He is risen! He is risen indeed. Hallelujah.
Alright. Well done. I think you got it down.
Excellent. This is the moment that the entire
story has been pointing toward. All year long.
Every reading. Every hymn. Every reflection.
Everything in the rhythm of the church calendar.
Even Christmas. Every moment has led us here.
We remember the prophets. We remember the ones
in the Old Testament who kept saying time and
time again, God wants you to worship Him, to
follow Him. And the people just kept going and
doing their own thing time and time again. We
can't help but wonder, will anything ever change
as the people constantly fell short? But as we
kept hearing it, there was a hint. There is something
to come. There is someone to come. And then we
see the Christ. We welcome His birth. We see
His life. We see His ministry. We see Him begin
to change everything as He speaks about the Kingdom
of God. That the Kingdom of God is here. showing
a radical teaching that God is not just hoping
to someday find His way here, but that God is
with us. And that with every moment is to restore
what was broken, to take the ways in which sin
has corrupted and shattered our world, and to
go forth in God's name and to make it right.
But to realize that in Him, we begin to see that
we are no longer bound to the old expectations.
We are no longer held to the old pressures, the
old systems, the ways in which people are always
trying to measure up to something that we were
never going to fulfill on our own. Jesus did
not come to add more rules to make us feel that
we were never going to measure up in a world
where we never did. He came to show that the
old system is no more. But then, those who wanted
to hold on to the old ways, they were done with
Him. And they put Him on a cross to be rid of
the troublemaker that shook up everything. And
that, looking like it was the end, as Christ
is up there saying, it is finished. Does that
mean the story is done? Complete? ended the death.
That death, though, would not, could not hold
Him. This is about Jesus being risen. And everything
after this, everything that we do as the church,
everything we hope for, everything we live out,
everything is about what that means. instead
of running from God. And I know many of you still
are. Instead of running from Him, we are drawn
back to Him with forgiveness, with grace, with
life renewed. And it's all here. But even knowing
this, when we hear it, how many of us still have
a moment When we realize a resurrection and say,
what? Where did that even come from? He already
said it was finished when He died. Wasn't the
sacrifice the whole point? Being willing to give
of Himself. Wasn't that all that there was meant
to be? The resurrection still surprises us. We've
heard the stories. We've read the prophecies.
But in the moment, doesn't it still feel so unbelievable?
Sometimes it feels like the story took a turn
that we didn't expect. And here's the thing,
sometimes stories end in ways that make you think,
man, that came out of nowhere. Raise your hand
if you remember happy days. Right? Even if it's
the reruns. Yes. Fonzie, leather jacket, juke
machine, his favorite song every time, flirting
with all the girls. And you wonder year after
year, season after season, where will this story
go until one day you realize that the writers
have no more storylines and put him on water
skis jumping over a shark. And you wonder, where
did that come from? And yes, that's exactly where
the phrase came from. But if we're not careful,
that's what many people think of the resurrection.
It's a last -minute twist for people who want
to avoid feeling defeated after the religious
leaders got the best of Jesus and managed to
get rid of Him. It's like adding the extra section
to the end of the Gospel of Mark and wondering,
were they just trying to make a better story?
But no, that was never how this was. It's not
about going off the rails. This story is still
going exactly where it was always supposed to
go. It's more like nine seasons of How I Met
Your Mother. When you realize after nine years,
that's why the show was always about Robin and
not really about the mother. As we see the conclusion,
everything finally makes sense. The resurrection
is not an improv class. It is the fulfillment
of God's eternal plan. The angel doesn't say,
I've got a new story for you. He says remember
how He told you. We see it in the prophets. God
left breadcrumbs for centuries. Psalm 16, you
will not abandon my soul to Sheol or let your
Holy One see corruption. God's Holy One would
not stay dead long enough to decay. Isaiah 53
describes the suffering servant. After he has
suffered, he will see the light of life. Death
is not the final word. Hosea 6 -2. After two
days, he will revive us. On the third day, he
will raise us up. Jonah. Three days in the belly
of the fish, becoming a sign of Christ's own
time in the tomb. Descent. Confinement. Return
to life. Psalm 22. Beginning with despair, but
ending with vindication. the story of suffering,
becoming a story of hope and proclamation. Even
for those standing at the cross, though, even
with all of those prophets, it was still hard
to see. But could we blame them? Truly, could
we blame them? Life is overwhelming. We're standing
over here with the whole book in front of us.
