Early in the Morning - Easter Sunday Sermon by Tom Sims

Early

“The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre.”- John 20:1

 

It was early.

 

It was before the rising of the sun. It was still dark.

 

It was dark on the face of the earth, and it was dark in the hearts of the women who had come to the grave to anoint the body of Jesus.

 

The darkness that surrounds us can be discouraging. But darkness within us can be overwhelming.

 

These faithful women were facing the darkness of grief, despair, disappointment, and were still in shock. Yet, they were doing what needed to be done. They were acting as the immediate family of their master and Lord, and they were coming to his tomb to perform the necessary rituals of their faith and culture.

 

All they could probably do was put one foot in front of the other and go through the motions through their emotions. Dazed by sorrow, they let love lead them to the garden that morning while it was still dark.

 

·        It is very dark when your faith in humanity is crushed.

·        It is very dark when your faith in God is compromised.

 

It was about to be daylight.

 

It was about to be the greatest moment of daylight since the creation of the cosmos when God said "Let there be light" and there was light.

 

They were about to discover that death had been overruled by life. They were about to encounter life itself and be encountered by the risen Lord Jesus.

 

Darkness was about to disappear from their lives.

 

·        Faith emerges in the absence of light.

·        Faith awaits the dawning of day.

 

Hope was about to be reborn in their hearts.

 

It was early. It was much earlier than they could even imagine.  Even though it was dark within them and around them, they were about to discover that the sun was already shining.

 

Jesus, the resurrection, and the life had risen from the dead and God's eternal day had commenced.

 

·        Hope defies all indicators of doom.

·        Hope is sparked, here, by an empty tomb.

 

“Death in vain forbids him rise.

Alleluia.

Christ hath opened Paradise,

Alleluia!!”