Mark 16:1-8

Really, the message of the day has already been preached through what we have sung or have had sung to us.

In fact we expressed it in the first chorus of the first song.

Up from the grave he arose, with a mighty triumph over His foes, He arose a victor of the dark domain and He lives forever with His saints to reign. He arose. He Arose. Hallelujah Christ arose!

This is resurrection Sunday.

So what can I do in the next few moments to add to what has already been completely and clearly communicated?

Let me be honest. Nothing. I will share nothing new. We have all heard this account many times.

I am just going to rehearse the reality that all of creation has been telling since the beginning of time.

I don’t feel any pressure to be new and improved at all. I am content with telling the content that has been clear since the dawn of Creation.

Embedded in the creation are illusions to resurrection.

It’s almost as if it is embedded in every fiber and fabric of creation.

I tried to be intentional to notice this reality this week and it started on Monday morning.

First of all, as I headed east on Badger, I noticed a from my vantage point there was a massive ball of fire, 93 million miles away rising up once again in the eastern sky up and over the Cascade mountains. It has been doing that every day of it’s existence and every 24 hours there is a rhythmic reminder that the reality of resurrection is real.

Walked around my house on Monday morning after dropping Elijah off at school.

it is everywhere.

Pulled into the garage, and I pulled out my phone to snap some pictures of resurrection that surrounded my house.

(Pictures)

Each spring there is a natural resurrection that occurs. We see this especially in Whatcom County. The dormancy of winter gives way to the spring sun and life bursts back onto the landscape.

Tulips and Daffodil Blooms - The once-dormant fields erupt in vibrant color each spring.

Salmonberry and Currant Blossoms - These native plants bloom and their flowers attract hummingbirds and bees. It is a sign and symbol of seasonal resurrection.

Trees Budding along Chuckanut drive and around Lake Whatcom and Birch Bay. Deciduous trees that stood bare in winter begin to leaf out. Every bud on every birch tree located in birch bay are saying saying resurrection is real!

I have never experienced this because I am not a good fisherman, but apparently the Steelhead Trout are making their way back into creeks or in the Nooksack River to begin their migration upstream to spawn—a literal cycle of life renewed.

Farmers markets will begin to come to life with fresh produce, flowers, and many of them are filled with the sound of music.

All sorts of wildlife. Marmots, groundhogs, bumblebee, birds and black bears and ANTS!!!(Globs of ants everywhere)

Natural resurrection everywhere.

Life starts stirring beneath the soil and it send up sprouting evidences of life.

But all of that natural resurrection is pointing to reality of a supernatual spiritual resurrection that can happen in our dormant hearts when we let Jesus Christ live in them and reign as the rightful King.

We have been talking about this from the Gospel of Mark for some time now.

What were you doing on Oct. 8, 2023? Well, if you were here, you were hearing the first of 57 messages that have been preached from the Gospel of Mark.

Today, this series ends with a very familiar message that we have all heard many times before, but maybe this is the first year that you understand the importance of what you have heard.

Maybe this is the year we unite what we have head, with our understanding and action and if we do, it will change everything about us.

The resurrection of Jesus changes everything.

When we unite what we hear about Jesus with understanding and action, it will change everything about us.

We won’t talk about anything new today, but if we let what we already know wash over us in a fresh way, we ourselves might become new or at lease be renewed.

What happened to His first followers in the first century can happen to us 21st century followers as well.

Mark 16:1–8 ESV

1 When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” 4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. 6 And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Pray

Start at the back and work our way back just a few verses.

Mark 16:8 ESV

8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

This is how the Gospel of Mark abruptly ends.

“for they were afraid.”

This book gets us.

Fear. These women were afraid. Fear is a universal emotion. It doesn’t matter what culture, or context or country you grew up in. To be human is to have the common experience of fear.

Here these women are fearful. They are confronted with the most glorious reality of all time and they were afraid about it’s implications for their lives. And their fear kept them from being obedient to what they were called to do.

If you have been with us for any number of the messages throughout this series you will know that we have talked about the theme of secrecy in the Gospel of Mark.

Keep quite about this. Don’t share about that. Come away from the crowds to conceal this truth. Move away from the masses and into desolate places to discern in secret who I am.

