Today's scripture reading is from the Gospel according to John, chapter 2, verses 19-22, and chapter 20, verses 1-18, as printed in the liturgy.
A reading from the Gospel according to John.
Jesus answered them, Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.
They replied, It has taken 46 years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?
But the temple he had spoken of was his body.
After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said.
Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.
Early, on the first day of the week, while it was still dark,
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.
So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved,
and said, They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him.
So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb.
Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there, but did not go in.
Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb.
He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head.
The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen.
Finally, the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside.
He saw and believed.
They still did not understand from scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.
Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
Now Mary stood outside the tomb, crying.
As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white,
seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
They asked her, Woman, why are you crying?
They have taken my Lord away, she said, and I don't know where they have put him.
At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there.
But she did not realize that it was Jesus.
He asked her, Woman, why are you crying?
Who is it you are looking for?
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, Sir, if you have carried him away,
tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.
Jesus said to her, Mary.
She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, Rabboni, which means teacher.
Jesus said, Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.
Go instead to my brothers and tell them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father,
to my God and your God.
Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news, I have seen the Lord.
And she told them that he had said these things to her.
This is the gospel of the Lord.
Happy Easter to our Christ Church family and friends.
It's a delight to join together today with brothers and sisters around the world
and mothers and fathers in the faith throughout time to say that Christ is risen indeed.
And today we're especially thankful to the Lord for our beautiful new cross that we have behind us.
So grateful to Amy and Betsy and Jim and Ray and Balen for bringing this amazing project to completion
during Holy Week of all weeks.
You should know about me, my name is Jonathan,
and you should know about me that I grew up in a Christian family.
I grew up going to church,
but I did not seriously explore the evidence for Jesus' resurrection until my mom died.
She was 50 years old and I was 19 years old.
Prior to her death, I had spent no time in cemeteries.
And after her death, I found myself spending time among tombs and graves
of people who had gone from this life and into death.
And so I was plunged into this kind of dark night of the soul.
And during those years of my early 20s,
I was just full of heartbreak.
It was full of crushing and deep grief.
And I found myself experiencing a new kind of fear that I'd never had,
a fear of death,
a fear that I had suddenly lost my mom
and perhaps suddenly I would lose my dad too.
I'd lose my siblings.
And that maybe the same life-threatening diseases
that took my mom away would be diagnosed in me,
a fear that I too would die young before my time.
And so in those years during college and graduate school,
I began to ask for the first time some serious questions about what happens after we die.
What hope do we have beyond the grave?
And I especially began to examine whether or not I really believed.
I knew that other people around me believed,
but whether or not I really believed that Jesus' crucified body in that tomb
was raised by God,
not metaphorically,
but physically,
literally,
historically,
was raised to a new and glorified life on Easter Sunday.
And I began to ask myself,
I was a history major,
and I asked myself,
are the Gospels reliable eyewitness history?
Or are these just religious myths?
Are these pious legends
and feel-good,
but not ultimately true stories?
Did Jesus' heartbroken and grieving disciples
just convince themselves
that perhaps they had seen visions of Jesus
in their attempt to console themselves
and their attempt to honor their master
and to keep his memory alive among them?
Did they say,
yeah,
we know that his body is still in the tomb,
but for us,
he's spiritually alive.
Somehow,
he's mystically alive in our hearts.
And so,
I began to search the Scriptures
as a young person in my early 20s.
And I quickly realized
that Christianity hangs,
everything hangs,
on the bodily resurrection of Jesus.
This is from the Apostle Paul
in 1 Corinthians 15.
He says,
if Christ has not been raised,
our preaching is useless,
and so is your faith,
you are still in your sins.
If only for this life,
we have hope in Christ.
We Christians are of all people
most to be pitied.
Fortunately for me,
in 2003,
when I was in seminary
about five years after my mom died,
a book was published.
And it's really the book.
I've got it down here.
