Easter.
And, April Fools Day.
Hmmm.
Where should I start? Let’s try this.
Knock. Knock.
[Who’s there?]
Jesus. Wait. Wait.
Or not Jesus?
Enough!
I think I should stop right there.
But my intuition tells me that somewhere in this complicated, startling, life and world turned right side up story is some sort of divine joke and God is laughing at the wonder of it all.

So, on this Easter/April Fools Sunday, I add my welcome as we gather this morning to celebrate Easter…beyond bunnies and baskets and decorated eggs.

As I read and reread and thought about what I wanted or needed to share with you this morning about Easter and about the message and meaning of the resurrection, I found my attention and imagination pulled in two different directions. The first was this. The realization that instead of this being one story – whether you read the resurrection narratives as something which happened to Jesus or something which happened to the disciples – the accounts of the resurrection, in fact, tell two competing stories. And you and I are left to decide which story will be normative for our lives.

The first story is one we know all too well.
It is a story about power wielded by violence and intimidation and fear.
All in the name of peace.
Rome with it legions of soldiers.
And, the roads of the Empire lined with crosses used for executions.
And, the Emperor named and treated as a god.
With those who had having more than what they needed.
And, those who did not, never having enough.

This story is not unique to the Bible.
It is the story of Empire which has been reenacted countless times in human history.
The Assyrian Empire. The Babylonian Empire. The Roman Empire.
The Inquisition. Nazi Germany. Syria today. The Philippines today.
Jim Crow. Segregation. The Ku Klux Klan. The Alt-Right.
We know it.
We live in it.
Its headlines fill the news.
Even today.
Again today.

Then there is this story.
The story of Jesus.
Who healed those who were broken.
Who fed those who were hungry.
Who welcomed those who were forgotten and pushed to the edges.
Who challenged the power and the story of the religious and political elite.
Who lived the reality that the circle which encompassed God’s children is larger. As a colleague said, “Moving the margins until there are no more margins.”

He said things like…
Blessed are the peacemakers.
Do not judge.
Treat others as you would like to be treated.
Be compassionate as God is compassionate.
Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you.
Blessed are those who are gentle, but strong. They shall inherit the earth.
And, as crazy as all that sounds given the world as it was and is some people actually believed him. And began living that way.

Two stories.
On one side is the cross and the power of the Empire.
On the other side is the stone rolled away and the tomb that is empty.
On one side is the finality of death.
On the other side is the women meeting Jesus in that cemetery and disciples running for their lives meeting him on the road to Emmaus.
One one side are the guards sent to protect the tomb falling over like dead men.
On the other side is Jesus who was dead experienced as being present and alive again.
And, like countless others before us, we are left to decide.
Which of these two stories will you use to shape the narrative of your life?
Let me ask that again.
Which of these two stories will you use to shape the narrative of your life?

And, my second pondering about the Easter story is this.
What came first?
Jesus’ resurrection?
Or, the stone being rolled away?
I think we often assume the resurrection came first.
Jesus ready or already gone when that entombing stone is miraculously pushed back. But, what if that not the case. What if Jesus remained dead until that stone was removed? If that is true, then what about today? I ask because I believe if the Bible contains any truth at all, it is never just about then, but also about now. And never just about them, but also about you and me.
So, back to the question.
What if Jesus remained dead until that stone was rolled back?
Then what does that say about today in all those places where Death still reigns?
And, violence still rules.
And, fear wraps itself around their lives strangling life until it is no more?
In Aleppo?
In Parkland?
In Paris?
In Sacramento?
In Sandy Hook?
In New York City?
Next door?
Any and all places where Jesus is still dead?
If so, who will roll away the stone?

So, here we are…
Easter 2018.
My prayer today for all of you…
For all of us…
Is this.
May whatever stones still entomb be rolled away that new life might emerge. And may the promises of Easter turn your world and our world right side up.