A community-wide Easter pageant was planned, and people from all over the county tried out for various parts. The part of Mary Magdalene was given to a Catholic nun, a local doctor became Peter, a high school principle became Judas, and Caiphais, the hypocritical high priest, was played by a local banker. It was relatively easy selecting the people for the various parts in the Easter pageant. However, the part of Jesus was difficult to cast. No one seemed to fit the director’s idea of what Jesus would be like - no one, that is, except for the most unlikely charcter, a big, burly oil field worker. But, he was out of the question. How could the director select someone to play the part of Jesus who cursed like a sailor and had a reputation for barroom brawls? But he was the one she chose, because he was the logical choice.

Finally, the day of the Easter pageant arrived and people from all over the state came to see the performance. There must have been 10,000 people gathered on the hillside to watch the dramatic re-enactment of the last week in the life of Jesus.

When they came to that part of the play where Jesus was led away to be crucified, one little man who was simply filling in as an extra as a part of the crowd, became caught up in the emotion of the part, he joined in on the shouts of "Crucify!" ... "Crucify!" ... "Crucify!" As Jesus was being led away toward Calvary, carrying the Cross on his back, he walked past this little man in the crowd, who was still caught up in the emotion of the moment, shouting insults at the top of his voice. Just as the character playing Jesus walked by, this little man spit in his face. The big, burly man stopped in his tracks. He reached up and wiped his face dry, looked at this little man, and said, "I’ll be back to take care of you after the Resurrection."

The events that took place after the Resurrection are what have made this day called Easter so special. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary certainly did not expect anything special. After all, they had seen Jesus die on that Roman Cross. Now, as the light was dawning on the eastern horizon, they made their way toward his tomb to complete the anointing of his body. The only thing that they were expecting was the bleak, cold reality of death. But, when they arrived at the tomb, they were surprised at what they discovered. The tomb was open, the stone rolled away, the body of Jesus gone. The burial clothes were lying on the stone in the shape of a body, collapsed and slightly deflated, like a glove from which the hand has been removed. According to the story, an angel of the Lord said to the women:

Fear not, for I know that you seek Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here: for He is risen from the dead.

The women then left the tomb, and they encountered the risen Christ. He was alive!

And that is the Easter Event. It is a true story, the narrative of an experience relayed in several ways by the Gospel writers. Mary Magdalene and the disciples and all of the others were overwhelmed with the Easter Event. They did not expect it; it was not a figment of their imaginations; it was a reality - Jesus was alive!

This is a story that is simple, yet profound. I don’t completely understand it, but I believe it with everything in my being. I really don’t know what I would preach if I didn’t believe in the Resurrection of Jesus. I believe it because of the difference it makes in your life and mine.

Now, there are two ideas which I think were prevalent after the Resurrection.

I. After the Resurrection, there was disbelief. When the women were first told of the Resurrection, there was disbelief. They thought someone had stolen the body of Jesus. All they wanted was to anoint his body with ointments so that he could have a proper burial. They had trouble believing the Resurrection at first.

When the women ran back to the Upper Room and told the disciples the news of the Resurrection, there was disbelief there as well. Peter and John wanted to find out what had really happened, and they went running to the empty tomb.

When Jesus appeared to the disciples in the Upper Room, Thomas was not there. He was off grieving in his own way, and he missed the encounter with the risen Lord. When the others told him of their experience, there was disbelief. Thomas simply said, "I didn’t see him. Unless I see him for myself, I will not believe."

Unfortunately, many of us are imprisoned by disbelief. We may not say with our lips, "I will not believe." But, we say it by the way we live our lives. We are filled with loneliness. We are filled with despair. We feel that our lives don’t matter. We live as if we do not believe, because we live as if we do not need God’s help or anyone’s help.

One Saturday morning, I saw a look of disbelief on my wife’s face. It was one of those cold, snowy Saturday mornings and I had just told her I would make breakfast by myself. She looked skeptical. I’m not sure if she just didn’t believe her ears or if she was afraid to leave me in the kitchen alone.

I decided that the perfect breakfast on a cold morning would be cream of wheat, juice, and toast. Now, when I say toast, I’m not talking about that whimpy way of using a toaster; I’m talking about making toast the way it should be made. You slap a lot of butter on some bread and stick it in the oven to broil. When you take it out, it is just dripping with melted butter.

