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Easter Sunday
Light of Christ Anglican Church
The Rev. Mike Moffitt, April 12, 2020



When Jesus Sets You Free

Text: John 20:1–18

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Praise the name above all names! Jesus Christ our Lord and King is risen!

This Easter is different from any other that I have experienced and that’s probably the same for you. We can’t be together because of a very dangerous virus. Many have been infected and around the world, a lot of people have died from it. It is a reminder that we are not God, but need him desperately. We are all self-quarantined for our own good and the good of others. The upside is that we have the time to spend in prayer and fellowship with God and feeding on the nourishment of his holy word.

Today, I want us to see the story of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and how it totally changed the lives of the disciples who were also self-quarantined for fear of their lives. They were followers of Jesus Christ who was crucified as a renegade and blasphemer. It would be guilt by association, as if they were themselves a virus that must be silenced. Let’s consider the story of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and how it set the disciples free, and has been setting people free for over 2,000 years.

Let me begin with a story that illustrates what I mean.

I grew up during the ’60s where the drug culture moved out of the impoverished large inner cities where those addicted to heroin and opium laid in doorways, gutters, and abandoned buildings, and then it moved to Main St., USA. I had friends in Roanoke that overdosed and others who had permanent brain damage from LSD, mescaline, and other derivative hallucinogens. Slowly but surely heroin and opium arrived in small-town America and the results were horrible and still are today. Suddenly there were drug rehab programs designed to help addicts get free of the craving that was ruining their lives and often the lives of their families. For the most part their success rate was very low. Unfortunately, a large percentage of the time it didn’t last, and addicts were right back in the middle of it.

I have one friend who was seriously addicted to heroin and crack cocaine for years, it literally ruined his life and almost broke his family. I didn’t know Luke during those days but met him later when he had been clean for a couple of years. We talked about what it had been like to live for the next fix and he made the comment, “I was actually afraid of who I was. There was nothing I wouldn’t do to get the money for the next fix. I would lie, cheat, steal or whatever it took.”

Finally, someone recommended the Teen Challenge program in Harrisonburg, VA. Luke was sick and tired of who he was, so he agreed to go through their program where ultimately, Jesus is the cure. It was there that Luke had a life-altering experience with Jesus Christ. I met him a year after he graduated from the program for addicts and then from the training program to be a drug counselor. He was so in love with the Lord Jesus and everything in his life revolved around the Lord.

This month Luke celebrated nine years clean and posted a video on Facebook of his testimony. I’ve been with him on several Emmaus walks and got to know his mom and dad, who was a pastor himself, now retired. They talked about what it was like to suffer with their son and the tears that they shed all those years of Luke’s addiction and incarcerations because of drugs. His mother died of cancer a few years ago but was able to have the joy of seeing how Jesus had totally changed her son’s life. Before she died she posted a video telling him how much she loved him and how proud she was that he was following Jesus Christ.

Luke is one example of someone who is so grateful to Jesus for setting him free and now lives his life to tell anybody and everybody about what Jesus did for him. When Luke talks about Jesus you can see in his face and hear in his voice the intimacy that he has now in Christ. He reminds a lot of Mary Magdalene.

Let’s take a look at the gospel of John 20:1–18. On Good Friday we read the Passion account from John 18:1 to 19:42. At the end of that passage, Jesus’ body was placed in a tomb made available by Joseph of Arimathea, a follower of Jesus. Because the Sabbath was upon them he and Nicodemus did the best they could in the time they had before sundown and the beginning of the Passover Sabbath. As a reminder let me read to you John 19:38–42,

After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So, he came and took away his body. 39 Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. 40 So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41 Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.

The Jewish Sabbath (Shabbat) is from a few minutes before sunset on Friday to Saturday evening after the sun goes down.

So, our story today begins at John 20:1,

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb, early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.

The other Gospel accounts say that Mary Magdalene and other women went to the tomb early in the morning. John chooses to focus on Mary Magdalene because the first part of the story of coming to the tomb has as its main focus the relationship between Mary and Jesus. It’s been suggested that John’s gospel goes further in describing that it was not only early but dark, possibly his way of symbolizing the state of Mary’s condition and that of the other disciples, including John. It’s the prelude to the great light that was about to shine into the darkness of their thoughts and give them the ability to see more clearly than ever before.

The Gospel of Matthew 27:62–66 tells the story of the tomb being closed up, sealed, and guarded by Roman soldiers. It stayed that way until the first day of the week…early…while it was still dark.

