Easter Sermon

Alleluia! Christ is risen.
The Lord is raised indeed. Alleluia.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Resurrection changes everything. In Matthew’s Gospel, the resurrection causes the earth itself to tremble. When Mary Magdalene and the other Mary go to the tomb, burdened with grief, they could never have expected the greeting they receive: “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said (Matthew 28: 5b-6a).” And when Jesus himself finally appears to them, he gives them three commandments: first, Rejoice (the word translated ‘greetings’ in our gospel literally means rejoice); second, do not be afraid; and third, share the message.

Rejoice. Do not be afraid. Share the message. These are the commandments we are called to live by as children of Christ’s resurrection. In our baptism, Christ enters every particle of our selves, souls and bodies, and makes us members of his glorious body. We become ministers of his undying, overflowing, all-consuming love. And the love we are brought into knows no bounds: it pulls us out of the things that entomb us and brings each of us—and all of creation—into a new existence. Resurrection life is glorious, but it is also unsettling.

There is an Orthodox Icon, or holy image, of the resurrection called “The Harrowing of Hell.” In it, the resurrected Christ is depicted in front of a tomb: the tomb of our first parents Adam and Eve. Christ grasps them by their wrists and pulls them out of the tomb. It is not a gentle pull, either. Christ yanks them up out of their dusty resting place, a resting place that is maybe strangely comfortable. It is a state of being they are familiar with and it doesn’t present them with challenges. But they are called into resurrection, and Christ tugs on them until they are dislodged from the earth and brought into new life.

Jesus does the same for us. Easter pulls us out of our tombs and brought into a world that is completely new and different from the world we have known in the past. Easter is about new life. Not even life after death, but new life now. You can wait to experience resurrection after you die, but I don’t recommend it. And I don’t think that’s what God wishes for us, either. You can practice resurrection this very day—if you are brave enough. A phone call can work miracles, or just a hello, or an “I love you.” Or better yet, call someone from whom you are estranged. Pull the pins out of the proverbial voodoo doll. You don’t even have to say sorry. (You may not be sorry, and he may not be sorry, either.) It doesn’t matter. Call him, wish him Happy Easter, and ask him how he is. Not that this is guaranteed to go smoothly. But you will experience a taste of resurrection. All you need to do is rejoice, do not be afraid, and share the message. It might be unsettling, yes, but it is how we share in the new life of Christ and extend it into the world. It is now we experience resurrection now.

There is an ancient sermon for Easter Day, whose author has been lost, where Christ addresses Adam and Eve, freshly yanked out of their dusty rest: “O order you, O sleepers, to awake. I did not create you to be held prisoners in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, you who are the work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you, and we cannot be separated. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you for all eternity.”

Today Jesus rescues us from the power of death and limitation. Today the world is different and new. Today we are pulled out from the tombs of limitation and sin and death. Today Christ gives us limitless and overflowing life. Rejoice! Do not be afraid. Share the message.

And so let us say again, and let us say for ever:

Alleluia. Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia.