Do Not Be Afraid
Resurrection of Our Lord – Narrative Lectionary 1
April 21, 2019
Grace, Mankato, MN
Matthew 28.1-10
I think I lost joy in the 9th grade. It was still Junior High School then, because our high school was so big, even with only three grades. I was in the cafeteria during lunch when I spied a former and very well-admired teacher. I was so excited because I hadn’t seen my 8th grade biology teacher, Mr. J since I took a summer school elective. So, I jumped up and shouted his name, only to be immediately pushed back down by an iron grip to my shoulder. The iron grip belonged to Mr. P, my current English teacher. Now, Mr. P was also a Navy Air Reserve pilot whose military bearing pervaded the classroom, most notably as he called each of us Mr. or Miss. Now, I enjoyed the rigor of Mr. P’s Accelerated English class, but today I only felt was shame and embarrassment. This incident, coupled with my innate Scandinavian stoicism, shoved joy into the darkest recesses of my soul rarely to see the light of day.
The two Marys came to the tomb that first Easter morning, probably to pay their respects. The joy of sharing the Passover meal with their Teacher, friend, and leader, Jesus, had been shoved down by events of the previous days. His sham trial by the religious leaders and execution by the occupying Romans throttled joy virtually to the point of extinction. It’s doubtful that the two had remembered Jesus’ promise to rise again, but they came to the tomb anyway. So, when the earth shook, the stone rolled away and the angel appeared, the first words they heard were, “Do not be afraid,” and their world was rocked and thrown into even more confusion.
“He is not here,” the angel says, “he has been raised and is going to meet you in Galilee.” They leave the empty tomb and as they go they do so “with fear and great joy.” Then, Jesus meets them with the same words as the angel spoke, “Do not be afraid.” They did the only thing they could possibly do: they worshiped him. Jesus repeats and clarifies the angel’s message, sending them to bring the same message to the rest of Jesus’ followers. From other Gospels we know that they are hiding in fear behind locked doors. So it is in this new, post-resurrection world that women become the first apostles and evangelists.
In the resurrection of Jesus, God reached down in the deepest recesses of fear, anguish and pain to bring new life, and not just the stunning promise of the resurrection to eternal life of all whom we hold dear and who have passed on before us. God breaks open the tombs of our losses and insecurities, everything standing in the way of life. My fear of expressing joy and other emotions has served me well in many ways. I have an ability to stay calm during difficulties and I can usually keep my head when others lose theirs. But stuffing that joy has come at a great price, resulting in being afraid to experience joy lest I only to be disappointed in the end.
I am grateful that God has used various means to break me open so that I can begin to live the resurrected life. I hope that you are experiencing the joy of the resurrection today, but if not, that’s okay. Do not be afraid. The Easter message is that God does not give up on us, even in the face of death, especially in the face of death. You see, resurrection faith gives us courage to lean into the hard things in life, even when we don’t know the outcome. Wherever you are in life, whatever is happening, know that God continues to work away at your fears. Do not be afraid, for Christ is risen and new life is yours, both now and in the age to come. Thanks be to God. Amen.
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