Mary does not go into the tomb but instead runs back to tell the disciples that the stone had been rolled away. She likely assumed that since the tomb was open that someone had stolen Jesus’ body. It was not uncommon for thieves to break into tombs. Historians of the first century claim that one of the Caesars (they’re not sure which one) made tomb-robbing a capital offense because it was such a common problem. Anyway, Mary goes back to inform the disciples that the tomb is open. It’s here that John adds a little bit of humor. You’ll notice that in his gospel that he never refers to himself by name, but as “the one whom Jesus loves” or in this case “the other disciple”. Listen to John 20:3–6,

So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb…

A little glimpse of the personalities of Peter and John is seen here, and it makes them more real and endearing to me. It’s believed that Peter, who was married, was the oldest of the disciples and John was the youngest. The humorous part is that John, in his humility doesn’t feel the need to give his name but he still wasn’t going to let it pass that he outran Peter. It’s also not surprising that John didn’t immediately enter into the tomb but wanted to observe the scene before going in. He saw the grave clothes and likely assumed that a body was there. If it was then he would become ritually unclean. Peter who seems to always be the impetuous one, just runs right in.

The next part is very interesting once you understand the burial practices of that time.

He saw the linen cloths lying there and the face cloth which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded in a place by itself.

If someone decided to steal the body, then they wouldn’t have removed the linen cloths. Also, remember that Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus used 75 lbs. of spices and ointments to wrap up within the cloths in several layers. The mixture of the ointments and spices would dry and harden the linen cloths. The only way to remove all that is to cut and tear each layer. What Peter and John found was the cloths intact but clearly there was no body within. It was as if Jesus had simply evaporated. The fact that the cloths were folded neatly would indicate that someone was in no hurry but took the time to leave everything orderly. There were clues all over the inside of the tomb that should have shown them that Jesus was in fact alive. Suffice it say that the disciples were puzzled and still “did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their home.”

This is where the scene shifts back to Mary Magdalene.

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.

In Luke 8:2 we are told that Jesus cast seven demons out of Mary Magdalene and that she continued, along with other women who had been healed by Jesus, to follow him and to help support him “out of their means.” Most of us can’t conceive of what it would be like if we were demon-possessed, much less with seven demons. We see the story of the man possessed by a legion (many) demons in Mark 5. No one could control him as he even broke the chains that they used to bind him. Once Jesus set him free of the demon’s he wanted to follow him. Instead he’s instructed to go throughout the 10 cities of the Decapolis telling all that God had done for him. This pagan would become the first evangelist to the Gentiles.

Mary Magdalene, as a woman, would not have been listened to because of her gender. It’s helpful to understand that Jesus not only set Mary Magdalene and other women free of demonic possession, but he allowed them to follow him as a rabbi. In that culture rabbis did not allow women to be their students. Mary not only was allowed to follow Jesus but as we see in this passage was given the honor of being the first of those who followed Jesus to see him as the risen Lord.

Let’s take a look at John’s account of Mary’s encounter with Jesus. John doesn’t tell us how long after he and Peter left that Mary decided to take a look inside the tomb to see what they had seen. Her grief was still fresh as it had only been three days since Jesus died and was placed in the tomb. I suspect that part of her dealing with the sorrow in her heart was to stay busy and at least complete the burial ritual that Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus had started but couldn’t complete on Friday. Plus, it must have been very difficult to be around all of Jesus’ disciples at that time. I think Mary was weeping because even this had been taken away from her.

It’s when she looks into the tomb that she gets a glimpse of something that she didn’t expect. She sees two angels in white sitting where Jesus’ body had been on Friday. One on the side where the head had been and the other at the foot. Much like the cherubim at each end of the mercy seat in Exodus 25:18–19. Usually in the scriptures when someone sees an angel they are terrified, and the angels have to assure them that they aren’t in danger. In this case it may have helped that they were sitting down and dressed in white. They are there to comfort her and so they ask, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

Mary’s sole focus is not on who they were but on finding out where the body of her Lord was. John Chrysostom, an Early Church Father of the 4th and early 5th century, suggested that Mary saw a change in the expressions on the angels' faces when Jesus appeared behind her, or maybe she just senses someone behind her and assumes that it’s the gardener. So she turns and asks him to tell her where he has taken the body so that she can go and take it away for re-burial. Jesus responds with the same question that the angels asked her, “Woman why are you weeping” but he adds another question, “Whom are you seeking?” Dr. Rod Whitacre in his Commentary of the Gospel of John makes this observation, “This question, the first thing the risen Jesus says, echoes the very first thing he said at the beginning of this Gospel (1:38). It is a question that reveals the heart.”

Mary is looking for the lifeless body of Jesus and possibly the last thing on her mind was that Jesus would be alive. It’s the next moment that brings everything back into focus. All the sorrow, pain, regret, shame and hopelessness just fade away when Jesus tenderly says her name, “Mary.”

