Matthew 28:1-10
Acts 10:34-43
If you enjoy surprise endings, the Easter story may be a bit of a letdown. The story has been around so long now and is so familiar to us that it has lost much of its drama, and almost all of its suspense. I don’t imagine there are too many people in church who listen to the Gospel reading, the story of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, and say, “Whoa, an empty tomb! I didn’t see that coming!”
When a story has been around that long and becomes that familiar, it can become routine. The same old, same old, that we celebrate every Easter, and actually every Sunday of the year. Of course, the Easter story is great news, a beautiful story, an important story that shows us what God has done for us.
But the dusty old story of Easter seems to be not so much a gripping tale of wonder anymore; it’s more like a party. Everyone knows why we’re here. It’s an occasion to celebrate, and so we do that in the usual custom. We take part in the festivities, toast the guest of honor—in this case Jesus—and generally just enjoy ourselves.
There aren’t any real surprises, just a good time had by all.
When the story of Easter becomes so familiar that it’s routine, we overlook one of the greatest surprise endings of all time. No, I’m not talking about the fact that Jesus, after being killed, comes back to life again.
Certainly, that is a important part of the story. The victory over death is what we base our faith on, and it is what gives us hope for the future. We stake our entire religion on the truth of this claim. But that’s not the surprising part of the ending. Really, what would you expect from the son of God? That ordinary humans are going to torture and kill him and that’s the end of the story?
Knowing the power of the creator of the vast universe, we would be crazy to expect that kind of an ending. Humans are never going to defeat God. Of course, God is going to make a comeback.
The stunning twist to the story is not that Jesus comes back from the grave; it’s what he does when he comes back from the grave.
The theme of the righteous person being badly abused and killed and then returning from the grave is fairly common in our society’s stories. My guess is that all these stories are inspired to some degree by the Easter story. This theme has sold a lot of movie tickets from the days of Clint Eastwood and High Plains Drifter to the slasher movies of the horror genre.
The theme is always the same. What happens when the tortured victim returns from the grave? Without exception, he returns in vengeance. A movie called The Crow was probably the best example of this. According to the Legend of the Crow, when people die, their souls are carried to the afterlife by a crow. However, if their souls are not at rest, the crow has the power to bring them back to life so they can right the wrong that was done to them and they can be at peace.
The righteous victim returns to even the score. I don’t know what Hollywood would do without this theme. He’s back! Be afraid, be very afraid! He has come to right all wrongs. To slash and maim and burn and destroy all those who did evil to him. To kill everyone who deserves to be killed, until the scales of justice are balanced and the world can be at peace.
That is how these stories always go. In fact, we want them to go that way. Audiences cheer on the wrathful avenger as he slaughters the deserving scum of the earth. Scientists tell us that this is part of our nature. There is a site within the human brain that is stimulated by acts of righteous vengeance to release chemicals providing a deep sense of pleasure. From a human point of view, this is how the story is supposed to go.
Is there any wonder, then, that the first reaction to news of Christ’s return from the grave that we see in Matthew’s account is fear? It should be. Jesus has been shamefully and horribly tortured and killed. Now he has returned. He’s back, ready to dispense justice. Be afraid, be very afraid. Heads are going to roll, bodies are going to fly. Blood is going to flow.
There are a lot of people in this story who have good reason to be terrified, starting with the disciples. They deserted Jesus in his time of need. Just ran out on him and left him. They’re gonna pay for that.
Jesus’ best friend in the world, Peter, not only ran out on him, he publicly shamed him. When Jesus most needed him, Peter told everyone he didn’t even know Jesus. He’s gonna pay for that.
All the other followers of Jesus doubted him. Jesus told them what was going to happen. He would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days. He told them that the Son of Man must be killed but would rise again. These people didn’t believe him, they sat around in shock and in tears and in despair and hopelessness. Oh, they’re going to pay for their weak faith.
Those priests in the Temple who railroaded him in that kangaroo court? Don’t get mad; get even.
The Pharisees who stirred up the hatred of the crowd so that they turned against Jesus. Payback time.
The soldiers who mocked him and spit on him and put a crown of thorns on his head The soldiers who whipped him bloody, who pierced his side, and cast lots to get his robe. They’re going to pay big time.
That sniveling wimp Pilate, who didn’t life a finger to stop what he knew was an injustice. It’s coming out of his hide.
That crowd that could have saved his life but instead called for the murdered Barabbas to be released, and then chanted for Jesus to be crucified, oh, they’re really going to be sorry when Jesus gets done with them.
We all know the story line: when you see battered victim returning from the grave, you know a bloodbath is going to follow.
No wonder the soldiers sent to guard the tomb become paralyzed with fear. No wonder the women who went to visit the tomb are trembling so badly they can hardly stand.
Remember the fury of Jesus when he trashed the temple and drove out the moneychangers? That was nothing. Imagine what it’s going to be like this time. He’s back. Be afraid, be very afraid.
When the women reach the grave, however, the angel right away lets them in on a little secret. There’s a wild plot twist coming up. “You don’t have to be afraid,” says the angel. The angel is telling them, “Yeah, I know what you expect, but it’s not going to happen. Trust me, it’s going to be incredible. You’re going to love it.”
