Dr. Hugh Hamilton
Trinity Presbyterian Church –Pensacola, FL 
April 21, 2019   Easter Sunday

JESUS ON THE MOVE: 5. Jesus Moves Out of the Tomb 
Luke 24:1-12

Easter moves around a lot from year to year. Christmas always falls on December twenty-fifth, no matter the day of the week or the number of shopping days since Thanksgiving, but Easter can fall on any Sunday between March twenty-second and April twenty-fifth. Why is that and what determines when Easter falls on the calendar?  Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring equinox.  Repeat.  Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring equinox.  Though it moves around on the calendar, Easter is celebrated by a set time according to the alignment of the sun and the moon. 
	Easter moves, but it’s determining point is set. 
		That’s fitting, because Jesus is on the move.
His resurrection is the fixed point of Easter, the center of our theology, the pivotal point of God’s interaction with humanity and history, but Jesus was always on the move.  Jesus is on the move now, today, in our lives, here and now. 

Defining Moments. In our lives we experience defining moments that determine our future, that determine what path we will take, that determine what we believe, what we do, who and what we become. There are events that forever change us and shape our lives. 

I have told you before this story about Archibald Rutledge, former poet laureate of my home state South Carolina. As a boy he was determined to catch a mockingbird, tame it, and thereby have a singing bird all his own. He caught one in trap, and on the second day in the cage, the young bird's mother flew to him with food in her mouth, which pleased Rutledge, for surely the mother knew how to feed her child better than he did. The following morning, however, the little caged bird was dead.  What Archibald Rutledge learned is that a mother mockingbird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes take it poisonous berries...  because she knows it is better for the one she loves to die than to live in captivity. Archibald Rutledge never again caged wild animals.

There are things in life worse than dying: 
   disease and excruciating pain make us wish for death's relief,
        the nightmare of physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional anguish, cause us to despair,
	depression and disappointment and shame, 
                cause people to long for death's release from the pain of this world.
And there are things more precious to us than life itself:
	love...freedom...innocence…forgiveness.

Defining moments in our lives determine our future, determine what path we will take, what we believe, what we do, who and what we become. There are events that forever change us and shape our lives; events that bring new understanding and usher in the truth. 
 vFor the world, that event was Jesus dying on the cross and his resurrection to new life. 
 His death on the cross forever overcame humanity’s separation from God because of sin. 
    His death forever satisfied God’s need for justice and it opened the way for us to come into    
      relationship with God and to know God intimately now and forever!
Jesus’ death on the cross forever redefined the way we live and interact with God.
   In his resurrection, Jesus triumphed over Satan and sin and death and separation forever!
     Because Jesus lives, we too shall live!  We need not fear death!  
       But neither do we need fear life, because God’s power is at work in us here and now!

Jesus on the Move. When the women approached the tomb on Easter morning, they were grieving the devastation of Jesus’ crucifixion. They were bringing oil and spices to anoint the body of their dead Savoir and friend.  They were stuck in defeat: the religious authorities who opposed Jesus had worked hard to stop him, to silence his message. They had won. His ministry, his power, his authority, had ended. 

What the women didn’t know was that nothing, not even death could not stop Jesus!  
   When they arrived, the stone had rolled, the tomb had opened, the world was changed. 
       Jesus is not here, he is risen, Jesus is still on the move, his kingdom on earth advances! 
	Jesus cannot be contained…he is on the move! 

Wherever Jesus encountered brokenness in the world, he reversed that brokenness.  
  Where he found sick people, he healed people,
     Where he found hunger, he fed people. 
        Where he found sin and death, he brought forgiveness and resurrection.
           Jesus brought wholeness and health, he defied death and overcame evil.
               Nothing could stop him or defeat him; not even the tomb!       

Jesus lives and he is on the move! How fitting then, that in Luke’s gospel, the story that immediately follows this resurrection story is the story of the road to Emmaus, where Jesus in on the way again, walking with his followers.  Two of his disciples are on their way home, heart-broken, grieving Jesus’ death…and yet there he is with them   They think all is done, over, defeated, and they are heading home to lick their wounds, then Jesus shows up, and they are so moved that they reverse their direction and run back to Jerusalem to share the good news!

