The Resurection of Our Lord, Mark 16:1-8

            Grace, mercy, and peace be to you, from God, our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.  In our Gospel text today we read about a very sad event, one that you will all endure.  Someone has died.  You can relate to these women.  They go to the tomb, When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him.  And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.  And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”

            Yes, you can relate.  While you don't bring spices to anoint the body of your loved one who has died, instead you bring flowers, you simply go to sit or stand by the grave.  You go to remember your husband, your wife, your parents, grandparents, children, or best friend.  The mood is somber.  There is no rejoicing over their death.  It is a time of sadness.  You miss them.

            At times, we are too comfortable with death these days. We see it  as  just a matter of life, we recognize that we will die.  For death is the one guarantee of life.  And as long as that person has lived a full life, we're not as hard hit.  Jesus' disciples came to the same conclusion that Jesus was no different than everyone else.  But it did scare them none the less, for they thought they were next on the chopping block. 

            Yep, you and I are going to die, and so we better do all we can to make our life count and live as long as possible.  You might as well enjoy life however you want to.  And that's what we do.  We embrace what we like and don’t you dare tell me to stop.  We reject the truth of Jesus' words for the lies of the world.  Maybe you bicker and fight.  You gossip at the expense of another's reputation.  Or you just sit on your faith like a coward and hope no one will ask you what the Christian faith teaches let alone take the initiative to confess the true faith.  Let me just bury my dead and live till I die.

            Yeah, that's the women headed for the tomb to show their respects to their great teacher.  That's what the disciples did, cowering in the upper room.  But then they are met with an earth-shattering event.  There was an earthquake and what appeared to be the worst thing ever,  Jesus body was missing. 

            Jesus body was missing.  This is a tragedy, even today.  One of the greatest fears after a loved one has died, is that the body is missing.  How am I supposed to go to the tomb to visit my wife, my husband, my child, my father or mother if the body is missing?  Woe is me, I have no comfort, I can't even stop by to talk to them.

            Worse yet, in Jesus' tomb there was "a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe,"  Obvious conclusion: that's not Jesus.  And Mark says, "and they were alarmed." Yep, you would be too.  Grief has overcome you, this great man, Jesus, is dead and now He's missing, maybe it was this man that stole Him away. But listen to what happens next, "And He said to them, 'Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going before you to Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you.'"

            You see, this man in white, whom we know was an angel, proclaims the first Easter sermon.  But yet the women do not understand, they don't know who that is.  For what is their reaction? "And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid."  Do not think of these women as foolish or dumb followers of Jesus, they followed and listened to Him teach for three years.  They do not go to the tomb to seek a living Jesus, but a dead one for that's what they had seen happen, Jesus died.  Nor are these women cowards, for they were there when Jesus died.  Of the 5000 men plus women and children who were with Jesus when he fed them on the mountain, these women were alone left, but in their grief they forgot what Jesus had taught them. 

            How often does this happen to you?  In a time of high stress or emotionality, our rational response goes out the window, what we have been taught is forgotten.  All we do is react.  These women are anxious and they react, they run.  Only later after being confronted by Jesus in the upper room that night and a week later do they go to Galilee like they were told.  So don't presume to think you would have done better than them.  Don't presume to think you would have been waiting for Him to rise.  At best you and I would have been hiding, as foolish as the rest of the disciples.  Worse yet, we probably would just forget about Jesus and have been bickering among ourselves and casting blame and looking for the next Messiah. 

II.

            But this angel has been sent for a specific reason.  To proclaim the good news.  The women's grief, their fear, their alarm, their anxiety is met with the calming voice of an angel.  Listen to this shocking news:  “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going before you to Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you."  It's not that the women do not believe.  We hear nothing of that sort.  But they have just had an earth-shattering revelation.  Jesus is not dead.  What does this mean?  Their rational thought has not come to them for they are anxious over the death of their beloved teacher. 

            So their reaction is the logical one: they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.  In our grief we would take off like a scared rabbit. But nowhere does it say they do not believe. They weren't afraid of Jesus, nor the Romans, nor the Jews.  What were they afraid of?

            The Gospel of Mark is all about the disciples not getting it.  Not understanding what Jesus was saying.  Not believing what was said.  But now these women get it.  The word astonishment in our text, in the Greek is ἒκστασις, from which we get the word ecstatic.  My brothers and sister in Christ!  These women are excited!  They are shaking with ecstasy, delight, and joy!  Jesus wasn't messing around, He was serious when He said on the third day He will be raised from the dead! 

            What are they afraid of then?  Are they afraid that Jesus will no longer love them?  Will He forgive me for doubting Him? Is my relationship with Him not strong enough to make this work?  They are anxious because they think the wrong things! But it is the angel who begins to remove the doubt and fear, for on this day the women saw and heard the Gospel.  He has risen. This is what the women needed, not the relationship that they thought they had influence over that had appeared to have been ended in death, but the promise of eternal life in Christ found only by what He does for us.

            This is the calming, soothing balm that your pastor distributes to you day in and day out.  He is risen.  That's what makes the funeral service, despite its great sadness, also a joyous occasion.  You know and trust that just as Jesus was raised from the dead so too will your loved ones, so too will you.  The fear that the women have is that their whole preconceived idea of salvation and living a right life and what I do for God is not what saves me. 

            Today the angel once again proclaims the healing power of the Gospel.  This is the all-powerful gift of Christ.  For in those first few days of your birth you were washed clean of the filth of your sins in baptism.  It is these same waters that you cling to for the rest of your life as you hear that glorious invocation, as you hear you are forgiven.  It is the medicine of immortality that is spoken into your ears as your pastor declares your sins are forgiven.  It is this blessed food of heaven, the very body and blood sacrificed for you on Calvary and risen from the dead that makes you whole.

            That is what these women begin to realize.  Jesus' words begin to make sense.  He had promised that He would be betrayed, suffer, and die.  He really would be raised from the dead.  His death is for you.  His resurrection is for you.

            It is not your personal relationship with Jesus that cures you of your doubt and fear.  For these women had the greatest relationship with Jesus, no, on this day the women are astonished because they begin to understand the true gift of Christ, His crucifixion.  This gift of the Gospel is then given for you to eat, drink, feel, and hear.  These gospel gifts deliver you from the dreaded despair of your sin.  Absolution is spoken to these women today.  It is delivered to you today as well.

            You come today with your same challenges, your same fears, your loneliness, your doubts.  The angels words are the same for you today, Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen.  Today that message is the same. He is here.  Hear His Words now, taste Him on your lips, your Savior is here for you now. 

            This doesn't make life any easier.  Your loved ones will still die.  Pain and anxiety will still overwhelm you.  But you have the advantage that the women do not.  You have the whole story.  You know who Jesus is, why He came, and what He has done to make everything right in the world for you.  So when grief attacks you, stop and think.  What has been done for you.  What is proclaimed to you. 

            It is definitely ok to react with trembling and astonishment.  The strife is over, the battle is won.  Jesus is for you.  Jesus is risen for you.  That is exciting news.  Death cannot conquer us, death will not win for Christ has already won us and His resurrection is the proof of that.  Be astonished, and rejoice.  He is risen.  He has risen indeed! Alleluia! 

          In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Amen.  The Peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.