Sunday 1 April 2018

The Morning (John 20:1-18)


(Meditation for Gayton Road Christian Church's Worship on April 1, 2018, Easter Sunrise)



“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark.”  Today’s gospel story begins in the morning.  Which is a momentous time.

Morning is the moment when light breaks upon darkness.
Morning is the moment when the world wakes and rises to new life.
Morning is the moment that we break our fast together, breaking bread, perhaps, and filling our empty stomachs with energy for the day ahead.

On this morning nearly 2,000 years ago, one follower of Christ got up from her sleep.
But I imagine that she did not notice the light breaking upon the darkness.
And I imagine that she did not really wake up (from what had been a nightmare).
And I imagine that she did not even think about eating.

But all of that would change.



The gospel stories of what happened next, share some common images:
Light.
Wakeful excitement.
Food.

Light: the light of dawn, the light of a charcoal fire on the beach, the light dazzling on the mysterious strangers at the empty tomb.
Wakeful excitement: terror and amazement, exclamation, pre-dawn skinny-dipping, hand-grabbing.
And food: bread blessed and broken, fish cooked over the fire, folks gathered around a table.

Light.
Wakeful excitement.
Food.
Which are three images that are very much a part of the morning.



The church has its sacraments.  You know, baptism, marriage, last rites.  I think it missed one.

The morning.

Is it a coincidence that the followers of Jesus encountered the empty tomb and the risen Christ in the morning? 

The moment when light breaks upon darkness;
The moment when the world wakes and rises to new life;
The moment when we break our fast together, breaking bread, perhaps, and filling our empty stomachs with energy for the day ahead?

How well the morning proclaims the gospel!  In the morning, there is light, there is waking up, there is the Table! 

In this way, the morning is a beautiful parable of the risen Christ.  And so as we celebrate this morning, while the light breaks upon us, while slowly but surely we wake, while we break our fast together, let us remember: these gifts of the morning are but hints of the risen Christ.  The morning is a wonderful moment, but even more wonderful is the resurrection-dawn that we encounter in the risen Christ.  So as we look upon the light of the sun this morning, let us look also beyond it to see the light of Christ!  And as our bodies stir and awaken, so may our souls also stir and awaken in Christ!  And as we gather around the table, let us feast not only on food that perishes but also on the love that gives life to the world!

He is risen this morning, and because of this, so are we.  Hallelujah!  Thanks be to God.

Prayer

Risen Christ,
May this special Easter morning
And every morning
Remind us of the good news:
That like the morning,
You are always breaking upon
The darkness of our horizon;
Always waking us from sleep
And raising us to new life;
Always breaking our hunger
With communion,
Inspiring and empowering us 
For the day ahead.
Hallelujah!
Amen.


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