SERMON FOR EASTER SUNDAY                                        SAINT ANNE’S

APRIL 4, 2010                                                                         LYDIA HUTTAR BROWN

Isaiah 65:17-25   Acts 10:34-43   John 20:1-18

Long ago, centuries before Christ,
the prophet Isaiah wrote these words from God:

I am about to create new heavens and a new earth;
the former things shall not be remembered …
but be glad and rejoice forever in what I am creating…

Isaiah was writing for people who had returned from exile in Babylon to find their homeland in ruins, their temple reduced to rubble.
They were stuck in grief, deep disappointment, the “good old days” were gone and they just wanted them back.
They were stuck in the present,
because they were looking at the past, with no vision for the future.

But Isaiah reminded them of God’s vision for shalom –
the health and wholeness — the salvation! — of the whole world.
And God was going to do this,
not by fixing up the old… not by remodeling…  but by creating something new.
Out of death and destruction God would bring new life — resurrection.

This is what God does.
In all the uncertainties of life, there is one thing we can count on:
God will be there, creating something new,
probably something surprising,
bringing life out of death.

God gets into the messiness and muck of our world and takes all of it –
the pain, tragedy, disappointment, grief –
and makes something new.  Brings new life.

It’s what God did on that first Easter.
What could be more tragic than the betrayal and gruesome death of a faithful, wise, compassionate man, who had committed no crime, who was completely full of the presence of God?
But out of Jesus’ death came Christ’s living presence,
and the birth of a community of people who embody Christ –
who are the incarnation of Christ, the Body of Christ,
to be his loving arms in this world.
God, creating a new thing, created a community called to practice resurrection. [*]

Jesus said, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
it remains just a grain of wheat. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.
We, the Body of Christ,
are the fruit borne as a result of his death and the new life God brought.

On this Easter Sunday, 2010, I want to invite you to practice resurrection.  Not just to remember an event from the past.
Not just to wrestle with what you can believe or how you can talk about it.  I invite you to move beyond doubt or faith, beyond doctrinal certainty, and to live into the mystery of Easter.  Beginning today, beginning now, to practice resurrection.

Maybe you already do practice resurrection.
It’s not that unusual, really, among people of faith.
Practicing resurrection is a way of life, an orientation of heart and mind,
that participates in God’s gift of love and life, and God’s plan for the salvation — the health and wholeness — of the whole world.

Practice resurrection.

Begin by letting go of your love affair with the past.
The past is part of us, yes, but practicing resurrection means being open to the new thing that God is doing.
In your heart.  In your family.  In our church community.

What’s done is done.  Forgive.  Let go of anger and resentment.
Clear a space in your heart for the new thing God is creating.
You may grieve over the loss of a past you can never reclaim, or a future that will never be.  But until we let go of these things, we remain stuck.

Here at church, practice resurrection by listening with respect and expectation to the voices of the new members among us.
They bring wisdom and perspective from their experience in other places, and they see with new eyes.
They have insights that can help us move into the future God is creating.

Practice resurrection by giving thanks for the children among us.
Let them teach us how to be faithful –
with joy, simplicity, exuberance, and humility.
Recognize them, not as the church of the future,
but as vital members of the church right now.
Honoring and incorporating their energy and their particular way of being children of God can help us learn to see the new thing that God is doing, right here, right now.

Practice resurrection by being the light of Christ in dark places.
As the familiar song says: I will hold the Christ-light for you in the darkness of your fear, I will hold my hand out to you, speak the peace you long to hear.  In this way you will be agents of resurrection.
You will help bring new life to others.

Practice resurrection by listening.
The gift to another person of time, and a non-judgmental listening ear, speaks volumes to them about their worth and about the validity of their experience.

Practice resurrection through acknowledging your pain, and expecting God’s presence and comfort.  It was as Mary sat weeping at the empty tomb, that she heard her name and became aware of the presence of Christ.

Practice resurrection by welcoming the stranger.  St. Anne’s has lots of visitors, and we are warm and friendly.  But it’s sometimes hard for them to get to know us beyond just saying hello.  Be part of building a new community here.  Today I want to institute the “rule of 3” — when you go to coffee hour, speak with at least 3 people you don’t know (or don’t know very well) before you go find your friends.  Try to spend at least 3 minutes in conversation with each of them (sounds kind of like speed-dating, doesn’t it?)  We need to cultivate deeper relationships, and help people feel not just welcome, but included.  I know you want to catch up, and you have church business to do — but if we are truly hospitable and truly open to the new, we will be eager to incorporate and involve the new people God is bringing to us.

Practice resurrection through small acts of kindness and by working for justice.  Respect the dignity of every human being.  Seek and serve Christ in all persons.  Love your neighbor as yourself.

God is doing a new thing.  Through you and me, God is working in the world — creating a new heavens and a new earth.  In our everyday acts, large and small, we are partners with God in bringing this new world order.

Alleluia! The Lord is risen, in our midst and in our lives.  Let us go forward as resurrection people, practicing resurrection.

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