She well knew the sound of Jesus’ voice and the joy that it brought her. It was like a sheep who knows the voice of its shepherd and turns to follow that voice and no other. “She turned and said to him ‘Rabboni’ (which means teacher.” John doesn’t tell us what Mary did but we can surmise by Jesus’ next line, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.” I can picture that the moment that Mary hears the voice of Jesus, that she falls at his feet and holds on tightly, both out of love and to make sure he is material, not a phantom. I can only imagine the depth of relief and joy or all the range of emotions pouring out from her at that moment. Total darkness to blinding and blessed light or freezing to death to being encased in warmth. It was definitely the opposite of what she was feeling just moments before. I think it was maybe different for Mary Magdalene than for most anyone else because this was the second time that she had gone from total darkness to the light of Jesus Christ as he set her free from demonic power that had a grip on her.

I’ve often wondered what it was like for Barabbas in Matthew 27 when the crowds were screaming at Pontius Pilate, “Crucify him, Crucify him.” All he knew was that he was going to be crucified that day and hearing the loud chanting of the crowds— well, I imagine his heart was pounding in his chest and fear gripped him. Moments later he hears the Roman soldiers coming to his cell. I wonder if he could even breathe as he anticipated the crucifixion and the pain that he was about to suffer. Then the guard opens the door and tells him he is free to go. Someone else, called Jesus of Nazareth, was taking his place.

I don’t think that Jesus was telling Mary to not cling to him because somehow he would be defiled in his glorified state. Remember in Matthew 28:9 that before he ascended the women were holding on to Jesus’ feet and worshipping him or later, in John 20, Jesus tells Thomas to touch to him verifying that he wasn’t a phantom. Mary was likely holding on to him so tightly because she had lost him once and had no intention of letting him slip away again. Jesus knew that he could not stay and that it would be better for him to go back to the Father (…more on that in a moment). She needed to understand that he had not merely recovered but had truly resurrected. So, he tells her, “Go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”

Mary needed to understand that this wasn’t the end of the story but a continuation of God’s plan of redemption. Jesus wasn’t going to take over the throne in Jerusalem but was going back to be seated on His throne next to His Father in Heaven. What the disciples had longed for was as nothing in comparison to what Jesus had accomplished. So, he sends Mary on a mission to tell the disciples that she has seen him and convey what he had said to her.

The message reveals that something important had changed. This is the first time in this Gospel that Jesus has called his disciples his brothers. This implies that Jesus has not put off his humanity in his resurrected body but that a new level of intimacy between himself and the disciples has begun.

It’s interesting that Jesus’ first message is not “I have risen from the dead.” Instead his focus is on his return to the Father. He spoke of this often in his teaching especially in what is called the “farewell discourse” in John 14–17, right after the Last Supper. Jesus’ focus was always on the Father and returning to Him would be his greatest joy and it should be for the disciples too. Jesus' work here on earth was finished and he could now return to “My Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”

His returning to the Father was to be seen as great news for the disciples, not just because they share in his joy, but also for their own condition. For when Jesus returned to the Father he would send the Holy Spirit, who would teach them all things and complete their union with the Father and the Son. This new relationship had already been established through Jesus' death and resurrection, but the disciples would enter into it fully when the Spirit came. Because God is Jesus' Father, he is also their Father; because he is Jesus' God, he is also their God. They are taken up into the fellowship that unites Jesus and the Father. Jesus is the point of contact between the disciples and the Father.

So, this Easter is different in that people are not able to meet together in celebration as we have in the past. However, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the question, “Whom are you seeking?”

Through our Lenten journey and Holy Week, we have discovered that almost no one understood who Jesus really was. It’s a common problem even today over 2,000 years later. Remember my friend Luke who was at the place in his life where he had lost all hope. He tried doing things on his own but instead found that nothing he did brought him the internal peace that passes all understanding. So, he took drugs as a temporary way to find joy but instead found how this life can feel a little like Hell. It’s when he gave up and surrendered his life to Jesus Christ that he found real, lasting peace and a relationship that will last for eternity. The same was true with Mary Magdalene and the disciples and for many millions down through the millennia. But it begins by answering the question, Who are you seeking? Is it someone to make you happy, and give you all that you desire, or have you come to the place where you realize that you are not the captain of your own ship and you don’t control your own destiny? Millions today are finding out how vulnerable they are and that life at its best is finite. Easter is the reminder that Jesus died and rose again to pay the price for your and my sins so that you could set free to really know what life is in Christ.

Let’s pray.

©2020 Rev. Mike Moffitt

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