"Why Weep?"
John 20:1-18
There are times in our lives so terrible, so painful and so difficult that weeping has a sort of "guttural sound" to it.
Have you ever cried so hard and with such despair that it felt as if your heart were breaking?
Have you ever been in so much emotional pain, that it seemed there was no hope?
I can't imagine what the parents of the young boy who was struck and killed by a school bus on Monday morning must be feeling.
Pastor Daniel Gilchrist of Chattanooga Valley Presbyterian Church was quoted as saying,
"It is times like this that we become keenly aware of our weakness, keenly aware of our lack of understanding."
"Keenly aware of our lack of control."
At about 3 p.m. on a Friday Jesus died on a cross.
The Cross is a symbol of injustice, jealousy, hatred, bigotry, the abuse of power, hopelessness, brokenness and despair.
On the day that Jesus died it looked like the forces of evil and sin had defeated God and goodness, righteousness, life and hope.
Death, the great enemy that has reigned since Adam and Eve first turned away from God in the Garden, had once more won the day.
What was left for Jesus' disciples?
Grief, disillusionment, and hopelessness?
We are told that "while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to [Jesus' tomb] and saw that the stone had been taken away."
So, she ran to Simon Peter and to John, and told them that Jesus' body has gone missing.
And we are told that they all came "running together" toward the tomb.
Peter and John went into the tomb.
"The linen cloths" that had been wrapped around Jesus' body were "lying there."
"The face cloth that had been on Jesus' head...wasn't with the other clothes but was folded up in its own place."
And we are told that John "believed."
But they "didn't yet understand that Jesus must rise from the dead," so what John believed must have been what Mary reported: "Someone stole Jesus' body."
And we are told that Peter and John went back to the place they were staying.
But not Mary.
Mary stood at that place where so many of us have stood as well.
It's the place of terrible, unutterable pain.
"Mary stood outside near the tomb, crying."
At some point in our lives, I think we all stand outside the "tomb of death," crying--weeping.
It's a time when the forces of darkness seem to have gotten the upper hand.
All Mary's hopes that she had gained as she had followed Jesus had been dashed.
Perhaps her very faith in a God of goodness and love was shaken, if not completely shattered.
But, maybe, just maybe...there was still just a spark of hope left.
And God can do a lot with just a spark!!!
For those who come to know Christ, a spark is like dropping a match in a forest where there has been no rain for years.
And you know what would happen in that instance.
In any event, Mary's "spark of hope" which can only come from God Himself causes her to bend down and take a look in the tomb herself, but the tomb is no longer empty!!!
"She saw two angels dressed in white, seated where the body of Jesus had been..."
...and, "The angels asked her, 'Woman, why are you crying?'"
And after Mary tells the angels what has happened, "she turned around and saw Jesus standing there," but she thought He was the gardener.
Jesus was buried in a garden.
Jesus rose from the dead in a garden.
And Jesus appeared to Mary in a garden.
And to Mary, Jesus looked like a gardener.
What else, in the Bible, happened in a garden?
Who else, in the Bible, was a gardener?
Adam and Eve were gardeners in the Garden of Eden, were they not?
The Bible begins in a garden.
And it was there that the devil tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God, bringing evil into the world--giving Satan an open door into our lives.
And we have been enslaved by evil, darkness, self-interest, disobedience, sin, guilt, shame and death ever since.
But in the garden where Jesus' tomb was, we see that God is reversing what happened in Eden, giving those who choose to follow the crucified and risen Christ new life, resurrection.
As Jesus has promised, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though they die.
Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die."
No wonder Jesus is called "the New Adam."
As Paul put it in 1 Corinthians 15:21-22: "since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.
For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive."
Have you been "made alive," or "resurrected from the dead" by grace through faith in Jesus Christ?
Just when it seemed that all was lost, and things couldn't get any worse, Mary comes to the tomb of Jesus, only to find His body missing.
Mary is in the deepest throws of despair and hopelessness.
There is no further down a soul can go.
She is at "rock bottom."
And then, "Jesus said to her, 'Woman, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?'"
Well, she was looking for Jesus, but she was looking for a dead Jesus--not an alive Jesus!!!
And so, she didn't recognize Him.
Jesus, is always by our side.
From the moment we are born, Jesus stands with us, asking us "Why are you crying?"
We call this, prevenient grace.
It's the grace of God that "goes ahead of us."
It is God's pursuit of us.
For God is the One Who seeks us out.
God is like a man searching for a treasure in a field, God is like a shepherd searching for a lost sheep, God is like a woman searching for a lost coin...
...God is a love-sick Father, looking, seeking the Prodigal sons and daughters, who have turned their backs on Him and who walk this earth in darkness and despair.
And when we come home to God.
When that which was lost is found--God throws a party!!!
For God so loved the world...
That's you--that's me.
I think that so many people, believe in Jesus, but believe in a "dead Jesus."
They haven't yet come to the salvation moment which happens when we SEE that Jesus really is ALIVE!!!
Have you come to that salvation moment?
When you do, it transforms and changes everything!!!
Again, we are told that Mary thought Jesus was the gardener.
And then Jesus said to her: "Mary."
And when Jesus called Mary's name, she was so open to His love, she was a lost sheep that wanted to be found, a prodigal daughter who had decided she had had enough of the evil and despair--there was a hole in her heart that could only be filled by Jesus--and so, she saw that Jesus is Alive and she embraced this fact!!!
And after having spent some time with Him, "Mary Magdalene left and announced to the disciples, 'I've seen the Lord.'"
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the "shout of victory!!!"
It is proof that goodness, love, justice and life will ultimately prevail.
As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, "The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
Someone once said, "Resurrection means the worst thing is never the last thing."
Do you believe this?
We live in a world which is rife with darkness, brokenness and despair.
And the reality of humanity's enslavement to sin is all around us.
It's seen in the 30,000 children who die each day of hunger and disease related to malnutrition, while others drive fancy cars and live in mansions.
It's seen in the wars and violence of every day.
It's seen in the selfishness and greed that leaves to so many with so little, and so few with too much.
It's seen in the pain we bring upon ourselves and one another.
I like this metaphor: "In Jesus, God entered the boxing ring where evil seems to have the upper hand.
He took the worst blows of the enemy.
He was beaten, abused, and eventually knocked out.
But just when the match seemed lost, Jesus arose; and in His Resurrection He dealt a finishing blow to the forces of evil, sin, and death.
Christ won the victory, and with His victory all of us are offered the amazing opportunity to join forces with Him; to be set free from the power of evil, sin, and death; and to live lives of hope, freedom, and love."
But all of us must choose to decide whether to side with Christ.
We aren't forced to leave our enslavement to sin, death and despair.
But to all those who decide to follow the Risen Christ--the One Who stands by us and calls our name--we "are authorized to become God's children, born not from blood nor from human desire or passion, but born from God."
It's been said that the power of Easter can be summarized in one word: "hope."
And "hope" is the faith that things will work out...
...that despite difficult circumstances and painful situations--something good is around the bend.
Hope is something we cannot live without.
What did Paul say in Romans Chapter 5?
"Hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."
And we are told, "faith is being sure of what we hope for..."
On that first Easter morning, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb where Jesus' body had been buried expecting nothing but sadness.
When she got to the tomb, her sadness turned into utter despair.
And then Jesus called her name.
And she heard Him.
And then she saw.
And then she knew that He is Alive!!!
And when she knew that He is Alive she ran from the tomb, sharing the hope that suddenly enveloped her: "I've seen the Lord," she announced.
Have you seen the Lord?
Do you know that He is Alive?
