Finding Hope in the Empty Tomb

Speaker 1 0:32

Good morning church . Oh my gosh , the energy in this room . I am literally backstage weeping as I'm watching everyone going in the water and coming out in the confetti . I've never seen confetti at a baptism but it's my new favorite thing . Like I love it . Amazing . I'm not sure if everyone who has confetti stuck to them feels the same way . I don't know Church . So good to be with you this morning . I'm so honored , so grateful to Pastor Larry and your leadership for inviting me . Love the tradition of your church that has women preach on Easter A way to honor the original resurrection story . Give yourselves a shout out for that . I have a lot that I'd love to share with you this morning , so I'm just going to go ahead and dive right in , if that's okay . We are going to be in John 20 this morning , verses 1 through 18 . I'm going to read our passage and then I'll pray for us .

Speaker 1 1:29

Early on the first day of the week , while it was still dark , mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance . So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple , the one Jesus loved , and said they've taken the Lord out of the tomb and we don't know where they've put him . So Peter and the other disciples started for the tomb . Both were running , but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first . He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there , but did not go in . Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb . He saw the strips of linen lying there , as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head . The cloth was still lying in its place , separate from the linen . Finally , the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went inside . He saw and believed . They still did not understand from scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead . Then the disciples went back to where they were staying .

Speaker 1 2:31

Now Mary stood outside the tomb , crying as she wept . She bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white seated where Jesus's body had been , one at the head and the other at the foot . They asked her woman , why are you crying ? They've taken away my Lord , she said , and I don't know where they've put him At this . She turned around and saw Jesus standing there , but she did not realize that it was Jesus . He asked her woman , why are you crying who is it you're looking for , thinking he was the gardener ? She said , sir , if you've carried him away , tell me where you've put him and I will get him . Jesus said to her Mary . She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic Mary . She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic Rabboni , which means teacher . Jesus said do not hold onto me , for I have not yet ascended to the Father . Go instead to my brothers and tell them I am ascending to my Father and your Father to my God and your God .

Speaker 1 3:30

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news I have seen the Lord and she told them that he had said these things to her . Let's pray , jesus . We thank you for your presence here this morning . Thank you , god , that , however we came into the space today is the place that you want to meet us at , father . I pray that the power of your Holy Spirit , your resurrection power , would meet each one of us in places where we may have darkness , despair , disappointment . God , would you meet us there this morning and would you usher us into the new life that you have promised us ? Holy Spirit , come fill this place with your presence . In Jesus' name , amen .

Speaker 1 4:18

There is a lot happening in this short text . First of all , it's a dark morning . Mary goes to the tomb . There's a lot of running back and forth . They're in the tomb , they're out the tomb and of course , we have this transformational ending with the encounter with Jesus . Now they are at the tomb and , of course , we have this transformational ending with the encounter with Jesus . Now they are at the tomb because someone has died . Jesus has died . He's not sleeping , he's not resting , he's not taking the weekend off from his busy schedule . He has died .

Speaker 1 4:49

On the Friday prior , the Friday that we refer to as Good Friday , jesus has been crucified . The Friday that we refer to as Good Friday , jesus has been crucified . He's been laid in a tomb because that's where you put dead bodies . Nobody in this story is questioning if Jesus is alive . He's dead . But it's not just a person that died that weekend , for the disciples of Jesus hope died too . They'd put all their faith in Jesus . They loved him and followed him . Hey , this is the Messiah . He's going to come rescue us and take us into our kingdom . They then watched him die on a cross . This is not how the story should have gone . Jesus is dead , he's buried , and yet here we have in this passage , an empty tomb , and this is the tension of our text . I want to anchor my message today in one visual for us , and that is the visual of the empty tomb . This is where everything unfolds , this is where our story plays out . I'd like to invite you to fix your eyes on that empty tomb , because this is where darkness turns to light , grief to joy and desperation to deliverance .

Speaker 1 6:07

In 2019 , pope Francis gave an Easter morning sermon and in that sermon , he invited his listeners to reflect on Easter , the feast of tombstones taken away and rocks rolled aside . That is the heart of our celebration . But he also warned his listeners not to give in to a kind of tomb psychology where all our hopes and dreams become buried . Psychology where all our hopes and dreams become buried . And it's this idea of tomb psychology that really grabbed my attention as I was preparing for this message .

