Living Among the Dead

The Way is Shut

When I was a little baby, my Dad read part of a book to me every night. And this book isn’t something you would ever really think to read to a baby, but that didn’t stop Dad. And, if you’d like, I’ll give you a few chances to guess the book. I don’t think you ever will, but you can try. Except for you Sam and Jodi - because you know the book I borrowed from you.

My Dad read Lord of the Rings to me, because it is one of his favorite book series. And since then, I have developed a love of the series as well. In fact, the older I get the more I think I appreciate it. One of the reasons that my Dad and I both love the series is that J.R.R. Tolkien was a very serious Christian and his work in the book has a lot of great lessons about God and about faith.

The reason I bring this up is that there’s a moment towards the end of the story where the good guys are getting ready to face down the bad guys and they are hopelessly outnumbered. And Aragorn, who is one of the heroes of the story, knows that they will not win without help. He decides to go down the Dimholt Road, to go through the Dark Door, to walk the paths of the dead. And I’m going to quote the movie here instead of the book, because they’re warned “the way is shut, it was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it, the way is shut.” And that scene, that line always stuck with me. As I was preparing this sermon, that line kept coming up in my head every time I went over the verse that says “why do you seek the living among the dead?” It got me thinking, and I don’t know if Tolkien did this on purpose or not, but the paths of the dead could be a way to describe our condition as people.

Our way to heaven, our way to eternal life, our way to salvation is shut. It was made that way by those who are dead, by Adam and Eve, our first parents and the first sinful people, and the dead keep it that way. We are the dead, we are dead in our trespasses. Our sins and our mistakes and our failures and our shortcomings make us dead, make us deserve death.

The way is shut, it was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it, the way is shut - like the door of a tomb. And why would you seek the living among the dead?

The Living Among the Dead

Just a quick question for you guys, if I asked you to find living people, what different places would you go?

I noticed that no one said they’d go looking in a cemetery, or looking in a tomb. Because why would you seek the living among the dead?

Well, in a way, that’s exactly what Jesus did during His life on earth. Thousands of years ago, He was born in a manger in Bethlehem to parents who were both dead in their trespasses - seeking the living among the dead. He was celebrated by shepherds and Magi, men who were dead in their trespasses - seeking the living among the dead. And when He grew up, Jesus went to be baptized. He was baptized in the Jordan river by a guy named John, a man who was dead in his trespasses - seeking the living among the dead. He gathered twelve followers, twelve men to teach and to be His disciples, twelve men who were dead in their trespasses - seeking the living among the dead. And in His earthly ministry, Jesus healed people and fed thousands and did miracles and taught what it meant to be good, to follow the will of God to people who were dead in their trespasses. But in so many of those moments, His miracles and His healing were accompanied by four simple words, “your sins are forgiven.” And with those words, in that moment, men and women who were dead in their trespasses were forgiven, restored, and made alive. In that moment, Jesus had made the way to seek the living among the dead.

In the last week of His earthly life, Jesus went to Jerusalem. He gathered His disciples and shared a meal with them - these men who had received that forgiveness from Him, the living among the dead. He gave them bread and said “take, eat, this is my body,” He gave them wine and said “take, drink, this is my blood of the new covenant.” He gave a meal for those who seek the living among the dead. But that wasn’t enough, later that week, He was betrayed by a man dead in his trespasses. He was convicted by men, dead in their trespasses. He was nailed to a cross by men, dead in their trespasses. He hung in between two men, dead in their trespasses, before a crowd of people, dead in their trespasses. And even then, He turned to the man beside Him and promised him eternal life, promised him that today they would be together in paradise. Jesus was seeking the living among the dead. His entire life, He had sought the living among the dead, only for the dead to kill Him.

The way is shut, it was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it, the way is shut - like the door of a tomb.

He Is Not Here

And on that third day, the tomb was opened. The way was no longer shut. The women rush to the tomb and Jesus is not there. The angels waiting for them ask, “why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen!”

We rush to our accomplishments, to the things we do that will never be good enough, and Jesus is not there. Why do you seek the living among the dead?

We rush to our busy lives, to the idea that if we are always doing something it must be enough, and Jesus is not there. Why do you seek the living among the dead?

We rush to our health, to the idea that if we eat right or exercise enough we can make ourselves good enough, but Jesus is not there. Why do you seek the living among the dead?

We rush to our political beliefs, to the idea that if we vote the right way or elect the right person we might be justified, but Jesus is not there. Why do you seek the living among the dead?

All of the things we look to, we rush into, to try and justify ourselves, to look for life - they are little more than well decorated tombs. Why do you seek the living among the dead?

He is not here, but has risen! Jesus is alive and promises to be with us. With His resurrection, we are made alive again. We no longer look around us, we no longer look at ourselves for life - we look to Him. The Living One who overcame death for us!

We Seek the Living Among the Dead!

So we do not look for life in the midst of death, but we still seek the living among the dead. Not that we look into the tomb any longer for the source of our salvation, but we seek the living among the dead in the way that Jesus did - to be His hands and feet to bring life to people who are dead in their trespasses. We seek the living among the dead for comfort - to join together each Sunday and celebrate Jesus’ resurrection, to celebrate our resurrection. We seek the living among the dead calling people out of their tombs - proclaiming that Jesus is alive. We seek the living among the dead crying out the Way is Open for those people we are caught in their sins. We seek the living among - inviting them to join in the victory that we have been given through Jesus! We go into our lives, we go into this world - we seek the living among the dead because He was not there, He is risen! Amen!