"The room where it happened" , Sermon for 2nd Sunday of Easter 2022

 

Sermon for 2^nd Sunday of Easter 2022

The Rev. Carrie Ballenger

Lutheran Church of the Redeemer, Jerusalem

John 20:19-31

Alleluia, Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed, Alleluia!

Over the past week, I’ve enjoyed reading the reactions to photos shared from our congregation’s Easter sunrise service on the Mt of Olives. People have written things like:

“What a lovely spot to celebrate!”

“What a privilege to be in that holy place!”

And simply:

“Terrific!”

And all of this is true. It was indeed a beautiful service in a beautiful place with beautiful people. And for certain, I feel privileged and amazed and terrific to have celebrated the resurrection of Our Lord on the Mt of Olives not once, not twice, but for 8 years, thanks be to God.

Alleluia, Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed, Alleluia!

And still.

Still…I have spent a lot of Easters not on the Mt of Olives.

Most of my life’s Easter Sundays have been spent far away from Jerusalem.

There have been many days when not only Jerusalem but also the resurrection, and Jesus, and God the Creator have seemed far, far away.

In fact, there have been too many days to count when I have been Thomas, the one who wasn’t there, the one who missed the resurrection, the one who missed the sunrise, the one who missed the big news everyone was talking about. I have wished that I could have been there…wherever “there” is…so I could have experienced the thrill of knowing for sure that Christ is risen, that God is real, that I am not alone, and most importantly that things in the world really aren’t as bad as they seem.

Thomas wasn’t at the tomb that morning with the women. He wasn’t on the road to Emmaus. He didn’t break the bread with the stranger, and his heart wasn’t on fire. He wasn’t there when Jesus walked through a locked door and appeared to the disciples. He just wasn’t there.

One week from tomorrow, I’ll be in Rome for an annual pastors’ conference. Now, I’ve never been to Rome, and I will tell you that I’m overly excited to be in the other “holy city”. On the schedule is even a day when our group has an audience with the pope, The Holy Father, Il Papa, The big guy, The man behind the curtain!

I know that he might not be totally receptive to a “lady pastor” in his midst, but still,  I’ve started to get a little nervous about missing this opportunity.

What if I don’t get to Rome?

What if I get Corona this week?

 What if the flights don’t work out?

What if I lose this chance?

What if I’m not there?

I might not see the Pope.

I might not be there in the room where it happens.

Dear people, what do you think Thomas was doing that morning when the women were gathered at the tomb, and later when the disciples were gathered in the upper room? Probably he was at work. Or taking kids to daycare. Or paying the bills. Or worrying about paying the bills.

In other words, he was being alive.

And you know who else who also wasn’t there when it all went down that morning at the tomb?

…Jesus.

Jesus wasn’t there.

Jesus wasn’t there, because he was raised from the dead.

Jesus wasn’t there, because he was living.

The thing is that the resurrected life is life.

It’s about doing the things that make a life a life.

What did Jesus do after he was raised?

In the post-resurrection days, we know that Jesus talked to his friends, and made breakfast on the beach, and hopefully he visited his mom.

In other words, he was alive.

And alive people do alive things.

They don’t hang around at tombs or in dead places.

They eat breakfast and hang out with friends.

They take naps and share stories.

They hug people and laugh and enjoy the beauty around them.

In other words, folks who are resurrected, folks who are alive, LIVE.

Alleluia, Christ is risen! Christ is risen indeed, Alleluia!

So what are you going to do with your one wild and precious life?

What does your life look like, post-resurrection?

Actually, I don't like to use that term, "post resurrection" because I don’t experience resurrection as a limited time offer. If that were so, then Thomas would have missed out forever.

 The thing about resurrection is that it doesn’t just happen in one place, or at one time. The resurrection of Jesus didn’t only happen one day in Jerusalem, long ago. Resurrection is happening now.

It’s happening in your life today. Life is rising up, tickling your senses, making you curious, filling your heart, kicking institutions and other deathly nonsense to the side, saying “My Lord and My God!”

If you, like Thomas, weren’t there on the road to Emmaus when Jesus was revealed in the breaking of the bread, know that Jesus is present today at your dinner table.

If you, like Thomas, are always a week late and a dollar short, and often wonder if all this hope and joy is nonsense, know that Jesus walks through all your locked doors and walls and is with you right now.

Resurrection isn’t just for the ones who were in the right place at the right time. Resurrection is God’s love letter to the ones who missed the boat, the ones who were busy that day, the ones who had reason to be concerned and who always must question the authorities. Resurrection is for those who are living near the tomb: the nurses who are caring for Covid patients, and the parents of bipolar children, and the one hiding in basements from bombs, and the ones waiting for decades for liberation from occupation. Jesus walks through locked doors for all the Thomases. The Resurrected One reveals his wounded hands and sides specifically for the ones like me who are busy doing life in spite of it all, being alive even in the shadows of the crucifixion. 

So…whether you were in Jerusalem on the Mt of Olives or in your living room last Sunday, whether you were locked inside your mind or locked into a system of oppression, know that the resurrection is for you. And not just ALSO for you: Especially for you! Jesus came to Thomas a whole week later. A whole week! Thomas wasn't there that morning. The doors weren’t even open that day! And still…still, Jesus was there for Thomas. The resurrection happened for Thomas, the one who missed the boat, the one who doubted, the one who couldn’t get time off work to see the crucifixion, the one who was at work when the women were at the empty tomb.  Friends, it doesn’t matter if you were in the room where it happened. Life and love have defeated death, and when it happened, it happened for you. It is happening for you, Thanks be to God.

Amen.