their responsibility to take him down from the cross & move him to a place where he would be buried. But where?
Fortunately, Joseph of Arimathea offered a tomb he had built for himself. He, along with Nicodemus, removed the body, took it to the new tomb, prepared it for burial and wrapped it in the linen. Then, as part of the ritual, they wrapped a burial cloth, or a napkin, around his face.
They left the tomb, possibly rolling the stone into place, & walked away, remembering what Jesus had meant to them, remembering what he had done for so many…& for all intents and purposes, it was over. He was dead & sealed in a tomb. How could all the things he had talked about possibly come to pass? The love they felt for Jesus was translated into a deep sorrow in his loss. A heaviness weighed upon them, and I’m sure they cried the inconsolable tears of the bereaved. His life, his ministry, was over.
Elsewhere, the disciples & those who love Jesus were also in deep sorrow…the pain of his murder racks their minds & their emotions, for they have not held onto the promise he made, they have forgotten that he said he would rise again.
3 days pass…3 long days for Mary & Peter & John & all the others. Most are in hiding for fear that what happened to Jesus will happen to them. All of them reeling from the suddenness of the events that have overtaken them.
But one person ventures out. Our text tells us that "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark Mary Magdalene went to the tomb…” Other Gospel texts tell us other women were with her, and I’m sure there were. But for this morning we will concentrate on her.
She walks in darkness & we can almost feel the darkness pressing down on her & the misery she bears as she trudges toward the tomb. She wants to be there…she has to be there…this, after all, was her Lord and Master and it is the least she could do for him…to come and grieve at his tomb and pay her final respects, only to discover “…that the stone had been removed…”
There is shock & disbelief in the sight lying before her. Filled w/ fear, perhaps even angry, she runs to notify the disciples of this despicable act: Someone has “taken the Lord out of the tomb!” Peter & John quickly return, w/ Mary, to the tomb, finding nothing but jumbled grave clothes, lying where they should be, & they realize that Mary’s words are not some wild tale.
But wait, not everything was as it should be. Something was out of place.
Verses 6 & 7 go into great detail to tell us what Peter witnessed when he looked into the tomb: “He saw the strips of linen lying there as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separated from the linen.”
That’s one of those peculiar pieces of scriptural information that reaches out to grab us & says, “Not so fast. Don’t skim over me. Don’t just take me at face value & leave.” There must be a reason why the Bible takes two verses to inform us that the cloth around Jesus’ head has been neatly folded & set aside.
Think about it. Jesus has just been resurrected…he’s shaking out all the cricks & kinks from his three day death…he takes a look around himself & says, “I think I’ll leave the burial linen where it‘s at, but I don’t want to leave the tomb too big of a mess so I think I’ll take the napkin & neatly fold it up. There, that should give it just the right touch. Don’t want to be a slacker.”
I don’t think so. So why wasn’t it left lying where the body had been like the grave clothes? What’s the significance of picking up this singular item & folding it? I mean, that’s almost like drying a whole batch of laundry, taking out one wash cloth & folding, & leaving the rest. It causes one to ask the question: Why did Jesus fold only the linen burial cloth after his resurrection? & the little information I was able to come across indicates the answer’s important. Here’s what I read: In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to do w/ the Master & Servant relationship, & every Jewish boy knew this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was furnished perfectly, & then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, & the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished. Now if the master was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, & clean his beard, & would wad up that napkin & toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, "I’m done". But if the master got up from the table, & folded his napkin, & laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because.......... The folded napkin meant, "I’m not finished! I’m coming back!"
Do you hear that my friend? He’s not finished. He Is Coming Back!
When Peter & John looked into the tomb they both saw the same thing. From the text of the Gospel we learn that John “saw & believed”. Peter, on the hand, may not have been aware of the significance. He may have left the tomb full of remorse & shame realizing that he can’t atone for his denial of Jesus because even in death he hasn’t been able to protect the body of his Lord.
But John had an epiphany, a sudden realization that everything Jesus had said was coming to pass. The sight of a folded napkin filled him w/ hope & belief: “He’s coming back!” He didn’t necessarily know when, but the signs were obvious. He didn’t have long to wait.
Mary, on the other hand, was apparently not aware of what had come to light so she dejectedly stands outside the tomb dispirited, her hopes dashed, crying the cry of one who has lost everything .
But it is in that time of sorrow that her spirit & faith are reawakened as she comes face to face w/ the resurrected Christ. It’s an exhilarating moment as she becomes the first witness to the resurrection -- the first to see the risen Christ -- & the first to be given a commission by the risen Christ. Jesus tells her: "Go…to my brothers & tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’"
Her joy is overflowing, as she races to fulfill Jesus instructions, telling the disciples “I have seen the Lord!” She becomes the affirmation of John’s hope.
Imagine your reaction if someone would come up to your & say, “I have seen the Lord!” Your response would be…what? To say, “Praise God! Tell me about it!” That would be nice but, honestly, how many folk would probably be more likely to say: “Lock him/her up!”
But why? Why can’t it be today? Why can’t it be now? The message of the folded napkin & Mary’s words remind us that Jesus is not only here in the Holy Spirit but that he will come back. What a glorious message, a message of life, a message of victory over death. It’s a message that reminds us that Jesus is not just floating around in the heavens, but that he is present & alive in our lives today. & even though HE’S been freed from the tomb, most of us, all of us are stilled trapped in the bondage of fear & sin…so we desperately need to hear this message & carry it w/ gladdened hearts to a world that urgently needs to hear about the risen Lord!
My friends, can we possibly comprehend all that Jesus did for us over that three day period two thousand years ago? Probably not. But I can tell you what you can do. Thank God for that first resurrection day! Jesus rose from the dead, stepped from the tomb, conquered death & the grave & fulfilled his promise of offering us the precious gift of eternal life. & believe me, that IS reason for celebration. Thank God as you celebrate that glorious resurrection & for sending his Son as the sacrifice offered in your names & for the whole world. Thank God every day for the blessings he has bestowed on you. & then, like Mary did, you can go & tell others what he has done for you & how that has changed your life. Delight in his love & share it w/ your family & friends & with the world. Start spreading the word!
Mary did what she was supposed to now it’s our turn. The folded napkin tells us he’s
coming back….we need to remind people of that. So where do we start? Look around. The answer is as varied as our lives. Jesus wants us to tell this glorious resurrection story to everyone. Bring your family to church that they might hear it & invite your neighbor. Teach a Sunday school class or sponsor a youth group. Help people in need as a witness for Christ. & pray.
There are thousands of different ways you can spread the Resurrection message this morning. Use your lives…He is risen & he is coming back.
