Monday, April 10, 2023

Sermon (April 9/Easter Sunday) by Rev. Robert McDowell


    For the season of Lent we’ve been focusing on the theme, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.” The inspiration for this 7-week sermon series comes from the hymn with that title. 

     This hymn was written by Isaac Watts, one of the most recognizable of all the hymn writers. He was born in England in 1674. His hymn, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” was published in 1707.


     Hymn writers are the poets of the church. Their lyrics are often beautifully written and they help us to not only sing our faith but to remember our faith through their creative poetry. 

     Even if the sermon is below average which hopefully doesn’t happen that often, we always have the great hymns of faith to penetrate the depths of our souls. Watt’s hymn, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” is definitely a hymn that doesn’t disappoint. 

     His first three words of this hymn have always stood out for me. “When I survey…” And it just made sense to me that the Season of Lent would be the perfect time of year for us to do some surveying of our relationship with God. 

     Based on the appointed scripture readings for these past several Sundays, we’ve been surveying the temptations that come our way based on when Jesus was tempted in the wilderness when he began his ministry and overcame those temptations.

     We’ve been surveying our faith with the Old Testament story of when Abram and Sara responded to God’s calling to begin a new nation even though they were beyond child-bearing years. 

     We’ve been surveying our spiritual thirst by focusing on Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well and when Jesus offered her living water that will never leave us thirsty.

     We have been surveying our hearts by focusing on another Old Testament story of when the prophet Samuel chose David to be the next king of Israel based on his heart and not on his physical attributes 

     We have been surveying our grief based on the story of Jesus and Lazarus from John, chapter 11 when Lazarus had died and Jesus wept at the loss of his friend. 

     And of course, we’ve also been surveying the wondrous cross which we looked at last Sunday which was Palm Sunday, the day that marks the beginning of Holy Week and the events that led to Jesus dying on the cross on Good Friday. 

     And today, we conclude this series by having this wonderful opportunity to survey the wondrous empty tomb. What does it mean for us to survey the wondrous empty tomb and Jesus’ resurrection?

     Now, I know that Mr. Watts didn’t include any mention of Easter in this great hymn of faith but it is certainly implied because the reason it is a wondrous cross is because of the good news that the tomb was empty on that early Easter morning.  And notice how John, the Gospel writer creatively begins his telling of that first Easter morning in a very subtle but powerful way. In verse 1 of our Gospel reading, he writes, “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark…”

     I believe that John is giving us more than just a time stamp in describing that first Easter morning. John tells us it was still dark. We often think of Good Friday, the day that Jesus died on the cross as a very dark day, a day of tremendous sadness and tragedy. This past Thursday for our Maundy Thursday service, we held a funeral service for Jesus here in our sanctuary because that’s exactly what the disciples were facing when Jesus died on Good Friday.

     Placing Jesus in a tomb on Saturday was part of that 1st century funeral process. Bringing spices to the tomb on Sunday morning to pay last respects to Jesus was also part of that funeral and grieving process. The disciples were in a funeral mode following Jesus’ death. They were beginning the hard and difficult journey of grief that we all face from time to time. 

     “While it was still dark.” Those words remind us that Mary was still in full funeral mode early on that Easter Sunday morning. But we also know to never count out God when we hear those words, “While it was still dark,” because we all know how the Lazarus story ended. That was just 9 chapters earlier in the Gospel of John.

     I’ve shared this with you before but remember that John is known for how he creatively tells the story of Jesus by tying it in with the creation story from the Book of Genesis. You may remember that John began his Gospel with the words, “In the beginning.” Those same words begin the Book of Genesis when God created the world. “In the beginning.”

     And from there, the Book of Genesis says how “the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep.” There’s that word again, “darkness.” But then the Book of Genesis tells us how God said, “let there be light and there was light.” Even in just those first few verses of the Bible, we learn that God is more than able to bring light out of darkness! God can overcome any darkness we may be facing!

     Jesus came to what appeared to be a funeral for Lazarus, a very dark day of grief for Lazarus’s sisters, Mary and Martha, and Jesus himself. But remember, God can overcome any darkness in our lives. There at Lazarus’s tomb, Jesus says a quick prayer, tells them to remove the stone from Lazarus’s tomb, and calls Lazarus to come out! And Lazarus emerges from that dark tomb to new life. 

     I believe that in telling us this story of Lazarus in the middle of his Gospel, John was preparing you and me for this moment when Mary came to Jesus’ tomb on that Sunday morning, “while it was still dark.” We hear this story and we’re wondering, can God do it again, overcome the darkness of Good Friday? 

     The Lazarus story and today’s Easter story in John’s Gospel remind us that you can’t really talk about the wondrous empty tomb without also acknowledging the darkness of grief, pain, disappointments, and brokenness that we all experience from time to time. The wondrous empty tomb doesn’t have near the impact if we weren’t also there at the foot of the cross just 3 days ago on Good Friday. 

     In the sporting world, we sometimes hear the phrase, “The Great Comeback” to describe how a team came back from what looked like a sure and certain defeat and end up winning the game. 

     How many fans leave a football or a baseball game early, thinking that their team can’t possibly come back and win. And by the time those fans make it to the parking lot, they hear the stadium erupt in a thunderous cheer because of a fumble recovery in the closing seconds that led to a score or a grand slam home run in the bottom of the 9th!

     The empty tomb was the greatest comeback in all of human history. Jesus who was crucified, dead, and buried was now alive and greets Mary there at the empty tomb with these surprising words, “Mary, why are you weeping?” The comeback of Jesus Christ was a victory over death, the grave, and sin.