It's about 800 or 900 pages
by a guy named N.T. Wright,
one of the great New Testament scholars,
called The Resurrection of the Son of God.
You don't need to read this book.
You just need to know that it exists.
And you need to know that
deep and serious scholarship
has been carried out
on the questions we're talking about today.
And what I want to do today
is walk through John 20
and just share a little bit
of what I've learned
and seek to persuade you
that the resurrection of Jesus
is not fake news,
but that it's true news.
It's good news.
It's the kind of news
that can change the course of your life.
And so I want to talk about three things.
I want to talk about the evidence,
the encounter,
and the enterprise.
Okay?
Three E's.
The evidence,
the encounter,
and the enterprise.
And when we talk about the evidence,
just know that
I was on jury duty
earlier this week
and was actually down
at the Alameda County Courthouse
on Monday.
So I've got evidence on the mind.
And what I want to do
is present nine exhibits,
nine pieces of evidence
to the court this morning.
And if you look at verse one,
it says,
early on the first day of the week,
while it was still dark,
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb
and saw that the stone
had been removed
from the entrance.
And this is exhibit number one.
This disc-shaped boulder
that weighed two to four thousand pounds,
which in that culture
was rolled downhill
in order to seal the tomb.
It was rolled into this groove.
And so once it rolled downhill
and hit in that seal,
it was very hard to dislodge
and roll back uphill.
And so the question is,
who came in the night
to remove this stone
that was protected
by a guard of fierce Roman soldiers?
That's exhibit number one.
Exhibit number two,
verse two says,
so she came,
Mary came running to Simon Peter
and the other disciple,
the one Jesus loved,
and said,
they have taken the Lord
out of the tomb
and we don't know
where they have put him.
Exhibit number two
is that the tomb
where Jesus' dead body
had been laid is empty
and the body of Jesus is not there.
And either people came
and they stole the body,
which is what Mary thinks,
or something even more
strange has happened.
Look at verse three.
So Peter and the other disciples
started for the tomb.
Both were running,
but the other disciple
outran Peter
and reached the tomb first.
He bent over
and looked in at the strips
of linen lying there
but did not go in.
This is exhibit number three,
that this empty tomb
is actually not totally empty.
There are these strips
of linen grave clothes
that are lying there
and why emphasize this?
Why emphasize the burial wrappings
of Jesus?
Well, it goes on in verse six.
It says,
Then Simon Peter came along
behind him
and went straight to the tomb
and he saw the strips
of linen lying there
as well as the cloth
that had been wrapped
around Jesus' head.
The cloth was still lying
in its place
separate from the linen.
What you need to know
is that the crucified body
of Jesus had been wrapped
in linen cloth
with about 75 pounds
of spices
that were carefully
folded into
the folds of the linen.
And three times here
it says that Peter and John,
they saw the strips
of linen lying,
which means that they were
lying undisturbed.
That they were in the shape
of Jesus' body
and yet they were empty
as if Jesus had passed
through his grave clothes.
If the body had been stolen,
either these grave clothes
would not be here at all
or the thieves would have
unwrapped and scattered
the grave clothes
like a bunch of gauze bandages
just laying everywhere.
But the clothes, it says,
are still lying in the place
where Jesus' body was laid
and they're in the shape
that Jesus' body
had given them.
It's like an empty cocoon.
It's like a collapsed balloon
with all the air
gone out of it.
And in verse 8,
it's so fascinating.
It says that
finally the other disciple,
John,
who'd reached the tomb first,
he also went inside
and it says
he saw and believed.
Earlier in verse 5,
John bent over
outside the tomb
and he looked in
at the strips of linen
from a distance.
And then it says
in verse 6
that Peter went
into the tomb
and it says
he saw the strips
of linen up close
and the Greek verb
there is phareo
where we get the word theory.
Peter saw these strips
and he's theorizing
to himself.
He's wondering
to himself,
what is this?
