John 20:1-18

Surprised by Faith

Easter - April 4, 2010

Rev. Susan Cartmell

The Congregational Church of Needham

                The story of Easter is about a surprise. Most of us know that the disciples were surprised, but we know the story so well. It is easy to forget what a huge surprise it was for Peter and Mary and John. We celebrate this holiday in formal and traditional ways. So it has lost some of its edge. At holidays like Easter we tend to follow long-established patterns about when to dye the eggs, how to have the meal, who hosts the family gathering, which service to attend. We keep the element of surprise alive for our children, many of whom are sitting eagerly awaiting an egg hunt, or who are savoring memories of tasty early morning adventures.   

                Not all surprises are delightful. Many are perplexing and upsetting. The surprises at Toyota this year were a business nightmare. Surprise in work shake people's confidence. Business surprises undermines the value of your stock - literally and figuratively. Many of us spend our days trying to make sure we study things from every angle in an effort to eliminate surprises.  When we prepare a business presentation, we research the client and the competition, in hopes of avoid surprises. When you study for a test in school you try to think of answers to all the questions your teacher could possibly ask so you will be well prepared.  When you travel you pack and re-pack to make sure you have thought of every possible eventuality and won't be missing something essential. When you entertain you try hard to make sure everything is smooth. When lawyers prepare for a court case they practice every possible argument to make sure they won't be taken by surprise in the courtroom. When you go into surgery you want a surgeon who has experience doing your procedure so that there will be no surprises. Most of us go through life working very hard to anticipate whatever lies ahead. We owe much of our success in life to our ability to prepare with such thoroughness that we have been very good at avoiding too many big surprises.

                Yet this day that defines our faith and gives our lives such hope comes as a complete surprise. It is one surprise after another.  Mary came along the path outside the city gate. She may have been lost in thought, trying to absorb the shock and sadness of this week. I imagine she was one of the most organized of Christ's followers. She was the one who thought ahead. She realized that Christ's body had been laid in the grave in haste before sunset on Friday, so she arrived before dawn at his grave at the first opportunity. She came prepared with pieces of cloth and strong spices to finish burying him. As hard as this job was, I imagine Mary was one of those people who got busy when things were tough. She coped in a crisis by finding something helpful to do. She came to the cemetery thinking only of the hard task ahead.

                But even though she was someone who planned ahead, nothing could prepare her for what she found in that tomb that morning. The tomb was opened. That was such a shock that Mary was overwhelmed. She went to get Peter and John. That is a common reaction when we face a big surprise. Try to find someone else to fix the problem. How many times in a crisis have you turned to someone else? Anybody will do. If you are shocked you may pick a total stranger.  Usually, these people don't fix the problem.  Often like Peter and John, they are no help. They know less than Mary does.  That is often our first thought -find someone who can take responsibility for this mess.

                Then Mary starts theorizing. That is the second thing most people do when they are confused. It is so hard not to know the answers that it is easier to make up theories than to admit that you have not got a clue. It is easier to decide on an explanation than to admit you don't know what in the world is going on. It was easier to believe that someone had tampered with the tomb and taken Jesus' body than to imagine a miracle. It is easier to wrap your head around a robbery than to consider a resurrection.

                Finally Mary stops running to other people, and stops her conjectures.  She steps into the garden to think, and be alone with her sorrow and confusion. There in the early morning air she stops the frantic cries for help and the worried explanations. That is when she quiets herself enough to let God's miracle in. There she spies a man she assumes is the gardener. As they talk she recognizes that he is Jesus.

                When we went to the Holy Land I felt confident we could eliminate most surprises. I had taken this trip before. We had a firm itinerary. Our scholar and guide had 15 years experience. The company had almost 30 years of experience leading trips. What could go wrong, really? The day we left Boston was three weeks ago. If you remember that day we had torrential rain. Our flight to JFK was delayed and delayed again, and then cancelled. They put us on a flight to Laguardia and we took 2 cabs. Though we had plenty of time, originally for this connection, soon we were worried we could miss our flight to Jordan because we could not get out of Logan. But in the midst of our confusion many blessings occurred.  The travel company contacted the Jordanian airlines and they held the plane.  Our trip guide was waiting for us at the gate and we learned to trust him. We learned something else that first afternoon; we learned to trust each other.  The crisis forced us to become a group. We learned to listen and strategize, and help each other. All those surprises transformed us from polite friends into a team.  It taught us that we could handle anything together. When we got on the plane to Jordan we knew we had a new confidence in ourselves and each other. We knew that whatever surprises lay ahead we could handle them. We started that trip with a sense of adventure.  

                The Bible is full of surprises. When the Israelites left Egypt Pharaoh sent soldiers to chase them. At the Red Sea the Hebrews seemed trapped until Moses put his arm out and the waters parted. Then  crowds of refugees walked across the dry sea bed in stunned disbelief. As they looked back at the sea behind them, the Egyptian chariots  got stuck in the mud and the soldiers all drowned.  Surprise.

As the Hebrews trekked through the Sinai desert to freedom, they grew hungry and complained. Then one morning they awoke to find God had sent manna - this edible plant that came like dew every morning and flocks of birds each night to eat each night all in the Sinai wilderness. Surprise.

When the Hebrews had found their way to the Promised Land Joshua led them to a fortified city named Jericho. They we not strong enough to take the city so they walked around the walls blowing shofars and ram's horns. After seven days of this cacophany the walls of Jericho came  tumbling down. Surprise.

Jonah swallowed by a whale but he survives. Surprise.

Daniel thrown in a lion's den but the lion recognizes him and remembers his earlier kindness, and saves him.  Surprise

The Israelites expect a Messiah who will lead them in battle and vindicate them before their enemies. God sends a baby who grows up to be a man of peace  who speaks about the lilies of the field and God's kingdom here on earth.  Surprise.

 Jesus takes water and turns it into wine. Surprise.  

He takes two loaves of bread and five fish and feeds 5000 people. Surprise.  

Why is the Bible so full of surprises?  Every stunning miracle reminds us that this is God's world. Every surprise tells us that no matter how often we think we are in control God holds our lives.  Thank God we have not seen it all. Thank God this world is not resting in our hands. Thank God, we cannot control life completely. Thank God we cannot eliminate surprises. Thank God we are much more like babies who see in a glass dimly, only half perceiving that is there. Thank God, for the element of surprise that makes life new every morning.

The Bible says we don't have to be afraid of surprises. We don't have to panic when we are thrown a curve ball. We don't have to find someone to fix it. We don't have to make up theories.

Like Mary at the tomb, we just need to draw closer to the mystery. We need to stop and sit and think. We need to listen for the voice of God. We need to calm down long enough to discover what God is doing through for us in the middle of this confusion we know. The only way I know to have that kind of presence of mind is to really believe that this world really is in God's hand. God is way ahead of us. God can transform  tragedy into triumph. You don't have to be afraid.

                In the midst of her confusion that morning, Mary wandered into the garden and found Jesus, who had been there all along. Surprise.