     Many of Jesus’ disciples left from Good Friday thinking, “game over.” But there were some that lingered at the cross on that dark Friday. And then we have Mary who was still willing to visit the tomb on that early Sunday morning while it was still dark and she was the first to see the Risen Lord.

    When we stand at the graveside of a loved one, we hear these words of hope and promise, “Almighty God, into your hands we commend this person in sure and certain hope of resurrection to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” 

     Those words are a power reminder to us that even in the midst of the darkness of our pain and grief, the game isn’t over. 

     I’ll never forget one of those times that I shared these words of hope at a graveside service for one of our church members. I’ve learned over my 35 years of pastoral ministry to never, ever underestimate the power of saying those words for loved ones who have grieving hearts.    

     It was a very cold and cloudy winter day. Everybody was bundled up. When the cemetery service had concluded, this elderly gentleman, now a widower continued to stay seated there by the grave of his wife.

     By the look on his face, I knew he wanted to tell me and the family members who were near him something very important.  After several moments of silence he looked straight ahead and said, “When you were saying that last prayer, the sun emerged through the clouds from behind you and it was shining so brightly. And it brought so much warmth.”

     And I knew that by the way he told me this that he wasn’t giving me a weather update. He was experiencing a God Moment or as we like to call it, a Thin Place moment. For him, the clouds of death and grief had given way to an assurance of God’s presence at the top of that cold and blustery cemetery hill.

     I nodded my head to indicate that I understood what he meant.  And as he got up from his chair and slowly headed to his cars, he kept repeating to himself, “It was the strangest thing. It was the strangest thing.”

     When we survey the wondrous empty tomb especially when we are going through a time of darkness and grief, that empty tomb sometimes leaves us saying, “It is the strangest thing.” 

     Penny and I were having a conversation with one of our elderly neighbors this past fall. She loves telling us about her children, her grandchildren, and her great-grandchildren. As she was telling us about them, she said something we will never forget.

     She said that she was just starting to make arrangements to have her whole family go to Disney World this spring. She said that it might be her last opportunity to go to Disney World because of her age.

     And I said, “wow, that’s really very generous of you. Isn’t that going to be really expensive to pay for everyone?” 

     And this great big smile came to her face, and she said, “It is, but you know how I’m going to pay for it? After I saw how much my burial plots are worth now compared to when I bought them, I decided to just go ahead and sell them to help pay for this one last big trip to be together with my family.” 

     The joy on her face was priceless!

     Now, that’s what I call, surveying the empty tomb!


When I Survey the Wondrous Empty Tomb

Sermon Discussion Questions
John 20:1-18

April 9, 2023

So far during this series, we have surveyed our temptations (February 26), our faith (March 5), our spiritual thirst (March 12), our hearts (March 19), our grief (March 26), and the wondrous cross (April 2). For this Sunday which is Easter Sunday, we are focusing on surveying the wondrous empty tomb.

Which of these areas of our lives that we have been invited to survey stands out for you the most? How has surveying these areas helped you to experience new life and transformation? What are some areas that continue to be a challenge?

In our Gospel reading which describes that first Easter morning, John tells us about Mary who went to visit Jesus’ tomb early that morning, “while it was still dark.” This description that it was still dark reminds us of the darkness that started when Jesus was arrested, crucified on a cross, and placed in a tomb. John may also be alluding to the creation story in the Book of Genesis when we are told that “the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep.” And then we are told in that story that God said, “let there be light and there was light.” Based on this observation, Pastor Robert said, “The wondrous empty tomb doesn’t have near the impact if we weren’t also there at the foot of the cross just 3 days ago on Good Friday.” 

In what ways do you see the wondrous cross connected with the wondrous empty tomb? 

The wondrous empty tomb when Jesus rose from the dead is the greatest comeback in history. The good news of Easter centers on the belief that God raised Jesus from the dead. Another great comeback story was when Jesus raised his friend, Lazarus from the dead in John chapter 11, but he would eventually die again. The significant difference between these two incredible “comeback stories” was that Jesus’ resurrection meant that he would never die again! Because of the good news of Easter and the wondrous empty tomb, this is what gives us hope that one day God will raise his people to new life and this world will be made new again!

Share some ways that can help you to continue to survey the wondrous empty tomb and the good news of Easter.

Pastor Robert shared the story of a church member who continued to survey the wondrous empty tomb. During the graveside service for his dear wife, he felt the presence of the Risen Christ when the sun mysteriously started shining through the gray clouds and cold winter air when these closing words were shared, “Almighty God, into your hands we commend your servant in sure and certain hope of resurrection to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” The husband could be heard saying upon leaving the graveside, “I could feel the warmth of the sun. It was the strangest thing. It was the strangest thing.”

Share when you have felt the presence of the Risen Christ in the midst of your times of darkness and grief.

Close your time by offering this prayer from Sunday’s worship service which ties in with Isaac Watt’s wonderful hymn, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.”:

God of resurrection and new life, your wondrous cross has led us to a wondrous empty tomb!  As we survey the good news of your victory over sin and death on this Easter Sunday, lead us to be your resurrection people. Lead us to claim the abundant and eternal life you have made possible for each one of us. Lead us from our tombs of fear and despair that we may walk as children of the resurrection. Lead us to share the good news of the empty tomb with others. Forbid it Lord that we should boast, save in the death and resurrection of Christ, our God. All the vain things that charm us most, we sacrifice them to Christ who lived, died, and rose again! Amen!

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