He's trying to make
sense of it all,
of what he sees
with his eyes.
And then it says
that John,
here in verse 8,
he goes all the way
inside the tomb
and the Greek verb
there is orao.
And orao means
to see with your mind,
to see with your understanding.
And John sees
with his mind.
He's grasping
the spiritual truth
of these empty
grave clothes
that his eyes
can see
and it says
that he believes.
And what does he believe?
Well, he believes
that Jesus'
lifeless body
is now a living body.
It's a resurrected
and glorified body
that has literally
passed through
these empty
grave clothes.
And the question
for us as readers
is,
do you see
with your mind?
Do you see
with your understanding?
Jesus' body
that passed through
these empty grave clothes
is a body
in which the process
of death,
decay,
and dissolution
has been reversed.
Death,
as Paul puts it,
death no longer
has mastery over him.
Death no longer
has dominion
over him.
That Jesus' body
is unlike any body
there's ever been.
It's an imperishable
and incorruptible body.
It's a powerful
and glorious body
that Jesus
has gone on
through death
and he's gone out
into a new creation
and a new life.
He's gone out
into this place
where death itself
has been defeated
in life.
Sheer life.
Life in all of its fullness
and all of its abundance.
Life indestructible
and life everlasting
could begin at last.
Not just for Jesus
but for us as well.
That's what John
saw with his mind.
That's what the first Christians
and the early church
saw with their understanding
and believed.
You guys with me?
Okay.
So this is exhibit
one through three.
The heavy stone
has been removed.
The tomb is empty.
The grave clothes
are lying there empty.
Exhibit number four
is the meticulously
recorded appearances
of the resurrection
of Jesus,
the resurrected Jesus
to the eyewitnesses.
The New Testament
records for us
a dozen or more
distinct appearances
over the next 40 days
to individuals
like Mary Magdalene
which we'll look at
in a moment
to small groups
of people
at one point
to a gathering
of over 500 people
and all of them
reported this.
They did not say
we think that we may
have seen
a vision of Jesus
but what they said
is that we definitely
heard him,
saw him,
touched him
and ate with him
and we are absolutely
certain beyond
the shadow of a doubt
that he is alive.
Exhibit number five
is the creation
of an entirely
new worldview
overnight
without the typical
kind of slow
evolutions
and developments
that are involved
in the structure
of scientific
revolutions
and of paradigm
shifts.
So like when you
think of
Copernicus
to Newton
to Einstein
that took place
over many
many years.
It took a long
time for people
to come
and embrace
a new structure
of scientific
reality
but here
something completely
different is happening
all of a sudden
overnight
out of nowhere
radically
monotheistic
Jews
are somehow
worshipping
a human being
as Lord
and God
and that
is an unthinkable
thing.
Exhibit
number six
is the
dramatically
changed lives
of these
eyewitnesses
that
how did
these
disillusioned
cowards
hiding behind
locked doors
overnight
become
fearless
evangelists
and martyrs.
Did they go
out and die
for a
group
hallucination?
Did they go
out and die
for legends
that they
actually
fabricated?
