Resurection Is Now

Several people are walking down the street when suddenly they all witness a car accident. Being good citizens, they wait for the police to arrive to give their statements.

The first person tells the police that the driver of the yellow car was at fault: “He ran a traffic light.” The second person tells another policeman that the blue car was traveling too fast and entered the intersection before the light had changed to green. The third witness reports that a pedestrian stepped out into the street, forcing both drivers to swerve unexpectedly. Who is right?

If two or three or more people see the same thing, it's more than likely that, upon questioning, you'll end up with two or three or more different accounts. If accounts of a current incident vary so much, what shall we do with the resurrection, which purportedly happened so long ago?

We have four different accounts of the resurrection. In Matthew's version, Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” go to the tomb. In Mark, it's Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome. In Luke, it's Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and “the other women” who go with them.. Finally, in John, Mary Magdalene is on her own.

So who was there? It appears that all four place Mary of Magdala on the scene, but they are confused and conflicted on the rest. So I guess we should just toss out this resurrection business, since the accounts disagree among themselves and therefore are unreliable.

Wait a minute!

The resurrection calls you and me to meet it at a place that is beyond doubt and certainty. We can spend our whole lives arguing about which account is correct and miss the whole point — that resurrection happens!

Resurrection is a gift from God that lavishes grace upon grace all over you and me. Resurrection calls us out of the tombs of certainty and doubt into the warm sensation of knowing in our hearts the Love of God that raises us to new life and new possibilities.

Resurrection is not some dusty relic that we brush off once a year. Resurrection is immediate and happens in the eternal moment called Now. All you or I have to do is open ourselves to the momentum of God's Love and let it carry us beyond our doubts as well as our certainty. In that place of new life, all the old sins and old ways are washed away; all the old glories and successes are washed away as well.

Mary? Mary of Magdala? Salome? Joanna? James' mom? The “other women”? These questions do not matter. The stone has been rolled away, and the Word is out! Listen carefully and you'll hear the rattling of other stones that guard the entrance to whatever tombs you have devised.

Be warned —Jesus is on the loose! In this eternal moment of Now, stones are rolling because he is looking to resurrect somebody.

Joel t