Easter Late C

Easter Morning, Year C

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

Brothers and sisters in Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

When we were here on Friday, we dimmed the lights, to remind us of the darkness that came over the world when Jesus gave up His spirit. This is also the reason for the black coverings we used on the altar, pulpit, and lectern, as well as the black veil draped on the cross. The world, without Jesus, is a dark place indeed. It is without hope, without love, and without God.

And now, this morning, that darkness has been pushed back by the light. We are reminded that Jesus *is* the light of the world when we use white paraments to adorn the altar area. The Paschal Candle is carried into the sanctuary this morning to show Christ’s light returning to us, to scatter the darkness and to light our way. And as the other candles were lit from it, its own light does not diminish - sharing this light does not dim it. Instead, each light that is lit from it increases the light in the room.

The same is true of the Gospel: it does not diminish when it is shared; it grows and shines brighter the more it is shared.

This day, this story, this is what our faith is all about. We spent the season of Lent reflecting on our sins and failings of faith and seeking repentance. These are the very things which put Jesus on that cross. Lent was about confronting those parts of ourselves that we don’t want to confront, and owning up to them, and confessing them to God to ask for His mercy and forgiveness. And as we did that, as we laid them at the foot of the cross, Jesus took them upon himself. He willingly took them with Him on that cross and paid the price for them...so that we wouldn’t ever have to pay it for ourselves. And He suffered and died to pay that price.

The Old Testament witness tells us how that price was paid before Jesus came. Each year, Jews would make the journey to Jerusalem to bring a sacrifice to the Temple. This could only be done at the Temple, and only by the High Priest. If you were a Jew doing this, you couldn’t even see the sacrifice being performed, because he was behind a 4” thick curtain, inside the “Holy of Holies” - the innermost part of the Temple, where God’s very presence was to be found. Here the priest would kill the sacrificial animal and pour its blood over the altar. Then, when the ritual was done, you would be given the remains of the animal to be cooked and eaten. The payment - the atonement - for your sins was not complete until the meat of the sacrifice was eaten.

And so in Christ’s death, the payment was made… and more. Then He conquered death. He rose from the grave and showed that death did not have power over Him. Instead, He has power over death. And this is His promise to us: that we who repent and believe in Him will not die forever, but will live with Him forever. And we are given this promise in Baptism. What an incredible gift to be given: eternal life with the Triune God.

For those of us who have heard the Gospel story more than once, we know that Jesus made a habit of doing things in ways that were unexpected. His resurrection story was no different. From the very first moments of that Sunday morning, He was doing things in unusual ways. The news of His resurrection didn’t come directly to any of his 11 remaining apostles. No, instead this revelation was given first to the women who went to treat His “dead” body with spices. Now, why would Jesus do that?

Just as with the rest of His ministry, Jesus’ gift and His Good News is for everyone...not just His inner circles. Anyone can be a witness to this Good News, even those who we would least expect to be God’s choice. This is par for the course with God. He tends to use the least likely of people for His purposes. And on this miracle morning, He revealed an empty tomb to a group of women. He sent two heavenly messengers to explain it to the women, so they could tell everyone else.

And what happened when the women saw this? Well, they went and told the men, but the men took their description as “an idle tale, and they did not believe them.” (vs 11) And so Peter had to go and see for himself. And when he saw that it was true – that Jesus’ body was indeed gone – what did Peter do? He went home.

Here, in the middle of the miracle of Jesus’ resurrection, the fulfilling of the prophecy and the actual event of the Redeeming of the WHOLE WORLD, Peter is so moved by all of this that he … just … goes home? Seriously? What’s wrong with this picture?

I heard it said once that “who Jesus isto a person will tell you what sort of Christian they are.” Think about that for a second. If Jesus is just some figure you read about in a book, then his teachings and his commands are probably more like “guidelines” or “nice sayings” to guide you at some points in your life. But for those who believe not only that Christ *has* risen, but that Christ *IS* risen, He is so much more. He is a part of your life day-to-day, and He is with you always. He is with you in good times and in bad. He is part of your prayers, and He whispers in your ear when you read His Word. He is working on your heart constantly, conforming your will to His, drawing you to follow Him with each step you take.

We have a few advantages over Peter. We know how the story plays out. And so while Peter, standing in the empty tomb, only knew that Jesus’ body was gone, we know – right now – that Christ is alive! Peter would find that out later, but we already know. We know that Christ has defeated the ultimate enemy – death.

So what are we going to do with that knowledge? Are we going to look for Jesus in the wrong place? Are we going to go home and “marvel at what has happened”? Are we going to look for the living among the dead?

Jesus gave His disciples all the teaching they needed to know why the tomb was empty that morning. And yet Peter still had to go and see for himself. Now sure, it’s easy for us to say that we’d do better than Peter did that morning. Perhaps he was still hiding from the Chief Priests and scribes. Perhaps he was worried about Pontius Pilate and his men looking to make an example out of any of Jesus’ followers. But even if we don’t know why Peter had to go see for himself, or why he simply went home afterward, that doesn’t mean we can’t learn a thing or two from Peter.

Since we know that Christ is alive, we know that He is more than just a wise man with some nifty things to teach us how to be “good human beings”. We know that He has claimed us in Baptism. We know that our salvation is a free gift, and it is open to any who will believe in Him as Lord and Savior. And we know that we are called to share that gift with the world around us. We do that by following the command we heard Him give his disciples on Thursday: love one another.

Perhaps most importantly, we have forgiveness because of him. If you look around at the world today, you won’t see forgiveness very much, if at all. The world doesn’t believe in it. The world doesn’t offer it. The belief systems of the world , like secular humanism, are “a faith in self, in one’s works… they are based on something that human beings do, that I will value, and if you don't do this then I don't value you. The only thing for us as Christians that brings restoration into our lives is something that the humanist does not know, and that is forgiveness of sins. Humanism does not know the forgiveness of sins, what that means, how it is at the center of our lives as Christians, in the way in which we live with one another and interact with the world around us. So man is not the measure of all things and of all truth; but the God who made us and who, though we rebelled and fell from him, continues to love us and has given himself for us in the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross.” [Rev. Peter Bender, podcast, 3/31/2022]

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came down from Heaven to be among us. He experienced life as a creature of flesh and blood, he came to know what temptations we face, and how weak we really are. He taught us what God’s intentions for us truly were, and showed us that we had misinterpreted God’s Word, and we emphasized the wrong things. And He showed us, through multiple examples, what God really wanted. And then, when He had taught all that He needed to, He offered Himself up as the final sacrifice, to take away the sins of the whole world. When we come to His Table - this morning and each time we partake – and we eat the Lord’s Supper, we finish that atonement by eating His body and drinking His blood. The price has already been paid; we are enjoying this gift for free. We are redeemed and we are being restored.

That is what we celebrate this morning – that He did all that, and that He rose from the grave. The tomb is empty! He is alive, and He is with us, the living. Let us not take that miracle for granted. Let us share that Good News, and follow His command.

Christ is Risen! … Alleluia!