Exhibit
number seven
is that
what we read
of in the
New Testament
is that the
early church
experienced
the resurrected
Jesus
as
alive
and
powerfully
present
whenever they
would gather
that
they couldn't
really explain
it to
themselves
but
they knew
that
somehow
Jesus
was
exalted
to God's
throne
and yet
he was
continuing
to be
powerfully
with them
as the
living Lord
and when
they come
together
they knew
that it
was Jesus
who was
teaching
them
Jesus
who was
nourishing
them
Jesus
who was
healing
them
Jesus
who was
encouraging
them
Jesus
was
leading
them
exhibit
number
eight
is the
existence
of the
New Testament
documents
themselves
that
somehow
without
any
imperial
sponsorship
whatsoever
a
persecuted
minority
produced
in prison
cells
and in
exile
the
best
attested
literature
in the
ancient
world
by far
how did
that
happen
and
exhibit
number
nine
our
final
exhibit
is the
explosive
growth
of the
Christian
church
that
somehow
this
obscure
marginal
movement
became
the
dominant
force
in the
Roman
Empire
after
three
centuries
of
intense
persecution
just
pause
here
to
make
some
application
how
do
you
account
for
all
the
evidence
exhibited
before
your
eyes
and before
your
ears
I
haven't
even
given
you
all
the
evidence
but
can
you
provide
a
historically
plausible
alternative
explanation
for this
evidence
what
I'm
advocating
today
is
called
abductive
reasoning
or
inference
to the
best
explanation
it's
a logical
method
used to
determine
the most
plausible
explanation
for a
set of
historical
data
historical
observations
and
evidence
and if
you come
to this
and you
say
well my
hypothesis
is that
the first
Christians
had visions
and they
convinced
themselves
they saw
Jesus
and then
they created
legends
in order to
persuade
other people
you're actually
creating way
more problems
than you're
solving
with that
hypothesis
and my
contention
is that
if you
will
thoroughly
go through
the evidence
then
like
John
you may
very well
see with
your mind
see with
your
understanding
and believe
but very
often
unbelief
happens
not because
the evidence
is lacking
or not
because the
evidence
is not
convincing
but unbelief
happens
because
a resurrected
Jesus means
that
you are not
in control
a resurrected
Jesus means
that someone
greater and
more authoritative
than you
is standing
above you
and that
given his
position
he demands
that you
surrender
your life
to him
and call
him
Lord
and most
people just
don't want
to do that
most people
like having
control of
their lives
most people
like being
their own
lord and
their own
savior
and their
own
master
but my
question for
you is
if Jesus
body
actually
did
pass through
those
strips of
linen
there lying
undisturbed
if he
emptied
the tomb
if God
rolled away
that stone
not so that
Jesus could
get out
but so that
we could
look in
and observe
if Jesus
is alive
today
is it
possible
that he's
searching
for you
is it
possible
that he
is standing
there waiting
to be in
a relationship
with you
and I want
to show you
one example
of a person
whom the
resurrected
Jesus
comes looking
for
her name
is Mary
Magdalene
I want to
turn to her
story
I want to
shift from
the evidence
which we
we absolutely
have to have
and I want to
talk about
the encounter
you can
have the
evidence
but not
have an
encounter
but you
need both
the evidence
and the
encounter
and
as I
mentioned
there are
dozens of
appearances
a dozen
appearances
of the
resurrected
Jesus
to the
disciples
recorded in
the New
Testament
and John
focuses our
attention on
one such
appearance
one such
encounter
with the
leader of
Jesus
female
disciples
and before
we get into
the details
I just want
to remind
you of how
radical it
was for
Jesus to
include
women in
his ministry
prior to
Jesus there
were no
women disciples
of any
Jewish
rabbis
or teachers
and Jesus
has created
this amazing
counterculture
full of
female
disciples
and here
he comes
to make
one of
those
disciples
the first
witness to
his
resurrection
now we
know that
Jesus gave
nicknames
to his
disciples
he called
Peter
the rock
or rocky
right
and he
called
James and
John
the sons
of thunder
or thunder
boys
and
Mary
Magdalene
either means
Mary from
Magdala
which is
her hometown
but Magdalene
also means
