“Indeed, You Will”
“Indeed, You Will”
Jeremiah 31:1-6 Acts 10:34-43 Matthew 28:1-10
Year B, Easter Sunday, March 31, 2024
Pastor Andy Kennaly, Sandpoint, Idaho
Christ is Risen! (Christ is Risen indeed). Indeed! That word, indeed, is short but mighty. Indeed, conveys confidence, actualized truth, and confirmation of whatever it is that’s described, in this case, the Resurrection. Jesus dies and is placed in a tomb; the stone covers the entrance. Three days later, early in the morning, the stone is rolled away and Christ arose! Resurrection happens and the world has never been the same.
That word, indeed, has two syllables, in-deed. Each syllable could stand on its own as a separate word. In and deed. Deed is both a noun and a verb, a thing, and an action. As a noun, deed is something that indicates action, something done, a deed, often a brave or noble act, it could be something not very good, but in either case, this action is usually intentional, a conscious choice. It makes us feel good when we recognize that we’ve done our good deed for the day, (as if there were only one).
As verb, deed, is to convey or transfer rights or property. Someone deeds something to someone else and this carries legal weight, an official change to the status of whatever is the topic. That status cannot be questioned by others after something’s been deeded because it’s been done through a legal process that is backed by authority. To deed involves an action of power, again a conscious choice to convey rights or property.
Christ is risen indeed! Christ conveys resurrection life, chooses to share the intensity of God’s eternal love, and in the power of love, embodies action that can never be undone, because its backed by Divine authority, indeed Jesus fulfills the Law and the Prophets.
Just as certainly as Jesus set his face like flint in his journey to the cross, so too, the Living Christ becomes the archetype of resurrection faith. The empty tomb becomes the official record, proof of God’s decision to deed us life; Life that doesn’t stop at disappointment, doesn’t end when death intrudes, and doesn’t lose hope when failures overwhelm. Life’s relentless creativity leads us to openness, a stance that anticipates redemptive outcomes.
Because the Living Christ lives in us, Resurrection is an inside job that changes everything with power, authority, and Love in action. Christ has risen indeed: our lives become proof as the Divine Presence lives in and as our life. Not only that, but all creation sings God’s praises, the trees of the hills clap their hands, and all things are in Christ and Christ is in all things. Indeed, Resurrection conveys life and love and living actions of purpose and promise.
Whether we pay attention or not, whether we receive these living actions, to what extent we allow our own actions to shape a response, how interested we are in following Jesus who takes archetypal faith and shows us how to live this through daily humility, gratitude, and love; all this depends, and certainly, involves a lifelong journey. While Resurrection may have been a specific Easter joy in a particular garden by a unique empty tomb, the journey of Resurrection faith is a lifelong endeavor. At its best, faith changes over time, reveals new meaning and deeper realities as spiritual maturity unfolds. This is not a guarantee, and most of these lessons are hard-won. You cannot get to resurrection joy without going through a cruciform pattern, and Jesus invites us to carry our cross and follow.
The other day I was texting and to convey my excitement through the message, I used a screen technique. When the other person opens the message to read the text, suddenly they view a brief display of fireworks. Lights, crackles, the whole works. That’s what we do when we celebrate something. If it’s a big deal, we use fireworks. The bigger the deal, the more the display.
But Easter fireworks don’t usually happen. Fourth of July, New Year’s Eve, other holidays along the way; they seem to get the attention. Here we have the biggest deal ever, the deed of all deeds, and it takes place in the quiet of a garden, in the dim of pre-dawn, with various accounts of how it all goes down, and even Peter tells the Gentiles that “God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses,” (Acts 10:40-41a).
“…not to all the people but to us who were chosen.” To us. That little word, to, can also mean, with, or for, or in. Christ appears to us, in us, for us, with us, even through us. Not everyone is interested in this, but for those who are, there is an invitation that echoes through the ages the angel’s call to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to “come and see,” and “go and tell,” as love casts out fear.
I would like to share a short poem I wrote. The first draft was in 2019 following a major windstorm. I did some edits the other day to help us lean into the transformative message of Easter joy. It’s called,
For Those With Ears….
Wind is strong
today – we hear
dynamic sounds unfurl.
Chimes sing, branches whip, needles whisper,
and trunks creak, bend, and sway;
Forest dances to ancient, rhythmic song.
Relentless gusts push uncertainty.
We take shelter, hope as lights flicker,
trust roots will hold, unseen,
tested within the ground
of our being. Life inside
simplifies to a single radiant flame.
We are invited, like resilient heartwood,
to welcome Spirit to crack, heal, and strengthen
new rings of growth.
(For Those With Ears…, Andy Kennaly, November 27, 2019, edited March 29, 2024, https://andykennaly.substack.com/p/for-those-with-ears).
For those with ears. Friends, we are called as witnesses: Today is a glorious day. Resurrection life calls us to celebrate, to claim joy that cannot be taken away, to trust, even when the journey is challenging to say the least, and to give thanks to God, who is faithful and just and whose purpose is always Love. Indeed, Love. Thanks be to God for Easter, for the Living Christ who comes to, and lives within, witnesses. Life is forever changed, redeemed, and transformed as hearts open to the light of Easter joy.
Christ is Risen! Christ is risen indeed! Happy Easter! Happy Easter indeed, now and always. Amen.