Message: Everything Changed
Each year, on Easter Sunday we recall one of the gospel’s telling of the resurrection and the Jesus followers’ experiences of that Sunday (first day of the week) following the Sabbath rest. Jesus had been laid in the tomb on Friday and they all waited, rested, grieved, and whatever else one does when shocked and pausing for a holy day of rest.
In John’s gospel, before dawn while it was still dark, Mary Magdelene went to the tomb, and she saw the stone moved. John’s gospel shares that she RAN to tell the disciples and then John and Peter have a race to get the tomb, which John wins. But upon seeing the open tomb, John and Peter have different reactions. John stops short going into the empty tomb but saw the linen cloths lying there. Peter went into the tomb saw the linens and then John came into the tomb and records that he believed (but did not yet understand all Jesus had told them). Then Peter and John returned home.
Mary, having been the first to see the open tomb and telling the others still stayed outside the tomb weeping. She reported to the disciples that ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we do not know where they have laid him.’ She followed John and Peter back to the empty tomb but she did not enter. She looked inside after the men had left and returned home and saw two angels who asked her ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She was in the midst of the grief of loss and fear of what was next and what had happened to her dear friend and teacher. Something caused her to turn around (turning around is important in the gospels) and see someone there. John’s gospel records that it is Jesus, but she did not recognise him as such but thinking he was a gardener. Jesus asks her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?’ Here Mary is seeking to know what has happened to the body of Jesus and through tears asks where the body has been laid so she may tend to the burial that the body may lay in peace undisturbed.
Here in this moment through tears and fears, through the heartache and pain of broken hopes and dreams, Mary hears the familiar voice say her name. ‘Mary’ is all Jesus said in response.
And everything changed.
Everything changed.
The tear stained face changed.
The down cast glance changed.
The breath in her chest changed.
The tomorrow’s vision changed.
The day’s tasks changed.
Her directionality changed.
Mary changed from weeping, working woman and a tomb to a disciple, and learner at the feet of teacher.
Mary changed
Mary turned and cried out ‘Rabbouni’!
Jesus’s next words to the changed Mary, remind her not to cling on to this new news of him before her. While everything in us when a change occurs that gives us hope and promise is to cling on to the new normal, the new hope, the change that gives us hope and promise, Jesus’s warning to Mary of not holding on to this because there is more, God’s not done with just the resurrection but has more in store for her and for those who follow Jesus.
Mary again went to the disciples but this time with a changed countenance and changed message. Instead of the worry, fear and grief of the empty tomb being one where Jesus’s body was missing presumed stolen, this changed message was one of hope, excitement, promise and challenge: ‘I have seen the Lord!’ Yes, her face still bore the salt stains of tears and weeping. Yes, Mary’s legs were weary from the running and the journey back and forth, but the energy of hope lifted her spirit as she proclaimed the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ is Risen to the disciples where they gathered. And while, Mary was changed in the moment at the tomb for the other disciples their change in perspective took time and for some seeing Jesus face-to-face themselves.
The rest of John chapter 20 has Jesus appearing to the disciples that evening, without Thomas who had to wait a whole week to see Jesus. The chapter concludes with the words saying that there were many other things that occurred following Jesus’s resurrection but what was recorded was ‘so that YOU may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have LIFE in his name.’ (John 20: 31, you is plural).
Each gospel account for that Resurrection morning is slightly different. Who said what. Who was where and in what order. We know that witness accounts can vary, memories can be focused because of emotions and what we pay attention to in the moment and what we focus upon after the fact. What matters most is the consequences of the experience for Mary and eventually the disciples who believed in the resurrection of the body of Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God and they were changed from afraid and downcast, to faith-filled, spirit-filled people sharing God’s love, Jesus’s teaching and sacrifice, and the Holy Spirit that would come upon them with others so others would be changed and LIFE in Jesus Christ.
While much has changed from 2000 years ago in that garden, that tomb, that race to see, what has not changed is the gospel message, the Good News that changes us – ‘I have seen the Lord. Jesus Christ is risen. The Messiah comes to seek, save and give us life in all its fullness as we follow Jesus.’ We are changed through the unchanging gospel of God’s undying love through Jesus Christ. May our days be shaped by the hope and promise of God’s love alive in us, Jesus guiding us into the fresh challenges of whatever may come, and the Holy Sprit nurturing and inspiring us to proclaim to others: Jesus Christ is risen! May we be changed for the better, for God’s glory until Christ comes again. May we turn again to Jesus and hear him calling our names and inviting us to life in all its fullness as we believe in him. May we seek more and more to grow in faith, hope and love as God’s beloved children.
Let us go into our days, changed and renewed in faith to share the Good News with others.
Prayers from Roots for Churches:
Come and join the celebration –
Jesus Christ is risen today!
Come and hear the amazing news –
Jesus’ death is not the end!
Come and share the joy and freedom –
our sins are forgiven in Jesus’ name!
Alleluia!
A gathering prayer
Creator God,
you who scattered the stars
and filled the deep oceans,
come, God, be with us here.
Saviour God,
you who suffered for us
and danced from death to new life,
come, God, be with us here.
Spirit God,
you who are as wild as the wind
and fill our hearts with fire,
come, God, be with us here.
Amen.
