"A Crown, A Cross and an Empty Tomb"

By Rev. Billy D. Strayhorn

(John 20:1-18)

[1] Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. [2] So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." [3] Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. [4] The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. [5] He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. [6] Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, [7] and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. [8] Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; [9] for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. [10] Then the disciples returned to their homes.

[11] But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; [12] and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. [13] They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." [14] When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. [15] Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." [16] Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher). [17] Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' " [18] Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

(NRSV)

INTRODUCTION:

The director of the children's Easter pageant was overseeing the casting so that each of the children felt comfortable with their role. One boy, who had a wonderful speaking voice, insisted that he wanted to be the rock in front of the garden tomb. The director asked him if he was sure, "Wouldn't you rather have a speaking part?" But he said, "No! I want to play the rock."

After the presentation she was telling the boys and girls what a good job they had done and asked this young man why he wanted to play the rock.

The boy just smile and said, "'Cause if felt so good to let Jesus out of the tomb." (1)

Isn't that what today is all about? Feeling good because Jesus has been let out of the tomb?

But that first Easter didn't start that way. That first Easter started with the holdover of Friday's confusion. On Friday Jesus' followers were filled with fear. Saturday found them hiding out. The Sabbath didn't feel like the Sabbath at all. Instead, because of the tragedy of the crucifixion, it felt unholy. A blue norther had blown in upon their spirits. The dual storms of sin and death had left them lying like so much flotsam and jetsam upon the beach of life.

They couldn't breathe. Their world had fallen apart all around them. The pain was crushing the life out of them. And every time someone walked by their door or knocked on their door, their hearts would race in fear that they would be next.

It was awful. These once proud, triumphant followers and friends of Jesus now stood defeated and depressed. They were haunted by the events of that not so good Friday.

Finally Sunday rolled around. Now they could at least take care of the body. Things had been in such a turmoil that they didn't even have a chance to do that properly. Now was their chance. A couple of the women went to do the honors. But when they got to the tomb, their worst nightmare became a reality. Someone had stolen the body. The stone had been rolled aside and the body was gone. All that was left were the burial robes.

They ran back as quick as they could and told the others. Who in turn ran to the tomb to check out the story. It almost seemed the Peter and John were in a race to see who could get there first. John won but when he saw that the stone HAD been rolled aside, he couldn't go in. That didn't stop Peter. Bold, brash, impetuous Peter barged right in. And what he saw made him tremble. The women were right. There was nothing left but the burial cloths. Filled with horror and shock, they headed home. Not really understanding. Apparently not remembering anything that Jesus taught.

I. MEMORY LOSS:

They all remind me of a story I heard about a woman who went to see her doctor and said, "Doctor, I have this terrible problem; I can't remember a thing."

The doctor asked, "Well, how long have you had this problem?" The woman looked at her and replied, "What problem?"

It seems like the disciples and followers of Jesus were suffering from memory loss. Why had they forgotten? Memory is a funny thing. Have you ever gone to call someone's name and it's just not there. You know them almost as well as you know yourself and suddenly their name just eludes you. You can think of your fifth grade music teacher or your 7th grade social studies teacher. You can even remember your sister's husband's mother's maiden name but you can't remember the name of the person standing in front of you. I don't know why it happens but it does.

I really think that the crucifixion was such a shock to both the physical and spiritual systems of Jesus followers that they stood in front of the tomb knowing they were supposed to remember something. They knew it was important. But it just wouldn't come.

Even after the angels spoke, trying to comfort her, Mary didn't remember. It wasn't until Jesus, himself, called Mary by name, that she recognized him. She had this personal encounter with the risen Lord and then remembered all of his teachings. It was then that she ran back to the disciples and said, "I have seen the Lord."

II. A CROWN AND A CROSS:

A. Now, according to sin and death, it wasn't supposed to get that far. It was sin and death and not the spirit of resurrection that troubled the spirits and minds of the disciples. It was the old strangle hold of sin and death upon the world that kept them all in the dark and confused. At that moment, their hollow, shallow, powerless laughter was all that could be heard. It drowned out the slowly rising symphony of resurrection that was just warming up. Sin and death and the enemies of Christ thought the crown and the cross had nailed him for good. They thought all their troubles had been sealed away forever, when Jesus uttered those dying words: "It is finished." No one has ever been more wrong.