Speaker 1 6:42

Today , like Pope Francis said , many of us , in fact , do have a tomb psychology , a way of thinking that's defined by hopelessness . You might even say that we have tombs in our lives , places in our lives where we feel trapped or helpless . We can't move on , we can't break free , we're in despair or anguish , vaulted pain , buried dreams , entombed memories , places so void of hope that there's no life , no energy , no vision for the future . Maybe that's you this morning . Maybe you came in here today in your Easter clothes , smile on your face , but you know that you've got some tombs in your life , places that desperately need a word of hope , encouragement and maybe even a resurrection . And that's exactly what I want to speak to today church . Because when all this is over and when the egg hunts all wrap up , and when we put away those Easter clothes , I mean what does the empty tomb mean to us come Monday morning ? How does it impact our life ? What does the empty tomb mean to us when we face our own grief , our own loss , our own despair ? This morning , I want to unpack for you three tombs that we may have in our life and then invite us to experience resurrection power .

Speaker 1 8:10

The first tomb is the pain that we bury . This passage starts in a place of pain . It's dark out and we come face to face with our central character , mary , a grieving widow , a grieving woman . She's been at the cross , she's at the tomb , she is weeping and she is searching . And it's easy to miss the darkness of this moment if we rush right into that resurrection , risen Lord moment . Things are really bad . At the beginning of this passage , mary is distraught . We know that she from the book of Mark that she's not alone at the tomb . There are other women there , women who faithfully walked with Jesus and before any of the other disciples . They come to the tomb that morning . They want to mourn , they want to anoint the body . We know from the book of Mark that as they approach the tomb they're asking one another how do we roll this stone away ? Like they wanted to get in there . This was an intimate moment , that opportunity to mourn and say goodbye to the one they had come to love and follow . Let's not miss the trauma of this weekend the crucifixion , the loss , the confusion . This had not gone the way they anticipated .

Speaker 1 9:30

I work as a coach and I often work with people who are in significant transitions in their life . They are revisioning for the future and just this last week a woman said to me almost those exact words . It didn't go the way I planned it , ruthie . I've had this great career , this great vocation . I love it . I've actually been really , really successful , but I have longed my whole life for a partner , for a family and there was aching and earnestness in her eyes as we talked about it . For others that I've spoken to , family's great relationships are good , but career like where did it go off track ? I mean , I went to great schools and I studied hard and then somehow everything just fell apart a setback , a loss of job , like something happened . And now I'm like this isn't what it was supposed to be . Maybe that's you this morning . Maybe you're here with a smile on your face , maybe you're hosting after church , Maybe you're celebrating . But you know deep down that when you crawl into bed tonight there may be that sting , that familiar sting of disappointment . This isn't quite the life I thought it was going to be . This isn't the story that I thought I'd be telling people be . This isn't the story that I thought I'd be telling people . Or maybe you've faced something really , really significant in this season a loss , betrayal , tragedy . When I was 18 , I lost my brother very suddenly , my only sibling . We didn't get a chance to say goodbye and I have spent more time sitting in a cemetery by a grave than I ever thought I would . That was never supposed to be part of my story . I remember sitting there and thinking I didn't want this , I didn't think it was going to go like this and that ache of that absence from my life .

Meeting Pain With Hope

Speaker 1 11:24

Many of you are facing that kind of pain . What do you do with that kind of pain ? I mean , as time goes on and the weeks and the months and the years , sometimes it can feel so huge . What do you do with it ? Well , many of us , we bury it . We bury the pain . We create this almost internal tomb , like in our mind , in our heart . Let's tuck it away Like I don't want to face that , I don't want to feel that . Don't talk about that . Or maybe it's the kind of tomb that you do revisit every day , almost unable to escape the memories , overwhelming loss , feeling almost like you're locked in there too . I remember that feeling , church . What do we do with this kind of pain ?

