Sermon for Easter Sunday (Year A-RCL)
March 23, 2008 St. Luke’s, Rev. Susan Lee
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy
Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
“Mary Magdalene ran and told the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord.’” (John 20:18.)
The women went to the tomb early on Sunday morning with a single purpose in
mind: to anoint Jesus’ body with spices, the traditional way of preparing a body for burial.
Instead, they found an empty tomb with the burial shroud cast aside and lying in a heap.
Later, while weeping at the tomb, Mary Magdalene saw the risen Lord himself. It was an
astounding turn of events, and she ran to tell the disciples: Jesus is alive!
What does the Resurrection mean? The early disciples asked this question, and
each generation must ask it again. What did the Empty Tomb mean to those who first
followed Jesus?
Last week, several of us went to hear Marcus Borg, a well-known Biblical scholar
who spoke at a diocesan event in Boston. Dr. Borg presented an interesting interpretation
of Jesus’ life and the meaning he had for his followers. He said that Jesus had a political
message. It wasn’t political in the sense of partisan politics, Democrats and Republicans.
It was political in the sense that politics is about the use of power. How has power, and
how do they use it? That’s the heart of politics. Dr. Borg said that Jesus taught about a
different way of using power, a way that contrasted dramatically with the politics of Judea
during Jesus’ lifetime.
Dr. Borg illustrated the two different ways of using power with a description of the
events of Palm Sunday. He talked about two different processions into the city of
Jerusalem the Sunday before Jesus’ death. One was the procession of Pontius Pilate,
entering the western gate of Jerusalem. Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea,
and he lived on the coast, in a pleasant new Roman city he had built, Caesarea. The
Roman administrative offices were there, as well as most of the Roman soldiers. For the
feast of Passover, however, the most important celebration in the Jewish calendar, Pontius
Pilate would travel inland up into the Judean hills, to Jerusalem. Passover tended to be a
difficult time for the Romans. Thousands of pilgrims would descend on Jerusalem, and
there were often outbreaks of riots and rebellions. So Pilate would go to Jerusalem with
additional soldiers to reinforce the regular garrison there. He would habitually arrive
several days before Passover.
Dr. Borg described the procession as a long line of marching soldiers, carrying their
impressive weapons, swords and spears, the sun glinting off their polished armor and
helmets. There would be cavalry as well, soldiers mounted on horses. Pilate himself would
have been dressed in expensive clothing designed to convey the might of Rome. The
procession would have been led by the imperial Roman standards, the golden Roman eagle
mounted on a high pole. Perhaps the procession would have been accompanied by drums.
The effect was intended to be a show of imperial might. Horses, soldiers, flashing weapons,
gold and silver symbols. It was meant to be intimidating and no doubt was very effective.
It was the power of empire, the greatest power in the world. Rome had arrived in
Jerusalem, and the crowds had better behave.
By contrast, Dr. Borg said, Jesus arrived on the other side of the city about the same
time, entering Jerusalem through the eastern gate. Jesus had none of the trappings of
wealth or power. There was no gold or silver, no intimidating weapons, no ranks of mighty
soldiers, no towering horses. Instead, Jesus rode on a donkey! Now, wealthy people did
not ride on donkeys. The donkey was a beast of burden characteristic of the peasant class.
Often, it was women who rode donkeys – think of Mary and Joseph headed for Bethlehem
for the birth of Jesus. Mary rode on the donkey, while Joseph walked. Donkeys were the
antithesis of power. The donkey meant humility and Jesus’ action carried out a saying
from the prophets, “Behold, your king comes to you, humble and riding on a donkey”
(Zachariah 9:9). Instead of spears and swords, his followers took palm branches from the
trees and waved them enthusiastically. Jesus’ message was that the Kingdom of God is not
about wealth and power. It’s not about soldiers and weapons. It’s about peace and nonviolence. It’s about the great love and compassion of God for all people, including the poor
peasants and fisherman who were Jesus’ followers. It was a very different sort of
leadership, a very different vision of how society ought to be. And the crowds were with
Jesus, cheering wildly for the new fresh face they hoped would bring them liberation from
Rome.
Dr. Borg made the interesting point that Jesus had quite likely planned all this
symbolism in advance. He knew about when Pilate would arrive with his soldiers. He
knew what would be involved in an imperial procession. He knew there would be soldiers
and weapons and horses and Pontius Pilate dressed in his finery. Jesus’ entry into
Jerusalem was a sort of protest, Dr. Borg said, a counter-imperial demonstration. The
similar timing of the two processions set out the real conflict of Holy Week, the
confrontation of the kingdom of God and the kingdom of imperial domination.
Once inside the city, over the next few days, Jesus challenged the Roman system in
other ways: driving the money-changers out of the temple, criticizing the temple
authorities that allowed them to be there, teaching the gathered pilgrims about the way of
God’s peace. Jesus was very successful in drawing large crowds and conveying his message
in parables. His challenge to the imperial system was very open and public, and the
authorities felt compelled to respond.
There quite likely were many different possible responses, but those in power
decided on the ways of domination and control, the heavy hand that characterized Roman
rule. The kingdom of imperial domination ruled the day, and the result was Jesus’
crucifixion and death on Good Friday. It seemed as though the story was over. The
shining hope of a kingdom of God was dead, and the habitual way of domination and
control won.
But then came that Easter morning, the dramatic and startling empty tomb, and the
appearances of Jesus to his disciples. Suddenly the message changed! It wasn’t Rome that
had the last word, after all! God intervened and raised Jesus from the dead. Dr. Borg said
that it was God’s ‘yes’ to Jesus and God’s ‘no’ to the powers that killed him. And that was
the meaning that it had for the disciples. They saw the Resurrection as God’s validation of
the way that Jesus taught, the way of peace, the way of non-violence, the way of humility,
the way of caring for the poor, the hungry and the sick. When they proclaimed, “Jesus is
alive!” it meant this victory of God over Rome. When they affirmed, “Jesus is Lord!” they
meant that Caesar in Rome was not Lord. It was an anti-imperial confession of faith, Dr.
Borg said. Because Jesus lives, Rome had fallen. Because Jesus is Lord, the power of
Rome was no more. It was a strong message of affirmation of the poor and powerless. The
kingdom of God was the only real power, the only way that really mattered.
So we can say that the meaning of Easter for the first disciples was that God rules.
The bottom line is the love of God, the most powerful force in the universe. The bottom
line isn’t military might, it isn’t wealth, it isn’t even death. God’s love overcomes them all.
The way of God that Jesus taught is the way to live a good life, a way of love and humility,
a way of peace and joy, a way of caring for the least of our brothers and sisters. That was
the message for the first-century Christians, and it is still the message for us today.
Alleluia! Jesus is alive! Jesus is Lord, Alleluia!
Let us pray.
Gracious God, in your merciful generosity, you raised Jesus from the dead and gave us
hope of new life. Strengthen us to walk in the way of Jesus, the way of humility, peace, and
compassion. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen.