When Your World is Shaken
While it probably isn’t wise to build ones theology around bumper stickers, I saw two good ones in Orleans on Saturday.
One said, “Write your sorrows in sand. Write your blessings in stone.”
The other one said, “Jesus is coming, look busy.”
I’m glad you’re here looking busy for Easter.
Listen to the Good News according to Matthew 28:1-10,
Easter, April 20, 2014
Matthew 28:1-10, When Your World is Shaken
Doug Scalise, Brewster Baptist Church
[powerpress]
“After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” 8 So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
This past Tuesday, April 15th, marked the anniversary of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings; however it’s the running on Monday of the 2014 race that will truly signify that a year has passed since that tragic event. I grew up in Brookline and the Boston Marathon route down Beacon Street was just a brief walk from our home. Throughout my life I’ve admired the unbelievable speed of the lead runners who run a little more than 26 miles at a pace faster than I can run a half mile. Beyond those elite athletes, the Boston Marathon has always been much more about common, ordinary people who train for months and push their bodies to the limit to achieve a goal. For some runners it’s about fitness and physical challenge; for others it’s about honoring loved ones or supporting worthy causes.
What makes the Boston Marathon special is that it’s more about participating and finishing than it is about winning. Only a handful of people enter the race believing they can win. The Boston Marathon is a day of community, and encouragement as tens of thousands of people line the entire route to encourage the thousands of runners giving their all. The whole day is a great celebration of the human spirit. For all these reasons, the attack that killed innocent spectators and wounded and maimed hundreds of people was incredibly upsetting and disturbing.
The explosions at the Boston Marathon shook the world of everyone who was present or witnessed it on television. As often happens, in the immediate aftermath of an act of violence that revealed the worst of humanity; the best of humanity was displayed as fellow citizens, first responders, and the wonderful medical personnel on hand at the finish line worked with great speed and skill to save the lives of many of the gravely wounded. As Jill and I were talking about it recently she said that the most incredible thing to her was that every single person who made it to a hospital survived. That is amazing. This year’s Boston Marathon will feature the largest number of runners, spectators, and volunteers ever as the spirit of Boston Strong will be on full display.
Looking back a year later, we’ve seen how the detonation of two devices on one day impacted our region. Now, when I read about car bombs in places like Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan or Nigeria the empathy I have for the people trying to cope in those circumstances has greatly increased. I’ve also pondered how we as human beings respond when our world is shaken by a tragic event like a terrorist attack or an accident. It could be a literal earthquake like the ones that have occurred recently in Chile and Los Angeles. The seismic activity in Los Angeles didn’t cause much damage but in the funniest image I saw the sudden shaking led one man leading a TV newscast to declare, “We’re having an earthquake!” Then he stuck his head under his desk. I’m sure he is going to hear about that from his co-workers for a while. While on one level from a position of distance and safety, his fearful reaction was humorous, we can also understand that if we were in a place where everything we thought was secure around us including the literal ground beneath our feet, the walls around us and the roof over our head became to shake and sway, we’d likely be pretty scared.
It doesn’t take an earthquake to shake our world. I hear from people who have their world shaken by medical news concerning themselves or a loved one. I hear from people whose world is shaken by financial insecurity who don’t have enough income to pay their bills and who struggle to maintain a place to live. I hear from people whose relational world is unsteady and uncertain and things are not the way they hope with family members. Like an earthquake, these events can come upon us suddenly, unexpectedly, and without warning. We never know when our world is going to be shaken.
Sadly, this was brought home to me this week when on Wednesday evening I received a phone call from my life-long friend Doug Moon. My father and mother were Doug’s parents best friends and Doug and his brother Ed and I have known each other our entire lives and we spent summers together in Maine where our cottages were just a few yards away from each other. Doug was calling to say that his father had died unexpectedly on Wednesday in Maine. Since my dad was in Boston for some appointments I drove up to Boston, had a nice visit with Bob Donnelly at Mass General Hospital where he is waiting for a heart transplant, then my dad and I drove to Maine to be with Doug and Ed. At dinner time, I received a phone call about BBC’s Financial Manager, Bill Morrow, who has been a great friend and colleague for 16 years, being stricken and taken to Cape Cod Hospital. So we finished eating and I said a prayer with and for our friends and my dad and I got in the car and drove to Cape Cod Hospital.
When Bill was taken to the hospital I was in Maine, but my wife Jill, Nancy Sveden, Pastor Mary Scheer, Pastor Patti Ricotta, and Church Administrator Jane Wallbrown all spent hours at the hospital with the Morrow family after the Maundy Thursday service at BBC. Their presence was a great blessing to the family throughout the evening hours and Marilyn expressed how much the support of all these women meant to her and her family at such a challenging time. I am grateful for all of those women above for the love, caring, and time they shared with the Morrows. Many more people who were at the service Thursday night or on our prayer chain have been praying for the Morrows as well and I’ve received numerous contacts from folks asking how they can help. When the Church is working together, it’s a beautiful thing to behold, even in times of tragedy and grief.
On the first Easter morning, if someone had told the two women in Matthew’s Gospel that the Jesus they loved whose life had been marked by love, compassion, healing, generosity, faithfulness, service and wisdom would be brutally killed; I don’t think there is any way they would have envisioned that happening to him anymore than we would have foreseen a bombing at the Boston Marathon or Bill Morrow passing away on Good Friday. Mary Magdalene and the other woman also named Mary walked to his grave on Sunday morning having experienced an earth shaking loss that left them feeling uncertain about life and fearful for the future. Some of us can definitely relate to that feeling this morning. They didn’t go to the tomb with the expectation that triumph was about to emerge from tragedy.
