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Easter Sunday
SERMON - 10.15am, Emmanuel Church, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
Sunday 16th April 2006
Revd. Matthew Vernon
One of the great things about the Easter weekend is we get two public holidays:
• Friday and Monday.
A four day weekend.
That's reason enough to shout "Hallelujah!"
It is a good Friday when you're off work!
I'm going to reflect on work and time off for a few minutes.
Thinking particularly about the Sabbath.
There's a strong link between the resurrection of Easter and the Sabbath.
We'll reflect using Jewish ideas about the Sabbath.
That makes sense since Jesus was Jewish,
• and Jewish practice is central to our Easter story:
• from the Last Passover Supper Jesus shared with his disciples;
• to the women going to the tomb on Easter morning with their spices.
Jesus was Jewish.
Though if Jesus was Jewish, why did he have a Mexican name?!
I was privileged to attend a Passover meal on Wednesday
• with the Jewish Reformed Congregation.
It was wonderful.
Passover, or Pesach, falls close to Easter this year.
For 3500 years, the Jewish people have recalled how God freed them from slavery in Egypt.
The slavery of endless work.
Rabbi Michael led the story telling.
At one point, he recalled the hard work,
• the hard labour that the people were forced to do in Egypt.
He asked if anyone could relate to that in Hong Kong!
Most days - work.
Sabbath – no work.
Our Christian Sabbath is Sunday.
Sunday because of Jesus' resurrection.
Though it wasn't until the 4th century that Emperor Constantine formally declared Sunday the day of rest.
The Jewish Sabbath is Saturday.
That's the Sabbath that Jesus kept.
It's that Sabbath that Jesus' friends observed after he died.
Remember the story.
Jesus dies on the Friday, "the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath".
Then, as we've just heard from Mark's Gospel,
• "When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought spices, so that they might go and anoint him."
Luke's Gospel says after they buried Jesus,
• "they returned and prepared spices and ointments.
• "[But] on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment."
The Sabbath day is a crucial part of the story.
What was Jesus doing?
His body rested in the tomb.
Holy Saturday commemorates the resting of Christ's body in the tomb.
This of course is not just a siesta;
• not a public holiday.
Jesus was dead – his body spent on the Cross.
But the Sabbath is observed in our story.
We might ask "why did God wait until the third day to raise Jesus?"
Because of the Sabbath.
The Sabbath is crucial to the story of Creation.
The Genesis story says, "God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation."
After Jesus died,
• after God died on the Cross,
• God rested from all the work that he had done in re-creation;
• re-conciling;
• re-newing His relationship with us.
Through the Sabbath new life comes.
The Sabbath leads to resurrection.
I'm not about to argue for closing shops on Sundays!
Did you hear the story of the new ferry boat service in Scotland?
Last Sunday, ferries ran to the Hebridean islands of Lewis and Harris for the first time.
Despite the tradition of observing Sunday as a day of rest on those Islands.
Traditional Churches put up bright yellow posters: "Remember the Sabbath day".
They campaigned against seven days a week ferry sailings.
Having a special day to share with family and friends and forget the pressures of work is vital,
• but you won't find me protesting at the Star Ferry!
Its the principles behind Sabbath that are important.
Sabbath is an attitude not just a day.
Principles of rest, thanksgiving, justice and generosity.
It's about reducing the stress and the rush to regain our sense of perspective and enlarge our vision.
These are resurrection principles.
New life; new hope; new joy.
The resurrection is about life.
Life that is not overcome by darkness.
Life that is stronger than oppression and slavery.
Life that cannot be contained or chained.
Sabbath has been the theme of our Lent book – "Life Balance".
It's ironic that some of us haven't been able to come to the group because of work commitments!
That's not to embarrass you if you haven't been able to join in.
I missed two evenings myself!
We had wonderful discussions
• and resurrection kept appearing in the stories people shared and the ideas we thought about.
I'll highlight two themes that help us find resurrection.
Pausing in the daily rush
and unexpected gifts.
Pausing.
What do you do when you're waiting at the traffic lights?
Have you looked at the traffic light and noticed the beauty of the light?
We all have idle moments during the day,
• waiting at traffic lights,
• waiting for a taxi or bus,
• waiting in the Starbucks queue.
These are opportunities to be still,
• to receive,
• to appreciate,
• simply to enjoy.
To notice things around us:
• sights; people; sounds.
These are resurrection moments:
• moments of awareness;
• connections with eternity;
• glimpses of glory.
Living in the present, as its known.
We can find new life amidst the busyness of the day and the rush of doing.
This might be playfulness.
• Skipping down some steps.
• Walking on the lines.
Sabbath is more than stopping work,
• it is about restoration, creativity and play -
• things that busy adults all too easily neglect.
Have you done anything creative for Easter?
Some cooking, or egg painting?
Notice that we adults are sitting in here being serious,
• whilst the children are outside having fun
• and getting all the chocolate!
Easter eggs lead us to the second resurrection theme.
Unexpected gifts
Jesus' resurrection is like a jack-in-a-box.
(clap) A surprise!
It was the last thing Jesus' friends expected.
Its no wonder the women fled from the tomb terrified and amazed.
The resurrection was an unexpected gift.
The sabbath is the same.
The 7th day in the creation story is an unexpected twist, after 6 days of creative work.
Sabbath and resurrection give new energy,
• and meaning to life
Its no coincidence that the resurrection happens in a garden -
at least according to John's Gospel where Mary mistakes Jesus for the gardener.
The garden is a place of creation and beauty.
Perhaps a reference to the Garden of Eden.
Gardens aren't so common here in Hong Kong.
But there are places of great natural beauty.
Creation touches us most deeply when we appreciate it with thanksgiving.
We experience life fully when enjoy life as a gift.
And so as a relationship with the generous Giver.
This is how life is meant to be lived,
• living with thanksgiving (living eucharistically) as creatures before the Creator
That's a powerful antidote to a competitive and consumerist mentality.
Sabbath is a gift more than a commandment.
It is the gift of a break from routines.
Not so much a gift of rest at the end of a hard week's work,
• more a reminder that the whole of life is sustained by God's grace and generosity.
You've probably seen the film Chariots of Fire.
Eric Liddell is a Scottish Presbyterian preacher and a very fast runner.
He's selected for the 1924 Paris Olympics.
When he discovers that his 100m heat is on a Sunday, the Sabbath, he refuses to take part.
Instead he runs in the 400m.
Liddell confounds all expectations and wins.
In the film, during the race, there's a voiceover.
Liddell says "God made me fast, and when I run I feel his pleasure."
Life, joy, play, awareness - resurrection.
When do you feel God's pleasure?
When do you feel God's resurrection?
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