Resurrection Day! Alleluia! What joy is in our hearts as we cry, “Christ is risen!” Yet that is not the first emotion that greets Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they go to the tomb where Jesus was laid. Having just lost a friend that was closer than a sister, I can identify with the sorrow that these women must have been feeling as they walked to the tomb that early morning. And then, the stone that had been at the entrance was rolled away and sitting on the stone was an angel whose appearance was like lightning, his clothes dazzling white. Matthew tells us that the angel’s appearance so scared the guards that they were like dead men. So the first thing that the angel says to the women is, “Do not be afraid.” These same words were also said to them a little later by Jesus. Getting back to the angel, he tells the women “Come and See” and “Go and Tell” The women then leave the tomb filled with both fear and joy. It’s hard not to be afraid when something so amazing has happened. And then they see the Risen Savior and Jesus speaks to them. “And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him.”

What is going on? All at the same time we have a world of doubt, despair, and fear as well as a world pulsating with excitement, with resurrection, with new life. It is the world we heard Peter preaching about in Acts 10; it is also the world that Paul talks about in Colossians when he says we have died with Christ and we have been raised with Christ to new life, the new life that happens to us in our baptism. Rev. Thomas Long talks about these different worlds in this way, “Without even knowing that they had crossed the border, they left the old world, where hope is in constant danger, and might makes right, and peace has little chance, and the rich get richer, and the weak all eventually suffer under some Pontius Pilate or another, and people hatch murderous plots, and dead people stay dead, AND they entered the startling and breathtaking world of resurrection and life.”* Powerful, mind-blowing stuff! What is going on is a moment that changed the world and our hopes and expectations even some two thousand years later. Any of you that are familiar with the United Church of Christ’s identity campaign know that God is Still Speaking to us today, still telling us do not be afraid for with God in your heart you can do great things, you can welcome all peoples into a beloved community. I’m so thankful for this message whether it appears on TV commercials, banners on churches, or in the earthquake and resurrection of the first Easter. Because of this first Easter, we believe that even the very worst of actions, the crucifixion of Jesus, still cannot destroy God’s love for you and for me.

The deepest thing that I know about God is that God is love. I believe it is love that lasts no matter who dies, the love continues. Love is what keeps on living. So for me the message of this Easter morning is that love overcomes; love can bring about new life.

This very much relates to the first of three truths I want to share with you that Easter tries to teach us.** The first one is something I say so often and that is that God loves us deeply and that makes us okay. We only have to look at Mary Magdalene, one of the main characters in our Gospel reading. She had lived quite a sinful past when she met Jesus; it was hard for her to accept that her life was resurrected by her belief in Jesus. I wonder if she had a hard time believing that she had a mission in life—that no matter what her past had been that Jesus loved her, that no matter what failures or mistakes she had committed, that God loved her unconditionally. Do you all know how much you are loved by God? God loves each of you; in fact God considers you beloved. I often use an example of a parent’s greatest, healthiest love for their child to try to illustrate how much God loves us.

I want to share with you a story told by Rev. Ed Bacon about a poor rural family in the South. They were so poor they had few of the necessities of life and none of the extras. One year when the crops were especially productive, they had a little discretionary money left over. They wanted to purchase something for the whole family, something they had never had before, something that wasn’t a necessity. They got out the old Sears Roebuck catalog and after many hours of looking over the items, decided to buy a mirror for their house. Something they were not accustomed to. So they ordered it and when the deliveryman came, they all went out to meet him. They excitedly unwrapped the package and put the mirror on the wall. First the father looked at himself and slightly frowned. The mother looked at her image and smiled. The youngest child looked at himself and giggled. This family was seeing themselves for the first time. Finally little Willie came. When he saw himself he didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. You see Willie had been kicked in the face by a horse when he was a little boy and had permanent scars as the family had no means to get a doctor to correct it. Willie turned to his mother with tears in his eys and said, “Mama, did you know I looked like this all the time?” And his mama said, “Yes, Willie, of course I did,” And he asked, “And you still loved me?” Yes, Willie, I still loved you; your face didn’t make no difference. I love you because you’re mine.” My brothers and sisters know without any doubt in your heart that God loves you because you belong to God!!

The second truth on this Easter morning is that each of us needs a sense of mission in our life, something that we are involved in where we know we can make a difference. Related to this mission is the understanding that the whole human family is one. God created us, God loves us. Right now this world and our nation is so much involved in conflict and wars. The first casualty of war is the view that everyone is human. Just as whites used to dehumanize blacks in the days of slavery, we also try to dehumanize our enemies in war. How else could we allow the humiliation and torture in our prison camps. I’m a great people watcher. Whether I’m in a crowded office, on a park bench, or waiting in my car, I really like to watch people. I often think about how each person is made in the image of God. I like to think of the Christ in me meeting the Christ in the other person. I would encourage you to look at others and say to yourself, “There goes Christ, or “look, there is God”. It would be great if you could say that especially to those people that you have a hard time loving or getting along with.

David Wolpe tells a story about a man who once stood before God; his heart was breaking from the pain and injustice of the world. He was angry at God. He shook his fists at God. He said, “God, look at all the suffering, the anguish, and the distress in your world—why don’t you send help?” And God responded, “I did send help—I sent you.”***

What is God calling you to do?

The third truth, and maybe the hardest, is that there can be hope for a new way of life. We look around us: in Iraq, in Jerusalem, in Darfur, Sudan, in the homelessness of our country’s inner cities, in the economic injustices in the developing world. I know myself how easy it is to feel that there is no solution. And you know what maybe there is not a human solution but we need to open ourselves up to a divine solution. I think of the struggle of African Americans for their civil rights in this country; I think of apartheid in South Africa and their struggle for equality of all peoples. Sure these great gains may not be perfect in terms of treating people with justice and dignity but what a great progress had happened. Bishop Tutu has said, “When you run up against not having any earthly solution, God is ready with a divine solution.” I wonder if we can hear what God is trying to tell us in the areas of injustice and violence today. Can you hear? Is there a part that you have to play in bringing peace?

So my beloved faith community, remember how much God loves you and how worthy that makes you. Next figure out what it is that God wants you to do. A favorite quote of mine is from Fred Buechner, who says "The place where God calls you is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." Lastly keep hope alive, knowing that when there does not seem to be an earthly solution, keep listening for a divine solution. Most of all never forget that God is love, and love conquers all. Alleluia, alleluia.

*Westminster Bible Companion, Westminster John Knowx Press, p. 322.
**These ideas are based on a sermon by Rev. Ed Bacon, Jr. at All Souls' Episcopal Church in Pasadena, CA, 3/31/02.
***David J. Wolpe, “Teaching Your Children About God.” Quoted in sermon by Rev. Bacon, op.cit.