Unfortunately, after putting the toast in the oven, I got busy with other things. In fact, I didn’t remember the toast again until the smoke alarm went off. You know, smoke alarms are a pretty good way to call everyone to the kitchen. My wife and both kids came to see what was going on. I shooed them out because I had everything under control all by myself. I have a suspicion that my wife called the fire department and told them, "Don’t worry, my husband’s just cooking breakfast."

I was trying to do something on my own and I wasn’t doing too well. And this is the way we are in life. We may not say we don’t believe, but we live as though we don’t believe. We try to make it through life on our own. We try to live as though we don’t need God. And our lives end up in a mess.

On that first Easter, each one of those followers experienced the presence of the risen Lord. Suddenly, they knew that he was there. Suddenly, they knew that he cared. Suddenly, they knew that he was alive. Suddenly, they knew that they were not alone anymore, and their belief turned to faith.

You may have been trying to make it on your own in life and yet been filled with loneliness. You may be filled with despair. You may feel like things are dark and bleak. But, if you will simply open the eyes of faith, I believe that you, too, can experience the risen Lord. When you do, you will discover a God that cares about you.

II. After the resurrection, there was a joyful hope. When the women went to the tomb, there was sorrow in their hearts. They were thinking about the task which lay before them. They had to anoint the body, but how would they roll away the stone? But, when they arrived, the stone is rolled away, the body of Jesus is missing, and an angel tells them, "He is not here; he is risen ..." Then, Matthew says they left the tomb "filled with joy." But, the joy they felt was more than simple happiness; it was a joy that was filled with hope. The joyful hope that came alive in those First Easter Christians was that Jesus was resurrected from the grave - and they would be conquerors of the grave as well.

The joyful hope of conquering death brought the disciples out of hiding and sent them into the world proclaiming the good news of the Easter event. They were changed people because they knew that God had not deserted them. The Apostle Paul proclaimed this joyful hope when he wrote to the Roman church:

I am convinced that nothing can separate us from the love of God - nothing in death or life, nothing in all of creation will be able to separate us from Christ Jesus our Lord.

There is an old story which depicts in a humble way the joyful hope that the Resurrection brings to our hearts and lives. The story is about a young boy named John Todd who was born in Vermont in October 1880. Before long, his family moved to the small community of Killingworth, Connecticut. Shortly before he was six years old, he was ophaned by the death of his parents. The children in the home were parceled out among their relatives. John was assigned to live with a kindhearted aunt who lived about ten miles aways. She was father and mother to him. She raised him and helped him through Yale University.

Years later, the aunt became seriously ill and knew that she was close to death. She was afraid to die, and uncertain about the experiences she had to face. She wrote to her nephew and told him of the fears in her heart. John Todd replied to his aunt with a letter which said:

It is now 35 years since I, a little boy of six, was left alone in the world. I have never forgotten the day when I made the long journey to your house in North Killingworth. I still recall my disappointment when, instead of coming for me yourself, you sent your hired man, Caesar, to fetch me. And I can still remember my tears and anxiety, as perched high on your horse and clinging tightly to Caesar, I started out for my new home. As we rode along and night fell, I became more afraid. "Do you think she’ll go to bed before I get there?" I asked Caesar anxiously.

"Oh, no," he answered reassuringly. "She will be sure to stay up for you. When we get out of these woods, you will see her candle shining in the window."

Presently, we did ride into a clearing, and there, sure enough, was your candle. I remember you were waiting at the door ... that you put your arm around me ... that you lifted me down from the horse ... there was a fire on your hearth ... and a warm supper on your stove ... After supper, you took me up to bed, heard my prayers, and then sat beside me until I dropped asleep.

You undoubtedly realize why I am recalling these things. Some day soon God may send for you, to take you to a new home. Don’t fear the summons ... the strange journey ... or the messenger of death ... At the end of the road, you will find love and a welcome waiting for you ... you will be as safe there as you are here ... you will be in God’s love and care ... Surely God can be trusted to be as kind to you as you were years ago to me.

This is the joyful hope of the Easter Event. I do not completely understand the mystery of the Resurrection. I have no answer for "why" and "how" he walked out of that tomb alive. But, I believe that he did it! I believe that the tomb is open. I believe that Jesus is alive. And because he lives, I am here to tell you that the most exciting thing in the world is that you live, too!

This is the Gospel message - Jesus lives and so will you!