Sharing Good News

Posted on March 31, 2013 by David Nuottila

easter nave_nThen the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. John 20:8-9

I’m sure you have noticed that in our postmodern society as we tend to call it; there are a growing number of people who seem to doubt that Jesus was indeed raised from the grave. Historians, scientist and even some liberal biblical scholars work to disprove the resurrection account of Jesus. They say it couldn’t have happened like that.

There is, I suppose, overwhelming scientific evidence that when a human body can no longer function, when vital organs shut down, lungs cease breathing and hearts stop beating, one is certainly dead. Looking back on the events of Good Friday, the way Jesus was beaten and tortured, then hung on the cross to be crucified; his lifeless body certainly met all the criteria of death.

According to science, according to nature, even according to those who witnessed Jesus’ death, there could be no way Jesus could have been raised from the grave. That would have taken a miracle. That would have taken an act of God. No wonder the disciples and Mary didn’t understand it.

As Mary sat alone near the tomb, suddenly two men appeared and asked, “Why are you weeping? And before she could answer, another person asked her the very same question. She didn’t know it, but it was Jesus himself. Somehow she didn’t recognize him. She didn’t understand. She didn’t expect to see him. It’s amazing, but after following Jesus and hearing his teaching. Having sat at his feet and witnessing his miracles, somehow she didn’t know that it was indeed her risen Lord standing before her there in the garden. But then Jesus did something extraordinary, Jesus did something extraordinarily simple.

Jesus, as he did so many times before, looked upon her, had compassion and called her by name. One simple word from her Lord and Savior made all the difference. Mary. Suddenly her eyes were opened. All at once she realized everything Jesus said was true. In an instant her doubt was turned into belief and her sorrow turned to complete joy. Jesus is alive, she has seen him, Mary knows her redeemer lives! It’s in this same way that we too come to believe that Christ is risen.

St. Paul writes that since through baptism we have been joined with Christ in a death like his, we will certainly be joined in a resurrection like his. In baptism, God forgives our sins through the sacrifice of Jesus. In baptism God pours out his Holy Spirit upon us. In baptism God blesses us with the gift of faith, faith that calls us to believe that God’s promises are eternal and true. In baptism, God reaches down from heaven, takes us into his embrace and claims us to be his children, calling us by name…just like Mary.

Maybe there are so many lost people in the world today because they are so hard at work trying to debunk the good news of Christ that they cannot hear God calling them. Perhaps that’s why there are those who work to cast doubt on God’s promises. Perhaps that’s way so many try to disprove the gospel or attempt to make it irrelevant. They are so hard at work, searching for the ways of the world, distracted by the noise of so many empty promises, they can’t hear God calling their name. And so God calls his people.

Through baptism and the power of the Holy Spirit, God calls the church, God calls you and he calls me; God calls us all to tell others about his salvation. Especially at Easter, God call us to be powerful witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus, to proclaim the truth of his gospel, and to bring to his table, all those who hunger and thirst for his grace and mercy.

People of God, the good news of Easter is that Christ is risen. Death no longer has dominion; Jesus is alive. Because he lives we too shall live in the glory of God’s kingdom. Mary told the disciples. The disciples told others. Now God calls us to do no less. Tell others the good news, Jesus is alive, Christ is risen. And because he lives, those who believe and call on his name will have everlasting life.

The reports of Mary and the disciples are true. Jesus, who once was dead, is alive. God has raised him from the grave. Through Jesus’ death, God has destroyed death. Through his resurrection, Christ has opened the gates of heaven for you, for me, and for all who believe. This is the good news of Easter. Christi s risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

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Exsultet

Posted on March 30, 2013 by David Nuottila

???????????????????????????????Rejoice heavenly powers! Sing choirs of angels!
Exult, all creation around God’s throne!
Jesus Christ, our King is risen!
Sound the trumpet of salvation!

Rejoice, O earth, in shining splendor,
radiant in the brightness of your King!
Christ has conquered! Glory fills you!
Darkness vanishes forever!

Rejoice, O Mother Church! Exult in glory!
The risen Savior shines upon you!
Let this place resound with joy,
echoing the mighty song of all God’s people!

It is truly right
that with full hearts and minds and voices
we should praise the unseen God,
the all powerful Father,
and his only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

For Christ has ransomed us with his blood,
and paid for us the price of Adam’s sin
to our eternal Father!

This is our Passover feast,
when Christ, the true Lamb, is slain,
whose blood consecrates the homes of all believers.

This is the night
when first you saved our fathers:
you freed the people of Israel from their slavery
and led them dry-shod through the sea.

This is the night
when the pillar of fire
destroyed the darkness of sin!

This is the night
when Christians everywhere,
washed clean of sin
and freed from all defilement,
are restored to grace
and grow together in holiness.

This is the night
when Jesus Christ broke the chains of death
and rose triumphant from the grave.

What good would life have been to us,
had Christ not come as our Redeemer?

Father, how wonderful your care for us!
How boundless your merciful love!
To ransom a slave you gave away your Son.

O happy fault, O necessary sin of Adam,
which gained for us so great a Redeemer!

Most blessed of all nights,
chosen by God to see Christ rising from the dead!
Of this night scripture says:
“The night will be clear as day:
it will become my light, my joy.”

The power of this holy night
dispels all evil, washes guilt away,
restores lost innocence, brings mourners joy;
it casts out hatred, brings us peace,
and humbles earthly pride.

Night truly blessed
when heaven is wedded to earth
and man is reconciled with God!

Therefore, heavenly Father,
in the joy of this night
receive our evening sacrifice of praise,
your Church’s solemn offering.

Accept this Easter candle,
a flame divided but undimmed,
a pillar of fire that glows to the honor of God.

Let it mingle with the lights of heaven
and continue bravely burning
to dispel the darkness of this night!

