A, Resurrection of our Lord - Easter Sunday - Matthew 28:1-10 "Thunderstruck"
Most of our lives we tend to seek the extraordinary. However, when the extraordinary occurs, most seem to shy away from it in fear. We desire the spectacular but when it comes, we’re not usually capable of handling the sudden and massive change that the spectacular brings. Most events are made extraordinary and spectacular by their suddenness and their ability to change the status quo, and therefore, they often cause pain and suffering of some kind.
Probably the most extraordinary events to take place in a human being’s life are being born, giving birth, and moving towards the uncertainty of death. Life is certainly an extraordinary event. Those who have been given the gift of giving life are truly blessed. And those who for whatever reason cannot give life usually long to do so, and might even suffer as a result of wondering what it might be like.
However, for expectant mothers, when the birth day comes and the child is born into the world, this extraordinary and spectacular event causes equally spectacular and extraordinary pain as well. And although most mothers enjoy the gift of carrying a child, the day of labour and child birth is approached with a mixture of anxious fear and hesitant joy.
At Jesus’ resurrection there were a number of extraordinary events, and Mary Magdalene and Jesus’ aunty, Mary - the wife of Clopas, also reacted with a mixture of anxious fear and hesitant joy.
We hear from Matthew 28: After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into
8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to
The resurrection of Jesus from the dead was certainly extraordinary above all extraordinary events. The sudden and immediate action of God the Father raising his Son to life after bearing the sin of humanity on the cross and then into the grave, was one that shook everyone and everything, both guards and women — and all creation too.
Twice in three days the earth shook. The soldiers guarding tomb, froze with fear. These strong living men, shook and became as though they were dead. The dead whose graves broke open on Good Friday, at the first seismic event, now appeared in
The women on their way to the tomb were also confronted with a ‘whiter than snow’ heavenly being sitting on the stone that had been rolled away from Jesus’ tomb. On telling them that Jesus had been raised, they were sent to tell the disciples the news, but did so with confusion and uncertainty, but also with joy and hurriedness. And during their anxious but joyful journey, they were confronted by their Risen Lord, and they fell at his feet and worshipped him.
These women acted as though they were thunderstruck! They were shaken by the extraordinary man who shone like lightning when the earth shook. And they shook just as much as the rest of creation, at the resurrection of he who created creation’s very existence. As we move forward towards the great and spectacular day of our resurrection we too can expect to be shaken by extraordinary events as God breaks all living and dead free from our wombs and tombs of sin and death. Our old world experiences will be shaken as we’re born into the extraordinary existence of eternal life with God in heaven.
In fact we already experience pain as the resurrected Lord grows and stretches us. It’s been this way since our baptism, when the resurrected Lord was conceived in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. And as we grow in Christ, and he in us, we do suffer growth pains. And we will also experience the final birth pains as we are delivered from this life into eternity through the birth canal of death and resurrection.
Before Jesus died he spoke about these events that will shake our old world existence, as it is born anew at the hands of God’s final redemption. These events will be extraordinary and spectacular, and perhaps their enormity and size might fill us with the same mixture of fear and joy, as that of the two women who witnessed the resurrection of Jesus some two thousand years ago.
But as thunderstruck as we might be, Jesus’ word which foretells of our resurrection, through the shaking of creation in the last days, is his word of comfort, given to relieve our fear and worry when these things do happen.
As we sail though the treacherous waters of this life we can expect to be shaken. But even as we’re tossed about we know the Risen Jesus rests with us. We hear from Matthew 8: Jesus got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without warning, a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” (Matthew 8:23-27)
What kind of man is this who rests with us even when we are thunderstruck by the extraordinary events in our lives and in the church? This man is the Risen Son of God, conceived in us bringing us from the darkness of the womb and tomb into the new day of his eternal glory.
And Jesus also tells us: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:4-14)
Like Christ we might desire this cup of suffering to be taken away from us, but as we know Jesus was raised and now lives in all glory, we too are called to trust our Heavenly Father who will deliver us from death in resurrection and into the life God seeks for us and all creation is groaning for us bear.
See to it that you don’t turn from the one faith in Christ to a quasi-faith in yourselves dressed with a bit of sentiment to make it look like baptismal faith. See to it that you don’t grow cold and died as you pass though these extraordinary birthing events. These things will bring pain and suffering but open your hearts to trust that the Lord is leading you towards resurrection and eternal life.
Just as Jesus Christ was delivered from the tomb when the earth was shaken and the stone was rolled away, we too will be shaken and raised from our tombs of darkness so we will walk anew in the Heavenly Jerusalem gathered around our glorified Lord forever. Amen.
