2003.4.27. Rev. Chan Young Jang

"People who were around the Resurrection"

Matthew 27:57-61

During the 40 days of the Lent, we reflected upon that the morning of the resurrection was possible only through the cross of endurance, and the cross of the afflictions. The most important words for Christians are 'Cross' and 'resurrection'.

Someone described the cross as follows: When Jesus was being crucified on the Cross; he took out one hand and held God's hand. And he took out the other hand and held the hands of humans who were in despair and dying. Then, He called on God's name saying, "Father! Here are your children." Then, to the despaired spirits of humans he said, "Children, He is your father!" He described the meaning of the cross as the connecting God and humans.

Another person described the cross as follows: First, the cross reflects how God hates sin. God hates sin so much that He had to crucify His son on the cross. Second, the cross reflects how much God loves us, sinners. He loves us so much that He had to crucify His son on the cross. Therefore, "The Cross tells us how God has forgiven us sinners and loved us." Because we have this cross, we have the glory of the resurrection. We can take part in the resurrection that we longed for.

The bible tells us not only about the disciples who experienced the resurrection or the people who held important roles in the early church. In fact, even though they heard about resurrection from Jesus many time, the disciples deserted Jesus when He was being crucified. The end of the cross, the start of the resurrection was accompanied not by the disciples but by the people who were around them. They might not have expected the resurrection but Jesus had shown them His last moments on this earth and the first moments of His resurrection.

I

Today's scripture, verse 57 starts as follows;
'As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him.'

When Jesus was dying on the cross, there were only his mother and a few other helpless women around him. They needed someone to bury the body of Jesus. Even though most of people deserted Jesus, there came this one person. He buried Jesus' body in his tomb; his name was Joseph from Arimathea. According to Mark chapter 15, verse 43, he was a prominent member of the Council and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. Also, Luke chapter 23, verse 50 introduces him as a good and upright man. What's more, if you read verse 51, it is said, "Who had not consented to their decision and action." in parenthesis. He was a very special person. The prominent member of the Council at that time means that he can be a judge. In today's world, he would be a high government official who has financial power and authority, and also is respected by others.

Joseph from Arimathea was clearly different from corrupted religious leaders. He was devout and righteous. Generally, in any era, it is difficult for a man who is a high government official to admit that "I am a Christian." That's because it would draw public's attention. Also, there might come a time that he has to make proper decisions according to his claim. Not only high government officials, even if you are an administrator of a small restaurant, or a small company, if you tell them, by hanging a frame with quote from the bible, that you are a Christian; that wouldn't simply mean that you just attend a church. It means that he or she will run the business honestly as a true Christian and that he or she would not do anything that's against Jesus' teachings. It means for them to work harder and also have to make difficult decisions. It also requires courage for them to disclose themselves to show their honesty.

Sometimes, they need to have a great deal of courage to be against the wrong doings of majority. Bible tells that Joseph from Arimathea was the only member of the Council who was against the wrong doings of the political leaders and religious leaders who gathered their forces to kill Jesus.

Also, it seems that Joseph of Arimathea was a rich man. In general, it is hard for a rich man to be a Christian. Because he may feel that the power of money is greater than the power of God, more often than average persons do. But the Bible records, even though he was rich, "he was also a disciple of Jesus". He was in a different position than other disciples who had to leave all their belongings to follow Jesus. But, because he loved Jesus, even though he was a prominent member of the Council, he followed Jesus and claimed himself as one of the disciples of Jesus.

That's right. It would be difficult to throw everything away and go to a seminary. But you would feel free after you make that decision. I am sure there will be other issues and obstacles when you are in the seminary, but life will be simple. It would be a wonderful thing to become a professional evangelist, a clergy, or a missionary. It is also difficult to live as a disciple of Jesus wherever you are. You have to take up your cross and fight with yourself constantly. It is not an easy task. It might be easier to study theology and become a missionary. But it is not easy to live as a true disciple of Jesus and face reality in this corrupted world.

One member of congregation told me once, "Reverend Jang, I envy you. You start your day with the words, you always prepare for sermons, you visit and care families. You always meet people at church, you have meetings at church. Isn't that wonderful? Maybe I should go to a seminary, too." When I thought about what he said, I thought he was right. He didn't mean that he is really going to go to a seminary. He knows pastors have worries and obstacles. He was just trying to tell me how he has to fight with himself and with the world everyday. I told him, "You are already a minister. You just don't have a certificate. Therefore, you don't need to go to a seminary. Even though it's difficult, you work hard wherever you are. You run your company honestly and show your employees what Christian is like." I think Joseph of Arimathea was that kind of person.

