His presence began early this morning in the dawn,
when the birds sing and sight is dim,
whispering to us, "Why is the stone rolled away?"
"Where is his body?"
"Who is this light dressed in a white robe seated on the right?"
How did they hear, "He is not here. He has risen as he told you."
Trembling before such mystery,
Fearing, they fled.

Paul wrote, "Lo! I tell you a mystery ... the perishable does not inherit the imperishable, the body is raised a spiritual body," whatever that means. Oh, the mystery and the wonder of it!

The witnesses to the mystery did not shout, "Hallelujah!" as we did this morning. They did not sing with tremendous joy, "Christ the Lord is risen today," as we did. Instead, trembling, they fled. They were terrified. In their fear, they fled from the tomb.

They had…