Wonder
Commentary
By Ross Marrs
Nothing quite sums up the appropriate Easter attitude like the term "wonder."
We used to sing a song, long ago, in which were the words, "Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me, Jesus loves even me."
John Wesley surely captured the spirit of Easter when he wrote of his Aldersgate experience, "I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation. And assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death."
The Exodus writer put it well in 15:11.
Micah will state it in 7:18-20.
Read Psalm 103 again.
Like Isaiah of long ago, those who perceive the mind-boggling wonder of what God has done for us, share the experience of the prophet Isaiah as he relates it in Isaiah 6.
Such wonders spawn hymns like the Song of Moses, creeds like that penned by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, and stories, told and retold, as in John 20.
Easter is a time for wonder. No hymn of the church puts its meaning and purpose better than the one we call, "Beneath the Cross of Jesus."
Beneath the cross of Jesus, I fain would take my stand,
The shadow of a mighty rock within a weary land;
A home within the wilderness, a rest upon the way,
From the burning of the noontide heat, and the burden of the day.
Upon the cross of Jesus mine eye at times can see
The very dying form of One who suffered there for me;
And from my stricken heart with tears two wonders I confess:
The wonders of redeeming love and my unworthiness.
I take, O Cross, thy shadow for my abiding place;
I ask no other sunshine than the sunshine of his face;
Content to let the world go by, to know no gain nor loss,
My sinful self my only shame, my glory all the cross.
-- Elizabeth C. Clephane
OUTLINE I
Hoping for a Restraining Hand
Exodus 15:1-11
Introduction:Review the story of the people who have come to bondage and, now having escaped Egypt, have been delivered from his pursuing army. Their escape is a harrowing one, by the proverbial skin of their teeth. Death threatened them from behind and they walked between those walls of water and wondered whether they would hold. Build up the suspense as much as you can.
1. Trace the fright and fear of the people of Israel through the Old Testament: Repeatedly they are brought into (or walk into) desperate situations. Remember now, before the exile, these were a people who attributed all things to God, good and bad. Therefore, since the Lord led them into such situations, he must have a purpose. It was lot until the prophets, who spoke at the time of the exile, that they began to see the purpose was redemption and renewal. In the meantime, chaos threatened on all hands. The water symbol in Exodus (and Genesis) is a fitting one. The truth was, and is, if the restraining hand is removed all will be lost. For a good poetic description of this see Isaiah 30:12-14.
2. But ... the restraining hand holds: Moreover it delivers and smites the enemy. Death is cheated and the people escape.
Conclusion: Ask the congregation to consider whether the meaning of the story of Easter was first perceived at Easter. Let them see this is no new act of God. Rather it is one more act, like all the other acts, of a God who saves -- and always has.
OUTLINE II
What Did the "Other Disciple" Believe?
John 20:1-9
Introduction:Read this selection over carefully for the congregation. Let them see how different it is, for someone who knew how things turned out, to tell the story as it originally happened. To recapture the suspense, the fright, the disbelief, and the grief of the original moment is not an easy task.
1. He saw and believed: Believed what? Check out verse nine. The writer makes it clear that it is not the resurrection he believes, so be careful. He believed what the woman had said, that "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb." Surely they must have feared that, and there were others who had such a happening in mind, too. See Matthew 28:11-15. You have to listen carefully when reading John.
2. The continuing situation: Read on in John 20. Mary has a hard time realizing who he is when he meets her outside the tomb. We ought not to think this strange. When things happen which we had not expected it takes a while to re-compute and get on track. Even seeing a well-known friend unexpectedly in another city can throw us. Here they encounter one not expected to return from the dead.
3. The gradual dawning: Perhaps that is how the resurrection is validated to all of us. We hear it. And we may even believe it intellectually. But it takes a while for it to "sink in," to become a part of us, the way we think and the way we act. Like them, we might hear of the event and not understand; then when it is clarified, we give assent; only gradually does it become our faith and the basis of our lives.
Conclusion: Invite the hearer to the tomb and remind them, for all of their lives, they will be understanding what the resurrection means to them.
OUTLINE III
The Hinge of Christianity
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Introduction:Sometime ago I wrote about people who consider themselves to be creed-less and commented such a claim makes me wonder what they believe. A creed is just what is put down in our Scripture, a summary of what one takes to be the starting point, the hinge on which the faith hangs. This is a good day for a creed.
1. Christ died for our sins. In all he was and said and did, we learn of a God who is ready to forgive our sins.
2. That he was buried. Dead! Jews waited three days because they thought the spirit hovered about for three days and could return. To bury one is to admit he is dead.
3. Raised. Note that the tense of the word does not suggest he "came back to life." New life is a gift of God. God raised him up. See Acts 2:24.
4. Appeared. This is no made-up story. There are many witnesses. Read on.
Conclusion: Easter is a great time for creeds. Especially if those creeds speak to us and for us about our faith. The truth is such a realization can lead us to the same conclusion about ourselves as it did for Paul ... it is by the grace of God that we are what we are.
