Sermon: Easter People 2010

From Wellington Cathedral of St Paul

Easter People: 11 April 2010: am: The Very Revd Frank Nelson

• Psalm 118: 19 - 29
• 2 Acts 5: 27 - 32
• Rev 1: 4 - 8
• John 20: 19 - 31

After the drama, the tension and the excitement of Holy Week and Easter, taking us into the depths of despair and the heights of resurrection incredulity, the Lectionary for the weeks between Easter and Pentecost invites us to consider three New Testament books. Readings from the Book of Acts replace the more customary reading from the Old Testament, leaving only a psalm to remind us of our pre-Jesus roots and foundations.

St Luke, author of the Acts of the Apostles, picks up the story of Jesus and his disciples after the excitement of the first Easter. Remember that it is Luke who gives us that delightful story, unique to the Gospels, of the journey to Emmaus. Acts begins with the replacement of Judas as Matthias is elected to bring the number back up to twelve. The story of Pentecost follows and the rapid spread of Christianity, from Jerusalem to Samaria; the incorporation of Gentiles such as Cornelius, and on to Rome, the acknowledged centre of the world at the time. Each week we are invited to consider another snippet of this story, this history of the early church.

The Revelation to St John, which provides our second reading each Sunday morning in Easter, invites us to understand Christ in a cosmic sense. The style of writing is apocalyptic – which means that deep secrets are revealed to those who possess the key to understand and unlock them. The Apocalypse, as it is sometimes called, is about the cosmic struggle between good and evil. At times, especially for those Christians who were facing persecution at the time, it seemed as if evil would conquer, but the persistent reader of this fascinating book will be rewarded with the knowledge that, in the end, God triumphs. It is a book that encourages steadfast faith in the face of trial, hardship, even death. The vision of the last things, the final triumph, is held out as the reward for faithfulness.

The Gospel of John, from which all the Easter Sunday morning Gospel readings come, is usually taken to be the mature reflection of John, the Beloved Disciple. It is quite different to the other three Gospels in the Bible, and invites the reader to take time to mull over different incidents. The author is quite intentional in his selection of material telling us twice why he has written what he has written. “These are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing, you may have life in his name.”

The psalms that are chosen by the Lectionary compilers for the seven Sundays of Easter are all psalms which encourage praise. This is as it should be in a season where the most frequently heard word should be “Alleluia!” – praise the Lord.

But let’s go back and look very briefly at each of today’s readings. The passage from Acts 5 is a snippet from the saga about Peter and John as they begin to proclaim their belief in Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah. They quickly run into trouble with the religious authorities which has the effect of forcing the contrast between God and human authority. It doesn’t take much imagination to see that the early chapters of Acts are fashioned on the Gospels, with the disciples now doing much the same sort of thing that Jesus did – preaching and teaching, healing the sick, casting out demons – and getting into trouble! Although we did not read it today, we also hear of some sympathizers among the council members. If you read on in Acts 5 you will come across Gamaliel, a Pharisee, who suggested that Peter and John not be treated too harshly. Rather, learning from the past, they should wait and see what developed. In Gamaliel’s words: “If this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them – in that case you may even be found fighting against God!” Peter and John are left to get on with the task of proclamation – the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

John opens his letter to the seven churches in Asia with some sweeping words about Jesus. He is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. It is here in this opening chapter that we get some of the titles given to Jesus, including the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. These two Greek letters are inscribed on the Paschal Candle at the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday. You’ll also find them at the very top of the Dossal curtain hanging behind the altar. John picks up an idea that was embedded deeply in early Christian consciousness; that Christians have a particular task to do. They are to be priests who serve God. At the start of this remarkable book is a call to worship God. It is a call not only to those we call priests, who are ordained, set aside to lead the faithful in worship, but a call to all who have been baptized, all who have received the mark of the cross on their foreheads, all who come to the altar rail to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. We, you and I, are called to be priests serving God throughout our lives.

Chapter 20 of John’s Gospel includes the astonished Peter and the Beloved Disciple discovering the empty tomb, and the lovely garden scene where Jesus makes himself known to Mary Magdalene simply by calling her name. Today’s reading takes us into the upper room a week later where, to their astonishment, Jesus comes to the gathered disciples. But what happens to those who are not given the gift of actually seeing the risen Jesus, those who want proof? Thomas plays something of that role when he demands proof, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side…” How very 21st century Thomas is, like us, wanting ‘proof’ before believing. This incident with Thomas invites us to think about confession of faith; what stops us from that confession; what brings us to the point of confession?

Each of today’s three readings invites us to hold in our minds a different aspect of the Christian life – proclamation of Jesus as Lord, living out our priestly vocation through worship of God, and making confession of our faith in a way that is meaningful and real, whether or not we have proof!

There is still the psalm. Psalm 118, like so many of the psalms, invites us to live our lives in a context of praise and thanksgiving, freely acknowledging God’s wonderful and powerful rule over our lives.

Proclamation, priestly activity, confession and praise – these are among the things that witness to the resurrection. May we continue to be Easter People, for Christ is risen. He is risen indeed! Alleluia!