When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?"
But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
"Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.' "
Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.
Ecclesiastes is an Old Testament book written by “The Preacher”. Tradition says it is wise and wealthy King Solomon, who has all the resources and time for reflection, to pursue his quest for meaning. It is one of my favorites because it is so 2009. Solomon tries everything from pleasure- philanthropy - possessions, and tries stuff multiple times looking for some meaning. He comes away with this conclusion, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again. There is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! There is something new?”
I’ve collected clippings of Solomon-wannabe’s on their quest for purpose. For all their ambitions, resources, & relationships is there anything new under the sun?
One man’s quest: One thousand bars in a year. Dan Freeman, retired computer consultant, set out on January 1 to visit 1000 bars in a year. When asked Freeman said, “Some days it is like work. You look up and it’s ‘Ah, 1 PM. I better hit my five bars. It’s really more fun than anything, going around talking to people.”
One man’s request: Two thousand credit cards. Manhattan accountant, Frank Van Buren, called customer service and asked for a new Exxon gas card. They sent him a box of 1000 cards all with his name and account number on them. Van Buren called customer service and they told him to destroy those cards right away. He thought that was that. The next week he got another box of 1000 credit cards.
One man’s bequest: Eight marriages and four proposals. Bishop Anthony Owens, a traveling minister was arrested for proposing to at least 4 women. The problem is he is already married to at least 8 other women & hadn’t yet legally divorced any of them. Owens claims he has divorced some of his wives, but can’t recall which ones. One fiancé “He said he was a real man of the Lord. But, he is just a mess.”
Sounds like Solomon is right. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again, there is nothing new under the sun”. Looking for life. A man goes to a 1000 bars. A man has 2000 credit cards. A man marries eight wives. The good news is that God has done a new thing, at Easter. Jesus death and resurrection is a new day rising. One man’s conquest over sin, death, evil: Four endings to Mark’s never-ending story. All the gospels emphasize different resurrection details. Mark is famous for his non-ending. Mark 16:8 literally lurches to a stop, “To no one anything they said; afraid were they for”. Long suggests, “It is almost as if the author had suddenly been dragged from his writing desk in midsentence.” When is an ending not an ending? When a dead rises from the tomb—and when a gospel ends in the middle of a sentence. Preachers and parishioners alike like to tie things together, sum things up, to put a bow around it and present a nice package to the congregation.
This might explain why in the history of the church there have been 4 different endings to Mark’s gospel including 16:9-20 in your bible. Why have we, including historical church tried so hard to bring closure to the resurrection?
We like happy endings. This appears to be the most joyful, just, thrilling ending of all. Jesus is off the cross, back from the grave, enjoying a reunion with his posse.
What a wonderful time to now say, “The End”. All stand & sing the “Hallelujah Chorus”, ending Amen, claim victory, and say, “I’m glad it is over. We have had our ‘new life” moment, & can move on to Easter dinner. Mark’s notoriously abrupt ending doesn’t let us do that. Like a lot of biblical stories it is intentionally open-ended & ultimately unsatisfying. The Prodigal Son leaves us dangling. Did the two sons ever reconcile with the Father? We are left out there hanging with the Good Samaritan, Mother Mary, & the author of Ecclesiastes on his quest for meaning. We can live with the discomfort and uncertainty of these other minor stories. But, Lord, don’t make us do that with Easter. We’re still not over the violence & sorrow of Good Friday. In my expert pastoral opinion, this is no way to run a resurrection.
Take that as the message of this Easter. It ain’t over until God Almighty says it’s over. The resurrection is God’s gig, not ours. Resurrection is not a redescription of death; it is death being overthrown and all the powers that go with it, namely sin and evil. What the followers of Jesus experienced by encountering Jesus after his execution and burial, was not his resuscitation. The Romans effectively utilized crucifixion to send the message, “We Romans run this world and if you get in our way, we will obliterate you”. When Jesus was crucified, every disciple knew that it meant. It’s over. We backed the wrong horse. We’re lucky to escape with our lives.
