Are You Prepared?
“But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared.” Luke 24:1
Intro: In Bucyrus Ohio, at Oakwood Cemetery there is a grave inscribed Malete G. Hanzakos
born 1882 Andea Sparta Greece. He immigrated to New York and changed his name to Mike Hanzas.
He was a tall, muscular, man, who was known to have knocked the punching bag clean off its swivel.
Tired of the big city, in the early 1930’s he moved to Bucyrus Ohio where he opened a shoeshine parlor.
His nearest relatives, a sister and nephew lived in Dearborn Michigan.
Living alone he became quite a recluse.
One day he began to make preparation for his death.
He went to the Oakwood Cemetery where he met the caretaker Geroge Beale.
After all his years in America he still spoke only broken English.
He said, “Need a grave, want a grave,”
I want to pick it out myself now because I am going to die one of these days.
He bought a plot in the main part of the cemetery.
He paid $10 down and the next day he returned with a final payment of $90 all in $10 bills.
He returned once a week to visit his grave.
He planted grass seed.
He brought sheers and on his hands and knees he meticulously groomed the grave.
On Memorial Day he placed flowers on his grave.
He said I want to see flowers there now, because I want get to see them when I am gone.
Then Mike visited the Wise Funeral home where he met Earl Hewitt.
Mike said, “I want to buy, I want to buy now.”
So they negotiated on a casket and vault.
He told the funeral director “I want to buy my new home.”
He was particularly proud of the metal casket and the concrete vault he had purchased.
He would sometimes bring friends along to the funeral home to admire his new purchase.
The Funeral director helped Mike write out his obituary.
Mike wanted to run it in the local paper right away so he could see it.
But the local paper refused.
Mike did not quite understand saying, “that a man should be able to read about it before he dies.”
He picked out his headstone. He made sure the words were spelled correctly.
He wanted everything to be perfect.
Then one day Mike invited his nephew and the rest of his family to come to see him.
Mike took the family to see the cemetery to inspect the headstone and grave site.
As they stood there looking Mike patted his nephew on the shoulder and said don’t worry.
He put something in Nick’s pocket.
And they returned to Mikes apartment.
After a hearty meal, Mike began to hand out some personal effects among his visitors.
He handed out some wrapped boxes of goods.
He handed out clothes for his nephews.
He handed out some shoes and shine brushes.
The nephew protested Uncle Mike you may need these for yourself.
Mike said, “No, boy I don’t need them anymore.”
He patted his nephew on the pocket and said, remember.
He got up from the chair and took one step and dropped dead of heart failure!
There was nothing that could be done. All arrangements had been made.
It is a well known story in Bucyrus Ohio.
“So far as we know, Mike Hanzas had made every provision for his body…, But none for his soul.”
Easter is about preparation.
The text speaks of the Lord’s resurrection and second coming but whether it’s His coming or our death,
we must prepare to meet the Lord.
On this wonderful Easter Sunday morning, I want to raise this question with you.
When you get to where you are going, where will you be?
The Easter story opens with everybody on the run.
Mary is running from grief.
John begins his story of the resurrection with these words.
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb
and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
She came running to Peter and John.
The first announcement of Easter was NOT, “He is risen.”
Mary shouts, “He is not here and I do not know where they have taken him.”
Grief is real.
Grief is gripping. It gnaws at our days and disturbs our nights.
Heartache puts us in such turmoil that we cannot think clearly, nor love dearly,
nor follow nearly the old familiar paths that have ordered our lives.
Mary comes to the tomb early.
She might as well; she couldn’t sleep anyway.
Here, adding insult to injury, she cannot find the body of her dead Lord.
In desperation, she runs on Easter morning.
Life can be extremely busy.
Some of you come to church today with a so many plans you can hardly wait to get home
so you can start the Easter Celebration.
Peter also ran
“Will the rooster crow forever?” Peter wonders as he races John to the empty tomb.
He’d bragged so much,
boasted so often,
how he dared so readily face and fight alongside Jesus saying, Lord whatever you do I will do.
Where ever you go I will go.
But now DENIAL IS DEAFENING and it continues to ring in every region of his mind.
He examines the tomb and finds it empty.
Even the word “tomb” has a hollow ring to it.
EMPTY! It’s the kind of feeling you have when you have messed up.
It’s the emotion you feel when you have missed the mark of God’s high calling.
Peter is usually pretty good on his feet, and quick witted.
He knows how to survive all kinds of situations, but on Easter Sunday, he didn’t have a word.
Speechless! He had no reason…, no excuse…, no explanation –
just sorrow and love mingled together in a broken heart.
Peter is running on Easter Sunday.
He’s running away from guilt, shame of his desertion, regret of his words to follow and not.
It is Greatness that keeps John running in this story.
He races Peter to the tomb and wins.
It seems as if this disciple whom Jesus loved always wins.
Of all things John has to record that in Verse 4 says, “He reaches the tomb first.”
So petty, so trivial, such a minor thing to make such a big deal out of.
I ran and beat Peter in a race to see the empty tomb.
But how often does that characterize the things we cultivate in life? How trivial our own grudges.
Now I ask you, why did he have to put that in the gospel story?
Is competition so deep and so intense that he can’t even tell about the resurrection of Jesus
Without announcing that he beat Peter in a footrace to the empty tomb?
When you get to where you’re going, where will you be?
Of course Easter is not about an empty tomb, is it?
Easter is all about a resurrected Christ who’s alive and present.
I ask you another question today -- What if you ran into a resurrection this Easter?
What if you encountered the living Christ today?
What if you made some smart exchanges this very moment in worship?
What if you traded Empty for Eternal,
What if you traded Guilt for Grace,
What if you traded Fault finding for Forgiveness giving
What if you traded Success for Significance?
What if you ran into the risen Lord face to face?
Isn’t that what Easter is all about?
Easter is not an argument -- Easter is an announcement.
Easter is not illusion – Easter is life.
Easter is not chemistry -- it’s mystery.
Easter is not magic – it’s a miracle!
Easter does not answer all our questions,
nor cure all our doubts,
solve all our problems
or package life with pretty bows and ribbons.
EASTER DOES SURPRISE US WITH JOY AND GRIP US WITH GRACE.
Easter does make life worth living.
Because Christ lives, we have tomorrow.
It has been said many times that “Life is the dream and eternity is
the reality.”
When Dwight D. Eisenhower was dying at Walter Reed Hospital, Billy Graham paid him a visit.
They talked awhile…, prayed…,
and then Billy started to leave… that’s when the former President and Five Star General said,
“Wait a minute, I want to ask you a question.
Do you think an old sinner like me has any chance to get to Heaven?”
Rev. Graham walked back to the President’s bed, sat down in a chair, took his hand and said,
“Mr. President, I know you are a man of faith
and I know you have asked the Lord to forgive your sins.
I have no doubt that you and I will meet again one day in Heaven.”
With that, the tears streamed down the Dwight D. Eisenhower’s face.
You see, because of Easter, when you get to where you’re going, you can know where you will be!
Life eternal…, heaven rejoices…, Jesus lives who once was dead.
Do you understand?
Because of Easter, when you get to where you are going,
you can know where you are going to be!