Jesus is on the move in your life too!  
   He calls you to follow him, to join him on the journey in new life. 
      He does not leave you trapped by your circumstances or stuck in your situations. 
         He brings you out of your tombs, your coffins of whatever hold you down, holds you back, 
           And he beckons you to move on, begin again, with him, for there is still much to see and                             
              to do, and to become. 
	  Don’t languish behind, don’t pass up this chance – begin again with him and follow him! 

During Lent we’ve followed Jesus on the move 
•	He moved into the desert to wrestle temptations – as we do 
•	He moved past all obstacles – letting nothing deter him from his mission and his journey to           
            the cross Jerusalem 
•	Jesus moved over the fence, where we envy others’ lives thinking the grass is always greener on the other side, and he pulled us back into our own yard to take stock of our own situation and our own need for forgiveness. He gave the barren fig tree another year to bear fruit.   He gives us second chances too.
•	Jesus moved down the road, as the prodigal father running to greet his prodigal son come home, welcoming us back home with a hug. 
•	Jesus moved us to empty ourselves, like Mary anointing him with fragrant oil, emptying ourselves of self-direction and honoring him with our love and devotion. 
•	Jesus moved to the cross to secure our forgiveness and salvation.
•	Today Jesus moves out of the tomb to bring us victory and new direction!

Jesus has defeated our enemies, sin, suffering, Satan, temptation, evil; they are beaten but they are not destroyed.  You must still reckon with them, but you need not fear them or give into them,      
      because Jesus has won the victory! Jesus gives you strength to resist and to overcome them!

Tomorrow we will still have unemployment, and illness, and world turmoil and economic woes and Alzheimer’s, and crime and violence and illness and loneliness. But Easter is God’s YES to life! YES, in the face of death.  
YES, to hope despite a world of pain and sorrow.
YES, to joy and security despite our troubles. 
YES, to God’s forgiveness and renewal.
YES, to second chances and a fresh start! 
YES, to God with us to deliver us, so we need not fear life, nor death, nor anything else. 

Easter is not just about buying a ticket to heaven when you die.
 Easter is also about living life fuller and richer here and now because Jesus lives in you! 
     God is with you to see you through everything! Jesus is on the move!

Easter is 
         new possibilities
           new hopes
             new beginnings
               new aims, new goals, 
                 a new sense of direction for your life.

Wherever you feel stuck or trapped, 
    wherever your past has told you that you can’t change, will never change, 
       wherever you encounter grief and pain in this world that makes all seem lost, 
           you will find Jesus on the move…moving out, moving ahead, moving on! 
              And calling you to follow him, to join him, to discover new life that awaits you around the  	      bend in the road!

Every one of you in this room today …every man, woman, youth and child here is a child of God!    
   You...me...us...every one of us. 
       God loves you so much that he sent his Son to die for your sins so that you might be saved 
           and brought back into relationship with God.

Romans 10:9 If you will belief in your heart and confess with your tongue that Jesus Christ is Lord and God has raised him from the dead, you shall be saved and have life everlasting!

I invite you to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. 
•	Maybe you’ve never accepted Christ before. 
•	Maybe you have accepted him but want to recommit yourself to him and to reaffirm your faith in him after years of ignoring him.
•	Maybe you already know and love and trust Jesus as your Lord and Savior, 
Then let be a time to thank God again for his love and grace that sustain you.

No matter your situation, let me pray this prayer for you: close your eyes and open your hearts, let this be your time of commitment!
    Dear God, I need you.  I have ignored you. I am sorry. 
       I’ve made a mess of things. I repent of my sins and ask you forgiveness.  
         I put my trust in Jesus Christ alone for my salvation.  
              And I celebrate today the glory of Easter – our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is risen today!   
                 Thank you, God! 

•	Lord God, enter into the hearts of those who seek you now. 
•	Make yourself known and grant them your peace, your love, your strength, your hope, your renewing grace.
•	Hear the prayers of those who want to know you, Lord, and renew the vitality of faith grown stale.
•	Forgive us, renew us, save us, and go with us into this day, making new our world, our hope, and our witness! In Jesus' mighty name we pray.   
	
	ALLELUIA!  AMEN!

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