It is what commentators refer to as the “Messianic Secret.” and now, in the final 2 verses of the Gospel, these women who were brave enough to be present at Jesus crucifixion to witness His death and see where the authorities entomb Him, now they are finally instructed to “go and tell,” and they cower in fear and “say nothing to anyone.”

Are you kidding me?

Oh, the irony.

This book doesn’t just speak to us, it describes us!

In the last few chapters Jesus, 3 times explicitly talks about rising again from the dead after the authorities kill Him and now it happens and they are gripped with fear and disbelief and they flee and fail to obey!

You too, might be struggling with fear. You too might be struggling with disbelief in the message of Easter morning as well. But just because you are struggling with believing or are afraid of it’s implications, does not mean that it is not true.

Obviously, eventually these women got over their initial fear and became obedient to what they had been instructed to do. They tell the story of what they witness and now 2000 years later there are thousands of Gospel centered churches spanning the globe preaching the reality of what these women witnessed on that first resurrection morning.

They got over their fear and eventually obeyed. They communicated what they knew to be true to others.

We must do the same.

The Gospel of Mark started with God sending a messenger named John the Baptist to share what God was about to do and now in this last chapter He sends another messenger, a shining angel in an empty tomb to announce to a group of mourning women what God had done.

This messenger angel in Christ’s empty tomb tells them…

Mark 16:6–7 ESV

6 And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.”

Don’t be alarmed. Since you are seeking Jesus, go to where He has already told you He would be after He rose from the dead.

The angel is referring to the time in Mark 14:28 when Jesus said,

Mark 14:28 ESV

28 But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.”

Now this angel says, if you want to seek after Jesus, do what He has already told you to do. If you do what He tells you to do, you will see Him.

In order for them to see Jesus, they would have to obey what He said.

If we want to see Jesus, we have to obey Him.

Mark 16:7 ESV

7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.”

Go and Tell and See.

If you and I want to see Jesus we are going to have to seek Him by being obedient to Him.

Have you ever played hide and seek? How good are you at finding the hiders if you remain with your face buried on the couch counting to infinity? Chances are unless they are silly enough to try and hide under the couch cushions you won’t find them.

The angels says, “You seek Jesus of Nazareth…then go to Galilee because that is where He said He would be!”

In order to see Him they had to go and as they went they were to find the disciples and tell them the news!

Why Galilee? Well Galilee is where all the discipleship started in this Gospel.

Mark The Report of Jesus’ Resurrection

Galilee has been the place of calling, faith, compassion, healing power, and authority. By going back to Galilee where Jesus will be, the disciples go back to regroup and begin again the journey of discipleship.

We are called to believe to Good News of Jesus personally and then gather with others who also believe so that we can collectively publically proclaim what we believe.

The time for keeping secrets in this Gospel account are over. No more need for silence or secrets. Now is the time to Go and tell.

What were they supposed to share?

That He is Risen. He defeated death and overcame the grave. That is why He came and that is what He accomplished.

Hebrews 2:14–15 ESV

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

Through His death, He destroyed the one who had the power of death, the devil. He was sent to save us sinners by being slain for us.

The message you and I are hearing today is the message of the entire bible.

Jesus Christ is Risen…to which a well informed biblical literate congregation naturally replies on resurrection morning, “He is Risen indeed.”

We believe this and we share this with the inhabitants of the world in hopes that they believe it to.

It is interesting to note who the women were instructed to tell the Good News too.

Mark 16:7 ESV

7 But go, tell his disciples…

Resurrection power is only applicable to those who are His disciples. The benefits of the resurrection are only for disciple of Jesus.

A disciple is someone who has recognized that they need what Jesus has to offer them.

We are sinful and He is holy. He took the punishment that our sins deserved and in exchange gave us His righteousness.

He died on a cross and His death allows me to live.

A disciple is someone who has devoted themselves to being a life long learner of Jesus. When a rabbi said, “Come follow me,” it really meant, “Come be like me.”

Jesus Christ is the mold that our lives are to be pressed into. We are to be like Him. O, to be like Him.

Resurrection power is available for disciples only.