the tower
Mary Magdalene
Mary the
tower
how did she
become
this person
well
she's a
you can read
about her
in the
gospel
she was
an aristocratic
woman
of great
financial
means
and we
don't know
how
but somehow
she came
under the
influence
of dark
powers
that were
enslaving
her
and
dehumanizing
her
and Jesus
came
and he
found
Mary
and he
powerfully
liberated
Mary
and this
dramatic
life
transformation
planted
in Mary
a heart
a fierce
devotion
to Jesus
and she
became
this
strong
powerful
towering
disciple
but we
see here
in this
story
that her
towering
strength
begins
to crumble
because her
greatest
hopes
and her
dreams
have been
absolutely
crushed
she saw
Jesus
breathe
his final
breath
on the
cross
she heard
the
rolling
stone
slam
shut
on his
tomb
and the
fact that
Mary
is leading
the other
women
disciples
in the
dark
back
to a
tomb
that's
guarded
by
intensely
fierce
Roman
soldiers
shows
you
something
of her
strong
devotion
and her
fierce
determination
right
Mary's
amazing
but adding
insult to
injury
she comes
to the
tomb
and she
finds
the body
of Jesus
is stolen
or so she
thinks
and it's no wonder
that she's now
standing there
just absolutely
weeping
outside of
the tomb
crushed
in spirit
and broken
hearted
because she
saw
the violence
and the
brutality
of an empire
unleashed
at the
crucifixion
she
experienced
the
finality
of
burying
her
beloved
friend
she
has now
been denied
the opportunity
to pay
her last
respects
and she's
weeping
because of
the hopeless
sorrow
of this
world
in which
we live
anybody
relate
to that
there's a
kind of
hopeless
sorrow
to our
world
and she's
weeping
because
this sad
old
world
is full
of pain
and it's
full
of misery
she's
weeping
because
she's
alone
she's
weeping
because
she's
been
abandoned
in despair
she's
weeping
because
she's
been
separated
from the
only one
who truly
has understood
her
and loved
her
she's
weeping
because
this man
who has
delivered her
from bondage
and given
her new
life
is gone
how can
she face
the future
without him
Mary
I would say
is in
the deep
darkness
and anguish
with the
problem
of evil
but
something
prompts her
and
for whatever
reason
she stoops
down
and she
looks back
inside the
tomb
and through
her tears
she saw
something
unbelievable
she saw
these two
brilliant
angelic
messengers
of God
and they're
sitting on
either end
of the stone
shelf
where Jesus
body had
been
and their
question to
her is
why are you
crying
and that
question is
soon echoed
by the voice
of a stranger
behind her
who says
why are you
crying
and who
are you
looking for
and just
pause here
because the
contrast
between
this lamenting
and despairing
woman
and this
resurrected
triumphant
Lord
in the
garden
right there
together
is quite
striking
and I
think it's
a picture
of the
world
in which
we live
the risen
Lord is
right there
and he's
ready
he's able
to dry
her tears
but she
does not
know who
he is
friends
it's possible
to be in
the presence
of the
living Lord
and yet
not realize
that he
is with
you
and you
are with
him
and so
in verse 14
it says
that this
she turned
around
and saw
Jesus
standing
there
but she
did not
realize
that it
was
Jesus
and so
verse 15
he asked
her
woman
why are
you
crying
who is
it
you're
looking
for
and
thinking
he
was
the
gardener
she
said
sir
if
you
have
carried
him
away
tell
me
where
you
have
put
him
and
I
will
go
get
him
this
woman
of
towering
strength
she
says
I
will
go
get
his
body
and
I
will
carry
it
back
on
my
shoulders
with
the
dead
weight
on
me
and
that
is
how
much
I
love
him
just
tell
me
where
he
is
and
Jesus
says
to
her
in
verse
16
Mary
the
one
who
created
her
the
one
who
redeemed
her
the
one
who
gave
her
a
new
identity
just
simply
speaks
her
name
and
that
is
enough
Mary
in
John
chapter
10
Jesus
said
I'm
the
good
shepherd
and
I
call
my
sheep
by
name
they
know
my
voice
and
they
follow
me
Mary
it
says
she
turned
toward
him
and
cried
out
in
Aramaic
Rabboni
which
means
teacher
and
Jesus
said
do
not
hold
on
to
me
for
I
have
not
yet
ascended
to
the
father
I
think
we
all
know
that
being
reunited
with
those
that
you
love
is
one
of
the
happiest
experiences
on
earth
right
you
come
up
that
escalator
in
the
airport
you
arrive
on
the
threshold
!
