Lectionary for Easter Day
Acts 10:34-43
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
1 Corinthians 15:19-26
John 20:1-18 or Luke 24:1-12
Today is Easter Sunday, the Day when the entire Church celebrates the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead by God the Father. Our journey to the Cross began in Advent and later on Christmas Day when the Christ child was born. We have embraced a journey from cradle to grave, quite literally. But, today, we have gone beyond death itself, which the human race for all generations has treated as a mystery and a fact. How many times have we heard the saying, “Only two things in life are sure, death and taxes?” But, our witness today from either gospel lesson points to a witness held, now, for two thousand years and more. If one were to look for “physical” proof of Jesus’ resurrection, its not to be found. Yes, we always hear about the Shroud of Turin. But, there are hotly contested viewpoints on that artifact. The New Testament, which was written by Jesus’ followers, believed that Christ was raised from the dead. The witness is uniform. It is a witness, which came out of an experience. Paul bears witness to it as well in his writings. There are those who discount it because the laws of physics just don’t account for a resurrection. Nor do the laws of physics account for other miracles in the pages of scripture, such as a burning bush, with a disembodied voice, speaking to a shepherd, and later that same shepherd parting waters as an army bears down on a beleaguered people whom God brought out of slavery in Egypt. But, as Shakespeare said in Hamlet: “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”
And, one might add, that even though reason might say, “Resurrection? No way!” the witness is still there. What do we do with it? There are those who say that the Bible is only to be taken metaphorically or allegorically. The historicity of biblical texts in some corners has been dismissed. The Bible is a book of faith, though. It is not “history” as we view history today. The characters in its pages are real. The witness from Genesis through Revelation comes out of two communities “of faith,” first Israel, then the Church. To be sure, there is metaphor in the Bible’s pages. And every passage has a “kernel of truth” in it, which we, today, can integrate into our lives in order to become better human beings. And sometimes truth runs far deeper than the mere literal. Truth becomes truth when it impacts us, though we live thousands of years later than the biblical writings.
The idea of a resurrection was not a New Testament idea. It is also found in the book of Daniel. There was a belief that God would raise the dead, some to punishment, some to eternal bliss in heaven. Daniel’s vision of the last days includes this witness:
1“At that time Michael, the great prince, the protector of your people, shall arise. There shall be a time of anguish, such as has never occurred since nations first came into existence. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book. 2 Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, keep the words secret and the book sealed until the time of the end. Many shall be running back and forth, and evil shall increase.” Daniel 12:1-4 NRSV
Easter Sunday is not about Spring. It is about resurrection. We’re all grateful for Spring, because in Indiana, things can get kind of gloomy over the Winter. But, Easter Sunday is about a Promise, the promise that death is not the end for the faithful. And when I am with family members as a pastor of the Church when a loved one takes their last breath, there is no way that I believe that the story of Easter is simply metaphorical. For me, its real. Its real for me because I trust the witness of the Church of the Ages found in the New Testament.
And now, dear reader, I will simply ask, “Do you believe the witness?” Happy Easter to you. Christ is Risen.
No Comments »