They Remembered!
a sermon based on Luke 24:1-12
Rev. Cynthia Huling Hummel

            She stroked her husband’s cheek.  It was a gentle touch- a touch of love.  And she hummed very quietly into his ear.  She knew that it wouldn’t be much longer.  His breathing was heavy and he was so restless- like a butterfly getting ready to come out of a cocoon.  And that’s exactly what was happening: The man was getting ready to be born into a new and wonderful place.  His children and grandchildren stood quietly in the corners of the room weeping.  They didn’t want him to go- and occasionally one would sob into a Kleenex.  But the woman kept singing and whispering into the old man’s ear and gently stroking his head.  She loved him so much.  She was like a midwife at his birth as she gently encouraged him.  She told him it was okay for him to go- that they would all  be okay- and not to worry about them.. That they’d all be together again in that house of many mansions.  It was time, she said, time for him to go.  She told him to look for his mom and dad- and his brother , and not to keep Jesus waiting- and to keep an eye out for her: she kissed him on the ear and  said “You’d better save me a space up there”.  And she also said: “Don’t you ever forget how very much I love you.”  And with that, he slipped away.  

Over the next few days, family and friends arrived at the man’s house and gathered around the kitchen table.  They came to share their stories.  They laughed and cried.  And over the endless coffee, they remembered!  They got out the family photo albums and passed them around.  They laughed at the short clothes and the long hair.  They remembered family vacations, and Christmases of long ago.  They remembered the special things about him: the things he did and the things he said.  Someone would say something- and this triggered even more precious memories (like dominoes falling).  Things that were once forgotten, were remembered.  Three days after his death, they gathered in the church to find comfort in their sorrow.  They gathered to give thanks to God for this man’s life.  And the pastor read this story from Luke’s gospel and reminded the gathering of the resurrection promise: of life beyond life. 

            This morning’s reading from the gospel of Luke is about remembering- and about resurrection!  Luke tells us that it was very early on the first day of the week when the women went to the tomb.  There was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James and the other women (nameless women).  The women went with their spices to prepare Jesus’ body for burial.  They were confused when they got to the tomb and found the stone rolled away and Jesus missing.  When two men in dazzling white suddenly appeared, the women  were terrified- they were so afraid, they couldn’t even look at the strangers.  The men said something very strange: why do you look for the living among the dead.  He is not here, he is risen.  Remember how he told you?

The women were no doubt thinking: Remember how he told us?  How he told us what?  What did he tell us?  What are these men talking about?  The women were numb with grief- and sick with sadness.  They were physically and emotionally exhausted.  The women had witnessed Jesus’ excruciating execution and his tragic death.  They probably wanted to blot out all the details from their minds- to forget everything that had happened in the past days.  Grief and stress does that to us.  Those of us who have lost loved ones know that sometimes we just move in auto pilot.  And we thank God for the people who help us through those difficult days- the people who sit with us, the people who bring food, the people who are willing to listen to us- and those who help us to remember the one we loved, the one we lost. 

The men at the tomb gently coaxed the women to remember:  Remember how Jesus told you this would happen?  It was back in Galilee!  Remember he said he would be handed over?  He told you that he would be crucified!  Remember?  And he said that he would rise again on the third day.  Well, it happened just as he promised.  Remember?   And Luke tells us that the women remembered Jesus words!  Suddenly it all came back to them- like a flood of light- not that it made any sense- but the women remembered that this was what Jesus said would happen and it did.   The women remembered and so they returned to tell the others.  But frankly the others didn’t believe the women!  Some thought that the women were making up the story- a fantasy.  They didn’t give it much credence-   But their story triggered something in Peter and he got up and ran to the tomb .  He saw the cloths- and was amazed at what had happened.  Maybe seeing those things helped Peter to remember Jesus’ promise of resurrection! 

            So on this beautiful Easter Day, we gather to remember.  We remember loved ones who are no longer with us - with sadness and love.  My grandma used to sing a beautiful song: when I grow too old to dream, I’ll have you to remember, when I grow to old to dream, your love will live in my heart.  When we remember someone, we carry something of that person deep within us- it’s as if they’ve left an indelible mark on our heart and soul because our lives are changed for having known them.  And on this Easter day, we gather to remember the one crucified- and died,  the one who rose-Jesus the Christ and we tell the story to our children and grandchildren that we (and they)  might carry something of him within us, each and every day- that we might live our lives as his faithful followers.  Yes, we gather on this day to remember the incredible story of resurrection: And as we watched the sun peak over the hill at the sunrise services this morning, we remembered the first Easter!  And as we look around this sanctuary at the beautiful lilies, we remember.  As we hear the organ play  “Jesus Christ is Risen today”, we remember! 

We remember that Christ has risen and we respond in joy: In Christ’s resurrection, we find our reassurance that death does not have the final word.  We are promised eternal life if we believe in him.  And this is good news indeed.   It means that my life on this corrupted planet is not all there is; it means that I will see my grandfather, my grandmother, my father, my mother, my children, even, my children again in a happier and better world. And yes, I will even get to know my great-great great grandchildren.  Christ’s resurrection puts life and death into a new perspective.  A perspective that renders sorrow and suffering bearable and death immaterial.

“Because he lives I can face tomorrow.  Because he lives all fear is gone.  Because I know he holds the future - and life is worth the living just because he lives.   Today we’re like the women at the tomb, we remember Jesus’ words and the resurrection promise of life beyond life.  And that is why we shout with joy: Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen.  Christ is risen indeed!