the
door
you
see
that
familiar
face
you
hear
that
reassuring
!
you
feel
the
comforting
embrace
but
imagine
what it
would
be
like
to
be
reunited
with
someone
that
you
thought
you
lost
forever
not
just
somebody
who
took
a
new
job
not
somebody
who
moved
to
another
city
but
someone
you
thought
you
never
see
again
when
we
think
of
the
friends
and
the
family
that
we
lost
it's
devastating
isn't
it
to
think
that
they're
gone
that
however
hard
we
no
medical
or
industrial
advance
can
stop
death
from
winning
and
yet
here
is
one
man
the
one
person
in
history
who's
demonstrated
absolute
power
and
authority
over
death
and
when
Mary
turns
she
grabs
hold
of
Jesus
for
the
sake
of
her
life
she
has
Jesus
in
a
bear
hug
and
is
not
going
to
let
him
go
and
I
just
want
to
pause
here
and
make
a
little
bit
of
application
for
those
of
you
who
may
be
exploring
Christianity
what
other
world view
what
other
life
system
addresses
our
greatest
problem
like
this
addresses
it
because
the
reality
is
your
story
along
with
all
the
stories
of
everyone
you
love
is
going
to
end
in
death
you
know
human
history
is
going
to
end
in
the
collapse
and
death
of
the
universe
but
if
Mary's
encounter
with
Jesus
is
true
if
he
has
a
resurrected
voice
that
can
speak
your
name
if
he
has
a
living
body
that
can
be
held
if
he
has
a
powerful
presence
who
can
come
and
meet
you
and
ask
you
tender
questions
in
the
midst
of
your
deepest
despair
and
hopelessness
then
your
story
and
human
history
is
not
a
tragedy
it's
been
turned
into
a
comedy
that
in
this
moment
the
world
has
finally
turned
a
corner
that
in
the
midst
of
this
old
creation
a
new
creation
has
been
launched
in
the
midst
of
this
old
age
a
new
age
has
begun
and
Jesus
resurrected
body
is
the
first
prototype
of
many
bodies
to
come
you see
in the
resurrection
of
Jesus
God
has
said
yes
to
Jesus
God
has
said
yes
to
all
that
Jesus
is
and
all
that
he's
done
and
all
that
he's
said
and
he
causes
Jesus
to
be
alive
and
so
when
Mary
hears
Jesus
speak
her
name
she
in
this
moment
is
getting
aligned
with
God's
cosmic
yes
to
Jesus
right
she
turns
herself
to
Jesus
and
she
grabs
hold
of
Jesus
and
she
begins
to
put
all
the
weight
of
her
trust
on
Jesus
she's
saying
yes
to
Jesus
the
apostle
Paul
says it
this way
in
Romans
chapter
4
he says
he was
delivered
over to
death
for our
sins
and was
raised
to
life
for
our
justification
and
he
goes
on
in
chapter
10
he
says
if
you
declare
with
your
mouth
that
Jesus
is
Lord
and
you
believe
in
your
heart
that
God
raised
him
from
the
dead
you
will
be
saved
all
you
have
to
do
is
turn
and
say
yes
and
if
you
consider
yourself
a
Christian
a
point
of
application
for
you
if
you
have
encountered
the
resurrected
and
living
Jesus
not
physically
at
the
garden
tomb
like
Mary
but
truly
through
the
scriptures
and
if
you've
heard
him
speak
your
name
not
audibly
!
