2016
Sermons
Dez 25 - The Gift
Dez 24 - God's Love Changes Everything
Dez 18 - Lonely?
Dez 18 - Getting Ready
Dez 11 - The Desert Shall Bloom
Dez 4 - A Spirited Shoot
Nov 27 - Comin' Round the Mountain
Nov 20 - Power on parade
Nov 13 - Warnings and Love
Nov 6 - Saints Among Us
Okt 30 - Reformation in Catechesis
Okt 23 - The Pharisee and the Tax Collector
Okt 16 - The Word of God at the Center of Life
Okt 9 - Continuing Thanks
Okt 8 - The Cord of Three
Okt 2 - Tools for God’s Work
Sep 25 - Rich?
Sep 23 - With a Word and a Song
Sep 18 - To Grace How Great a Debtor
Sep 11 - See the Gifts and Use Them Well
Sep 4 - Hear a Hard Word from Jesus
Aug 28 - Who is worthy?
Aug 21 - Just a Cripple?
Aug 14 - Not an Easy life with Christ
Aug 6 - By Faith
Jul 31 - You can't take it with you
Jul 25 - Companions
Jul 24 - Our Father
Jul 18 - Hospitality
Jul 17 - Priorities
Jul 11 - Giving
Jul 10 - Giving and receiving mercy
Jul 3 - Go!
Jun 26 - With urgency!
Jun 19 - Adopted
Jun 12 - A Tale of Two Sinners
Jun 5 - The Laughter of Surprise
Mai 29 - By Whose Authority?
Mai 22 - Why are we here?
Mai 15 - The Spirit Helps Us
Mai 8 - Free or Bound?
Mai 1 - Let All the People Praise You
Apr 24 - A New Thing
Apr 17 - A Great Multitude
Apr 10 - Transformed
Apr 3 - Here and There
Mrz 27 - The Hour
Mrz 26 - Dark yet?
Mrz 25 - The Long Defeat?
Mrz 25 - Appearances
Mrz 24 - Is it I?
Mrz 20 - Bridging the Distance
Mrz 16 - Singing the Catechism: Holy Communion
Mrz 13 - What is important
Mrz 9 - Singing the Catechism: Holy Baptism
Mrz 6 - What did he say?
Mrz 2 - Singing the Catechism: The Lord's Prayer
Feb 28 - Pantocrator
Feb 24 - Singing the Catechism: the Creeds
Feb 21 - What kind of church, promise, and God?
Feb 17 - The Catechism in Song: Ten Commandments
Feb 14 - Available to All
Feb 12 - Home
Feb 10 - The Catechism in Song: Confession and Forgiveness
Feb 7 - Befuddled, and that is OK
Jan 31 - That We May Speak
Jan 24 - The Power of the Word
Jan 17 - Surprised by the Spirit
Jan 10 - Exiles
Jan 3 - The Big Picture: our Christmas—Easter faith
Dark yet?
Easter Vigil - March 26, 2016
We can't miss it: it was dark here in this room, but now it is light.
We began this evening in the darkness in which we left last evening, the darkness of the tomb.
We have freshly lit the Christ candle and we have seen its flame shared throughout the nave.
We have heard the announcement of the first witnesses and now all of the lights in the nave are at their brightest.
Some will say that the whole business is silly, pointless dramatics.
Look outside, they will say.
It is still dark out there; everybody knows that.
It is ridiculous to pretend to say that it is Easter now.
But the point of this night is that things are not what “everybody” says they are.
“Everybody” was and is sure that Jesus is out of the way.
The religious authorities posted a guard, not to keep Jesus in, but to keep others out – to prevent body-stealing.
The disciples are huddled together in fear.
Everybody is sure that it is the end of the story...but not so.
In the same way, everybody was sure that the Pharaoh's army would round up the Hebrews in short order, and even the Hebrews yelled in terror as the army approached.
Yet, things turned out quite differently.
Let's pay attention to one detail in John's Gospel this evening.
He begins: “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark....”
While the rest of the world slept, still sure that things are under their control, Christ is risen, the first witnesses are making their way toward the tomb, and the new creation is already underway.
While it is still dark, everything is changed.
That is a wonderful way to see the Good News at Easter.
God did not wait for us to wake up.
As Paul says [Romans 5:6], “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for the ungodly.”
While we are still in the dark, God takes the initiative and changes things.
Christ's work, from his birth at night through the eclipse at his death and culminating with his resurrection, take place in darkness;
both physical darkness and the darkness of misunderstanding by those around him.
And yet, in the darkness, he acts.
Early Christians called Holy Baptism “Illumination”, for by the joining of God's Word to Water, the person and the community are seen in a new way in the Light of Christ.
It is still dark outside, but things have already been changed at their foundation, and they shall never be the same again.
It is still dark outside, but not forever.
For when we leave this place, the church gets turned inside out; the light, the promise, the liturgy (that is, the work of God's people) then will begin to happen outside of these walls,
so that the Easter gift that we receive here is become the Easter gift we may share there.
It is still dark out there, and God has lots of work to do, some of it through us.
As we step through that doorway, it will get underway, even in the middle of the night,
for Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia. Amen.
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Please note: The preceding sermon is provided as a resource for the thought, prayer, and meditation of the members and friends of St. Mark's. It is the residue of a verbal event, and thus it does not have academic footnotes and other details that would be expected in a written document. The writer gladly acknowledges the prior thought and work of many Christians before him. |