What's more, he willingly dedicated his future tomb, which was very expensive and luxurious, and where no one had been buried. Was it because he was rich? I don't think so. It is because 'having much money' is one thing, and 'sharing it' is another. To share one's wealth with others is never an easy thing to do. Especially, giving one's best to others is even harder. It was the same then as today that a funeral was very costly. Not only you need a tomb, but also a person who transfer and prepare the body. And you have to follow the traditional way to wrap and odorize the body. He took over the whole costs.

What an amazing faith it is! Certainly Joseph of Arimathea, just like the disciples and others who were close to Jesus, did not know the real meaning of the cross. He did not know the secret of the cross. He also did not believe that Jesus was going to resurrect. He had no idea about what he would have to confront after the funeral. No one knew the future: whether he would lose his fame, or he would bear financial losses, even his life could be threatened. But, he was just so loyal and dedicated to Jesus.

Dear everyone, this is faith…. When no one is watching, when all the disciples had run away, his faith led him to silently take care of the body of Jesus. Thus, without any expectation for compensation, or without any response from Jesus, he did his best to care for the Jesus' last moment on Earth.

As a pastor, I visit various places as homes, companies, workplaces, stores and hospitals. Sometimes I ask myself, "What is the most difficult place to visit as a pastor?" They are 'nursing homes', 'shut-ins' or 'intensive care units.' Of course, I hold their hands, sing hymns, pray and worship together with them. As we share the Holy Communion, I feed them with Jesus' body and blood into their mouths. Usually, there is no one there.

No body recognizes who I am, nor welcomes me. Sometimes, even those who receive the Holy Communion do not recognize me. However, every time, on my way home, what arises in my mind is this: "Indeed, I am a pastor. Well, I am still useful." And I can feel God's love, although I cannot expect any compensation. Sometimes I go to parties. Sometimes I am invited by a well-known person. However, I feel empty on the way back. Do you know the reason? It is because I received everything there, from him. I was treated, praised and loved by them.

Dear everyone, when do we feel frustrated after doing good deeds? It is when there is no feedback. Let us be frank. What do we think before we do good deeds? It is feedback. It is the response that may come from it. So, we are sensitive to the responses. Frankly, we are always so calculating and interest oriented.

However, Joseph of Arimathea was different. He did not know the secret of the cross, or the glory of the resurrection, therefore he could not expect anything. He just liked Jesus, and he just loved him. Therefore, without any expectation or compensation, he loved Him by dedicating his tomb. Although he was not at the center of the resurrection, but a bystander, he loved Jesus much more than anyone else. Even though his name had never been revealed during Jesus' work, he loved Him so much to the last moment.

II.

Another group who were bystanders of the resurrection is women. Today's scripture verse 61 shortly summarized about these women and left it lingering.
"Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb."

Everybody left the tomb. Disciples and all those who were so close to Jesus and said they loved Him left. Now, there was only the lonely tomb where the body of Jesus was laying in someone else's tomb. There were women who did not leave the tomb. They were sitting towards the tomb and looking at it. These women were certainly following Jesus before the event of the cross. They were with Jesus while He was carrying the cross. And now, when Jesus had died on the cross and become a dead body, they were still beside Him.

From the expression that they 'were sitting there opposite the tomb,' we can understand the two women's hearts that could not forget Jesus and were sitting there when the disciples and all the others left. We can learn from these women; the true love, faith, dedication, and courage. Of course it was certain that these women did not know the secret of the cross. They did not believe that Jesus would resurrect. There is no such expression in the Bible. They just loved Him. They had just followed Him quietly around the cross. Through these women's hearts that are looking at the dead body of Jesus that showed no ability or miracle any longer, we can see the true faith through them. We can see the true love.

Most people turn earnest when there are significant events. When there is nothing important, they can't care less. When they are given a position, they work hard. Without a position, they don't. When one can save his face, he works hard. When he has nothing to gain, he disappears very quickly. Let us think about the right faith. If one can follow Jesus whether he has any cause or not, if one can work only because he loves Him so much indifferently to his situation, he is a man of true faith.

Some people come to church just to touch the church wall. Some people come to sit in the Sacred Hall for a while during their lunchtime. It's not because they have some sort of problems. Once, one of our church members came to church after a long absence. He was just going around the church building without participating in the worship. Then I saw him eating lunch in Soonwon fellowship hall. I was glad to see him and asked him. "How have you been? I haven't seen you in a long time!" He said that he just came because he missed lunch at our church. Why would he come for the three-dollar church meal while there are so many good restaurants out there? He just wanted to give church a visit even if he didn't attend the Worship service or meet people. There is no other reason. They like to visit even if they turn around and go home at the parking lot. This is the kind of faith those women had.

