1. The Empty Tomb

Today we will celebrate Easter, the Resurrection day of Jesus Christ. In fact it is difficult to understand and accept the event as it exactly happened. The four Gospels give different records concerning Jesus’ coming back to the life. In contrast to that the gospel writers describe the scene of the Passion in almost similar way. I think it is because the event of Passion consists of historically provable elements. But as for the Resurrection it seems the twelve disciples could hardly believed in it. Mark, Like and Matthew don’t conceal that ;- Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.(Mark 16:8)/ But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense.(Luke 24:11)/ When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.( Matthew 28:17)

John also says they couldn’t grasp as it is ;- They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.(John 20:9)

Those scripture above show the Resurrection was too difficult to understand even for those who witnessed it by themselves. But the event is so important for the faith that we must not look through it by saying “it is too difficult to comprehend”

Today we will make effort to clarify the nature of the event by focusing on John’s scripture chapter 20.
But at first I invite you to see Jesus’ death and burial. Jesus died around 3 o’clock in the Friday afternoon.(see Matthew 27:45-50)

And it was prohibited to leave corps on crosses during the Sabbath day. So they put his body down in a hurry (a Jewish day begins at sunset *). Though, generally in Judea, executed persons were berried in collective tombs Joseph of Arimathea, one of disciples, asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen.(see John 20:38-40) Women who had attended the execution also should be there in watching them.

The sun disappeared and the Sabbath commenced. They didn’t have enough time to carry out all burial procedure because on the sabbath they must stay inside. Therefore they chose the nearest new tomb to place the body. (John 20:41-42)

Jewish tomb in that era was a cave of which entrance should be closed with a heavy stone. So did they. But, John wrote;- 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.(John 20:1)

Mary got strongly upset by seeing that. Her reaction seems very natural ;- So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!"(John 20:2)

John continues tells about disciples’ conducts and what they saw in the tomb ;- So Peter and the other disciple 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, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. (John 20:3-7)

Whereas the disciples went back to home Mary was standing outside. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb. Then, when she turned around, she saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. “Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni (Teacher)!” (see John 20:10-16)

2. Skeptical disciplines

Despite Mary’s words disciples didn’t believe in the Resurrection. Another Gospel writer Luke reported the similar reaction to that of John’s writing ( see above, Luke 24:11)

Luke noted an episode which occurred on the road to Emmaus. According to him on the same day (Sunday) two of the Twelve were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they didn’t recognize him. (see Luke 24:13-16)

Still yet they could not accept what happened as it was. John reveals also their fear. He tells wrote the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews on the same day.(see John 20:19)

By attending the scene of crucifixion they gat desperate because they thought Jesus was not the real Messiah. We can say they were spiritually dead in living physically at that moment.

To these fearful disciples ;- Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!"(John 20:19)

The parallel portion of Luke is this;- They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.(Luke 24:37)

They arrived to believe in it only after looking at and touching Jesus’ the nail marks .(see John 20:20, 27-28)

Without concrete experiences disciples should have continued rejecting the event. The empty tomb and scriptures in the Bible were not convincing and witnesses of women were ignored. (see John 20:9, 18) The fact explains us what was necessary to believe in the Resurrection. The answer is that they needed visible and tangible proofs. The event has such a difficulty to understand. Nonetheless as long as we don’t arrive to believe in it we won’t be anew born to live a new life.

3. Spreading news about the Resurrection

Today’s invocation verses are 1 corinthians 15 3-5 ; -For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5and that he appeared to Peter,twelve and then to the Twelve.

Paul testifies resurrected Jesus appeared to Peter and other twelve disciples. Further Pale said Jesus showed himself to Paul too (see 1 corinthians 15:8). In other words Paul is insisting on authenticity of the Resurrection. He continues ;- But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.(1 corinthians 15:12-14

The very event is the pivotal element of the faith of all the Gospels. It concerns the sphere rather personal and spiritual than historical. Scholars can state that disciples got over the fear and set out to pass on to the world what they witnessed. It is also historically true that they continued preaching regardless of oppressors’ menaces. But we can’t prove that they, including Paul, met really resurrected Jesus ( see Acts 9:7) . Nonetheless I can say it happened really because we, who live in the faith, had the same spiritual experience as the Twelve, Paul and other believers. And, through that, we were changed.

To believe in it or not determines our way of living. As long as we remain skeptical our life will end with death. That vision of life pushes us to seek only earthy pleasures, as Pasl said ;- If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die."1 Corinthians 15¡§32¡Ë

Such a notion of life banishes in reality all hopes from our future because no one knows when the death will arrive to capture us. But believing in resurrected Jesus changes our life totally. It won’t finish with physical disappearance anymore. Because a new life begins afterwards, the life in Christ.

Christ was killed on the Cross by earthy authorities. We must admit that powerful persons could and can eliminate those who won’t obey them. But they can never go beyond that. Jesus’ Resurrections points out that God raised the dead who had been physically destroyed. Furthermore the fact indicates God will never leave the evil as it is. The evil must be changed into the good by God’s power. We knew that through the belief in the Resurrection. Thus we won’t be afraid of the evil and never despair. We can keep hope because the evil won’t remain forever. Because, after all, the world is ruled by God. That faith empower us.

Though John wrote ” They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.” he was not desperate. The word “still” represent his vision in the future. Surely comes the time when the expression becomes ” already do ” as Paul said ;- then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.(1 Corinthians 13:12)

Therefore we come to church to see God. Today the congregation is given an anew baptized person. We see through the ceremony God’s will which always works. So let us give thanks to God for a most suitable Sunday for Easter.
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*a Jewish day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_calendar#Day