Acts 2:14a,22-32
I Peter 1:3-9
John 20:19-31
The Lord is risen indeed. It will be hard to forget that for the next forty-two days, because during that time, the altar will be fancier than usual, we will have a huge candle burning, and almost everything we say in this church will be followed by “Alleluia”. But even with all that, we will forget, and we much of the time we will act as if it never happened, because humans are forgetful. We will forget it even more as time goes by, so that next year we will have to have another Lent and Easter to remind us again. But even with a lifetime of Lents and Easters, we will still keep forgetting the fact that the Lord is risen indeed and we will act as if it never happened, because humans are forgetful. We forgot that we were not supposed to eat the fruit of one tree; we forgot that we are not supposed to make our own Gods, kill each other, or lie and steal; we forgot that we are supposed to have fair business practices and treat foreigners with respect. We forget that God lived a human life as one of us, died as one of us, and brings us to new life, making us more human than we ever were before.
But we forget, and we so often act as if it never happened. Peter reminds us of the Resurrection of Jesus and of our participation in it in our second reading this morning. He also warns us that even though Jesus has been resurrected, we have not. He reminds us that before we are resurrected, we must go through trials and death. That sounds more like something from Lent instead of Easter, Christmas, or any other time of year. It sounds like work, instead of celebration – like preparation instead of party. If we want to, we can shrink from our trials, but by doing so we only show our forgetfulness, because resurrection can only come after death.
Of course, hoping for hardship is not the way to go – God made a good world, and we should seek the goodness of it. Unfortunately, our own sinfulness and the sinfulness of others often covers up that goodness and brings us harm (that is the law of karma, if we are not afraid to call it that). The good news of Jesus is that God’s grace is more powerful than the law of karma, and even though we do so much to harm ourselves and others, and they do so much to harm us and themselves, God breaks the chain of pain by soaking it up himself and not passing it on. He also calls us to participate in his work of breaking the chain of sin and grief by taking a little of it into our own lives – not because it is good for us, but because it is bad for others, and as disciples, we are to do as the master does. As Jesus did not retaliate for his betrayal and torture and instead made something good out of it, so we are to soak up the pain around us and do all we can to heal the situation and the person committing the crimes, instead of trying to find quick and easy release by passing the pain on to others. Through this daily crucifixion of our own desire to find joy in others’ pain, God can, will, and does bring us to the joy of resurrection.
The Lord is risen indeed. That is too good to live as if it never happened. With every alleluia, every fancy candle, every act of self-control and love, may we announce it to the world and to ourselves. We will forget, because humans are forgetful. So we will keep hauling out the alleluias and fancy candles every year. Those other things that Peter talks about: suffering trials, faith tested by fire – we can do those things all year long. AMEN