In the ancient world, it was common for people to have strange experiences with the dead, or so they believed. On Good Friday, after Jesus was wrapped in linen with spices, placed in a shelf in a cave, apparently, the Jesus movement was over.
The church may fumble or foul up the Jesus movement. But, God says it ain’t over.
Scholars have long disputed the exact site where Jesus was buried in the tomb, and Christians believe, then resurrected that first Easter. In Jerusalem, in the mid-1800’s archaeologists discovered a new site known as the Garden Tomb. Located outside the original city walls on a hill that looks like a skull, it is a tranquil, serene setting. Last November, I was with a wide cross-section of ministers (Baptists, Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists) in the Holy Land. Our group stopped at the Garden Tomb. The community of, for, and because of the resurrection meeting in what may be the real resurrection zone was in real disarray. We were given thirty seconds to look into the empty doorway of the tomb before we were ushered out. Next we tried to have a communion service. Some sat out, some were moved, some were confused, & some just took over. The pastor who presided was working hard to trigger an emotional response. I tried to tell him as a card-carrying Lutheran pastor he was witnessing an outpouring of sentiment. He had his main man Johny Diaz singing and jamming on his guitar. At the end, he was busy giving away his latest CD’s.
All of us filed onto the bus: some inspired, some angry, some laughed, and some disappointed. I suppose I laughed because the resurrection is God’s show not mine. Yes, we can look pretty ineffective, downright ridiculous, at times, but it makes the death/resurrection of Jesus no less real. It does not require a polished performance by the pastor or parish, to corroborate or demonstrate or validate the resurrection. It seems to me that is where we miss the Easter boat. We try to make Easter about us, we fail to go tell the good news, or we try to simplify, even reduce the resurrection.
Resurrection does not mean going to heaven, escaping death, or having a glorious post-mortem life. Resurrection is coming to bodily life again after bodily death. Easter is the great resumption, the never-ending story. God is not done with us yet. And we are not done with God yet. In Christ’ resurrection, the old world has ended; a new world begun. A new day rising. To be sure, the present world, after Easter still looks like the old world before Easter. Suffering, pain, disappointment, and physical death persist. But, God always seems to save us in hidden, hazy, and yet holy ways. Those who have met Jesus on the loose know Easter keeps coming.
Last week while I was washing dishes at the Union Gospel Mission with some people from Vinland, I met Robert who had been resurrected. While we were scrubbing some pots, he told me how he came to be in the program at the mission.
Robert said basically three events happened to him that brought him. First, he was in a very serious car accident. The car was totaled and he said by the grace of God he walked away. Second, there was an altercation with a guy who had a gun. Once he escaped he ran to his buddy’s house and got himself a gun. Robert wanted to kill this guy. Fortunately for him, his buddy and his wife, locked Robert in a room until he slept it off. The third event was the one that really got his attention. His wife who had been coping with him for years said, that was enough. That unless he did something radical to change, Robert would not see her or their five-year old daughter again. Being Baptist, Robert said it was easy to talk about God. He was quite convinced that God had shaken, stirred, saved him. God resurrected Robert.
I don’t know if Robert is going to make it. Robert doesn’t know if he is going to make it this time; stay sober, see his daughter, keep the faith. Only God knows. But, the good news is Robert is in the grip of grace, win or lose, alive or dead. This is the same story as Saul is converted on the road to Damascus to become Paul the missionary. This is the same resurrection power that was at work in my life at FCA Camp in 1974. The risen Christ is shaking & stirring you. This is the never-ending Easter story. As you go home to Easter dinner and whatever- to a pile of dishes, insecure finances, struggles at home, uncertain health, children needing attention, know you are not alone & God is not done yet. Not with us. Not with the world, the future, or the cosmos. It ain’t over until God Almighty says it is over.
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