Roll the stone away

Part of our gospel reading this evening (Mark 15:46-16:8) has the account of the two Mary’s and Salome bringing oils to anoint the body of Jesus. As they approach the practicalities of the situation set in, as they ask ‘Who will roll the stone away from the entrance to the tomb ?’

It’s a natural enough question as 3 women approach without a hope of moving away this huge stone that would cover the entrance to the tomb. But of course we know what happens next – the stone has already gone, as has the risen Jesus.

And as I was reading through this passage it struck me that actually we, like those women, are often guilty of wondering how we can do things ourselves rather than seeking the help of God, and like those women, we too will inevitably realise the impossibility of some of our tasks if we take that approach.

There’s a story about a sign seen in a textile mill which read, "When your thread becomes tangled, call the foreman." A young woman was new on the job. Her thread became tangled and she thought, "I'll just straighten this out myself." She tried, but the situation only worsened. Finally she called the foreman. "I did the best I could," she said. "No you didn't,” he replied, “to do the best, you should have called me."

On Wednesday on one of Radio 4’s thought for the day Rhidian Brook said, (and I’m going to cheat for large parts of the sermon to come by quoting him), “I stumbled across Jesus three times yesterday. First, at the Royal Academy, Picadilly, where he was hanging from a cross in a painting by the artist, Lucas Cranach. He looked a little too fat to be Jesus. But the plinth said it was him. Then I saw him on the television, looking more like a good Jesus should and doing the things a good Jesus does. He said he'd rise again and he didn't disappoint. Then he walked up an alleyway and disappeared. Finally, just before bedtime, I heard him - heard his words at any rate - on the radio. Some people were singing about him 'being with us until the end of time.' Then I went to sleep.

When I woke up it was back to life; back to reality. They say that Jesus died on Good Friday and rose on Easter Sunday. But where is he now, on this Wet Wednesday? The rumour that an image, a reflection, of the one true God has appeared within history has been dutifully accommodated by schedules and programmes. Now, maybe it's time to put the rumour back in its box - or tomb - and leave it there for another year. Jesus has got his column inches. We need to get back to the things that are more relevant to our lives; and back to the stories that are routed in this world.

And three days after Easter there are plenty of these. Stories such as the brave protestors in Tibet taking on a mighty empire at the risk of sacrificing their own lives; the oppressed voters of Zimbabwe facing intimidation for putting a simple cross on a ballot paper; or the mother of the four thousandth American soldier to die in Iraq, weeping at the loss of her only son. This is real news. What does Jesus have to do with any of this?”

I’ll leave his message there for now, because for many people this is the image of Easter – paying our respects to Jesus, thanking him, singing some rousing hymns, but forgetting about his reality in our lives every day, forgetting about his glorious resurrection, which as well as happening literally 2000 years ago, happens every day in our lives as God’s love and mercy are poured down upon us.

Jesus is, or at least wants to be, our constant guide and companion. He wants to be the support that we need to live. He wants to be the peace which he came to bring to us and to people everywhere – and he will, if we let him.

The message of resurrection is a message of hope. It’s a message we celebrate especially at Easter, but a message we must never forget or downgrade – Jesus is with us here and now…

To be fair to Rhidian Brook, and for you not to think that he left us with that depressing message, I’d better quote the rest of his thought, “For some reason the rumour of Jesus’ immanence won't go away. It doesn't stay neatly fixed to a date in a moon-made calendar. It seems to have a mysterious life of its own; it sneaks into conversations. It pops up - not just in art galleries and television dramas - but, apparently, in people's lives. And if Jesus is to be believed, it is through these lives that he can be found transforming the bad news of the world into good.

'Why do you look for me among the dead?' Jesus asked. Before directing us to look for him among the living. It might be in the streets of Lhasa, Baghdad and Harare - among the oppressed, the mourners and the hungry. Or wherever one or two are gathered - in a car, a kitchen, or an office. Or we may just encounter him amongst ordinary, every day people; the kind of people that listen to the news, as well as those who make it.”

As we go about our daily lives after leaving Church today, as we go to work tomorrow, or shopping, or wherever we go, let’s remember to look out for Jesus, and to depend on him for guidance, for strength, for peace… He is all around us, and he is with us, now and for evermore. AMEN