Nothing quite sums up the appropriate Easter attitude like the term "wonder."
We used to sing a song, long ago, in which were the words, "Jesus loves me, Jesus loves me, Jesus loves even me."
John Wesley surely captured the spirit of Easter when he wrote of his Aldersgate experience, "I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation. And assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death."
The Exodus writer put it well in 15:11.
Micah will state it in 7:18-20.
Read Psalm 103 again.
Like Isaiah of long ago, those who perceive the mind-boggling wonder of what God has done for us, share the experience of the prophet Isaiah as he relates it in Isaiah 6.
Such wonders spawn hymns like the Song of Moses, creeds like that penned by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, and stories, told and retold, as in John 20.
Easter is a time for wonder. No hymn of the church puts its meaning and purpose better than the one we call, "Beneath the Cross of Jesus."
Beneath the cross of Jesus, I fain would take my stand,
The shadow of a mighty rock within a weary land;
A home within the wilderness, a rest upon the way,
From the burning of the noontide heat, and the burden of the day.
Upon the cross of Jesus mine eye at times can see
The very dying form of One who suffered there for me;
And from my stricken heart with tears two wonders I confess:
The wonders of redeeming love and my unworthiness.
I take, O Cross, thy shadow for my abiding place;
I ask no other sunshine than the sunshine of his face;
Content to let the world go by, to know no gain nor loss,
My sinful self my only shame, my glory all the cross.
-- Elizabeth C. Clephane
OUTLINE I
Hoping for a Restraining Hand
Exodus 15:1-11
Introduction:Review the story of the people who have come to bondage and, now having escaped Egypt, have been delivered from his pursuing army. Their escape is a harrowing one, by the proverbial skin of their teeth. Death threatened them from behind and they walked between those walls of water and wondered whether they would hold. Build up the suspense as much as you can.
1. Trace the fright and fear of the people of Israel through the Old Testament: Repeatedly they are brought into (or walk into) desperate situations. Remember now, before the exile, these were a people who attributed all things to God, good and bad. Therefore, since the Lord led them into such situations, he must have a purpose. It was lot until the prophets, who spoke at the time of the exile, that they began to see the purpose was redemption and renewal. In the meantime, chaos threatened on all hands. The water symbol in Exodus (and Genesis) is a fitting one. The truth was, and is, if the restraining hand is removed all will be lost. For a good poetic description of this see Isaiah 30:12-14.
2. But ... the restraining hand holds: Moreover it delivers and smites the enemy. Death is cheated and the people escape.
Conclusion: Ask the congregation to consider whether the meaning of the story of Easter was first perceived at Easter. Let them see this is no new act of God. Rather it is one more act, like all the other acts, of a God who saves -- and always has.
OUTLINE II
What Did the "Other Disciple" Believe?
John 20:1-9
Introduction:Read this selection over carefully for the congregation. Let them see how different it is, for someone who knew how things turned out, to tell the story as it originally happened. To recapture the suspense, the fright, the disbelief, and the grief of the original moment is not an easy task.
1. He saw and believed: Believed what? Check out verse nine. The writer makes it clear that it is not the resurrection he believes, so be careful. He believed what the woman had said, that "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb." Surely they must have feared that, and there were others who had such a happening in mind, too. See Matthew 28:11-15. You have to listen carefully when reading John.
2. The continuing situation: Read on in John 20. Mary has a hard time realizing who he is when he meets her outside the tomb. We ought not to think this strange. When things happen which we had not expected it takes a while to re-compute and get on track. Even seeing a well-known friend unexpectedly in another city can throw us. Here they encounter one not expected to return from the dead.
3. The gradual dawning: Perhaps that is how the resurrection is validated to all of us. We hear it. And we may even believe it intellectually. But it takes a while for it to "sink in," to become a part of us, the way we think and the way we act. Like them, we might hear of the event and not understand; then when it is clarified, we give assent; only gradually does it become our faith and the basis of our lives.
Conclusion: Invite the hearer to the tomb and remind them, for all of their lives, they will be understanding what the resurrection means to them.
OUTLINE III
The Hinge of Christianity
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
Introduction:Sometime ago I wrote about people who consider themselves to be creed-less and commented such a claim makes me wonder what they believe. A creed is just what is put down in our Scripture, a summary of what one takes to be the starting point, the hinge on which the faith hangs. This is a good day for a creed.
1. Christ died for our sins. In all he was and said and did, we learn of a God who is ready to forgive our sins.
2. That he was buried. Dead! Jews waited three days because they thought the spirit hovered about for three days and could return. To bury one is to admit he is dead.
3. Raised. Note that the tense of the word does not suggest he "came back to life." New life is a gift of God. God raised him up. See Acts 2:24.
4. Appeared. This is no made-up story. There are many witnesses. Read on.
Conclusion: Easter is a great time for creeds. Especially if those creeds speak to us and for us about our faith. The truth is such a realization can lead us to the same conclusion about ourselves as it did for Paul ... it is by the grace of God that we are what we are.
