Remember, He is Risen
Easter Sunrise
Scripture: Luke 24. 1-12
Today is an anniversary of sorts. Not the date of anything in particularly meaningful, although on April 17, 1492, Christopher Columbus signed a contract with Spain to find a passage to Asia and the Indies and we know what that led to. And on April 17, 1521, the father of the protestant movement, Martin Luther was excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. We might not be here in this place if it was not for that. The anniversary that I am talking about happened well before either of those events. Today is the recognition for, the remembrance of the first Christian sermon ever preached, on that first Easter morning that boldly declared that Jesus Christ is Risen from the Dead!
We are here today, some 2000 odd years after that first Easter morning and that Gospel inspired sermon, once again to hear that declaration. A declaration that has changed us and changed the world. But that first yet, brief Christian sermon that was ever preached was not well received, in fact it was not even believed. I guess that takes the pressure off me today then doesn’t it. And who, by the way, was that first preacher of the story of the resurrected Jesus? One of the Apostles, maybe Peter or John? Nope it was none other than Mary Magdalene.
To set the scene, it was just about this hour of the day, in a setting not too dissimilar to this, with the Sun rising over the hill, and our scripture tells us the “women” took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. Traditionally in Luke those women are identified as Mary Magdalene, Mary mother of James and a curious other companion, a woman by the name of Joanna who was a servant of the man that played a role in condemning Jesus to death, Herold Antipas.
They came to finish the preparation of Jesus’ body that had been halted due to the start of the Sabbath on Friday. They arrived and found that the huge stone covering the entrance had been rolled aside. Cautiously crept in not sure what they would see. To their amazement and horror, the Lord Jesus’ body was gone. Suddenly two men appeared before them, clothed in shining robes so bright their eyes were dazzled. The women were terrified and bowed low before them. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking in a tomb for someone who is alive? He is not here! He has come back to life again! He is Risen from the Dead. It was with those glorious words then that the women ran off to find the Disciples to proclaim the amazing word of an empty tomb and preach the gospel, that Good News, given to them by two angels: “He is not here, He has risen!”
But the disciples gathered did not believe the women. They thought, the women were making it all up, were full of nonsense, were telling tales, that they were delirious, overcome by sorrow. On that first Easter morning, no one greeted the news that God raised Jesus from the grave and had defeated death and evil, with shouts of “Hallelujah, Praise God, Christ is Risen, Shout Hosanna.”
For believers and non-believers alike Easter is perplexing, and believing in the resurrection is difficult, isn’t it? It is difficult because we have never personally witnessed or experienced anything like it. So, who can blame the disciples or blame the women? But they heard what they heard.
The two angels that brought them the Good News to preach to the others, asked the women “Don’t you remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Messiah must be betrayed into the power of evil men and be crucified and that he would rise again the third day?” They were telling them to remember what Jesus told them when he was with them. And then they did remember his words.
The word in Greek that translates in this scripture as “to remember” in English is not found in any of the other Gospel accounts of the empty tomb, but it is found throughout the Old and New Testaments. Luke clearly believes that there is something to remembering. For instance, God remembers His people and God’s covenant and remembers our sin no more. This same word was used by a criminal on the cross, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (23:42). Jesus calls us to remember at the Last Supper (22:19), “do this in remembrance of me.” Remember me, said the criminal. Remember me, said Christ. Remember Him, said the angels.
Does Jesus just want us to recall his death every time we eat bread? Do the angels just want the women to recall that Jesus laid out for them what would happen so they would not be frightened? What does it mean to “remember”?
This “remembering” is more than just thinking about or recalling a fact, event, or person. This “remembering” requires some action in the here and now and some change moving into the future. (“Scripture: Luke 24. 1-12 Christian”) (“Scripture: Luke 24. 1-12 Christian”) This kind of remembering requires our participation! “It is integrating something or someone from the past into the present in a way that moves us forward as new beings, as changed people.” (“Scripture: Luke 24. 1-12 Christian”) The criminal wanted to be with Jesus, he wanted Jesus to put in a good word with God, to give him a chance, to know his heart and to take some action in his favor.
Jesus did not just want us to recall his suffering as we eat bread – but to bring his model of sacrifice and his spirit into our lives and to live differently because of Him. The angels did not just want to take away the women’s fear. They wanted the women to recall all that Jesus had taught them, all that they had witnessed and felt, and to live that out in their lives and to tell others – to proclaim the Good News of Jesus.
Christian preaching began when the women told what they saw (and did not see) at the tomb and when they shared the message of the angels, “He is risen! Remember what he told you?”
Christianity began by remembering what Jesus taught. Every lesson, every sermon, every hymn, every prayer begins by remembering. By remembering what God has done through Christ Jesus. Friends when we find ourselves perplexed or confused remember what you saw here today, remember what you heard here today, remember the first Christian sermon that was preached all those years ago, Remember, He is Risen, and your mortal life and your eternal life have been changed through faith and belief by what you remember. Friends went you are in doubt, when you are confused, when don’t know where else to turn Remember He is Risen! Amen