Early in the Morning
Early in the Morning
Early in the Morning
Early in the Morning at the break of day the stone was rolled away
The above words are from a song I learned my Senior Year in the high school when I was a member of the Youth Choir at Stevensville United Methodist Church in Stevensville, Michigan. This song was swimming in my head as I was preparing to preach at the ecumenical Easter Sunrise Service in Nome, Alaska.
I preached on the Resurrection of Jesus according to the Gospel of John - John 20:1-18. I want to share with you what I shared with those present at the Easter Sunrise Service in Nome, Alaska on April 4, 2010 at 7:30 am.
When I was in high school I was in the Youth Choir at Stevensville United Methodist Church in Stevensville, Michigan. Each year we would practice and perform musicals. Two of those years, we performed musicals that took us through the whole liturgical year – Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, Pentecost and into Ordinary time. While I did not have much confidence at all in my voice back then, I wanted to be part of the Youth Choir because it was a way for my sisters and I to get involved when we first moved to Stevensville. Also, we heard that the Youth Choir went on Choir Tours to places like Chicago!! Exciting!
The words to the songs I learned 15 plus years ago still stick with me. It’s amazing the lasting impact that something from your youth has on you later in life. Even others who were in the Youth Choir when I was, remember that song. “Early in the Morning” was one of those songs that has stuck with me and reminds me of the hope we have because Christ overcame death.
Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb where Jesus was laid after his death. It was a tomb given for him by Joseph of Arimathea. Mary saw that the stone had been rolled away. So she ran to the disciples to tell them. Simon Peter and the disciple whom Jesus loved (tradition tells us John) raced each other to the grave like two silly children who could barely contain themselves with curiosity. The beloved disciple gets there first, but Peter is the first one to enter the tomb. They see that Jesus’ body was gone. Then they run back to where the others were gathered. Mary Magdalene remains at the tomb weeping. She looked inside the tomb and saw two angels – one at where Jesus’ head would have been and one where Jesus’ feet would have been. They ask her why she is weeping and she tells them that “they” have taken my Lord away and she does not know where they have laid him. She then turns around and sees a man whom she presumes to be a gardener. The “gardener” asks her the same thing the angels asked her. Her reply is much the same, though because she thinks he is the gardener, she asks him where he has laid him if he took him away.
Then Jesus says her name, “Mary.” She turns to him and says, “Rabbouni! Teacher!” He instructs her not to hold on to him, but to go and tell the disciples that He is ascending to the Father, to God. Mary went right away and told the other disciples, “I have seen the Lord.”
Early in the morning at the break of day the stone was rolled away. Here we are early in the morning on Easter Sunday gathered to encounter the Risen Christ with other Christians from around the community. We encounter the Risen Christ through music. We encounter the Risen Christ through prayer. We encounter the Risen Christ through scripture. We encounter the Risen Christ through the presence of others. We encounter the Risen Christ in a variety of ways. Like Mary Magdalene did that first Easter Morning we come to this place, expecting one thing and perhaps finding another. Perhaps it is a tradition for us to wake up early and come to this service every year. Celebrating Easter for us becomes a tradition - a body memory as we celebrate this miracle each and every year. Some of us only attend Church on Easter assuming that encountering Christ in the midst of community once a year is all we need for our spiritual well-being. Not so much.
Early that first Easter morning, Mary encountered the Risen Christ. She did not recognize him as such because she was so overcome with grief that she thought he was the gardener. Her eyes opened when Jesus called her by name. As the Great Shepherd, Jesus knows each of us by name and claims each of us as children of God. By calling us by name Jesus seeks to have a relationship with each of us and draw us close to God. Even when we turn away from this invitation again and again, Jesus reaches out to us revealing himself and revealing God. Jesus never give up on us.
Early that first Easter morning, Jesus had a mission for Mary to share the good news of his resurrection and his ascension that would take place soon. After Mary has seen Jesus, she goes and tells the disciple that she had seen the Risen Lord and delivered the message that Jesus was going to be ascended to the Father. Though John 20 does not say this, we could imagine that Mary Magdalene would have run joyously and as fast as she could with the message that she had seen the Lord. Jesus sent her on a mission and she took it seriously. She was excited that she had seen the Lord and wanted to tell others.
The other day I got my hair cut several inches and was so excited about it that I not only wanted to share it with my husband, David, but I wanted to share it with the world. So, I took a photo of myself and posted it on Facebook right away. As soon as I posted the photo of my new hairdo, I got lots of positive comments from my friends. Even the woman who cut my hair responded that I was fast in my posting. I replied that I when I am excited about something I cannot wait to share it with the world!!
What would it be like if we were as excited about the resurrection of Jesus as we are about the superficial transformations in our lives? What would it be like if we were as excited about something eternal as we are about those things that are temporal? Those of us with Facebook pages could share the Good News of the Resurrection of Jesus on our status reports. When we encounter someone on the street, we may get weird looks, but we could say, “Christ is Risen!” Maybe they would respond by saying, “Christ is Risen Indeed!” We could make someone's day with such a statement!
While writing and saying the words “Christ is Risen” to others is one way to shared the Good News, living our lives in such a way that expresses that message is also powerful. In the midst of adversity, we can choose to put our whole faith and trust in God that God would sustain us and see us through the difficult time. Even through our hard times, we can be a witness for God.
I, and others in the Youth Choir at Stevensville United Methodist Church, encountered the Risen Christ through the learning of songs and performing them for others. These songs continue to stick with us years later as something in our world reminds us of the songs we learned. Not only were we sharing the Good News with people in our congregation and people in churches and nursing homes across Chicago, but God was impressing upon us the Good News so that we could truly experience it for ourselves. Throughout our lives those songs have stuck with those of us who were called to be in the Youth Choir at Stevensville UMC over the years. What a blessing to be able to embody these words and encounter the Risen Christ, not just one time a year, but throughout our whole lives. Encountering the Risen Christ is a journey - a lifelong and worthwhile journey.
Thanks be to God, Amen.
* The empty grave photo is borrowed from the following website and was found through Google Images: suemartist.com.
