What Is More Frightening Than COVID-19?
Text: Mark 16:1-8
In the
name of Jesus. Amen.
Can we
be honest this morning? Yes, let us be honest in this moment right now. Our culture is filled with fear. The Coronavirus has taken an emotional toll
on all of us, as Americans.
For
example, you have heard the stories of fear in the media – the voice intensity of
newscasters:
“Deaths
are so high that portable morgues are being placed next to hospitals.”
“Today,
we have had an all-time high for deaths!”
You
have also seen the fear in the actions of people, where neighbors are calling
authorities to report people for not social distancing.
And
let us not forget social media. Fear is abounding
in social media posts with individuals lashing out at others for not following
sanitary rules.
“Everyone
has to do the right thing. Do it, and don’t ask questions or whine. My life depends on how responsible you are!”
Dear
friends, fear is everywhere right now. It is seductive. It is intoxicating. People are afraid of being contaminated by
the Coronavirus. They are scared of suffering from COVID-19, and possibly dying. Yes, the Coronavirus is indeed a threat – an
invisible threat – that can sneak up on you and me when we least expect it,
resulting in possible hospitalization and even death. And as a result, fear
sets in.
Fear
is an emotional reaction to dangers and threats. Fear occurs when we are caught
off guard. Fear comes about when our worlds are turned upside down. You see, we
like to be in control of our lives. We want to know what is going to happen in
the future; we want life to be predictable. We like our routines, we like familiar
things, and we like security. And so it makes sense that the Coronavirus is
bringing about fear in all of us Americans.
Today,
this Easter morning, we perhaps want to escape this fear by boldly grabbing
ahold of the resurrection truth that Jesus has risen from the dead. In many
churches across America today, fear is not even being mentioned in Easter Services. Of course, we understand that Good Friday
should invoke fear with its blood and suffering. However, concerning Easter,
many American churches will have triumphant songs making it seem that fear is
over – that fear has no part of the story of Easter. But dear friends, I hate to be a bearer of
bad news to you, but Easter is not so easily categorized solely with the
emotions of triumph and joy.
In our
reading from the Gospel of Mark, the first reaction to the empty tomb was – get
this - fear, not triumphant joy. The guards at the empty tomb trembled and
became like dead men at the site of the angels. When the women came to the
empty tomb to anoint the body of Jesus, they were confronted by an angel who
said to them,
“Do
not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not
here, for he has risen, just as he said.”
And
after hearing from the angel and seeing the empty tomb, you would think that
the women would have been filled with triumphant joy. But they were not. They were filled with
anxiety – shaking in their boots – with displaced minds, as they ran from the
tomb in awe.
You
see, the event of an empty tomb was too much for these women to handle. They
left the tomb trembling while bordering on hysteria. The women did not stand
with bold confidence before the angel and empty tomb doing a mic drop while
saying,
”Ah,
we saw this coming. We knew today, when we woke up, that Jesus would be
gone.”
No,
they were beside themselves. Their heads were swimming. They were stunned. They
were so gripped and paralyzed by fear that they said nothing to anyone.
To the
point - unfortunately dear friends, it seems that we Christians are more
fearful and overtaken by the Coronavirus right now than the Resurrection of
Christ from the grave. Yes, you heard me
correctly. We are gripped more by fear
from the nightly news than we are with the news of the Resurrection of Jesus
from the dead.
Now, am
I taking a cheap shot at us Christians during this pandemic? You bet I am. It
is a deliberate and rough question for us to ponder amid our fear right
now. Are we more fearful and overtaken
by Coronavirus news than we are of the news of Christ’s rising from the dead?
I know
for myself that I have been gripped in fear by the nightly news, while at the
same time casually drawing near to Resurrection Sunday. Perhaps, our greater fear of the Coronavirus
has to do with the fact that we have designated it as being traumatic and
unnatural. But, my friends, please answer
this for me! What is normal and natural
with the Resurrection of Christ from the dead?
Ponder
this for a moment with me. The story of Jesus’s Resurrection takes place in a
graveyard. Christ had been dead for three days. Christ was made into a bloody
sloppy mess through His flogging. 9-inch nails were driven through His flesh. A
spear pierced His side, bringing forth blood and water. And He was laid in a tomb with a large stone
blocking the entrance. As they say, it
was over for Christ – the fat lady had sung.
It was the last nail in the coffin for Jesus. The last leaf had
fallen. And yet, right there in that graveyard – the place where everyone ends up
at the end of life – the women experienced the most unnatural and traumatic
things the world has ever seen, the bodily Resurrection of Christ.
Dear
friends, the Resurrection of Jesus is not just an ancient comfortable myth that
teaches us about the immortality of human beings. It is not a story that grants
us fuzzy feelings that everything works out in the end. But instead, the Resurrection
of Jesus is about Christ defying all logic, reversing all human assumptions,
mocking all rules of life and death, stomping on the face of the devil, and
rendering sin powerless. There is
nothing natural or normal about the Resurrection of Christ from the dead – it
defies everything that we know about this life. And that is the reason why the
women experienced fear and alarm.
But
what on earth does this have to do with the Coronavirus? Are we to have a fear of the Coronavirus and now fear the Resurrection at the same time?
We can’t possibly have any more fear than we have right now!
No, my
dear friends, the Resurrection of Christ is not an attempt to add more fear to
your current fear, but instead, to re-center your minds amid the fears of the
world. You see, after the women left the tomb in fear, their fear was slowly calmed. And once their fear calmed, it gave way to
joy.
What
this means for you is this, yes, the Coronavirus is indeed fearful. It is
unnatural and traumatic. But Christ’s
rising from the dead on the third day is more unnatural and traumatic than any
virus, or any event of this life. And so, the Resurrection of Christ demands
more attention right now than anything else in this world. And here is the catch, as we ponder the Resurrection
of Jesus, the Resurrection does not leave us in fear but does quite the
opposite – it destroys fear.
The Resurrection
of Jesus shows us that despite everything that this world of sin, death, and
the devil can give, that there is one who defies it all - Christ Jesus, the
resurrected one. And why this matters is because we are given the promise that
we too will be resurrected from the dead like Christ.
And
so, whatever this world dishes out to you and me, we have a greater fear, love,
and trust in Jesus. We know that we do
not belong to the fears of the world, the fears of Coronavirus, because the
Lord has redeemed us. You belong to Christ – the resurrected one – therefore,
you shall not fear anything from this vale of tears. As the Lord’s possession,
His perfect love and Resurrection drives out fear and gives you a godly fear
that gives way to hope and assurance amid fearful things around you.
But
keep in mind that this hope and assurance are not the same as recklessness.
Hope and assurance are not a negation of the threats around you, but instead,
the gifts of hope and assurance allow you to navigate through the calamities of
life with a sober mind. You need not fear the events of this world – things
that assail you, like the Coronavirus- because you belong to the resurrected Christ
and nothing can separate you from Him, neither death nor life, neither the
fears of today nor the worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can
separate you.
And
so, despite all the sin, calamity, and terror of life, fear not! You have been
redeemed! Regardless of good times, bad times, sickness, or health, know that
you have been called by name and belong to Another – Christ Jesus, the
resurrected one.
Fear,
love, and trust in Christ, above all things – especially the Coronavirus, for Christ
is risen this day for your justification.
In the
name of Jesus. Amen.
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