Morning Message Text: Luke 24: 1-12
Jesus Has Risen
1 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.
2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,
3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.
5 In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?
6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:
7 ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ”
8 Then they remembered his words.
9 When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others.
10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.
11 But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense.
12 Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.
Morning Message:
Today is a glory, glory, hallelujah moment! Does it feel that way to you? Our key verse for today is, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.” That is the first glory, glory, hallelujah moment. From your Lenten devotional, Henri J. Nouwen, from his book, Can You Drink This Cup?. “Being lifted up means not only being lifted up as the crucified one but also being lifted up as the risen one. It speaks not only about agony but also about ecstasy, not only about sorrow, but also about joy.” “Very early on that morning, the sorrowful women returned to the tomb to pay their respects to their crucified King. They had prepared their spices for burial. But they were not prepared for what they found. There was no dead Jesus where they laid him, only an empty tomb. They were stunned! But soon the words of the angels transformed their agony into ecstasy and their bitter sorrow into unspeakable joy.” [Lenten Devotions; Drawn to the Cross, p. 25] For these women, this is a glory, glory, hallelujah moment. They are not quite sure at first, but then they remember his words. It is so important for us, when our hearts are in turmoil and the world seems to be spinning out of control, we must have the word of God, the words of our Savior in our hearts and minds to remind us.
These faithful women got up early that morning. It was the day after the Sabbath; the first day that by Jewish law they could do any kind of work. They were prepared and they wanted to honor Jesus by taking care of his body. You have to admire their loyalty to their Savior. Remember, they thought that it was over; they had no hope; but they still were dedicated to doing what was right by Jesus. They moved forward in faith with no expectations of getting anything in return. Today, that is a strange concept. Doing something just because we should; not expecting anything in return. Now I don’t believe that we do things with that in mind, but I know that it is engrained in us that if we do what’s expected of us, that we will receive something in return. Even going to church. We don’t think about this, but we come to church, maybe serve on Session, give our offering, and try to do good works. We don’t really expect anything in return, but somewhere in the recesses of our minds, we do think that things will go better for us in life because of our works. Maybe this is what these women were thinking that morning, or maybe it was just the right thing to do. What motivates us this morning?
The story of Paul in the book of Acts is always held up as the defining moment in his life: a moment of transformation and conversion. Acts 9: 3 says, “As he journeyed, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven.” Some are blessed with a very enlightening experience when we come to Christ. For most of us it is not that dramatic. I want to share with you a story from one of my daily devotionals [In Moments Like These, David Jeremiah, p. 116]. “On a journey home from the University of Erfurt, where 21-year-old Martin Luther studied law, a frightening thunderstorm suddenly enveloped him. A lightning bolt flashed and struck so close that Martin, petrified, cried out, “Saint Anne, help me! I will become a monk,” Shortly thereafter, he entered an Augustinian monastery and eventually traveled to the little town of Wittenberg to teach at the university. While studying, Luther’s eyes were opened to the true Gospel message—salvation by grace through faith. This discovery was a Damascus Road experience for him, and he devoted his life to advancing the cause of the Gospel. We’re often on the road to life as we design it when God intervenes with storms, lightning bolts, mentors, and the Gospel message. Every one of us needs a Damascus Road experience.” We need a glory, glory, hallelujah moment. “It may not be as dramatic as Paul’s or Luther’s, but we need a moment in our life when we understand and receive the Gospel. No one is the same after an encounter with God. Martin Luther put it this way: ‘The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold of me.’” Do you have a glory, glory, hallelujah moment?
We come to celebrate Easter, but do we have an Easter faith? When we prepare to lay a precious loved one to rest is our sorrow muted by the joy and assurance of our Easter faith. Christ is risen! He is the resurrection and the life. Whoever lives and believes in him will never die forever. That makes all the difference in the world in the midst of our pain and tears and fears. Because he lives, we can face every tomorrow, knowing where we and all who have died in the faith will spend eternity. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! This statement will only matter and make sense to you if you have had your glory, glory, hallelujah moment.
In Christ’s Love and Peace
Pastor Bob
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