B. CROWN: Just look at the crown. Crowns have been a symbol of authority, power and might for as long as we've had history. Queen Elizabeth's crown is supposed to be worth a cool 20 million dollars. That's some kind of expensive hat.

They mocked Jesus as a would be king by shoving a crown of thorns upon his head. Jesus took that painful crown of thorns and transformed it into the most precious crown of all, a crown of peace and power, a crown of life. Yes, it was a crown that symbolizes defeat, but not his. It symbolizes the defeat of sin and death.

There's an old legend about a priest who found a branch of a thorn tree twisted around so that it resembled a crown of thorns. It was a wonderful a symbol of the crucifixion, so he placed it on the altar in his chapel on Good Friday. Early on Easter morning he remembered what he had done. He didn't think it was appropriate for Easter Sunday, so he hurried into the church to remove it. But when he went into the church, he found the thorn branches blossoming with beautiful roses. (2)

That's a beautiful example of what Christ did with both the Crown of Thorns and the Cross. He transformed them from implements of degradation, death and destruction into symbols of joy and life and hope. He took a crown of thorns and made it Crown Of Life. He transformed the cross from an instrument of death, into a throne of peace and a symbol of forgiveness, life, hope and faith.

III. AN EMPTY TOMB:

And then there's the tomb. Who would have thought that a grave site would be the symbol of eternal life? I love the irony. I love how God turned everything upside down. The religious leaders of the day who didn't believe in life after death got the theological shock of their lives. The tomb was empty. Nothing could hold the Son God, no coffin, no tomb, no cross; nothing could hold back the Son of God.

If you go to the George de la Tours and Michelangelo exhibit at the Kimball, you'll see a 1532 drawing done by Michelangelo. It's a drawing for a painting which never came about or which has been lost by time, entitled "Resurrection." What is so noticeable about this drawing is that the tomb is not like we normally picture it. Instead it is more like the modern tombs, a stone sarcophagus or cenotaph. Sort of like a box carved out of stone with a stone lid on it.

I found it very moving because Michelangelo drew Jesus literally bursting forth from the tomb. The lid is flying off as Jesus leaps out of death and back into life. And that's what it's all about. No longer do we have to fear death. Jesus threw off the lid that keeps us entombed. Jesus burst forth from death into life so that we could do the same thing both spiritually and physically.

The Good News of this day is exactly what the women and the disciples saw that very first Easter. The tomb is empty.

CONCLUSION:

Did you know that there is still a lot of argument over where the original tomb of Jesus is. Roman Catholics go with the tradition that it is in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. There's some pretty good historical and archeological evidence for that place being the spot.

Some Protestants are put off by all the gold and silver and the way the Roman Catholic and other Orthodox Churches have decorated and venerated the spot. So they opt for a spot called the Garden Tomb. It's simple, tasteful, it looks like we expect it would look. For me, the historical and archeological data doesn't really seem to support it as the real tomb.

Then there are two other groups, one of Messianic Jews and the other of Charismatic Christians who hold that it is actually on the Mount of Olives on the spot where tradition says Jesus ascended into Heaven after the resurrection.

They all have compelling arguments and they all have piles of proof for their claims. But you want to know something, none of those claim really make any difference. None of the claims can ever be proven until Jesus comes back and tells us. But then isn't that the whole point of the Resurrection. The joy of Easter is that the tomb is empty. Death no longer has the winning hand. Sin no longer controls our lives. The stone has been rolled away. Jesus burst out of the tomb with a smile on his face and joy in his heart. Some people are Good Friday Christians, they only dwell upon the cross and Jesus' death. But the tomb is empty. No matter where it is, the tomb is forever empty. We're called to be people of the empty tomb. We're called to move beyond his death to the joy and the peace of the Resurrection. Like the little boy said, "It feels so good to let Jesus out of the tomb."

The tomb IS empty. Jesus is risen from the dead.

1. Cal & Rose Samra, Holy Humor, (The Fellowship of Merry Christians, 1996), p. 51.

2. Pastor's Story File, April 1987. Submitted by James Wilson, First Christian Church, Aurora, MO.