Resurrection
Wait…what just happened? This year was the seventh Easter sermon that I have preached, I’m still not sure what it fully means. I’ve gone to Sunday School, repeatedly heard the story, and I’ve studied it in Seminary. There are countless books I’ve read about the Resurrection. The promise of “resurrection” by Jesus is truly mystifying. The concept of being raised from the dead defies my feeble mind. Especially when I think about my own resurrection, I cannot fathom it.
Thank God that understanding the resurrection is not on the test. There would be no hope for me. I am not even sure how Bluetooth works. I have zero clue about composing a symphony. How is it that birds can travel across the globe and know how to fly home, yet I need a GPS to get across town? I do not understand.
Here’s the question… do you need to understand something to believe it? Certainly not. In fact, I think the opposite is true. The more I don’t understand how something works, the more amazed I am that it occurs. I recall the father of the epileptic child who prayed, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief” (Mark 9:24).
In the recently released film “Conclave,” the charter played by Ralph Fiennes offers the best quote of the movie. He states in front of a group of gathered clergy:
“Certainty is the great enemy of unity. Certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance. Even Christ was uncertain on the Cross. Our faith is living precisely because it walks hand-in-hand with doubt. If there were only certainty, and no doubt, there would be no mystery. And therefore, no need for faith.”
Only until we are honest about our lack of understanding can we then possess the compassion to welcome others. See, it is humility that is the catalyst for harmonious living. The Church dies, not from lack of faith, but from arrogance. Rather than use fancy theological terms to explain the Resurrection, I will simply ask “why does the Resurrection matter to you?” That answer cannot be found in a textbook, church doctrines, or even Scripture.
God is not in the business of changing minds. God changes hearts. God cannot be domesticated, manufactured, or institutionalized. God exists just beyond our knowing, calling us into deeper relationship with the unprovable realities around us. In this space, where the Resurrection dwells… that is where we find God.
Perhaps,
Pastor Lucas
Photot by Pisit Heng