Easter Thoughts

Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly… (Matthew 28:6-7)

At the end of Matthew’s gospel we read the account of when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary go early in the morning to the tomb of Jesus. They expected to see the rock cut tomb sealed with a heavy stone. Instead, the saw the stone had been moved and an angel, sitting on top of the stone said to them, “Take a tour of this vacant room if you like but the guest of honour has just checked out. Girls- time to get those booties moving!” [some liberties taken with the exact text…]

Point being: Christ is alive, raised up by God! The Word of God is not decaying in a tomb someplace but alive and able to bring life. The risen Jesus has gone on ahead.

Moses heard a similar message in the great Mission Impossible story of the Old Testament. Joseph had been led into Egypt but it was never going to be forever. After decades of hardship and struggle, God chose Moses to lead the people in their escape to freedom. They had just left Egypt and they found themselves with the Red Sea in front of them and all the forces of Pharaoh’s army behind. The people cry out to God but God said in reply to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving!” God was already in action- it was time for God’s people to move too.

For us, following the God who is on the move doesn’t have to involve frantic activity or being burdeneded by countless obligations. This story I read this week illustrates what it can be like:

A three year old was recently preparing to go to church with some relatives for the second time in her life. Her mum isn’t a churchgoer so she was explaining as best she could what it would be like when the children had their class. She said it would be like when mum went to the gym and there was a special class for the kids to enjoy some exercise while the parents did their work-out. The three year old immediately understood and from that point on referred to church by the name of the kids class at gym: she called it “Stretch and Grow”.

“Stretch and Grow” for pre-schoolers doesn’t make me think of burdensome drudgery. It sounds to me like a great name for church! A place where we can, as individuals and as the risen Body of Christ have space to move in new directions and so grow into all God has for us.

This Easter I have opportunity to meet with other believers and to think about how this message challenges me- challenges us- to stretch and grow. There is stretch and grow as I face new situations almost daily as I’m not always confident how to respond to them. There is stretch and grow when I choose to believe the things God has spoken to me about why I’m here. There is stretch and grow as I wonder what it means to read the bible, pray and follow God in this new land. There is stretch and grow for many friends and team-mates I know as they realise that they alone aren’t able to meet the overwhelming needs they face.

We must be flexible, learning to be people on the move, following Jesus who goes ahead of us. I’m not saying that we should change our message or apologise for those things that set us apart when we choose to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with God. I’m saying that we should let the Risen Christ continually change us so that we might be freed from everything that would keep us from living life.

The risen Christ is still speaking, working, teaching, healing and stepping in to be in situations that seem to be Mission Impossible. When we follow Jesus’ journey back to Galilee we hear that he sent his disciples out to continue following God on the move. The promise given to them is for all who are on the move with God and are invovled in this stretch and grow gospel- that Christ will be with us always, to the end of the age.