like
Mary
but
truly
by
the
Holy
Spirit
in
your
heart
if
you
turned
and
been
restored
to
a
personal
and
deeply
intimate
relationship
with
Jesus
like
Mary
and
if
you've
grabbed
hold
of
Jesus
by
faith
my
question
for
you
today
is
are
you
living
out
of
the
new
life
and
the
new
power
that
Jesus
has
put
inside
of
you
the
apostle
Paul
goes
on
in
Romans
6
he
says
we
were
therefore
buried
with
him
through
baptism
into
death
in
order
that
just
as
Christ
was
raised
from
the
dead
through
the
glory
of
the
father
we
too
may
live
a
new
life
and
in
Romans
8
he
says
if
the
spirit
of
him
who
raised
Jesus
from
the
dead
is
living
inside
of
you
he
who
raised
Christ
from
the
dead
will
also
give
life
to
your
mortal
bodies
because
of
his
spirit
who
lives
in
you
friends
if
you
consider
yourself
a
Christian
every
Sunday
since
Easter
Sunday
people
have
been
coming
back
to
the
risen
Lord
that
Mary
has
taken
hold
of
and
every
morning
since
Easter
morning
the
disciples
of
this
risen
Lord
have
been
coming
to
him
again
and
again
and
again
why
because
they're
asking
him
give
me
more
of
this
new
life
give
me
more
of
this
new
power
Lord
if
you're
alive
I
want
everything
you
have
to
give
to
me
and
the
question
for
us
is
are
we
coming
to
Jesus
like
that
have
you
taken
hold
of
Jesus
like
Mary
has
taken
hold
of
Jesus
and
said
give
me
more
I'm
not
letting
go
give
me
more
you
can't
just
have
the
evidence
you
have
to
have
the
encounter
but
I
want
to
conclude
by
talking
not
just
about
the
evidence
and
the
encounter
but
I
want
to
talk
finally
and
briefly
about
the
enterprise
the
enterprise
Jesus
said
to
Mary
he
said
the
strangest
words
he
says
do
not
hold
on
to
me
for
I
have
not
yet
ascended
to
the
father
again
Mary
has
Jesus
in
a
bear
hug
and
Jesus
I
think
initially
welcomes
!
the
towering
strength
of
her
love
but
he
gives
her
this
firm
negative
in
other
translations
do
not
touch
me
do
not
cling
to
me
do
not
hold
on
to
me
no
writer
of
fiction
could
have
come up
with
this
part
of
the
story
it's
the
first
of
many
commands
that
Jesus
the
resurrected
Jesus
gives
what
does
this
command
mean
well
I
think
when
Jesus
says
don't
hold
on
to
me
number
one
he's
saying
that
the
me
you're
holding
on to
is not
an
ungraspable
ghost
it's
not
a
disembodied
spirit
the
me
is
a
real
me
it's
a
historical
me
right
I'm
gloriously
alive
in this
body
that
now
has
undreamed
of
powers
that
no
one
has
ever
seen
in
this
world
so
you
can't
just
hold
on
to
me
like
the
relationship
we
had
before
secondly
I
think
Jesus
is
saying
Mary
you
and
the
disciples
you're
going
to
see
me
now
and
then
over
the
next
40
days
but
soon
it's
going
to
be
time
for
me
as
Jesus
says
to
ascend
to
the
father
I've
got
to
go
up
I've
got
to
be
enthroned
at
the
majesty
of
God's
right
hand
because
I'm
no
longer
the
humiliated
Jesus
of
Nazareth
I'm
the
exalted
Christ
of
glory
so
you
can't
hold
on
to
me
and
the
third
thing
I think
Jesus
means
here
is
now
please
Mary
let
me
go
just
for
a
minute
so
I
can
tell
you
how
to
go
to
others
and
tell
them
about
me
Mary
you
can't
keep
holding
on
to
me
because
I'm
going
to
rule
and
reign
with
my
father
over
a
worldwide
enterprise
over
a
worldwide
mission
and
Mary
I've
got
a
job
for
you
I've
got
a
job
for
you
to
go
and
be
my
first
messenger
and
so
he
says
do
not
hold
on
to
me
for
I
have
not
yet
ascended
to
the
father
and