A prayer of praise
Do you see what I see?
The tomb is empty, the stone rolled away.
Jesus is alive!
We give thanks and praise you, Lord.
We see you in nature, we see you in people.
Do you see what I see?
Jesus is living!
We give thanks and praise you, Lord.
Evidence abounds.
We see you in changed lives and hearts.
Share the good news – Jesus is alive!
We give thanks and praise you, risen Lord.
Amen.
A prayer for all ages together
Gather around an Easter candle for this prayer.
We’re seekers and lookers,
searching for you, Lord.
Help us to see you, Lord,
in the old and the new,
in the noise and the quiet,
among the suffering and the outcast,
in the light and the darkness
and to spread the good news
of new life for all.
Amen.
Prayers of intercession
This Easter, we again celebrate that you, our God, sent your Son to save us. We celebrate that, despite all his suffering, he defeated death and took all the wrong of the world to the cross with him. We celebrate that the darkness of the sky when Jesus cried ‘It is finished’ was replaced by the light of hope. We celebrate that the tomb was empty, and with those followers who met the resurrected Christ, we celebrate that he lives again.
Christ has been raised from the dead:
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
This Easter, we think of how much the gift of life and salvation we are offered means to us. We think of the joy and hope that you, our God offer us, and the purpose you give to our lives. We think of your Son Jesus who faced pain, torture and humiliation, and did it all for us. We think of how we can follow his example of care, love and service to others, and obey your call on our lives. We think of our calling to bring change and share his love at home, at school, at work, where we volunteer or wherever we are.
Christ has been raised from the dead:
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
This Easter, we look around the world at the pain and suffering that continues. We look to you, our God, to bring light into darkness and replace despair with hope. We look for talks and desires for ceasefires and ultimately for peace in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan. We look for leaders to think of humanity and to value every life as equal and precious. We look for comfort for those who have lost homes, belongings, family, friends and hope as a result of war and conflict.
Christ has been raised from the dead:
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
This Easter, we pray for all those who are suffering in our own nation. We pray for those who have been injured in incidents and accidents on our roads and in our communities, and whose holidays have turned into times of sadness. We pray for those who face financial challenges and the fear of losing their jobs. We pray for those held in the grip of addiction and substance abuse, and those who are sliding back into reliance on drugs and alcohol. We pray for those facing tough decisions and all who are ill and in pain. We ask that you speak into peoples’ lives and show them ways to cope and to thrive.
Christ has been raised from the dead:
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
This Easter, we reflect on the need for quiet and peace in our busy lives. We reflect on all that we do in our churches to serve our communities, and the need for rest. As we spend a few moments in peace and silence now, help us to reflect personally on all your goodness to us, and the many blessings we have…..
Help us to reflect on the times and moments when we have felt you close to us, and to seek those moments again. God, give us peace in our communities, churches, families, and lives.
Christ has been raised from the dead:
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
A sending out prayer
We’ve seen the good news –
the tomb is empty, Christ is risen!
Hallelujah!
We’ve heard the good news –
death is disrupted, God is on the loose!
Hallelujah!
We’ll take the good news
and share it far and wide.
Hallelujah! Christ is risen!
Amen.
Thought for the Week from Roots for Churches:
© Roots for Churches Ltd (www.rootsforchurches.com) 2002-2025. Reproduced with permission.
One of the reasons Easter is associated with lambs and chicks is because we celebrate it at the time of year when lambs are born – and what better symbol is there of new life? It helps us to understand that the good news of Easter is not just that Jesus came back from the dead, but that God invites us all to share in that new life. The association with lambs and chicks can make Easter feel safe, cute and fluffy, but really these are dramatic and disruptive events: the disciples are in disarray – their leader has been killed and there hasn’t even been time to bury him properly. Then it looks like his grave has been robbed – his body has gone – what can it all mean? Suddenly, angels appear and there is Jesus himself, looking like a gardener. Can it be that he is alive and going to be with God the Father? It can be hard to comprehend and make sense of it all.
Shepherds will tell you that lambing time is one of hard work and emotion; sometimes lambs are lost, most often in the first 48 hours of life. The Easter lamb is an image of vulnerability and suffering, as well as the joy and promise of new life. This speaks into our daily struggles with hope, and an insistence that things can change. War, injustice, poverty, disaster, climate change – we face many challenges in our world that don’t have simple, straightforward solutions. We need voices of hope and transformation, which disturb and disrupt the status quo and bring us closer to the new life of love, peace and justice that God longs for us all to experience.
So, the Easter story is one of disturbing and disruptive energy. We have moved from the suffering of Good Friday, through the silence and emptiness of Saturday to new life bursting in and disrupting everything, even death itself. As shepherds do, Mary kept watch, and so became the first to notice the amazing events. And the news she brought disrupts everything. As Peter explains to Cornelius, Jesus overcame death, fulfilling the prophecies about the Messiah and brings forgiveness to all who follow him.
Where does this story lead us next? Where do we find God, this disruptive spirit, in the world today? Mary’s example shows us the importance of watching and waiting, so we recognise the signs. And we can look to Jesus’ teachings and ministry for some clues. Do you see what I see? Today is a day to celebrate new life and then to go and look for signs of it and that disruptive spirit of God in our daily lives.