Easter Sunday Sermon

Christ Is Risen!

Mark 16:1-8

Easter, 2009 (B)

Zion Lutheran Church

Mount Pleasant, Michigan

Pastor Jonathon Bakker

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, Alleluia!

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. The Holy Scripture for our consideration this day is the Gospel from St. Mark.

When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene and 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?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. 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.” 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.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, do not be alarmed, you seek Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, who was crucified! He has risen from the dead! He lives forever! He has defeated sin; he has overcome death; he has crushed the devil! The fast is over, and it is time to feast! The terror is past, and it is time to sing! The joy is here, and is it ours, forever! All creation rejoices in the salvation won by our creator!

Today we are Adam and Eve. The first sinners and the first saints; we are hearing in our own ears the curse of the devil. Christ has crushed his wicked head and triumphed victoriously.

Today we are Enoch. We are walking with God and fear no earthly death. We share his testimony because we share his faith, and by faith we are pleasing to God.

Today we are Noah. God made a promise to protect us. We have been kept safe in the ark of our baptism and our church. We set foot on a new earth today with our family and with all creation.

Today we are Abraham. Born in a foreign land, we have been called to believe God and are thus accounted righteous. We are his children by faith and in his seed we are all blessed.

Today we are Isaac. Beloved and only son, we see our life flashing before us as we are about to be sacrificed. But we rejoice that God has provided the sacrifice in our place after all.

Today we are Jacob. Like the favored twin we have wrestled with God and these past years of our lives have been lived as aliens in a faraway country, but God will bring us home.

Today we are Joseph, Jacob’s son. We are beloved by our Father and for it we have received what others intended as evil, but in his mercy God has turned it to good for all his children.

Today we are Moses. Orphaned unwillingly, but again, protected by God to be his spokespeople in an unfriendly world. We do not fear Pharaoh’s wrath because God will deliver us with his mighty power.

Today we are Miriam. With unmoistened feet we have crossed the Red Sea. We are rejoicing and singing that the Lord is our strength and our song. He has triumphed gloriously. The horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.

Today we are Joshua. The greatest powers of this world are nothing compared to the victories delivered by God. Nothing can keep God from delivering us to our promised inheritance.

Today we are Rahab. Living on borrowed time in a land that is not ours, we have learned the fear of the Lord and love his coming.

Today we are Ruth. Widowed in a faraway land, our Kinsman redeemer has stepped in to spare us from misery. His people shall be our people, and his God is surely our God.

Today we are David. Though we clearly fail, God still extends to us his forgiveness through his own word. We shall all receive crowns and look forward to the greater days ahead.

Today we are Jonah. Three days in the whale have curbed our reluctance to speak and we know that God proclaims repentance through even the least willing of his speakers.

Today we are Isaiah. In his temple we see the Lord of hosts; the Lord stricken by God, smitten, and afflicted; and we see the promised mountain the Lord will make for all people. We see that the Lord has swallowed up death forever and will wipe away every tear from our eyes.

Today we are Jeremiah. God has revealed to us destruction and misery that accompany ignorance of his word, and yet we also see that God will gather again his remnant and give them a Shepherd.

Today we are Ezekiel. Before our eyes the Lord breathes life into dry bones and promises that the graves will be opened and his people will return to the Promised Land forever.

Today we are Job. The devil had his way with us, but we know that our Redeemer lives and that he shall stand at last on the earth. Even after our skin is destroyed we know; in our flesh we shall see God.

Today we are Zechariah. We have rejoiced greatly as daughters of Zion and shouted; we have seen the king coming to us with righteousness and salvation. We have mourned the one whom we have pierced.

Today we are Joseph. The devil sharply works to inject doubts into our minds, but God will protect us and see us through.

Today we are Mary, the mother of God, rejoicing in what we have received from God. The Lord is truly with us and we are most certainly blessed!

Today we are John the Baptist, beholding the Lamb of God that has taken away the sin of the world. We have decreased and he is everything. We are not worthy to touch our Lord, but sees fit to touch us.

Today we are Lazarus, wept over by Jesus and stepping forth from our own tombs at his word, rising from the dead to live a new life with God.

Today we are Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, walking quietly to the tomb. We are looking for a dead man – not because we do not believe what he said about rising from the dead, but because we were not able to anoint him before the Sabbath.

Today we are those women, wondering who will roll away the stone from the tomb. We want access to the body of Jesus of Nazareth because we love him and wish to honor him.

Today we hear the message of the angel. He is not here, he has risen, just as he had promised!

Today we are gathered in Jesus’ name and in his own house. Today we are Christ’s Church and we are not alone – we are here in the midst of all God’s saints and with the whole company of heaven!

Do you seek Jesus of Nazareth this morning, dear brothers and sisters in Christ? I hope so, for he is risen, and he is here for you! Come to the Lamb’s high feast and rejoice with us and all the company of heaven! Your sins are forgiven, you have been saved from the power of the devil, and you have the life that never ends!

Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed, Alleluia!

To God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, be all the glory, forever and ever, amen.

The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus our Lord, amen.