This is so unexpected, however, that even after that encounter, the women are not sure how to react. The text says that they were filled with joy, but still afraid. Filled with joy that Jesus is back, that he’s alive; still not convinced that they are going to escape unscathed from the sword of justice from a Master who has to be seething over the unjust treatment he received.
When these women meet Jesus on the road, the terror and the joy conflict. Their first reaction is to fall down and grovel at Jesus’ feet in fear. That’s what someone would do if they were scared to death and pleading for their lives. Which is an appropriate reaction given how the story usually goes.
But Jesus says to them, “It’s okay. Don’t be afraid.”
He then tells them to summon the disciples to Galilee. Why? So he can give them what’s coming to them for their shameful behavior and their faithlessness?
No. Despite their colossal failure of faith, he doesn’t show wounded indignation. No hint of a punishment to come. He welcomes them back into the fold without any preconditions; if anything, he brings them closer to himself than ever. He even calls the disciples “my brothers.” I don’t remember him calling the disciples brothers before.
If there’s anyone among the disciples who really ought to be afraid of the return of Jesus from the grave, it’s Peter. What he did to Jesus in denying that he knew him, and continuing to do so even when everyone knew he was lying, was shameful, unforgivable. Even if Jesus doesn’t do anything to get even with him, how is Peter going to look Jesus in the eye when they meet?
Jesus has a plan for that meeting that will stun Peter. Peter is fishing on the open water when he recognizes Jesus on the shore. He feels so bad about what he has done that he wades right into the shore to take his punishment. When he gets there, what does he sees but a fire of burning charcoal.
Uh oh! There is only one other place in the entire Bible where we see a fire of burning charcoal. That was in the courtyard of the high priest when Jesus was under arrest. John 18:18 says: Now the slaves and the police had made a charcoal fire because it was cold, and they were standing around it and warming themselves. Peter also was standing with them and warming himself.
When he denied Jesus three times, Peter was standing next to a charcoal fire.
The message to Peter could not have been more obvious or ominous. I haven’t forgotten what you did to me by that charcoal fire, Peter. You’re going to pay.
Peter must have had this horrible, sinking feeling in his stomach, waiting for Jesus to lower the boom.
But when they finish supper, Jesus says to Peter, “Do you love me?”
Peter answers, “Yes.”
Jesus asks him again.
Peter answers, “Yes.”
Jesus asks him a third time.
Peter answers “Yes,” a third time.
Expecting vengeance, expecting punishment, expecting the wrath of Jesus to deal out justice to him, Peter hears these words, “Feed my sheep.”
And it’s over. No vengeance, no punishment, no wrath, no getting what he deserves. Instead, Jesus replayed the whole scene at the charcoal fire, to give Peter a second chance. To give him a chance to get it right this time. To give him new life and to welcome him into the work of the kingdom.
Peter, who previously has had trouble getting a handle on what Jesus was teaching finally gets it. When Jesus said, “Do not be afraid,” he meant it. This isn’t going to be vengeance from the grave, the sword of justice wiping out the enemies. This isn’t the usual story. This is a whole new thing, something so incredibly different, so astounding, so powerful, and so wonderful, that it is going to change the world forever.
Instead of getting revenge and leaving behind him a world littered with bodies and destruction of those who deserved it, Jesus brings forgiveness. He transforms the barren landscape of a sinful world into a garden of beauty and peace. He wields a power far stronger than that knee-jerk human reaction of righteous vengeance that leads to more and more acts of violence and throws the world into a deathspin cycle of hatred. He wields the power of love.
This time, Peter gets it. In our reading from Acts today, Peter is fresh off an encounter with Cornelius, an officer in the Roman army. If there’s anyone Peter should hate, it’s the Roman military. He has been taught from birth to hate them. They are a symbol of everything wrong in the world. They are the oppressors of his people. They supervised the crucifixion. His instinct is to call down the wrath of God on this heathen and destroy him.
Instead, Peter follows that surprising plot twist that Jesus introduced. “I now see that hatred isn’t the way to go,” he says. “I now realize that it’s not us against them. I see that God does not show favoritism, but accepts people from every nation who fear God and do what is right. So I’m going to do something I never thought I would do. I’m going to welcome this Roman officer as a brother in the faith.”
The surprise of the empty tomb on Easter Sunday is not that Jesus rose from the dead. Given the message of the Bible and the nature of God, that is what we would expect. The surprise is that message: “Do not be afraid.”
The surprise is that God took a vengeance situation, that from a human point of view demanded blood, and turned it on its head. God saw that the world was enslaved to a suicidal thirst for revenge and righteous justice, an instinct that was destroying all of creation. And so, at great cost, God flooded the world with a tidal wave of love and forgiveness that broke the grip of death and hatred. He has broken their power, and ushered in the reign of God.
Yeah, he’s back. But this isn’t the same old story. “I come to make all things new,” God says. This ending’s different. Do not be afraid. On this Easter Day, be glad, be very glad. All of you. Christ is risen. Alleluia.
Glory be to the Father and the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.