"Rush Hour: Easter's Urgency"

Matt.28:1-10 Easter Sunday March 27/05

'Go Quickly & Tell' - Why??

Our culture values speed. People today want fast food (though even more if it's fast AND healthy). At a restaurant, we value quick service, not having to wait half an hour for your order to come. We appreciate being able to get our income tax refund within 6 business days. Four lanes are better than two. Pentiums are preferred over 486s. We pay a premium for hi-speed rather than dial-up.

      And the market responds to offer faster options. Yet being catered to in our "need for speed" nudges our attitude to become more self-serving. On the other hand, when it comes to OUR actions, we want to be waited on; we'd prefer to take out time, and not have to hurry. Personally, I've always been a bit of a plodder; I'd rather not rush and do an incomplete job. Instead I see myself as methodical and thorough; though to be honest, compared to my wife when washing dishes, some might actually call me 'slow'. I resent having to hurry to complete a task; if I'm told to be quick about it, there'd better be a good reason.

      In Matthew's account of the Resurrection that first Easter morning, there's a real note of urgency and excitement. There's a violent earthquake as a lightning-featured angel rolls back the stone, and the guards shake and become petrified. The angel tells the women to come and see that Jesus lay there no longer. Then in v7 they are instructed to "go quickly and tell his disciples" that He'd risen, and was going into Galilee where they'd see Him. In v8 the women HURRIED away from the tomb and RAN to tell Jesus' disciples. Then when they actually bump into the Risen Saviour, He emphasizes that they're to go and tell the others.

      "Go quickly and tell...hurried...and ran" -- getting out the news is a pressing matter. But as I said, my fallen nature resists being told to hurry; if I'm told to be quick, there'd better be some dire need. Just what is it that's so urgent about getting the message out? What's the urgency to the news about Easter?

1) A Singular Event

First of all, the gospel is urgent because it's a singular event, a one-of-a-kind happening with remarkable implications. Rising from the dead sets Jesus apart as absolutely unique, compared to other religious figures. In Evidence that Demands a Verdict, Josh McDowell writes, "All but four of the major world religions are based on mere philosophical propositions. Of the four that are based on personalities rather than on a philosophical system, only Christianity claims an empty tomb for its found. Abraham, the father of Judaism, died about 1900 BC, but no resurrection was ever claimed for him...The original accounts of Buddha never ascribe to him any such thing as a resurrection...There is no trace in the Pali scriptures or commentaries...of Sakya Muni having existed after his death or appearing to his disciples. Mohammed died June 8, 632 AD at the age of 61, at Medina, where his tomb is annually visited by thousands of devout Mohammedans. All the millions and millions of Jews, Buddhists, and Mohammedans agree that their founders have never come up out of the dust of the earth in resurrection."

      The apostle Paul writes that Jesus "was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead..." (Romans 1:4) The Resurrection is startling because it proves Jesus is the Son of God. It authenticates the claims Jesus made during His earthly life: when after cleansing the Temple the Jews demanded of him, "What miraculous sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?" Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple [meaning His body], and I will raise it again in three days." Later He told His followers, "The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life— only to take it up again." (John 2:18f; 10:17) What kind of person talks about taking life again after dying? For us mortals on our own steam, that's a one-way street, there's no coming back. It was an outlandish claim, but Jesus came good on it; this proved He was special.

      Christianity stands or falls with the Resurrection: it proves the gospel is true. Paul told the church at Corinth, "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith...if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins." (1 Corinthians 15:14,17) It's the lynch-pin, the capstone, that holds the whole structure of the gospel together. It shows that Jesus' sacrifice was accepted as the atonement for our sins. Paul told the Romans, "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." (Romans 4:25) The Resurrection is the stamp or seal of God's acceptance that reconciliation has been achieved; it certifies that Jesus is who He said He was, and shows He accomplished what He set out to do. It's a singular event that makes the Christian faith truly unique amongst world religions.

      The originator of a new religion came to the great French diplomat-statesman Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord and complained that he could not make any converts. He asked, "What would you suggest I do?" Talleyrand answered, "I should recommend that you get yourself crucified, and then die, but be sure to rise again the third day."

2) Obedience is Owing

A second reason it's important to get the word out is that we owe such obedience to our Heavenly Father, as a result of all He's done for us. Paul could say, "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me..." And, "You are not your own; you were bought at a price." Also, "...whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living." (Gal 2:20; 1Cor 6:19; Romans 14:8-9) We've been redeemed, bought back at the cost of the precious blood of God's only-begotten Son, so our whole life now belongs to God, we're under new ownership.

