ANYONE OUT THERE LISTENING?

Mark 16:1-8

April 12, 2009 – Rev. Jerry Duggins

 

 

I had the most delightful surprise this past week. I walked into my office Thursday morning and discovered a package. Someone remembered that my birthday was coming up and that Janet and I would be away, so this person left a little something to help me celebrate my 50th birthday. Well, I love presents… but I decided to be patient. I set the gift aside, began going over the service for Maundy Thursday, finished that up, began thinking about Easter, about the Easter sermon; got interrupted, went out for an errand, came back, had some lunch; checked to see who the package was from, and then… yes, I opened it.

 

Do you ever get presents that say, this person has no clue about me? Sometimes you even feel a little offended, like “why would I want that?” Well this was not like that at all. First, there was this package of pure cane sugar cubes, the kind you put in your clear glass or crystal bowl. You pull it out when you’re having friends over for tea or coffee, fancy stuff that makes you feel important. Well, this brought a smile to my face, but there was more, another box. I cut the tape, lifted the two top flaps, then the two flaps below those.

 

Inside I uncovered a pile of postage stamps, some from the US, some from various countries around the world. Now I haven’t had my stamp collection out in years, but I couldn’t tell you the hours of pleasure and relaxation that has provided me in previous years. So when I saw those stamps, I saw not just some pretty designs on paper, but permission to put aside the busyness and stress of life and encouragement to do something I enjoy. I remember mentioning my hobby, but hadn’t made a big deal about it. I’ll certainly enjoy going through the stamps and adding some new ones to my collection, but the real thrill of that present was the awareness that someone had listened to me, tried to understand me, and gave me something that she had to know would bring me joy.

 

How easy it is to go from day to day, feeling all the while that no one is really paying attention. This feeling can become quite crippling, leading not just to a cynical view of life, but to a determination to remain there. For many, these tough economic times push them in this direction. Anxiety about job loss, making the mortgage payment, watching investments dwindle; supplement these with news about earthquakes, tornadoes, reports of random violence and not so random violence. Tales of spouse abuse and murder, child abuse and neglect headline the local news. All of this brings us down, even before we get to those things that touch us personally: the untimely death of loved ones, the suffering associated with serious illness; even the more trivial events of everyday life, fender benders, aggressive drivers, bait and switch credit card offers. Everyone wants a piece of you, which wouldn’t be so bad if they were offering something in return. Is anyone out there listening? Isn’t this the question of our times?

 

This is the mood that dominates the women as they approach Jesus’ tomb. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome, what a ride they had with Jesus! Teaching that reminded people of their responsibility for one another, always speaking up for the poor, the oppressed, those on the underside of life. There he was, welcoming children, refusing to judge sinners, feeling compassion for those who came to them. And let’s not forget the miracles and the healings. Let’s not forget the humility that made him so approachable, the passion for speaking the truth. Can you imagine being a witness to all that? But then suddenly, it’s all gone; taken away by jealous leaders, insecure politicians, made possible by a fickle crowd. The world didn’t want him. Wasn’t anyone listening?

 

So there they are, on their way to the tomb, bringing spices to sweeten the stench of death, imagining that their journey will have been in vain anyway with no one to roll away the stone. They carry on with life but with heavy steps I think. They do what they see as their duty but only because they must keep putting one foot in front of the other or surely they too will die. They come to the tomb but without hope, the very thing we are so in danger of losing today.

 

They are stuck in despair. The tomb is open but their hopes are not raised. The good news is spoken, but their fear remains. Are they waiting for the other shoe to drop? Are they worried that the disciples will not believe their report because they are after all only women, unreliable witnesses in a court of law? Are they worried that his enemies will find him and put him to death again? Are they worried that a more concerted effort will begin to find his followers? Maybe Jesus will be less approachable as a resurrected man? Maybe they imagine that they are not worthy of this gift? We don’t know, all we get is silence and fear. Silence and fear.

 

It’s pretty clear from the manuscript evidence that either Mark’s gospel didn’t end here or we are intended to finish the story ourselves. It’s also clear that the endings we do have are much later additions. I tend to agree with N.T. Wright and a minority of scholars that the original ending is lost; but it doesn’t matter. This silence and fear represents a challenge to us, for it is our temptation.

 

I received another gift this past Thursday, not a birthday present, but a colleague and friend, John Best, offered me two Easter stories. He could have been feeling guilty about not preaching on Easter, more likely just, missing the opportunity, most likely just responding to the need before him. I hadn’t yet come up with a solid idea. I won’t try to retell the stories. They really belong to him and you should ask him to tell you if you happen to be talking to him. But I did love the theme of the second story he told. John spent some time nurturing a mission partnership between the Presbytery of Long Island and Cuba and one year they were traveling to the church in Cuba around Easter. You need to know that the church in Cuba struggled to stay alive for a very long time (we’re talking congregations of 10-15 members). The theme he took was: “Don’t bury your dreams!” Times can be tough, the outlook grim, but Easter tells us: “Never, never, never bury your dreams.”

I think I mentioned a few weeks ago about a job search/advice website. It used to advise people to wait for the job of their dreams, but in the current market they were telling people to take any job they could get. That’s what life can do to you, but it’s no Easter message. Silence, fear and cynicism will not do. We will only have regrets if we let that be the end of the story. Michael Lindvall puts it this way in a recent Presbyterian Outlook. “… resurrection declares that the last and truest words are not, after all, hatred, injustice, and death – those very words that seemed to have been triumphant the Friday before and still often seem triumphant today. Believe it or not, with God, the last words are love, justice, and life.” In the resurrection of Jesus, we see that God is listening. Someone out there is listening.

 

Once in a while, we get that message. It can come in a little but thoughtful gift that we receive. It comes in the concern and acts of compassion that we receive when in need and give as we are able. The Easter message is contained in hugs and kisses, in words of encouragement. In so many little ways, we do experience that the last word is love. These can help unlock the paralysis of cynicsm.

 

But the resurrection is not only about little things. It’s about our dreams. It’s about the cause of justice. It’s about fundamental change that calls for lifting up human dignity. Again Lindvall writes: “… resurrection is the historical and narrative promise that Jesus Christ is not just a dead memory. He is not just the founder of Christianity, a teacher who died and whom we just remember. Rather, Jesus Christ is a living, empowering, and real presence. This is the story Christians have been telling, consistently and insistently, for 2000 years.”

 

The women didn’t stay silent. The other gospels portray them as the first faithful witnesses. Somehow, they let go of despair and seized hope, and the world has never been the same. Where do you find hope in a world like this, at a time like this? “… in the living, empowering, and real presence” of Jesus Christ who is alive. His living presence continues to be a reminder that God is listening; that the heartaches, the obstacles, the roadblocks are never the final word.

 

It was just a box of used stamps, a little thing; and a hobby is hardly the stuff of dreams; but the reminder that life is not work, work, and more work; that it can be about the things we love and enjoy. That little package opened up for me what Easter is about. Someone is listening to you, to your dreams, your hopes. Someone thinks your life ought to be about love, joy, justice, well, about living. That someone is Jesus and he lifts us from darkness to light, from despair to hope. He is alive, and the last word is he intends for you to be alive, to experience life in its fullness. So dream, celebrate, live. There will always be hope so long as someone out there is listening. Amen.

 

 

“Easter; the Nightly News, and the Good News” by Micael L. Lindvall in The Presbyterian Outlook: April 6, 2009. p.23.