He Will Swallow Up Death Forever

Scripture Lessons: Isaiah 25: 6-9 and John 20: 1-18 Sermon Title: He Will Swallow Up Death Forever Preached on April 1, 2018 In addition to being Easter Sunday, today is April Fool’s Day, and I was reminded of that when, early this morning, getting ready for the Sunrise Service at Kennesaw Mountain, I stepped into the shower to see that I was joined by the largest spider I’d ever seen. The spider was plastic, but it’s hard to tell the difference between a real spider and a plastic spider early in the morning. And because it was early, when I was getting breakfast together, I didn’t want to turn on too many lights and I was just kind of feeling around the kitchen when my hand rubbed against a big old cockroach – which also turned out to be plastic, but I didn’t know that at the time. It was still dark. Both the spider and the cockroach were planted by our daughter Cece, and after all the commotion I could hear her and her sister waking up, and decided that I’d just hide their baskets and tell them that the Easter bunny had decided not to come see them this year. I didn’t really do that, but the point was made plane to me this morning: it is easy to be fooled early in the morning. It’s hard to see in the dark, so I can understand why Mary, who saw the stone rolled away from the tomb that first Easter morning so long ago, failed at first to understand what it all meant. You noticed how the Gospel lesson began: “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb.” Now was just that stone enough to convince her that the light was still shining? Was this heavy stone rolled away from the mouth of the tomb enough to convince her that hope was alive? That her savior was risen from the dead? As we read, no it wasn’t, and that’s because it’s hard to see clearly when it’s still dark. So, she came to the tomb, saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb, and ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Isn’t that something? Just like a child who wakes up in the middle of the night, sees a shadow on the wall and assumes it’s a monster, Mary saw the empty tomb and assumed someone had stolen her savior’s body. When she first came to the tomb, while it was still dark, she saw the stone rolled away and jumped to the conclusion, not that he had risen from the dead like he told them he would, but that some grave robbers came along and stole her savior’s remains. And why would she think that? Because that’s what we all do, for it’s hard to see clearly when it’s still dark. It’s easy to be fooled early in the morning. As I said before, we went out to Kennesaw mountain this morning, and Libba and Wilkie Shell offered to give me a ride. Of course, I accepted, because that early in the morning I might have gotten lost. I was preaching, wondering if my pants were on backwards early this morning. Why? Because it’s hard to see clearly when it’s still dark. Everything looks different. You make mistakes. You can’t think straight, and everything seems just a little bit worse than it is. Preachers used to tell newlyweds, don’t ever go to sleep while you’re fighting. Stay up and settle it before you go to bed, but the problem is, the more tiered I am, the worse I get. The more illogical and the less kind. If you ever need someone to make a mountain out of a molehill wake me up at 2’oclock in the morning and I’ll be sure to convince you that the world is falling apart. Does it ever seem that way to you? Guns in schools. Self-centered politicians. Bombs in North Korea. Children going hungry. Opium epidemic. Human trafficking. The list to prove that our world is falling apart just grows and grows. And to make it worse, the news comes on in the evening after dark or in the morning before we are in our right minds, so it’s hard to see the world clearly. Things seem so bad some days, that it still feels dark even when it’s noon. But listen to what happened with Mary next. Simon Peter and the other disciple went into the empty tomb that Easter morning so many years ago. They saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. This is an amazing thing to see, but they don’t see it clearly. It’s still dark out, and so they just go on back home. Mary on the other hand. Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; as she wept, tears clouding her vision, she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” You can just about answer this question for her. Because he’s gone, or so she thinks. Because the only man who ever took the time to see her, and I mean, really see her, is gone. Because the one who filled her with hope, who lit up the world with possibility, seems to be like a candle now burned out. Had we been there to ask, she would have said, “I cry because I believed and now my doubts overcome me. Because I was found but now I’m lost again. And because I just wanted to bury him, but “they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” It’s still dark out you see. She isn’t seeing clearly, and that’s understandable because it’s hard for anyone to see clearly when the darkness of grief consumes them. You can understand why she can’t see the light, because it’s still dark out and the shadow hasn’t lifted, but then a man said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, because it was still too dark out to recognize his face, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Then, Jesus said to her, “Mary!” Do you know what that was like? To hear your name called? In the shadow of a dark room, someone calling your name can be as uplifting as had they switched on the lights and all at once you can see clearly the truth. Jesus said to her, “Mary!” and all at once the shadows lifted, the darkness was cast out, because the light of the world called her by name. But there were signs before that, weren’t there? Signs that she couldn’t see because it’s hard to see in the dark. There’s a truck that uses our church parking lot early in the morning and late in the evening. They park out there when it’s still dark because they catch stray cats to spay and neuter them. I’m glad that they do this, but late one evening someone drove up there because they thought it was a food truck. I wonder what they ordered, but my real point is this – it is still dark out there in our world today. It’s still hard to see, but look out on the world, not with fear, but with faith. Look for the stones rolled away, and when you see them, don’t assume that your savior’s gone. When you see his linen wrappings lying there, don’t you dare just go back home giving up on hope. And when you hear a voice, whether from a preschooler or a gardener, listen closely, for God is speaking still – in the midst of so much darkness God still speaks light to our shadow. The Prophet Isaiah said it like this: He will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations. For he will swallow up death forever. The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. And I say, he has done it. On this April Fool’s Day the world can call us fools all they want. Still I say: That he is risen. He is risen indeed. Amen.