Speaker 1 12:09

After the disciples leave , mary is beside the tomb and she's weeping . I mean she is desperate . Where is Jesus's body ? She doesn't understand that after all the chaos kind of settles , she's alone and it's quiet . Jesus comes to meet her and this is the first encounter recorded of Jesus in his resurrected form and he comes to a woman in deep pain . And the first words of resurrected Jesus , woman , why are you crying ? This is a profound moment . I mean , jesus could have said anything . I don't know about you all , but if I had just resurrected I would have a lot more to say . I'd be like y'all , I'm here , like I did it . I know I've been gone a couple of days , but this is what you're like . I would be saying all of this stuff , but not Jesus .

Speaker 1 12:59

Jesus meets a grieving woman . He says woman , why are you crying ? And don't take this as a rebuke . It's not . It's not a stuff it down . Don't cry , lady Jesus' tears outside of Lazarus' tomb affirm for us that it is appropriate to cry when we grieve . And Jesus isn't asking this question because he doesn't know , like what's up . Mary , why are you crying ? Not at all . Jesus knows what's going on . Jesus asked this question for Mary . She responds with they've taken my Lord away and I don't know where they've put him . Like , his question invites her to come face to face with her pain and it's all she can see in that moment . I mean , verse 14 says Jesus is standing there , but she doesn't realize it's all she can see in that moment . I mean , verse 14 says Jesus is standing there , but she doesn't realize it's him .

Speaker 1 13:50

You know , it's easy come Easter morning to kind of focus in on , like cosmic Jesus and the grandiosity of everything that he's accomplished , and rightfully so . We are here to celebrate this morning , but don't miss the Jesus that stands by the empty tomb with a grieving woman . Don't miss the Jesus that inquires about our tears . You see , our Savior is acquainted with pain and suffering . He's not detached from it . Jesus meets her in her darkest and lowest moment .

Speaker 1 14:23

You might be here this morning thinking when I get my life together , when I save this marriage , when I get past this diagnosis , when I just figure this thing out , clean myself up , then I'll come back to church , then I'll do the God thing , then I'll start praying again . But , church , if we believe that we're missing the power of the resurrection because , you see , god didn't hang around waiting for us to sort ourselves out or heal ourselves or save ourselves he comes to us to find us , to meet us . Church , jesus meets us where we are , not where we hope to be , or even where we think we should be . Amen , amen . Jesus meets us where we are . I wonder where you are this morning If you're here and you're burying your pain because you think it's not welcome . It's welcome . Jesus wants all of us .

Speaker 1 15:25

Jesus descended into the darkest place and he came back victorious . He was not lost to the worst moment , which means neither are we that place in your life where you feel like it's just consuming . It's massive , it's an addiction , it's dark , it's pain . I can't get out of it . Jesus came for that thing . 1 Corinthians 15 says where oh death is your victory , where oh death is your sting . It's not that we never feel pain again , it's not that we walk around with rose-colored glasses . There are plenty of things in this broken world to grieve and to weep over , but the story of the resurrection is it's not the final word the empty tomb declares that death and darkness didn't take him and it won't take us , church . Jesus walked out of the tomb , so we can too . Walked out of the tomb , so we can too .

Speaker 1 16:25

Tomb number two that you may have in your life the hopelessness that we live with . You know , when the women arrived at the tomb , they are not hopeful . There's no confidence , there's not a glimmer of like fingers crossed ladies . He might not be there because he's rose again , like there was no expectation of that . Nobody is expecting a miracle . They are deep in their hopelessness . Maybe you've been there . Maybe you've had so much disappointment thrown at you that you're like I don't really expect much . But defeat , like finances , never change , that relationship never gets any better . Same old , same old . This is how it goes for our family . This is how it always goes for me . There's like no hope for anything more , no dreaming . Face enough disappointment in life and you'll soon learn .

Speaker 1 17:17

As Brene Brown says , it's easier to live disappointed than to feel disappointed . Feels more vulnerable to dip in and out of disappointment than to just set up camp there . Right , let's disappointment , but let's hope again . Disappointment , hope again . No , for some of us we're like I , just camped out in disappointment . I've just settled into resignation and hopelessness . Nothing is going to change . I don't know about you , but I've had that story . That's been part of my life . There's been areas where I've thought nothing's gonna happen . I mean , it's been so many years of trying , nothing changes .