The Gospel of Matthew says they were greeted at the tomb by an earthquake and a messenger who told them (28:5), “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised.” Later in verse nine, we’re told, “Suddenly Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him.”
The hope I draw from the Easter story is that although tragedy in its many forms can strike suddenly, like an earthquake, so also in the midst of tragedy, the risen Christ can also suddenly appear to us to give us comfort, strength, and hope. Often times it’s in moments of great trial and heartache when our world is shaken as it was for the women in the first Easter story, as it was for those touched by the tragedy at last year’s Boston Marathon or any other event we personally experience like my friends Doug and Ed or the Morrow family; it’s in those moments when we may encounter the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead in even deeper ways.
Part of why I need Easter is because I want to believe there is hope for the innocent like little Martin Richard the youngest victim of the attack last year, that there is something to look forward to after life on this earth. The resurrection of Jesus gives me hope that there is more to come for those who believe and trust the God who has given us the precious gift of life and who exhorts us to use that gift in ways that spread love, compassion, justice, mercy, hope, and generosity. So we gather here as millions of Christians do around the world to sing, pray, and share the good news that in spite of all the violence and injustice in the world, no matter how our world is being shaken, there is still reason to hope and to persevere because Jesus has been raised and he will run our race with us to the finish and together we will love, care, and support each other until our race is through.
I began by talking about the Boston Marathon so I want to close with a Boston Marathon story. Back in the early 1980’s when I was in high school, one of the local stories that touched people’s hearts was how Dick Hoyt would run the Boston Marathon, pushing his son Rick in his wheelchair the entire distance. Many spectators stay long after the top competitors have finished cheering for people like the Hoyt’s. In the decades since, the Hoyt’s story has become known all over the country. This is a story that you need to see and hear.
Note: we showed a video in worship, below is some of the information conveyed in it.
“In 1962, Dick and Judy Hoyt welcomed their son, Rick. Because of complications with his birth, Rick was diagnosed as a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. According to a CBS interview, Dick remembers the advice of the doctors who suggested that his son would essentially be non-functioning, and that he should place him in an institution. Dick and Judy refused. Instead, they brought Rick home with the intention of giving him a full and rich life. Swimming, sledding, street hockey, and just about any other activity the Hoyt family could engage in, were all-inclusive family activities. Dick noticed that his son lit up whenever the two of them were active together. When Rick turned twelve, thanks to a custom speech device, he began communicating with his parents,
In 1977, Rick heard about a five-mile road race to benefit a recently paralyzed lacrosse player. He told his father he wanted to participate. One problem: Dick was not a runner. Dick may not have been a runner, but as a father, his son’s request was all the motivation he needed. He agreed and pushed his son’s wheelchair the full five miles. What happened next changed the course of the Hoyt’s lives, as well as countless others, for the next 37 years. After returning home, Rick typed out on his computer, “Dad, when I’m running it feels like my disability disappears.” Dick immediately took to sacrificing his time and energy, selflessly giving that able-bodied feeling to his son. Over the next three and a half decades, the pair set, achieved, and surpassed not only their own goals, but also, everyone’s expectations of a father carrying, towing, and pushing his wheelchair-bound adult son.” Together has power don’t run alone.
Tomorrow will be the final time that Dick and Rick will participate together in the Boston Marathon. Last year was supposed to be their final run, but they were not able to complete the race because of the tragedy at the finish line. So they will participate together for the last time tomorrow.
When our world is shaken by tragedy we can come together rather than letting it divide or break us. Together with one another and with the Risen Christ has power beyond our comprehension. When your world is shaken, don’t walk alone, don’t run alone. Run with Jesus and his people. Like the women in the Easter story who walk to the grave together, leaning on each other, and having heard the good news and seen the resurrected Jesus, they leave together running with joy and hope, so we can run and tell others that when their world is shaken or ours, that it’s true that Jesus will meet us in the midst of tragedy and together we will see the race to the finish.
Prayer
Life giving God we thank you for the joy of the good news:
Risen indeed! Alleluia! For death is not the last word.
Violence is not the last word. Hate is not the last word.
Intimidation is not the last word. Condemnation is not the last word.
Betrayal and failure are not the last word. No: each of them are left like rags in a tomb,
And from that tomb, Arises Christ, Alive. And together we still can walk and talk and run with him even and especially when our world is shaken.
Blessing Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. He has Risen!
When Your World is Shaken Matthew 28:1-10
Questions for Reflection or Discussion
- Like the women in the Easter story in Matthew 28:1-10, for many of us, the most “world shaking” event we’ve experienced is the death of a loved one. Part of how they coped with the tragedy of Jesus’ death was through the strength they received from being together. How does the presence of other people help us when we’re coping with a difficult event like the death of a loved one or a tragedy like last year’s Boston Marathon bombings?
- If you had to journal about it, what would you name as one or two of the most challenging experiences of your life?
- For the women in the Easter story, it was after a death and a physical earthquake, in the midst of all that tumult that they encountered the presence of the resurrected Jesus. Have you ever had a sense that the Lord was with you when your world was shaken?
- The word “Suddenly” occurs a couple of times in Matthew’s account of the resurrection; how suddenly can life change for us? Have you ever experienced the Lord’s presence suddenly changing your feelings and perspective on your circumstances?
- Jesus had been buried in a sealed tomb that was completely dark. Part of the experience of Easter is that light floods the darkness; life invades the place of death, the power of God is greater even than the power of death. How does that give us hope even when we have lost ones?
- Note in Matthew 28:1-10 the repeated encouragement, “Do not be afraid.” Take courage from the fact that God doesn’t want us living in fear, but in the power and love of God. How can we strive for this in our daily living?