Our servanthood is the appropriate response to Jesus' sacrifice of Himself in our stead. And what is our Master's Greatest Commandment? To love God with our whole being, and our neighbour as ourself (Lk 10:27). How do we love God? In John 14 Jesus said, "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me...[again] If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching...[and, in case the disciples still didn't get it] He who does not love me will not obey my teaching." (John 14:21,23-24) Then a few verses later He applies this to Himself, speaking of His own submission to go to the cross: "the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me." (John 14:31) Love and obedience are inseparably linked. If we truly love God, we'll show that by obeying Him.

And what are the marching orders Jesus left before He ascended? The Great Commission, in Matthew 28(19f): "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them...and teaching them..." At the end of Mark's gospel, He commanded, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." (Mark 16:15-16) That's pretty clear, isn't it? To obey His directions will involve telling others what happened at Easter to spare them from being condemned. How's our 'obedience quotient'?

Obedience can be a strong indicator of how much someone matters to us. A little boy was riding his tricycle furiously around the block, over and over again. Finally a policeman stopped and asked him why he was going around and around. The boy said that he was running away from home. Then the policeman asked why he kept going around the block. The little lad responded, "Because my mom said that I'm not allowed to cross the street." (!)

If we love someone, we'll obey them. God wants the world to hear the gospel, so He commissions us to get the word out; He's relying on us.

3) A World is Groaning

A third reason for Easter's urgency is the pain and suffering going on right now, every minute, due to sin's domination. People are trapped by evil desires, corrupt systems, and generational effects that crush and damage them each day. In Romans 8(20ff) Paul talks about the whole creation being in bondage to decay, groaning as in the pains of childbirth, being subjected to frustration until finally one day it will be liberated. Families as well as individuals are impacted by addictions to drugs or alcohol, to pornography, and 100 other destructive influences the enemy concocts, whether these result in tragic accidents that claim lives or the slow fizzle and erosion of loving relationships. Paul describes this on an individual level a chapter earlier (Rom 7:14,19,23f): "I am...sold as a slave to sin...the evil I do not want to do - this I keep on doing...I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?"

Any newscast will provide sufficient evidence of the pain and suffering sin causes. A student kills half a dozen others in a Minnesota school. An eating disorder causes permanent damage in the case of Terry Schiavo, rendering her awake but not aware; consequently her husband endeavours to have her feeding tube disconnected. A five-year-old girl is dropped by her suicidal father onto a Toronto freeway (but thankfully, miraculously survives and was released from hospital this past week).

Then there are the cases that don't make the news, but touch our own lives most deeply. Disputes and disappointments amongst newlyweds. Family tensions in caring for aging parents and dividing up estates. On our worst days we can act like terrorists in our relationships: laying guilt trips, attacking with sarcasm, blackmailing and holding each other emotionally hostage...All this pain around us cries out for Jesus' healing, His grace to forgive and restore community to our fractured world.

4) People are Perishing - Forever

There was a violent earthquake that first Easter morning; the supernatural intruded upon the earthly, as Jesus' material body vapourized and reconstituted in a glorified spiritual form, and a dazzling angel rolled away the stone. An unseen spiritual dimension revealed itself, reminding us there is another realm overlapping the one our human eyes normally perceive. This material life is NOT all there is; people's behaviour here and now has serious repercussions for their eternal state.

The resurrection validates Jesus' repeated prophecies of His approaching death and resurrection, for example in Mark chapters 8(31), 9(31), & 10(33f) - three times in three chapters. And if it validates those sayings, what about all Jesus' other warnings about the future? In those same chapters He said, "For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?...If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels... If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out." (Mk 8:35f,38; 9:43)

People's eternal destiny is at stake. Sharing the gospel with them now can spare them so much agony later. Jesus was not a Universalist: He warned people had a serious choice to make. "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it." That's not some obscure passage, but right in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:13). What picture does He present of the afterlife in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus? Jesus describes the rich man as "in hell", "in torment", "in agony in this fire" - with a great impassable chasm fixed between hell and paradise (Lk 16:23f,26). We needn't be "fire and brimstone preachers" in our evangelism, but creatively and sensitively straightforward about the consequences if people reject God's offer of eternal life. Evangelism is essential if our friends, neighbours, and loved ones are to be spared eternal suffering.