But how often do we struggle to see the forest
for the trees, even the tree upon which He died?
How could they remember every prophecy, every
word, every sign, every teaching that pointed
to the resurrection? They had just lost someone
they loved. You know what that's like. It's easy
to say, I need to be busy. We need to go to the
tomb. We need to bring spices. We need to stay
in hiding since we might be next. Life keeps
moving even when everything feels like it shouldn't.
And sometimes, we're not willing to face what
we need to face because we just don't have it
in us. There may be grief. There may be fear.
How often is there stress? People were not careless.
They were overwhelmed. Haven't we all been? And
sometimes, sometimes you're just too close to
it. They were in the crucifixion. They were in
the event, inside the story. You can't always
see clearly when you're that close. Could we
really blame them for not putting it all together?
For not seeing how every prophecy, every teaching,
every moment was pointing here that He would
suffer, that He would die. that He would rise
on the third day. When we think about it, how
often do we forget, even in the everyday things,
even in the midst of life, our routines, the
things that we forget. Friendships and loved
ones who drift away from our minds because they're
not right in front of us. Forgetting to care
for the life, the body, what we've been given
by God. how often we're supposed to exercise,
how those New Year's resolutions pan out for
you, the sleep schedule, the eating better. But
more than that, we can't even remember to be
patient. What is it about our integrity, our
character, even the moral compass we were raised
with? We are so caught up in other people's anger
and mortified and completely frustrated. but
also telling these people, telling us which are
supposed to be our enemies instead of our neighbor,
and that we're supposed to turn on them and constantly
look for battles to fights that aren't even there.
And forgetting the very character of Christ,
not in lights, but on a cross. As believers in
Christ, we still end up forgetting what matters
the most. Resurrection. New life. The old being
buried, the new coming back again restored. Whether
you were baptized as an adult, and you said,
hey, this is the beginning of my new life, and
then slowly start to forget as it fades. Or for
those who were baptized as an infant, and you
didn't even have that memory in your mind, and
it doesn't stand out the same way when you stood
up and confirmed your faith. It's not that there's
no sincerity there, but it's not active the same
way. We don't remember what type of people to
be ourselves when life gets loud, life gets busy,
life gets heavy. Yet even when we forget what
matters most, when we forget God's will, God
does not forget us. God's plan unfolded exactly
as He planned. exactly as He promised. Even when
the people were too close to see it, God had
been writing the plan all along. It wasn't an
afterthought. It wasn't a footnote. The cross
was never the final chapter. The tomb was never
the last page. Jesus didn't pause, though, to
wait for everyone to get it. He didn't delay
the plan until everyone was ready. He went to
the cross and fulfilled what was promised to
be done for us. If this had been about trying
just to prove a point, it could have looked a
whole lot different. He didn't die just to guilt
us into obedience. He didn't die to show off
how righteous he was so that we would have to
then prove ourselves somehow. The Gospel is not...
Look how righteous Jesus was and He got punished.
Now feel bad and try to live up to Him. It's
not even Jesus died for you, so the least you
can do is live for Him. And I know how many times
I hear that in a week. That was the old religious
system that Jesus came to challenge. Everything
they tried, the mocking, the shaming, the killing,
could not stop God's plan. Evil could not have
the last word. The Gospel is about life. Life
that triumphs over death. Life that defeats the
sin that we keep committing. He died to defeat
death, to destroy sin, to bring life, everlasting
life, to all who trust in Him. Because life that
is given to us freely, as God said, I will conquer
evil with good. I will end death with life everlasting.
I will begin with My Son whom you crucified and
through Him you will have life too. And if death
does not get the last word over Him, it does
not get the last word over you. This is the start
of everything new. Even if it's today, without
the resurrection, life would be simple, ordinary.
