Tag Archives: at the Cross

Unknown's avatar

Who Has Seen the Lord?

Featured by

“Who Has Seen the Lord?”

John 20:1-18 (20:18) – April 20, 2025

            Who doesn’t like to hear a good story? Storytellers are wonderful to listen to. Small children love to hear stories. Even grown-ups enjoy stories. Certain stories are told over and over again, in different ways. Cinderella. King Arthur. The Arabian Nights. Aesop’s fables. Even the Wizard of Oz.  What about The Greatest Story Ever Told? That’s another name for the narrative of the Passion Week, following Jesus step by step from Palm Sunday through Good Friday, finishing up with the happily ever after ending on Easter morning! 

            We left Jesus on the cross, on Friday afternoon, when last we saw Jesus on Good Friday. Jesus had walked through the days of Holy Week, debating with the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders in the Temple. He had eaten a Passover dinner with His disciples on Thursday evening. The special thing Jesus did on Thursday was instituting the Lord’s Supper with the bread and cup of the Passover meal. Do this in remembrance of Me, He said.

            After dinner, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. He wanted His disciples to keep watch with Him, but they were too exhausted. After the events of a very busy week, just think. The disciples couldn’t keep their eyes open!

            Then the events follow in rapid succession. The arrest, torture, trials, and sentencing. The walk down the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Sorrow. Jesus dragging the cross outside the old city of Jerusalem. The disciples fled. (I won’t blame them—since their Rabbi was sentenced as a criminal and enemy of the state, I suspect the disciples were afraid they might be connected with their leader Jesus, too!) We see the women at the foot of the cross. The faithful women. And Jesus’ mother, Mary. Then—Jesus dies on the cross. The earth quakes, the sky darkened. All creation mourns as the Word made flesh, the creator of all the universe, dies on the cross.

            As we continued to follow the Greatest Story Ever Told, Jesus is taken down from the cross shortly before sunset. His body is turned over to one of the Pharisees, Joseph of Arimethea. Joseph hurriedly lays the dead body of Jesus in a tomb nearby. And, the faithful women are also there. What faith they must have had! What tenacity, and what love. The women disciples follow their leader, their rabbi, their Lord and master, even though He’s dead. To care for His body, in the absence of the disciples – the men disciples who are in hiding.

            The women are there. Not shunted aside, not put in second place. These faithful women disciples play an important role in caring for their Rabbi and their friend, hurriedly washing and preparing His dead body for the grave, before the Sabbath begins at sunset.

            As Friday night swiftly approaches, with it comes the Jewish holy observance. Especially this special Sabbath—which falls during Passover. No work is to be done at all on this holy day of rest, not even the compassionate work of caring for a dead body.

            After Sabbath day and Saturday night end, it is now Sunday morning. Faithful Mary Magdalene heads out for the tomb even before the sun has fully risen. Can you see her, eager in her haste to get to the tomb? With some oils to anoint the body? As she comes near the tomb, she discovers the stone has been rolled away. The tomb is now empty. What happened? Mary runs to get some assistance, someone to come with her and check things out more fully.

            Sure enough, Mary tells what she discovered. Two of the—men—disciples come back with her. Mary returns with the other two, back to the tomb. They see the tomb, and sure enough. It is empty. And then, these two men disciples turn right around. Go back to the rest. In hiding.

            But—what about Mary? What does she do? Again, I come back to the indisputable fact that the women disciples are faithful and true. What a roller coaster ride Mary has been on. Starting on Palm Sunday, their leader Jesus marches right into the lion’s den, right into Jerusalem itself. All through the Passion Week, Jesus appears in and around Jerusalem, in the Temple, doing anything but keeping a low profile. I am certain the men and the women accompanying them knew very well that the Jewish leaders were planning on doing bad things to Jesus.

The women disciples show compassion, love, and care for their Rabbi, their master and friend. Mary stays put near the tomb. Jesus had been her best friend and her teacher. After she met Jesus, her life was different – and lots better! But now, Jesus had been killed and buried. Not only that, it appeared that someone had stolen his body. [1]

            At this desperate point, early on Sunday morning, Mary weeps. She does not know where her Lord and Master’s body has gone! After many days and nights of worry, anxiety, strong emotion, and intense grief, I can well understand how Mary broke down in tears.

            What about us, today? Have you ever been through days of intense emotion, gut-wrenching anxiety, even intense grief? All of those feelings tumbling and roiling through you? Then you know a little of what Mary was going through.

            What Mary did not suspect at first was that she was in the Greatest Story Ever Told. She sees Someone through her tears. She suspects this Person is the gardener, of all things! She says, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 

            Then, Jesus—for it is He!—Jesus speaks to her. Jesus calls her by name. “Mary!”          Do you hear that? Jesus calls her by name. “Mary!” How sweet to have someone who loves you very much call you by name! Remember, I just said that Mary had been on an emotional roller coaster the whole week previous? Just think what this would do! Wow! Mary’s eyes are opened. Mary finally sees clearly, and responds, “Rabbi!” “Teacher!”

            There’s a word in the next verse that is sometimes misunderstood. In verse 17, Jesus tells Mary, “Do not hold on to me.” In the original language, Greek, the word ‘hold on’ or ‘touch’ is a present imperative verb. The verb in the sentence can be translated “Do not keep touching me!” Mary realizes that it was really and truly Jesus, in the flesh. I suspect she fell on her knees and grabbed onto His legs with every ounce of strength in her body. Clutching, crying, laughing. Can you just see her? Jesus, gently trying to get her to let go. “Mary, can you stop clutching at Me?”

            Can you see Mary now, as she understands in full. Jesus is alive! He is risen! She listens to Jesus, returns to the disciples, and declares the joyful truth to everyone!

