Jesus Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, Alleluia. I once had a pastor who made us say that phrase over and over and over again Easter morning. "How many times are you going to make us do that today!" I asked myself.
As if he could hear my thoughts, he declared, "We are going to say this until you mean it!"
“Until you mean it,” that is what another pastor said to me during my teenage years…alright he did not say it to “me,” he said it to everyone. But, I felt like he said it to me, and I feared that every time he made us shout that thing the word “dork” would slowly scribble again across my face until I was completely blackened with dorkyness. “Stop Pastor already, you are embarrassing me in front of all of the other Christians who are saying it too at the exact same time.” Alright, I was a teenager so cut me some slack. I was focused on myself and I did care about what I said and did. And, I did not think it was honest to shout something that I did not even understand. Say it until you mean it…what if I did not mean it? What if I did not even know what it meant in the first place? “He is risen indeed.” Who cares?
Well, Mary Magdalene cared for one.
Mary Magdalene comes in and shouts to the disciples that Jesus is risen, and that she has seen him!
For Mary this was not just some embarrassing, ancient, out-of-date church rite. For Mary, the sight of Jesus raised from the dead was the unsealing of a tomb for her life. You have to understand, Mary and all of Jesus followers put their whole lives into his ministry. Mary went as far as putting even her money and trust into Jesus. So, you can see how the execution and death of the one she trusted meant her own death, both emotionally and probably even financially. All of her hopes and dreams were sealed in the tomb with Jesus. And, as we all know, once tombs are sealed, there is no coming back. Her hopes were gone, for good.
Have you even been there? Have you ever had your hopes and dreams buried away in a tomb? Maybe, someone else buried them for you: telling you that you would never be good enough or smart enough.
Tim was convinced that he would never amount to anything. I have to say right out that Tim was a brilliant teenager. He did extremely, extremely well in school. He simply was a genius, and he was kind and caring on top of it all. Now, at this point, I understand that this story makes no sense to you. How can such a great kid feel like he would never amount to anything? Well, Tim’s Uncle, brother, and even his own dad were all in federal penitentiaries for separate murders. As his friend, I knew he was a great person, but when everyone else looked at him, they simple saw someone to be feared. Other people had carved out Tim’s tomb and rolled the stone over the entrance, sealing his dreams inside.
Have you even been there? Have you ever had your hopes and dreams buried away in a tomb? Maybe, unlike Tim, you did it yourself. Maybe, you destroyed your entire life all on your own and you have no one to blame but yourself. It does not matter if you did it or someone else. A tomb is a tomb, and what is put in a tomb never comes out again.
But, what if it did? What if your dreams did come back? What if you opened your mail and found out that you were accepted into the prestigious school MIT on full scholarship, even after they found out about your murderous family? Would you drive around town shouting out of your car window, “I made it…I make it…I made it!” like Tim did?
What if someone gave you another chance at life, even after you completely messed it all up? What if God forgave you for everything, even the unspeakable stuff? Would you run and tell your friends?
What if the one you trusted and in who you put all of your hopes did come back; for you? Would you run and shout to the others who trusted in Him that he was alive! Would you shout, “he is risen indeed?” Because, I am here to tell you, the tomb is not the end. Whether you carved the tomb yourself, or someone else did, the tomb is not the end. Jesus will not let your hopes rot in a tomb. Death cannot hold him down. He is risen indeed, and so are your hopes. What would you shout if Jesus came to you and raised your hopes from the tomb, giving them new life?
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