then
he
says
go
instead
to
my
brothers
and
tell
them
I
am
ascending
to
my
father
and
your
father
to
my
God
and
your
God
Mary
your
assignment
is
to
go
and
tell
others
when
any
of
us
meets
he
says
go
and
tell
others
and
you
know
up
to
this
point
Jesus
has
called
his
followers
his
disciples
he's
called
them
his
servants
he's
called
them
his
friends
but
he's
never
yet
called
them
his
brothers
and
up
to
this
point
Jesus
has
talked
about
the
father
and
he's
talked
about
the
father
who
sent
me
and
he's
talked
about
my
father
but
he's
never
called
God
your
father
but
all
that
has
changed
and
he
says
go
and
say
to
those
guys
who
denied
me
and
abandoned
me
and
failed
me
my
brothers
all
is
forgiven
my
brothers
and
go
tell
them
that
I'm
going
up
not
just
to
my
father
but
to
your
father
to
my
God
and
to
your
God
and
you
see
God
is
Jesus
father
by
nature
and
by
right
but
what
he
what
he's
saying
here
is
that
now
he
can
be
your
father
by
grace
and
by
adoption
that
because
of
the
resurrection
you
can
be
God's
forgiven
and
intimate
child
that
you
can
be
his
beloved
son
and
his
beloved
daughter
and
that
therefore
you
can
be
a
little
brother
and
a
little
sister
of
Jesus
friends
is this
news
of
Easter
this
news
of
the
resurrection
is that
good
news
to
you
because
it
certainly
was
for
Mary
Magdalene
she
knew
in
this
moment
that
she
was
not
going
back
to
the
way
that
things
were
before
she
knew
in
this
moment
that
the
resurrected
Jesus
was
catapulting
her
and
catapulting
the
entire
disciple
community
into
a
whole
new
enterprise
a
whole
new
world
mission
in
the
power
of
the
Holy
Spirit
and
that
she
knew
that
she
had
a
new
relationship
with
God
where
he
is
father
and
I
am
his
child
she
had
a
new
relationship
with
Jesus
because
he's
the
risen
!
And
I'm
his
ambassador
and
she
had
a
new
relationship
with
all
the
people
around
her
because
she
knew
they
desperately
need
this
good
news
that
has
just
been
entrusted
to
me
she
had
to
let
go
of
Jesus
in
order
to
go
tell
others
the
good
news
she
had
to
stop
holding
on
to
Jesus
so
she
could
go
and
hold
on
to
others
with
the
gospel
and
it
says
in
verse
18
that
Mary
Magdalene
went
to
the
disciples
with
the
news
I
have
seen
the
Lord
not
I
think
that
I've
had
a
vision
of
the
Lord
but
I
have
seen
the
Lord
and
she
told
them
that
he
had
said
these
things
to
her
she
immediately
obeyed
and
she
went
out
bold
with
a
new
found
towering
strength
and
she
shared
the
message
of
Jesus
in
Christ
church
the
question
for
us
is
are
we
willing
to
be
like
Mary
will
you
say
yes
to
this
new
enterprise
this
new
mission
will
you
too
be
an
ambassador
of
the
risen
king
will
you
go
out
and
tell
others
and
share
with
them
the
news
that
has
been
entrusted
to
you
the
best
news
that
the
world
has
ever
heard
friends
the
resurrected
Jesus
is
alive
and that
means that
all that
he said
is true
and it
means that
you are
now his
brother
and his
sister
it means
that now
God is
your father
and you
are his
child
and it
means that
one day
the risen
Lord who
has ascended
to the
father
and is
ruling
over all
things
he's
going to
set this
world
right
he's
going to
cause
all that's
sad
in our
lives
and all
that's
sad
in this
world
to become
untrue
and he's
going to
make this
whole world
new
friends
Christ
is risen
he's
risen
indeed
in the
name of
the
father
son
and
holy
spirit
amen
!
to be