We could just blend in. We could be like all
the other religions of the world. You know, all
the ones that say it's all about just being good
people. You know the ones. Follow the routines.
Do the prayers. Play it safe. Be good people.
Move through the world without thinking that
life is beyond this moment. Focusing on the here
and the now. Man, without a resurrection, we
could be like everyone else. But the resurrection
says no! Our life is more than just this life
now. We have been given life everlasting. This
is the beginning. Even when we die, it is still
just the beginning. And even for those of us
who have lost loved ones so recently, it is good
to know that now is the beginning of where their
new life begins in Christ. Because death is defeated.
Sin is forgiven. Our hope is not fragile. And
it changes everything. The sins you've committed,
the mistakes that you will make, they do not
define you. God has already loved you enough
to raise His Son. He has already seen us at our
worst and loved us so much that when He brought
His Son back to life, that became the beginning
of life for us as well. Because if God could
love us that much, when we were in the midst
of killing His own Son, How much more does He
love us when He has now brought His Son back
to life and death no longer holds the last word
over anyone? You have now heard the truth. Your
life so often distracts us. How often it is that
there are so many things that will try to pull
us down, try to pull us away from that message,
from that reality, from that life. And that's
why we're here today. To bring us back to what
the Gospel truly is. Because the Gospel is the
resurrection. Any number of reasons why you might
be here today. And maybe thinking it's a chance
just to enjoy a holiday. Or this is what my family
does. Maybe you saw the butterflies. Or maybe
you're just trying to make your mama happy. But
today... Today is not just to prove that all
things Jesus said was right. It's not just to
say, good job, Jesus, you win. It's to bring
us into that life ourselves. It is to bring us
not just into the memory of what God has done
or who God is, but to bring us into a story of
life everlasting. Even when you failed, even
when you will fail again, even when you're not
sure that you are ever enough. And doesn't it
get frustrating when we feel like we're never
enough? God has always acted in love. He raised
His Son, proving death does not have the final
word. And through that same Son, He offers new
life to you. The cross could have been the end,
but the resurrection is the beginning. Your life
now carries the promise that everything can be
new. Every day, every choice, every moment is
shaped by the reality of Christ's victory. Even
grief, even fear, even our doubts cannot undo
it. Would you follow Him today? It's so easy
to forget what really matters. To get caught
up in work and relationships, anger and frustration.
to forget the people who matter, even the ones
right in front of us, even the ones right here
with us. We can forget even to care for our own
selves, for our patients, for our integrity,
for our ethics, and then the resurrection bursts
in anyway. And it does not wait for us to remember.
It does not pause for us to catch up. It is a
reality that we step into whether we are ready
or not. The disciples were just as confused,
frightened, overwhelmed, and yet the resurrection
came. God's promise is being fulfilled right
before their eyes. We need reminding just like
they did. The reminder is that Christ lives and
everything is new. There are so many parts to
this. And I realize how many of you who have
maybe been here for so long, maybe have come
recently, or maybe are here for the first day,
and you're wondering what would this even mean.
And what it means is you have everything today
in Christ. So even when we don't understand,
even when life seems too loud, Jesus keeps the
promise. The good news of Easter is not that
we fully understand it all, but that even when
we forget, when we struggle, when we are so shouted
down and confused, when fear feels louder than
faith, Jesus keeps His Word. He goes to the cross,
and then He rises again. The tomb is empty, y
'all. Well, it looked like loss. is a promise
unfolding all along. A resurrection reminds us
of God's promise that you belong to Him. You
are His child, and nothing can take that away.
Sin does not define, and hope is not fragile.
Even grief, even fear, even doubt cannot undo
that, because every day is shaped by resurrection
life. and everything is different because of
what Christ has done. So wherever you may be
today, my hope and prayer is this. Believe what
I say, but trust in the One who gave it. Follow
Him where life is found. Please don't let today
be a footnote in a life where you have forgotten.
Because He is risen! He is risen indeed. Hallelujah.
Thanks be to God.