(...) As income tax season approaches, we're diligent to fill out our forms correctly because we don't want to get dinged down the road for unpaid back taxes, multiplied by compounding interest. But the consequences of not giving God His due are much more unsettling than even overdue accounts with the government's taxation branch. Three men died, so the story goes, and were waiting to receive entrance through the pearly gates. The first man said to St Peter, "I was a preacher of the gospel, serving faithfully for 50 years." Peter told him to step aside for further consideration. The second man said, "I was also a pastor; I served my church faithfully for 40 years." Peter told him likewise to step aside for further consideration. The third man stepped up. "I wasn't a pastor, just a civil servant with the Canada Revenue Agency for six months." Peter told him to step right in. The first preacher objected, "Why does he get to go in before two pastors?" St Peter replied, "The truth is, in six months the revenue agent scared the devil out of more people than either of you did in a lifetime!" (!)

That's just a story. But some of us DO need to be more to the point in talking about our faith. Really, our objective is not to "scare the devil out of people" but to make them aware of the gravity of their situation as God sees it -- and help them choose the narrow path that leads to life, which our Risen Saviour has made possible.

5) Christ Cares

Finally, it's urgent and imperative that we tell others the good news of Easter for the simple fact that Jesus cares for every person, young or old: His love within us through the Holy Spirit draws them toward a lasting relationship with our Heavenly Father. His caring DROVE Him to the cross; He could have called a legion of angels to release Him, but He stayed there and died because it was the only way you or I could be free. Paul wrote, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners..." (1Tim 1:15) THAT's what He was all about - His very name "Jesus" relates to saving us. He told His disciples the Son of Man came "to give his life as a ransom for many." (Mk 10:45) John 3(16f) tells how God loved the world so much He gave His Son so those who believe in Him might not perish but have eternal life; "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." God "wants all people to be saved, and to come to a knowledge of the truth" (1Tim 2:4). Christ dying for us, while we were still sinners, is how God demonstrates His love for us (Rom 5:8).

Maybe Satan has tried to hoodwink us into conceiving of God as a miserable old grouch who gets jollies out of our hardships. That's absolutely false. Even in the Old Testament we hear God's heart yearning for relationship with us, before it's too late. Ezekiel 18(31f) says, "Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit.Why will you die, O house of Israel?For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!" Hear the Lord's invitation; see how much He loves you and wants you to receive Him.

The night before He died, Jesus declared, "My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:12-13) Hear that? I HAVE LOVED YOU. How much? In the greatest way possible - laying down His life for us. That same love reaches out today to touch others for eternity.

Thursday night our church showed the "Jesus" film at the theatre. It's been used by God to bring the gospel to 5.8 billion viewers around the world. It's not a perfect depiction; for example, you're left wondering how Jesus just happens to look like the famous painting, and how his bangs always lay perfectly across His forehead and never once fall down into His eyes! But as I watched, I think they got one thing right: the way Jesus was always looking into people's eyes, reaching out and touching them, picking up a little child and holding them close, holding a girl's hand as she rode her father's shoulder. Jesus sought to connect with each person He met, simply because He loves people. They matter to Him. Today, we as His body, are moved by that same love to bring good news to others - even if that means taking a risk sometimes.

Caring, Risking, to Save A Life

On Easter Sunday in 1908, Wilfred Grenfell, a missionary doctor in Labrador, received an urgent call to come and treat a gravely ill youth in a village 60 miles away. He harnessed his dog team and set out for the village as quickly as possible. This was the time of the spring thaw, but to save time Grenfell decided to risk crossing the ice on the bay instead of winding around the rugged shoreline. It proved unwise, for the ice was breaking and shifting, and Grenfell and his dogs suddenly plunged into the icy water. He managed to pull himself and three of his dogs onto a large chunk of ice, but the wind, bitterly cold, was driving the ice out to sea. To avoid freezing to death, Grenfell killed his three dogs and wrapped himself in their bloody skins. There he shivered through the long night. The following morning he was near death. But his friends risked their own lives; they manoeuvred between the surging ice chunks to rescue him. The story of his courage spread widely, leading many others to come serve with him in Labrador.

So for us, Jesus dared to face death, setting out from His safe home in heaven to rescue us, out of His sheer agape love for us. On Good Friday we were wrapped in the righteousness of the Lamb who was slain for our salvation. On Easter Sunday, we were rescued from death by the sudden appearance of the Risen Lord. That's exciting news - let's go quickly and tell others! Let's pray.