Speaker 1 17:55

In verse 15 , jesus' second question to Mary who is it you're looking for ? Notice that he doesn't say what I mean . Mary's there looking for a dead body . She's looking for death , but she should be looking for life . Luke records the angel asking her why are you looking for the living among the dead ? I mean , this was such an unexpected turn of events . Mary saw only one outcome Jesus was dead , his body must have been taken . But she is confronted by a miraculous situation that she never saw coming Church .

Speaker 1 18:33

This is the power of Easter . Our God is the God of out of left field . Like he's the God of turnarounds , he's the God of surprises and storylines that we never saw coming . The resurrection was unexpected . Likewise , the goodness of God in our life is often unexpected , coming at times when we least anticipate it . It's like the bleeding woman in the scriptures who tried everything to find healing . And then she reaches out and she touches Jesus' cloak and she's healed . It's the dead girl whose father said to Jesus don't come , it's done . She's gone , raised to life . Crowds of hungry people fed the disciple who denied and cursed Jesus , the hopeless traveling companions on the Maus road . No one saw it coming and yet there it was a sudden , startling plot twist , a dramatic curve ball , an outcome that no one predicted .

Speaker 1 19:40

Your tomb of hopelessness might be telling you nothing ever changes , but I'm here to tell you that defeat is drowned out by the sound of resurrection . Just when you think it's over . God turns it around . At your lowest moment , where you think I have tried everything and there is nothing left to do , god steps in and does the impossible . The message of Easter morning beckons us . Quit looking for a dead body , stop gathering beside the tomb of hopelessness . Turn your attention to the empty tomb and the risen Lord Church . There's nothing too dead and cold that God can't resurrect it . You might be here this morning and you have a dream and you feel like Ruthie , it's been too long I've been holding on . That thing's dead , I've let it go . What if God wants to resurrect that dream this morning ? You might be here today thinking there's a relationship . I've been praying , I've been hoping , that child , that partner , that family member . I just don't see any way it can be restored . Those are the moments where Jesus steps in and does the unexpected . He's the God of the turnaround . He's the God of the impossible Church . Jesus walked out of the tomb , so we can , too .

Speaker 1 20:57

Tomb number three , the past that we cling to . Jesus has met Mary in her pain . Jesus has met Mary in her pain . She's been startled by this kind of unexpected miracle , but she still doesn't recognize him . And then he speaks . Her name , not a rebuke , not a big monologue or and even like , seemingly appropriate explanation of like hang , hang tight , mary . Let me just tell you what's going on . Like none of that , he speaks her name , mary , a name that she must have heard a million times in her life , a name that probably carried a lot of memories and some reputation . We know that Mary was a follower of Jesus and that she was brought into the fold through deliverance from many demonic spirits . Mary had a dark past . She had a story . We all have a story .

Speaker 1 21:58

Parts of that we wish we could outrun right or like , detach ourselves from Mistakes we've made , Sin . We're acquainted with tendencies and temptations that plague us words spoken over us , generational ties that we just can't seem to cut off , internal tombs of regret , memories , narratives . Even if we hate it , we kind of cling to it . It defines us in some way . Just recently I've been on my own journey of breaking free from some deep layers self-hatred , performance , perfectionism . Maybe that's just me , but I probably doubt it . That stuff runs pretty deep in our lives , right , and for me it's been the words I've spoken over myself . The words I've spoken over myself . In fact , I just said to my husband this week like , oh , I keep circling back to some of these old stories , like I thought I dealt with this , and realizing that there's a deeper work that Jesus is doing , a deeper tomb that he's wanting to free me from . I wonder what your stories are this morning , the things that still define you , shape you , the memories that you just can't shake them , the regrets , things you could just wipe out .

Speaker 1 23:30

Jesus speaks Mary's name , but it's not a reminder of her past , but rather to free her from it . He's calling her into something new . In fact , this entire scene by the empty tomb with a woman in a garden , is all about recreation , all about Jesus undoing the past . You see , the story of humanity begins in a garden , doesn't it ? In Genesis , we're introduced to God and his creation . God's the gardener , the cultivator , the one who tends and cares to his creation , places Adam and Eve in a garden , and sin enters into the world when Eve takes the fruit tempted by Satan and then hands it to Adam . And what follows is this unfolding of a curse death , decay , struggle , pain . This is the human condition .

