Sermon Tone Analysis

The Spirit of Easter

You may know the story of a man who stood one day looking into a store window.

Standing next to him and also looking in was a little boy.

It was Easter time, and in keeping with the season the shopkeeper had arranged a setting of the crucifixion.

After a while the boy turned to the man.

“Those are Roman soldiers,” he explained.

The man said nothing but kept studying the window.

“And there’s Jesus,” the boy continued.

Still no response.

“They killed him,” the boy said.

By this time the man, having satisfied his curiosity, started to walk away.

Then he heard a patter of young feet behind him and felt a tug on his sleeve.

It was the boy.

“Mister,” he said, “I forgot to tell you the most important part.

He’s alive again!” (1)

The most important part - He is alive.

Jesus is Alive!

The resurrection is the defining moment of the Christian faith.

Our entire faith revolves around it-so much so that even our gathering together in worship on Sunday mornings is because of the resurrection.

Our worship on Sunday is supposed to serve as a reminder each and every week of the power of resurrection.

It's the reason that, even during Lent, we take a break from fasting on Sundays to feast and celebrate.

Resurrection day is so important that we spend weeks preparing for it through the season of Lent.

The liturgical colors change to white.

We fill our sanctuaries with flowers.

We often buy new clothes.

We give small gifts.

We celebrate with food and shouts of acclamation that, "He is risen!

He is risen indeed!"

It is a great day of celebration.

Jesus is alive!

Sin and death have been defeated.

But it would be a mistake to view this resurrection day as a one-time act that we observe and celebrate.

Because the power of the resurrection wasn't just that Jesus was raised from the dead but also that the power of resurrection was unleashed upon the world.

We can live in the power of the resurrection each and every day, we can share the power of the resurrection in a world plagued by sin and death, and we long for the someday resurrection of the dead.

We rejoice that Jesus was raised, but we also rejoice that we too are continually being brought to life.

This is why baptisms are often celebrated on Easter-because, when we are baptized, we are united to the death and resurrection of Jesus.

As the people of God, we are a resurrection people.

The Garden

Mary Magdalene is so filled with grief that when she encounters Jesus, she thinks he is a gardener.

John is illustrating a theological truth here: the sin that entered the world in the garden is conquered in this new garden, through resurrection.

Jesus is a gardener of sorts, causing new life to grow where there was once death.

While there is theological truth and depth to the garden imagery here, Mary isn't in the right state of mind to be making those deep theological connections.

She just knows that her friend died, and she misses him.

And more than that, she's grieving her mistaken hopes about who the Messiah was and what he would do for her and her people.

When we experience such deep grief as Mary is in this moment, it can be difficult to focus on any bigger picture.

There have been studies done on the effects of grief on the brain, and it turns out that our brains can shut themselves down to only the most basic functioning levels, making abstract and critical thinking difficult if not impossible.

This science could account for Mary's confusion and inability to recognize Jesus.

Pastor Kelly Fryer lost her father when she was eleven-years-old.

She writes that late one night, a police officer and a chaplain visited her family’s home.

The officer told Kelly’s mother about the accident that took her father’s life.

He accompanied Kelly’s mother to the hospital to claim her husband’s body.

Meanwhile, the chaplain was left behind to comfort Kelly.

Kelly was just a little kid suddenly hit with this heartbreaking news and she needed someone to help her deal with the grief and loss.

And that chaplain stood in the middle of the room and didn’t say a word.

He didn’t know what to say or do, so he didn’t do anything.

Kelly can look back now, as a pastor herself who has counseled countless people in similar circumstances and feel some compassion for the chaplain.

But she still remembers the pain of that night and his inability to deal with it.

With her emotions still somewhat raw, she says simply, “Silence was not an option.”

(2)

Mary’s friend and Messiah is dead.

Her only comfort is in being able to honor his physical body-and now she cannot even do that.

Of course she doesn't recognize Jesus!

She isn't looking for him as resurrected.

Mission and Gospel

When Jesus speaks Mary's name, there is a powerful moment of recognition.

Jesus sees her, knows her, and calls out to her.

She is not just another person grieving-she is his disciple, whom he loves.

After she recognizes and names Jesus in return, she is told to go.

She is now given the task of evangelism as Jesus tells her to tell the others.

Jesus is once again doing something new.

Important tasks like this were never given to women because they were viewed as lacking credibility.

But Jesus empowers Mary to share the gospel, and she leaves their encounter changed.

She is now Mary who has seen the risen Christ, and Mary the evanglist.

A change in relationship is being made here.

Jesus tells her:

Go to my brothers and sisters and tell them, ‘I’m going up to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God

The disciples have gone from being disciples to be Jesus’ brothers and sisters.

They have become sons and daughters of the Father because of Jesus resurrection.

Through Jesus Resurrection, we have become sons and daughters of the Father.

Mary, who is the first to see the Lord, is to be the messenger of His Resurrection and Ascension.

Rather than allowing her to cling to Him, the risen Lord sends her on a mission to tell the others what she has seen and heard.

Like Mary, we are sent forth to announce that the body is not in the tomb, for He is with the Father in resurrected glory.

This encounter with the resurrected Jesus teaches Mary that resurrection is something to be shared, not hoarded.

We are called to be a resurrection community, called out of sin and death, just like Mary and the disciples.

We live in the hopeful expectation that, just as Christ was raised, we too will one day be raised.

With that hope, we go into the dead places of the world and breathe resurrection into them, joining the Holy Spirit in the good work of sowing seeds of resurrection.

New Life from Death

Living the resurrected life means walking the hard road to the cross, which means laying down our greed, selfishness, pride, and all sin.

It also might mean laying down our very lives for those around us.

It means doing hard things and going to unexpected and hard places.

We go into the worst places of the world, trusting in the hope of resurrection.

Resurrection people do not fear the worst places but seek to bring hope, and the light and life of resurrection, into them.

Resurrection people know that, in the power of the Spirit, we can do hard things.

“Pastor Stephen Brown says he was devastated after his younger brother, Ron, died suddenly of a heart attack.

Ron was only in his forties, a popular district attorney, a terrific father.

Stephen never even got the chance to say goodbye.

Several weeks after Ron’s death, Stephen decided to visit his brother’s grave.

It was a cold, rainy afternoon in late winter.

Ron’s grave was not yet marked, and Stephen couldn’t find it.

As he trekked through the mud, his grief overwhelmed him.

Standing in the rain, Stephen began sobbing.