            Mary is not only a faithful friend and follower of her Rabbi, she is also someone who carries the Good News! The news that Jesus is no longer dead, but He is risen! He is alive again. I want all of you to understand this all-important point. Jesus has entrusted Mary with the Gospel message. She is a preacher of the Good News!

Mary Magdalene is no longer just a supporting player, just a side note in the Gospel. Instead, she transitions to a lead actor in the Greatest Story Ever Told, here in John 20. And, one of the first and best preachers, sharing her experience, hope and joy.

            What a story! Except—this is not make-believe. This is for real. This is very much the truth. Yes, our risen Lord Jesus is alive. Yes, He is Lord. And, yes, He has conquered death once and for all. Do you hear? Listen again to the words of the disciple Mary. She told the disciples, “I have seen the Lord!”  

I pray we all can affirm together today: He is risen! Christ is risen, indeed!  

Alleluia! Amen!

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

[1] https://worshipingwithchildren.blogspot.com/2016/02/year-c-easter-sunday-march-27-2016.html

Unknown's avatar

He Is Risen, Indeed!

by

“He Is Risen, Indeed!”

Luke 24:1-12 (24:7-8) – April 17, 2022

            Have you ever experienced an awful happening? The worst day of your life? Crying until you feel you have no more tears to shed? The women who followed the Rabbi Jesus for several years just had that happen, on Good Friday.

            Let us try to see things through their eyes – the women who had faithfully followed Jesus for several years.  The women probably shared many of the burdens, the tasks, the logistics of getting a large group of people from place to place, with enough food supplies, and places to stay in the various towns throughout Palestine. Sure, they had heard the Rabbi Jesus say at various times that He would die. Perhaps even that He might be killed by the Roman authorities.

But, not like this! Not so soon! Everything ended in a way for which none of them were prepared. The women were brokenhearted and confused. Wouldn’t you be, too?  

I am now working as a hospice chaplain. I journey with families and loved ones through the most awful days and nights of their lives; this is part and parcel of what hospice chaplains do, on a regular basis. I talk with patients and families as they deal with very difficult situations, regularly. Sometimes I simply hold their hands, providing comforting ministry of presence. And, often times, that is enough. I wonder whether the women at the Cross had someone to do that for them? I wonder who came alongside of the women in their time of great grief?

Dr. Luke tells us “On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.” He even lists some of the women who went: it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them.

“The women who followed Jesus buried him so quickly, they could not put spices on his body. The next day was the Sabbath, so they rested as God commanded in his Law…. The women who followed Jesus performed a charitable work. Burying the dead was a social expectation.” So, part of what the women customarily would do at the grave or tomb of a loved one or relative is to prepare and anoint the body. This was a social custom and practice of the day. But, “what they saw stretched them far beyond their comfort zone and thrust them into a completely new realm.” [1]

What happened at that tomb on Easter Sunday was so miraculous, I cannot blame anyone for being filled with unbelief! Would you or I have immediately believed that God raised our teacher Jesus from the dead, after all of the pain and trauma of the previous 48 hours? Not to mention the tension and fear of the past week since Palm Sunday, with the Jewish and Roman authorities suspicious of any sign of sedition and disruption in Jerusalem?

Countless people throughout the centuries have contemplated this series of events of the Passion and death of our Lord Jesus, and have walked the Via Dolorosa, the path of the Cross with Him. Truly, this time of grieving and pain is where many people find themselves right now. As a chaplain, I feel great compassion for these dear people. I wish to let them know that Jesus comes alongside of them in their grief, in their loneliness, in their depression, and especially in the dark times – because Jesus Himself traveled through incredibly dark times.

Two thousand years after the fact, ministers around the world are preaching on this Easter morning. Many of these preachers work hard on their sermons, knowing that they will have the opportunity to speak to people who do not usually attend worship services on a regular basis. And truly, today’s Easter celebration holds the Greatest Story Ever Told. Except, I am reminded that some may say “Alleluia!” quietly, even through grief, loss and very personal sadness.

Sometimes, it is enough for us to open our hearts and our hands gently, in praise, in our pews or in our homes. Other times, the glory and majesty of an Easter celebration service is exactly what people need. Neither way of worship is “wrong,” and any praise and gratitude to God is always welcome!

Dr. Luke tells us that Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them had a simple message, a profound statement about this miracle they reported to the men disciples. “I have seen the Lord!” “It’s hard to imagine a better sermon than Mary Magdalene’s on that first Easter morning. Short and memorable and to the point. Easily fits on the church sign for all to see. Sure, [preachers] may need to flesh it out a little because people expect an Easter sermon to be longer than one sentence, but not that much.” [2]

And, the best thing about this simple statement is that we can praise God, wherever we are at the moment. We can come before the Lord with loud acclimation, or with quiet meditation. We can thank our Lord Jesus for all that He did and all that He is.

The great Good News of the risen Christ is simple and straightforward And, yes! We can all proclaim that He is risen! Christ is risen, indeed! Our Lord Jesus conquered death, once for all. The best news in the universe is this: Jesus Christ still lives! He reigns forever and ever.

A church I attended years ago closed every Easter service with the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s “Messiah.” Whether we proclaim it loudly or meditate on it quietly in our hearts, Jesus now reigns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Hallelujah! Amen!

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. #PursuePEACE – and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

[1] http://www.word-sunday.com/Files/Seasonal/EasterVigil/A-EasterVigil-c.html

“Life on the Edge,” Larry Broding’s Word-Sunday.Com: A Catholic Resource for This Sunday’s Gospel.

[2] https://www.workingpreacher.org/dear-working-preacher/true-resurrection

“True Resurrection,” Karoline Lewis, Dear Working Preacher, 2016.