Speaker 1 24:25

Now , in John 20 , we find ourselves once again back in a garden and once again God , through his son Jesus , is speaking to a woman . Mary's confusion , mistaking Jesus for the gardener , I believe , hints at a much deeper truth . This whole passage mirrors Genesis 3 . It's its counterpart , genesis 3, . There's the curse John 20, . The curse has been broken , a new life has been ushered in . Just as God once walked in the garden calling to Adam and Eve , jesus now walks in the garden calling to Mary . Where once a woman handed over fruit to a man and sin entered into the world , mary now hands the good news of Jesus's resurrection to his disciples , piece by piece . The resurrected Jesus unwinds the curse and declares a new story , not just for Mary but every single one of us . Gk Chesterton has a quote . He says this . Gk Chesterton has a quote , he says this On the third day , the friends of Jesus Christ , coming at daybreak to the place , found the grave empty and the stone rolled away .

Speaker 1 25:47

In varying ways they realized the new wonder , but even they hardly realized that the world had died in the night . What they were looking at was the first day of a new creation with a new heaven and a new earth and , in a semblance of the garden of God , walked again in the garden in the cool not of the evening but of the night , but of the dawn . See , every aspect of the fall , every aspect of the past is unwinding . No curse is too big . No past is too powerful . God is a redeeming God .

Speaker 1 26:27

There are some of you here this morning and you think that your past is just a little bit too much Like it's a little too dark . It's a little too dark , it's a little too heavy , it's a little too sinful , like if you just knew what I had done . Well , guess what . Jesus knows what you've done , and it's not too much and it's not too heavy . This is the power of the resurrection . It's all undone . Death is turned backwards . Resurrection power sets us free , church . We're no longer shackled and bound to our tombs . Jesus walked out , so we can too .

Speaker 1 27:13

I wanna invite you this morning to reflect on your life . What is the tomb ? Is it the past that's been defining you and just speaking over you , just reminding you ? What would it look like to invite Jesus to speak a new word over your life this morning , a new truth to break the power of the past and set you free ? Is it the hopelessness Like nothing ever changes , just the way it is ? Is there an area of your life this morning where you feel hopeless , you wanna bring to Jesus saying God , would you breathe hope into me again , make me a person of hope , make us a family of hope .

Embracing Resurrection Power

Speaker 1 27:58

There are some of you here today and you're trying to take your family in a totally different direction . You're trying to build something that was never built for you and you're like God , this just seems too hard . I'm trying to break some historical stuff . I'm trying to walk a new path . This morning , jesus wants to empower you to do the thing , to build the thing that was never done for you , never built for you . Or maybe it's the pain that you've been carrying . Maybe you're here this morning and you have some heavy pain and you're like I don't like to look at that .

Speaker 1 28:36

And the invitation this morning is to let Jesus in . He's a healer , he's a comforter , he's a deliverer . As we leave the space , may we carry with us the assurance that the same power that raised Jesus from the grave now dwells in us , transforming us and the world around us . Let's embrace the resurrection power . Let it permeate every part of our existence . Let's walk out as heralds of hope and ambassadors of a new creation . St Augustine said walk out as heralds of hope and ambassadors of a new creation . St Augustine said we are Easter people and Alleluia is our song .

Speaker 1 29:22

Once again today , we declare the tomb is very empty . He is risen . He's risen indeed . Church , would you stand ?

Speaker 1 29:33

I'd like to pray before we enter back into worship . Holy Spirit , we welcome you here and the work that you are doing . We don't wanna rush past this moment . We don't wanna miss anything that you're wanting to resurrect , anything that you're wanting to restore , anything that you're wanting to restore , anything that you wanna heal . If you want the Lord to come meet you in a tomb this morning , all eyes closed , let's just lift our hands , just open your hands to receive .

Speaker 1 30:08

This morning , lord , we ask that resurrection power would come , breathe upon us , set us free , break the shackles , god , that we would walk out of the tomb because you did . You did you offer us new life today . We love you , jesus . You're so good Lord , and if there's anyone here today that doesn't know you , maybe they're here because it's Easter , because friends or family invited them . Lord , would you give them an experience of your absolute love , that you are pursuing them and chasing them with goodness this morning . You are for them . In Jesus' Name , amen . Come on . Give God a hand clap of praise for that . We're gonna continue to worship before we get out of here today .