Even distraught ones.

Maybe the most glorious words in all this Gospel are two simple words buried in verse 7…

Mark 16:7 ESV

7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.”

The reason Peter was singled out was because a few chapters early his total depth of depravity was radically exposed as he lied and denied being associated with Jesus.

Peter’s failure was catastrophic, but it is not foreign from any of us.

We are all so messed up and yet Mark hints at Peters full restoration despite His incredible faults.

And that makes me realize that

Jesus doesn’t give up on true disciples, no matter how great our failures may be at times.

In this Gospel, Peter is the first disciple mentioned and here he is the last disciples mentioned and Peter has stumbled all along the way in his discipleship journey, but Jesus never gave up on him.

The angel wants to make certain that the women communicate to Peter, that if Peter obeys now and goes to Galilee, He will “see Jesus.”

It doesn’t matter what Peter had done up to this point in his life, all that mattered, at this precise moment is that he unites what he hears about Jesus and the acts on the message, by making his way to Galilee to continue his discipleship journey.

He must hear the message. He must believe the message. He must align his footsteps to correspond with the truth of the message so that he arrives in Galilee, and if he does that, he will see Jesus!

That is what Jesus is doing here today. He is call out each one of our names and asking all of us to hear the Good News.

If I knew all your names and if time permitted me to do so, I would look each of you directly your eyes and put my hands on your shoulder or direct your head and steer your eyes to make contact with mine and I would open my mouth and emulate the voice of Jesus and say your name and then tell you there isn’t anything that you have ever done, or could ever do that hasn’t been paid for on the cross.

Jesus paid the penalty for all of it. Past, Present, Future. Trust what He has done for you and be liberated from all your fears.

Even if you hear this message and want to run from it because you feel unworthy, He will leave behind the 99 and chase you down and take you up on His shoulders and rejoice and carry you home. And as He carries you, He will summon his friends and neighbors to rejoice with Him because He has found you His lost sheep.

That is what these words, “And Peter” mean for me and for you.

We started this message by saying there are illusions to resurrection embedded in every fiber and fabric of creation. It is how God designed His natural world. We can see evidence everywhere. But more important that the illusions of resurrection in the natural world is the reality of supernatural resurrection that can evidenced itself in our hearts when we believe the Gospel message.

John 17:3 ESV

3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

When we begin a discipleship journey with Jesus, it does not mean that we will never stumble or fail; it means that when we stumble and fail, we don’t have to be crushed under the weight of guilt and shame because Jesus has already nailed all that to His cross.

And He rose again!

And we believe what He said when He said,

John 14:19 ESV

19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.

Our eyes have never seen Our ears have never heard Our mind have not conceived Our little hearts have never quite learned how much love He has for us.

You and I have no idea how loved we really are by Jesus.

Discipleship is learning to revel in the reality of His radical love for us.

When Christ…

Ephesians 3:17–19 ESV

17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 3:20–21 ESV

20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

We all in this room may have been surrounded by this message our entire lives, but today is the day that we need to respond to its reality. Let’s let that resurrection power that was at work in the tomb of Jesus, renew our dormant hearts and cause new growth to happen now and into eternity.

He has risen. He has risen indeed.

Benediction

This incomplete ending, therefore, has Christ still waiting symbolically in Galilee for his followers to come and forces us to ask whether we will go to meet him there as well. It also prompts us to reflect on our own fear and silence.

Many will hear news during Easter Sunday worship that Jesus has been raised and will sing hymns praising God. All too many will then go home quietly to an Easter dinner and go back to the routines of their lives, largely unaffected by the news. They are neither filled with awe nor compelled to tell anyone about what they know.

Don’t be frozen with fear that makes you mute. Go and Tell and See.

Discussion Questions

What illusions of resurrection can you see in the creation?

The Gospel of Mark ends with the characters “saying nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.” Have you ever been scared to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and His resurrection with others?

Jesus told His followers in Mark 14:28, that after He was raised up that He would be in Galilee. In order for them to “see” Him they would have to “obey” His orders. What can we glean from this? Matt 28:16-20.

What is the significance of the words “and Peter” in verse 7? (Mark 14:66-71).