Arise! An Easter Message

Easter stands as the pinnacle moment, showcasing the greatest prank God played on death itself. The world may ridicule us and laugh us, but God will always have the last laugh – transforming our tragedy into triumph, despair into hope, and death into everlasting life.

“Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again.”

For nearly two thousand years, Christians have proclaimed these ten powerful words in nearly every language known to us.

​They are beautiful and poetic, and speak to the hope that came on that first Easter morning.

We should know that they were never uttered by the women when they reached the tomb to prepare Jesus’ body for eternal rest. They were never said by Peter and John after they raced to Jesus’ grave only to find him gone. Neither the angel nor Jesus himself spoke these words when they appeared to Mary.

Yet, we say them - in some form or another - because they encompass our entire faith in one easy to remember statement.

Saying them is one thing. Believing them is another. But making them a part of our everyday life…and that’s when things get a bit prickly. Good Morning and welcome to Easter at Anamesa. 

​Our reading comes from Mark 16:1-8.

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. 
                                                                                                                      Mark 16:1-8

Today we welcome Easter with joyous celebration. But tomorrow we will awake with cautious hesitation hoping not to get tricked as I have so often been on April first. It’s apropos, don’t you think, that Easter and April Fool’s Day are right next to each other this year. After all, isn’t Easter God’s greatest joke on the world that killed Christ?
 
I’m not sure Mary or the others found humor in God’s little prank. Certainly none of them were laughing on the way to the tomb. They definitely weren’t when they saw that the stone had been moved. That was no laughing matter.

The religious and political leaders had conspired with each other to have the tomb officially sealed shut to ensure no funny business happened. Everyone knew whoever broke the official seal would be found liable of treason and death. Imagine getting arrested for playing a practical joke. The Whoopie Cushion industry would be forced out of business. 
 
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Mark finds room to add a little comic relief. In the tomb is a young man dressed in a white robe. We assume he’s an angel – and not some guy who got lost on the way to the steam room. His greeting seems straight out of the Halo Handbook where rule one states, “When coming in contact with human beings, be sure to remind them not to be afraid, otherwise they might freak out.”
 
I don’t know about you, but I find that funny.  Think about it. You’re still in shock from witnessing your friend’s execution when you find his tomb has been tampered with. His body is missing. And some guy in a bath robe says, “Do not be afraid.” 

​If you’re not supposed to be afraid in a situation like this then what should you do? Laugh? The women were terrified and ran away. And for good reason.
 
As Barbara Brown Taylor muses, “Once a human being goes into the ground, that is that. You do not wait around for the person to reappear so you can pick up where you left off - at least not this side of the grave. You say good-bye; pay your respects; and go on with your life as best you can.”

Nowhere in their wildest imaginations did these women expect Jesus to jump out from behind the rock and shout, “April Fools.” They knew his death was real. There was nothing humorous about it.
 
To be fair, his resurrection wasn’t a joke either. It was something greater. It was the fulfillment of God's plan and promise to the world. And the assurance of our own salvation. To borrow from Richard Rohr, it’s “God’s pledge and guarantee of what God will do with all our crucifixions.” Easter isn’t just about the resurrection of Christ, but how his risen life shapes ours.
 
According to Paul, “Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of God, we too might live in the newness of life” (Rom. 6:4). And this raises a difficult question we all must ask ourselves. How will I live in this newness with a resurrected mind, with a Christ like heart? Christ has died. Christ has risen. And Christ will come again. How will we make Christ come alive, again and again, in Anamesa?

Whatever happened in the space between the cross and Easter morning only God and Jesus know. But one thing is for certain, when God breathed new life into his lungs, our Lord didn’t just sit there. He arose from his tomb and went out into the world.

​In one gospel account, he met Mary in the garden. In another, he walked home with two disciples. And in another, he cooked breakfast on the beach for all of them. Jesus appeared to his friends not only to comfort them but commissioned them out into the world, to proclaim what God had done. And to show the world what God is doing in them, with them, and through them.
 
This tells me that we’re not supposed to sit around doing nothing. It’s one thing to profess our faith with words, but those words have no power if we cannot abide by them faithfully in all that we do. Just as Jesus arose…so too must we Arise with him!
 
Easter is our invitation into a new way of living fully and faithfully for Christ, and with Christ through acts of love, justice, and compassion. And yet, here we sit. Unsure of what to say. Or afraid of what people might think or do if we start talking about God to them. It’s easy to profess our faith in the safe confines of church, but sharing it publicly is where we often draw the line.

I’ve confessed before I don’t always let people know I’m a minister because I don’t want them thinking I’m some religious nut. And I certainly don’t want to be lumped in with those hypocrites who weaponize Jesus’ words but refuses to live by them. Yet still, I don’t let that stop me from inviting someone to church. Or sharing this message on my Facebook page.
 
Christ came to us in the flesh to redeem and return us back to God…and the world killed him. So I can see why you might be afraid. But to those who did kill Christ, the joke’s on them. He has risen. He is alive. And we are too.
 
I can say with great confidence that everyone here, and all who are watching, are breathing. Which means each and every one of us has the power to rise up to roll back the stone and go out into the world to share the good news and to bear the good fruit of the Spirit by being kind, helpful, hopeful in all circumstances. 

Yes, there’s a good chance you’ll get heckled or made fun of. But should that deter you from embodying the joy of Christ’s victory?
 
Easter stands as the pinnacle moment, showcasing the greatest prank God played on death itself. The world may ridicule us and laugh us, but God will always have the last laugh – transforming our tragedy into triumph, despair into hope, and death into everlasting life.
 
Here’s the thing I hope you remember. We’re not merely spectators of this cosmic joke. We are integral parts of the punch line. We are the resurrected people, called to continue what Jesus began. His destiny is our destiny. His life work has been passed on to us.
 
St. Teresa reminds us that, “Christ has no body but yours.”
 
You might not have the right words, but you have the hands of Christ to bless the world. You might not have the right church doctrine or a degree under your belt, but you have his feet to walk and do good.

You have his mouth to demand justice and equality for all people. You have his eyes to see others in need. And his heart of compassion to do something about it.
 
From the having the same divine DNA to the same Holy Spirit, you possess everything Jesus had to usher in the kingdom of heaven right now.
 
So, Arise! Roll away the stone and leave your dark tomb. Go out into the world carrying the hope of resurrection everywhere you go. You might not be able to convince someone with words, but they will be watching what you do.

As a wise man once taught me, “No one has ever been beaten into heaven. But all have been shown the way.”
 
We respond to this Divine Comedy by becoming living testimonies to the transformative power of the resurrection to a world in desperate need of hope and redemption.
 
Easter was not a one-and-done event. It’s been God’s plan from the beginning of time – transforming a galaxy of dead stars into a universe of living planets. It is a continual process of renewal and rebirth – the cycle of life that happens every day throughout all of creation. And we are a part of it.
 
Easter is a living reality that shapes our lives today. It has the power to transform enemies into friends, sinners into saints. As we move out into the world, let us embrace our role in God's cosmic joke with humility and gratitude, privileged to be a part of this divine plan for redemption.
 
Let us Arise with Christ every day, in every space we enter, bringing with us the joy and wonder of Easter, to the glory of God almighty, who pulled a fast one on death, so that we may live.
 
 
Work Cited:
Rohr, Richard. Immortal Diamond. (Jossey-Bass: 2013) pp.83-90.
Taylor, Barbara Brown. Home By Another Way. (Crowley: 1999).