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| The Last Laugh Belongs To Christ |
But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body. While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” Then they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb, they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles. But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened. (Luke 24:1-12, NRSV)
All mighty God, we thank you for your word and the way that you in it revealed to us who you are and what you've done for us in Christ. Now as we open that word we pray that your spirit may be present, that all thoughts of worry or distraction may be removed and that the Spirit will allow us to hear your voice. And so, oh God, fill us with your spirit through the reading and proclamation of your word this day. We pray in Jesus name. Amen.
“The Last Laugh Belongs To Christ”
Please join me in proclaiming the Easter greeting:
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Among our brothers and sisters in Christ in Eastern Orthodox traditions, Easter is a time for humor. After the seriousness of Lent, and the heaviness of Holy Week, Easter is a time to lighten up, to enjoy God’s little joke.
Joseph of Arimathea was a very wealthy Pharisee, a member of the council, and a secret follower of Jesus. It was Joseph who went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body after the crucifixion. And it was Joseph who supplied the tomb for Jesus’ burial.
Well, it seems that someone pulled him aside and said, "Joseph, that was such a beautiful, costly, hand-hewn tomb. Why on earth did you give it to someone else to be buried in?"
Joseph just smiled. "Why not? He only needed it for the weekend."
Christ’s resurrection is God’s joke on the devil— for the devil must have been surprised to find that the tomb and the bonds of death could not hold the Son of God.
In the Easter text for today, Luke shows that the resurrection was God’s joke on the disciples, too— for the women didn’t expect what they found, and the men didn’t believe what the women told them, and Peter himself was truly amazed at what had happened.
In the Bible and in jokes, three often is an important number. Important things come in threes. Three establishes a pattern. Three is the number of completeness. We confess our belief in the three persons of the Trinity— Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus often used the number three in parables. Peter denied Jesus three times.
And... have you ever noticed that in many jokes, the third person often provides the punch line?
Three fools died and find themselves at the pearly gates of heaven. St Peter tells them that they can enter the gates if they can answer one simple question.
St Peter asks the first fool, "WHAT IS EASTER?"
The fool replies, "Oh, that’s easy, it’s the holiday in November when everybody gets together, eats turkey, and is thankful...."
"WRONG," replies St Peter, and proceeds to ask the second fool the same question, "WHAT IS EASTER?"
The second fool replies, "No, Easter is the holiday in December when we put up a nice tree, exchange presents, and celebrate the birth of Jesus."
St Peter looks at the second fool and shakes his head in disgust. He looks at the third fool and asks, "WHAT IS EASTER?"
The third fool smiles and looks St Peter in the eye.
"I know what Easter is. Easter is the Christian holiday that coincides with the Jewish celebration of Passover. Jesus and his disciples ate the last supper. He later was betrayed and turned over to the Romans by one of his own disciples. The Romans took Him to be crucified, made Him wear a crown of thorns, hung him on a cross, and stabbed him in the side. He was buried in a nearby cave which was sealed off by a large boulder."
St Peter smiled broadly with delight. The third fool continued... "Every year the boulder is moved aside so that Jesus can come out, and if He sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of winter."
Well.... It’s the third person who provides the punch line.
Looking back through the Gospel of Luke, I find it interesting that Luke gives us three accounts of people being raised from the dead.
In chapter 7, Luke gives us the account of Jesus raising the widow’s son at the town of Nain. While traveling around in his ministry of teaching and healing, Jesus saw a widow weeping in the funeral procession of her only son. Luke writes that Jesus had compassion on this widow, and said to her dead son, "Young man, I say to you, rise!" The young man sat up and began to speak.
In Luke chapter 8, Jesus raised the daughter of synagogue leader named Jairus. Jairus asked Jesus to come to his house to heal his daughter, but she died before Jesus arrived. Jesus took her by the hand and called out, "Child, get up!" She got up, and Jesus instructed her parents to feed her.
In the first account, Luke writes that the people were seized with fear when the son’s life was restored. In the second, before Jesus raises the daughter, he tells the people, "Do not fear." People’s lives being saved in this way was not a normal thing, especially during the time of Jesus. Modern medicine often gives people second chances at life now— not so in the time of Jesus. Life restored showed the fearful power of God.
Another thing is that in these accounts in Luke’s Gospel of Jesus raising people from the dead, and in the account of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead in the Gospel of John, these were times when life was restored. They were not resurrections. Life was the same following these events, and those people lived life, died, and were buried.
But then we get to God’s punch line. For when Jesus died, he wasn’t just restored to life as we know it. Life was completely changed. Walls and doors could not keep Jesus out. The tomb could not hold him. The stone was rolled away from the door not so that Jesus could get out, but so that we disciples can see in. He is not here! Alleluia! Christ is risen!
Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Did you hear the one about the two Roman soldiers guarding the tomb? The stone had been rolled away and the tomb was revealed as empty. One guard said to the other, "Well, now the only thing that’s certain is taxes."
And so, too, for us. In our world, taxes are a certainty— and no joke. But just as certainly, for all who believe in Jesus, death has lost its sting. Though God’s healing and medical technology might be able to restore our life a time or two, these bodies will die.
But death will not be the last word,
and death will not have the last laugh.
The LAST laugh— and the last word—
belongs to God!
"Do not be afraid, for see—
I am bringing you good news of great joy for all people...."
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
Christ is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Let us pray:
God our Father, By raising Christ your Son, You conquered the power of death and opened for us the way to eternal life. Let our celebration today raise us up and renew our lives by the Spirit that is within us. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God, for ever and ever. Amen
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The Bible texts of the Old Testament, Epistle and Gospel lessons are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the USA, and used by permission. Sermon contributed by Rev. Evelyn Weston.
Did you hear the one about St Peter and the three fools at the gates of heaven? Keep reading to find out!
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