Thursday, April 23, 2015

Now What? Sermon Delivered At Easter Vespers Service. April 05, 2015.


 

 

April 05, 2015

Easter Vespers

Mark 16:1-8.

"Now What?"

The Rev. Cecil Charles Prescod, OCC.

 
“16 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. NRSV)  
From our earliest years many of us are familiar with the story of Easter.  Whether from Sunday School, parents, or Hollywood movies, the outline of what happened early one Sunday morning in an out of way place in the vast Roman Empire 2000 years ago, is one we are able to recite.
One thing that is common about familiar stories is that often we are so familiar with them that we do not realise what we do not know about them.  When we recall a common experience in our lives, each of the participants may remember it slightly differently. When my sisters and I gather and share stories of family trips or holidays, each of us tell the story differently.  Sometimes we are amazed that we were at the same event.  I suppose our interpretations of an event depend on our station in lives, our ages, what were important in our individual lives at that times, and so many other things. It is not that the incident did not happen, but its significance and what we learn from the event may differ because we each bring and receive something from our lived experiences.
The Bible offers four different account of what happened when the women went to the tomb to anoint and mourn their friend and leader, Jesus of Nazareth.  Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The details differ, but each highlights common significant points: Jesus had died; his friends, except for a few women, had abandoned him and were hiding in fear of the authorities (no one wanted to be the next victim of Rome’s cruel and barbarous actions); Jesus was laid in a borrowed grave; on early on the  first day of the week, his brave women friends came to the  tomb to mourn; the stone was removed, the body was gone, and they met, or were told to go and meet, the risen Jesus.
Mark, the earliest and shortest gospel, can be characterized as the “Joe Friday” of the Gospel writers.  You know, the police sergeant from “Dragnet”, who when he investigated a crime, did not have time for elaborate tales, who always told the witnesses, “Just the facts, ma’am or sir”.
Mark’s gospel does not have any long narratives about Jesus birth, death, or resurrection. And he ends his story, abruptly. 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.”
Now what? Throughout the gospel Mark emphasized following Jesus.  Jesus called, and people followed.  As he was headed to Jerusalem, and his death, Jesus called, and told his followers that he will suffer and they would too if they followed him. For those who follow Jesus are not exempt from hardships, pain, sorrows, and griefs.  Jesus reminds them that he will experience such difficulties and they will too. But if we follow him, we will experience more than suffering, but life.  If we follow him, we are assured that God is with us.  God has not and will not abandon us. Whatever challenges we face we will not face them alone, but that the one who breathed life into our lungs, who sustains the earth and all of creation, is not a God who is separate from us, but one who walks with us, and most importantly, is willing to lead us.
Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, thou art with me, the Psalmist reminds us.  The life death, and resurrection of Jesus is the testimony that the Divine presence is with us. Always.
“He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you” Jesus confronted the horrors that humanity face, and the miracle of that first Easter morning, was that when confronted with them he met them all and overcame. The jaws of death were not able to hold him.  We are called to walk on, to face the future, knowing that Jesus will be with us, just as he told us.
Now who can explain the inexplicable?  Mark, unlike the other gospel writers, does not share stories of encounter with the resurrected Jesus.  What he does share is that we will meet that Jesus in our daily lives. Each encounter will be unique. Each miracle we encounter will be new.  The resurrected Jesus will meet us and guide us.  Those chapters are written in each of our lives.  We are able to share them with one another. The story does not end but continues. The chapters are continuing to be written in our lives today and into the future.
 Let us continue the journey. “There you will see him, just as he told you”.