May the Morning Star which never sets
find this flame still burning:
Christ, that Morning Star,
who came back from the dead,
and shed his peaceful light on all mankind,
your Son who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

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Finished

Posted on March 30, 2013 by David Nuottila

IMG_1482When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John 19:30

What a sigh of relief!
What a cry of deliverance,
that finally,
after seemingly endless pain
and gasping torment,
it is over at last.
The suffering is ended.
The ordeal is finished
and nothing remains
but the blessed peace of the absence of all sensation.

When all there is, is pain
its ceasing is the greatest blessing of all
even when its ceasing comes only with death.

But Jesus’ cry is more than just welcoming the ending of pain
it is more than joy at the deliverance death brings.

He does not merely say, “it is over”
he says, “it is accomplished,
fulfilled,
achieved”

Jesus’ cry isn’t a cry of defeat and despair

It is a cry of success and triumph
– even at the moment of death –
that the race has been run
that he has endured to the end
that the strife is over
and the battle is won.

Jesus’ cry is a cry of relief to be sure
but it is also a cry of victory:

“The work I came to do is complete”
there is nothing more to add
“it is finished”

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The Nail

Posted on March 29, 2013 by David Nuottila

TheNailTheCrossThe following is a re-post from a few years ago.  I find it to be most appropriate today.

When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. 34 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots to divide his clothing. Luke 23:33-34

Consider the common nail.  Its purpose is to hold things together; its design suits its function very well.  When a nail is first employed its sharpened point violently and efficiently pierces the surface of the one material to be fastened to the other.  Driven deeper and deeper, the nail finally penetrates the one, and then begins sinking deep into the other.  Given enough length, the nail will finally penetrate the second object where its shaft may be bent over so that the two in essence become one providing great strength and security.  The two objects are joined, affixed.  Only until one is ripped from the other, or the nail straightened and driven back can the two be separated.

Consider the hand.  Its purpose is to grasp and to hold things.  Its design suits its function very well.  When the hand is first employed it reaches out with an intended purpose.  Its fingers grasp an object and hold it firmly, supporting as much weight as it can bear.  When the weight becomes too great, one hand may reach out in assistance to another.  Given the right set of circumstances, a hand can provide great strength and security.  It can provide a means to do work, or as in many circumstances, a hand can apply a gentle loving touch, a simple caress.  Hands can even speak.  No, they cannot talk, but they can communicate.  Hands can say “I love you.”

Now consider the cross, where nails and hands meet.  Neither functions toward its desired purpose.  The nail rips through the flesh of the hand, penetrating through to the rough wooden beam.  The hand is wounded, broken, bleeding.  It is unable to grasp, unable to hold.  The nail is misused in a most despicable way, tearing down rather than building up.  It restrains the hand, destroys its ability to do work, to apply a gentle loving touch.  The nail denies the hand its desire to touch, to apply a gentle caress.  Yet, given the right set of circumstances, the hand still speaks.  Though wounded and bleeding, pierced and dying, the hand reaches out and says “I love you.”

Photo credit unknown.

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Given for You

Posted on March 27, 2013 by David Nuottila

EucharistAnd [Jesus] took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Luke 22:19-20

During the season of Lent, we have traveled with Jesus on the way to Jerusalem and the cross. Through Holy Scripture, even as we have heard much of his teaching and witnessed his mighty deeds, we can’t even begin to make sense of all the things Jesus did. His miracles defy human explanation and his teaching is unlike any other. Jesus’ mission and ministry provide a glimpse of the glory of God’s kingdom and his miracles reveal the all-encompassing love of God. Witnessing all of these, certainly there is a question that emerges in the minds of so many; “If he did so much good, and lived a perfect life according to God’s law, why did Jesus have to die?”

Yet, as we approach once more, the great Three Days and witness Christ’s Passion, Jesus answers a much deeper question quite plainly. “For whom did Jesus do all of these?” For whose sake did he stop along the way and have compassion on those whom he met? For whose benefit did Jesus preach the parables and perform so many miracles? Who was it that benefited from his suffering and death? Who did Jesus come to deliver from the powers of sin?

You. He did it for you.

We read in scripture that on that night Jesus was handed over, he gathered his disciples, his closest friends, and told them about the things that would soon happen. Jesus didn’t explain the full meaning of his death, but he left no doubt as to its significance. Jesus met the twelve in a most intimate time and place, during the Passover meal. He offered them his body and blood for their deliverance. He did it for them, he did it for you, he did it for all people.

In the same way, even now our Lord Jesus meets us at the table. He provides more than just bread and wine. He gives us more than a means to remember his sacrifice. Jesus provides us with heavenly food, his very own body and blood. Never was there a gift so precious, never was there food so satisfying. He gives it to you and to me; Jesus offers this for all people, that is why Jesus came to earth. Jesus came for you and for me; he came to deliver God’s people from sin. The bread we share and the wine that is poured is more than a symbol of this gracious act. It is more than a symbolic act of remembrance. Jesus meets us at his table so that we might have life, light and hope in his name!

The journey of Lent is a difficult one, and the path through Holy Week is also. As God’s people we are called to witness the events of our Lord’s Passion. We are called to worship in the upper room and receive Christ’s commandments. Jesus calls us to go with him to Gethsemane and keep watch and to pray. And finally, God’s people are called to focus on the cross of Christ there upon Mount Calvary in order to witness God’s saving act through the innocent death of his Son.

Many who read blogs such as this have a place where they regularly attend worship. But if not, I invite you to find such a place. I encourage you to gather with Christians at the Lord’s house and worship during these next three days. Come hear the Word of our Lord. Contemplate the meaning of Christ’s suffering and death. Realize, beyond a shadow of a doubt, Jesus did all of this for you.

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