"A friend I didn't know"

John 20:1-18 He is Risen!

"Mary turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus..."
Mary saw Him but did not see Him. Mary did not believe yet. How could she, she saw the crucifixion. Crucifixions are a horrible way to die, she was convinced He was dead, she saw Him die, she saw Him pierced through the heart with a spear and everyone knows dead people stay dead. But when He spoke her name.....


Listen: Today He speaks your name.... Do you see Him?

Last week, Levi climbed into the van after school and Ann noticed a bandaid on his knee. She asked, "What happened?" His reply, "I was in the playground and I fell down. But a friend I do not know came up to me and said it would be alright." In the Bible "falling down" is a metaphor for sin. In the Bible the Risen Lord tells fallen sinners that "it will be okay." The Lord is risen, it will be okay.

Many do not know Jesus or believe. They cannot see. Jesus comes to them through witnesses, just as Mary went and told the disciples, so we must also go and tell others. Jesus is that "friend whom they did not know" who brings them the Gospel message, "it will be okay." We also fall down and sometimes the bumps and bruises of life need more than a band aid. Jesus, the Risen One, is there for us, too. Jesus reaches to us to heal our sin sickness and wounds, to wipe away each tear. Often times we do not see Him, we do not know Him. Often times, even for us, He is the friend we do not know.

My first Easter homily was preached in Waterloo, Belgium in 1983. I was in seminary then and we spent lots of time with the American families who lived in Brussels. At 26 years old, I was as comfortable running around and playing with the kids as I was sitting around with the parents. One night in Holy Week we were playing hide and seek. I was lying under a bush and one of the girls stood looking at me, but she did not see me, I was stunned because it reminded me of this Gospel which I was supposed to preach a few days later. Fifteen years before that, my grandmother came on the train from Chicago to Philadelphia. We all knew that grandpa was coming, too, but mom didn't. My mom told grandma, "Ma, move, that man is trying to get by." Grandma said, "Barbara, don't you know your own father." Mom burst into tears and grabbed him. Every time I read this Gospel I remember that moment of sudden recognition of an unexpected presence and the spoken name.

Barbara, it's your dad...

Mary, it's your Jesus...

To each of us, listen, He speaks our name: "It is I."

It is Jesus, coming to you.

Messiah King, Lord and Savior
Risen and alive.
By His wounds you are healed.
He is victorious over sin and death.

Open your eyes to see.

Open your ears to hear.
Open your heart to believe.
Trust Him. Rejoice.
No doubt. No fear.

Jesus is risen and alive and among us.

He is risen, indeed. Alleluia!