Sermon for Feb. 5

Luke 24:1-12

The Resurrection of Jesus

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.

How many of you have ever forgotten anything?

What types of things do we forget?

I forget all sorts of things. I often will forget where I left my car keys or my cell phone. If I'm leaving my office, I almost always forget something—and will often stand in the center of the room wondering what it was I forgot. Lately, I'm afraid of forgetting Caleb somewhere—I'm fairly certain that I'm going to show up at the daycare one day with everything but the baby. The only question is when, not if.

We are a forgetful people. It's why our lives are filled with lists and calendars and all sorts of different tools to remind us of the things we need to remember, because we don't trust our minds, mostly because they've proven themselves to be less than reliable.

I wear a wedding ring everyday. Well, almost everyday. Except for the days when I forget to put it back on after I've been to the gym. Yes, I sometimes forget where I left my wedding ring and yes, I realize how bad that sounds.

A wedding ring is a reminder. It's not a promise in and of itself—it's not a magical token that functions only when I'm wearing it. It's not as though I'm not married anymore when I'm not wearing it. But it serves a very important purpose—it's a symbol, a reminder of my marriage, of the vows I have made to God and to my wife. I have promised to love and cherish her, to commit myself to her and no one else. I do not take my vows lightly, and my ring serves as a constant reminder of the promises I have made. It reminds me that I am to live for another, not just for myself, and that each decision I make affects more than just me. It is a reminder of who I am.

In the church, we have these reminders as well. We have a cross on the wall at the front of the sanctuary, reminding us of the price that has been paid for our salvation. We have a baptismal font that is always here, even when we're not using it, because we want to remember the promises we have made in our baptisms, and the promises that God has made to us. We have this Bible on the table to remind us of the centrality of Scripture in our lives. Our church is filled with reminders of God's presence.

Our history is, too.

If we look back over the history of God's people, it is also filled with reminders of what God has done throughout the ages. We tell the stories to each other, to our children, so that we will not forget what God has done over the years. We tell the story of the Israelites having been freed from the Egyptians, to remind us that we worship a God of liberation. We tell the story of Noah to remind us how sad God is at human sin, but how God is also desperate to save. We tell these old stories because they remind us of who God is and who we are. Imagine the Jews gathering at Passover each year to tell the story of God's liberating power—it's a similar story we tell when we gather around this table later in the service. We tell God's story, and within it we find our own identity.

But sometimes we forget. Sometimes we forget the fact that we're living in the midst of God's story, and we live for ourselves. Sometimes we forget the enormity of God's promises to us and begin to live a much smaller story. And sometimes we're simply so overwhelmed by life that we forget that we were made for a greater purpose. Anybody ever feel that way?

If you've ever been so worn out by life that you've forgotten all the promises God has made to you, you're not alone. You're actually in pretty good company—the company of these women who have gone to the tomb to embalm Jesus. First of all, they forgot that there was a giant stone in front of the tomb, a stone so large that they wouldn't be able to move it. Had they remembered this, they might have just stayed home.

But when they arrived, the stone had been rolled away, and upon entering the tomb they discovered that the body of their Savior was gone.

Vanished.

Nowhere to be found.

We read that the women were perplexed about this, but while they were deep in thought two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them and terrified them. After the women regained their wits, the angels did an amazing thing—they reminded them that they already knew exactly where Jesus was. He is not here, but has risen. They're happy to pass along this amazing news, this story of a Savior who has defeated death, but they know that Jesus has already told the women about this. He told them long ago what was going to happen.

But they forgot, as all humans do. In the midst of the tragedy of the cross and the puzzlement of an empty tomb, they forgot the promises of Christ to rise from death.

In the midst of a crazy and busy life, how many of you have ever found yourselves in a place where you've forgotten the promises of Christ? How many of you have looked around and not thought about the fact that Christ is with you always? How many of you have found yourselves in a place of despair and forgotten that not even death can separate you from the love of Christ? How many of you have ever been in a place so dark that you forget about the light that always shines?

We forget that Christ is always with us, and that everything we do is supposed to be an offering to Christ. We get so caught up in life, in the busy-ness of everyday life, that we forget we're supposed to be serving God, that we're supposed to be reaching out. We forget about our true mission, our true identity, and we begin to believe that this life is all there is, rather than remembering that this life is merely preparation for the next life.

We forget all this. And that's ok—it's part of being human.

What we need are reminders.

Just as the women needed a reminder of the promise they had already heard, we, too, need reminders of the promises that have been made to us.

What does it take to remind us of Christ's presence around us? I imagine that there is a different answer for each of us. For some, it may take divine intervention, like the angels in the tomb. For others, it may be the simple presence of a loved one or a favorite Bible verse perched nearby as a reminder of God's love. It may be different for each of us, but the need is the same—to remember God's promises and grace. We need to have this in our lives, so I urge you to structure your lives in such a way that you are constantly aware of Christ's presence in your life. What will it take for you to remember that Christ is with you in your work and play? What will it take for you to remember that your every meal is a gathering around Christ's table?

And from this place of remembering God's grace, we go forth to remind others of the promises God has made. This was the role of the women in our story today—they went out to remind others that Christ had promised to rise from the dead. Their news led Peter to the tomb, and Peter ended up leading the church.

Whom will you remind of Christ's promises? How will your life be a reminder to others that Christ has promised to always be with us? How will you live in such a way so that others will be reminded of Christ's light through your actions and words?

We are a forgetful people, living in a forgetful world.

May we remind one another of Christ's promises, and may our lives be reminders to others of God's faithfulness.

Let us pray.