Even though Jesus had died, they just loved Him. It is not because they have any reasons. But, because they loved Him so much, and they owed Him too much, they were sitting towards the body of Jesus, towards his tomb, weeping and thinking out of their minds. This is faith. This is love. This is dedication. The problem today is that we lost such inspiration and love. True faith has nothing to do with how long I have been attending a church, or at which position I serve. True faith is all about "how much I love Jesus unconditionally." Those women were not in the center but around Jesus and his resurrection. But they had sincere love for Jesus, more than anyone else.

Dear everyone, this morning, I would like us to ask ourselves: Do I truly love Jesus? Do I love him when he is alive or dead, when he is sick or healthy? We love him when he heals our sickness and our businesses flourish. However, can we still love him when we are sick, when we have hardships, when our children fail in school, and when our businesses are bad? Do we have faith to be with Jesus, to keep his tomb?

III.

Last Sunday was a beautiful Easter. However, on that beautiful day, I was informed with a bad news. It was that the family of Mr. Lee Yong-Sung of our church was involved in a serious traffic accident. The whole family was on their way home from their youngest daughter's basketball game. They were waiting at a traffic light when a Spanish novice, who was driving his truck in the street for the first time, hit them from behind with full speed. Mr. Lee was sitting behind the wheel, his wife was in the front seat, and their two daughters were in the back seat. Particularly, Mrs. Lee is in her eighth month of pregnancy. Fortunately, I heard that the test results confirmed that their unborn baby is unharmed. I left church to visit them right after the service. Lately, I happened to run into them frequently. Exhorter Hong Cheol took me to their store in D.C. And I also met them at a cell meeting led by Deacon Lee Sung-won, and again at the memorial service of Mrs. Lee's father. They were half shy and half thankful for their unexpected pregnancy. It was only several days ago when they asked me to name their anticipated baby. Even with pastors' blessings, when they have such a sincere life in faith, do they deserve anything like the traffic accident, to the whole family?

Various thoughts hit my mind while I was driving to see them. How seriously were they hurt? Is the baby really safe? How can I comfort them? Every time when I face such circumstances, as a pastor, I usually ask myself, "Why did such thing happen to them when they are trying to live faithfully?" And I was also afraid that they might give up their efforts for their faith. However, when I met them, I realized it was only my own needless concern and apprehension. God's grace was different from what I thought it would be. We were happy to have come to a conclusion as follows: "This kind of accident can occur to any Christians, or even to a whole family. It is possible for it to happen to anyone even on Easter. Therefore it is not because we had a bad luck, or because we committed serious sins. Especially, it is not God's discipline. In this world, everyone can and will experience various incidents during their lives. And we are not the exceptions. It is obvious that we will suffer much by this accident, but we are still thankful and will overcome everything."

In a sense, they were at least around the resurrection. Even though they were bystanders of the resurrection, although they are faced with unfortunate circumstances, they are still able to give thanks to Jesus and follow Him.

Dear everyone, so, what if you may not work as hard as others? What if you may skip services occasionally or even you are frequently absent? What if you may not offer your tithe? What if you may not be having family worships? What if you may feel awkward and you feel you have nothing to do with it when you hear religious discussions? Are you embarrassed when you fail to quit alcohol and smoking to be a true Christian? Are you having a hard time to be faithful to God? Do not worry, even if you fail. All of us were bystanders of the resurrection, weren't we? Even to us who were the bystanders of the resurrection, Jesus came and waited for us. Isn't that why we are worshipping Jesus today?

I am the first Christian in my entire family. It might have been the reason for that I thought of my self as a bystander. I envied friends who had Christian parents. While there was no one who was remotely close to being a Christian in my family, I liked church from the beginning. Although no one recognized and welcomed me, church was a very comforting place for me without any particular reason. Can you believe that I liked church so much that I began to attend the early morning prayer meetings when I was only a 6th grader? No one told me to. I didn't attend the church because I had problems.

When I had absolutely nothing to do with the resurrection of Jesus, He met me who was always a bystander of the resurrection. Not only that, He has been waiting me for a long time.

Dear everyone, are any of you bystanders of the resurrection? Do you feel that you have nothing to do with the resurrection of Jesus? Do you always feel bad for Jesus because you don't live according to His will? It is OK. We all are weak beings, aren't we? With your love for our Lord, with your faith believing that "Lord knows me", with your heart that no one can stop you from following Jesus, come to Him.

Love Jesus, like the bystanders of the resurrection. Renew your genuine love and heart for Jesus. Jesus has not forgotten about us. He is waiting for us. Amen.