4/5/26 Easter Mark 16:1-8 “The Stain Remover”

02 Apr 4/5/26 Easter Mark 16:1-8 “The Stain Remover”

4/5/26   Easter   Mark 16:1-8         “The Stain Remover”

I noticed last week as I talked a little about tithing and giving that there were very few people that said it was a good sermon.  I have found that to be true just about every time I talk about money and I guess that’s ok.  I think the main reason that we have trouble talking about money issues is that we just don’t trust anyone.  I mean how can we trust someone who comes to us with all sorts of promises, only to be found that they are all lies?  I would guess that most of us have been taken by some con man or slick talker at one time or another.  I remember one time I just signed up for something so that I could get rid of the salesman.  Anyway, I think we have trust issues with more than money.  I can tell that many people have trust issues with their faith.  Many people kind of believe as long as it is convenient but they’re gone if they don’t agree with the Bible.  Many people only believe enough to come to church occasionally not realizing that we are all part of their belief and we all need each other.  God says that we are to be together.  Anyway, this is Easter morning and we should be full of faith because we get to actually see what Jesus did for us.  This is the most important holiday of the Christian year because without the resurrection, there would be no faith.  We would be no better than the Buddhist’s, the Hindu’s or the Muslims.  But today, we see that, unlike all other religious leaders, Jesus did not die.  He is still alive and we can praise the Lord for that.  Let’s take a look at the earliest account of the resurrection that comes from Mark and see if we can bolster our faith and increase our trust.

I would like to begin a little differently today, as I want us to take a look at your TV watching habits.  How often are you offended by what you see or hear?  I don’t think that you can watch very long on any evening without seeing or hearing something that is offensive to us Christians.  That is because the people who made these shows don’t believe in Jesus.  They are offended that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.  They think at there are many ways to heaven which is absolutely false.  They think all religions are valid even if Jesus is the only one left alive.  So, today, I want us to remember that by the cross Jesus proved that this type of worldly thinking is wrong.  By the cross Jesus proved that faith in Him is the best.  By the cross Jesus proved that He is the way, the truth and the life and that no one, no one is ever going to be acceptable to God without Jesus.  Easter is a big deal.

Hopefully, you have followed what Jesus went through this past week beginning with the wonderful parade for Jesus on Palm Sunday.  The people were ecstatic that Jesus was there with them for the Passover.  Then during this week Jesus turned over the table of the money changers at the Temple because they were so corrupt.  This might have been the deal that sealed His fate as the Jews now had fresh ammunition for His crucifixion.

Then we come to Thursday night as Jesus has His last supper.  The disciples are all there and He washes their feet.  He serves them Communion as He tells them that the bread is His body and the wine is His blood.  Then they retreat to the Mount of Olives so that Jesus can pray.  Of course, the disciples can’t even stay awake for this.  Then the soldiers come to arrest Him.  But first Jesus makes them all stand back up because all the soldiers have fallen down before the Lord.  When we get to heaven, we too will fall down before the Lord.  They had to get back up off the ground to arrest Him and take Him back to Jerusalem to stand trial.

Early on Friday morning Jesus is tried and convicted of being an innocent man.  He is beaten to a pulp and hauled away to be hung like a common criminal.  Late in the afternoon, Jesus dies on the cross.  At the moment of death, the sky turned black.  There was an earthquake, the huge curtain in the Temple is torn in half and many holy people who had been dead were raised back to life.  This was truly the blackest point in human history.  This was the day we killed our only chance to be in heaven.  Luckily for us, this isn’t the end of the story but rather it’s just the beginning.  Jesus was then buried in a tomb with a large rock placed at the entrance.  This is where we pick up the story today.

Please note that two women are the stars of today’s reading.  Two Mary’s come early on Sunday to prepare the body of Jesus for final burial in the tomb. Before they even get there, they have a problem.  They know there was a large rock that was rolled in front of the tomb.  It wasn’t possible for 2 people to roll it away because it was big.  They would also have to roll it slightly uphill as these rocks generally rolled down into place thereby making it hard to roll it away again.  One of the problems that these 2 women thought they had was an almost insurmountable problem before they even got there.

We are often the very same way.  If you are a person who worries a lot, then this is for you.  How often do you think that you cannot do something before you even start?  I once planned a revival meeting and I had been told that it would never work.  I suppose that I could have thrown in the towel before we even began but hopefully you know that isn’t my style.  We had been thinking about building on to the Zion church.  We never got that far at Calvary even though we did have a little extra money.  I have told you this before.  The only thing that holds us back on any type of project is our own unbelief and disobedience.  If we had been obedient to God in our giving for all these years, we would not only have state of the art churches with elevators but we would probably have escalators and a helicopter for the pastor to fly between the 2 or 3 churches.  If you decide to do something, then do it and don’t worry about things that might or might not happen.  Just think what would have happened if the 2 Mary’s had stopped before they got there because they thought they might not be able to move the stone.

The next time you are faced with a situation where you think that there is no way you can get it done, get on your knees and pray.  If you have knees like mine, then just sit and pray.  We can praise the Lord for one thing and that is that we are not in charge of things.  You may think you are but I’m here to tell you again today that you are not.  Quit your worrying.  Quit making excuses before you even start.  Our whole country is composed of people who are making excuses instead of going out and getting the job done.  If you are a worrier or an excuse maker, then go to Jesus and follow what He says.

Moving ahead, the women keep going anyway.  They get to the tomb which was probably close by, and they see that the stone had already been rolled away, all that worry for nothing.  Nothing!  Please note that God will not be thwarted by some small stone in front of a tomb and He certainly won’t be stymied by any problem that you have.  No problem is too big or too small for God.

Then they entered the tomb and there was a young man dressed in a white robe.  Matthew tells us that his appearance was like lightning.  Mark tells us that the women were alarmed by this.  It is very important to realize that these 2 women were experiencing this first hand.  They had never seen anything like this before.  They hadn’t had 2000 years of telling the story.  Today we are so used to the story that often times it means little to us anymore.  At the time this happened it had to be absolutely terrifying.  Matthew tells us that the soldiers around the tomb became like dead men.  What I’m trying to say here is that this was scary stuff when it happened.  From here on out in this passage, these women are scared to death and who could blame them for that.

I would like to stop here just for a moment and discuss our fear.  You have heard me say often that I don’t understand why everyone doesn’t follow Jesus because I know His way is so good and gentle.  The reason is fear.  The reason that more adults don’t come to know Jesus on a personal basis is fear.  People fear that they will have to give up too much to follow Jesus.  People fear that they will not have anything left of their old selves.  People are greedy and want to keep themselves so they cannot give themselves 100% to Jesus.  Our culture has drilled into each of us that we are the most important people in the world or I should say you are the most important person in the world.  Worldly reasoning tells us that if you are the most important, then why would you want to give this up?  Remember this when you are talking to someone about Jesus.  Yes, you do have to give up your old self.  But I guarantee, I guarantee that you will gain far, far more in your life and personality if you give your life and your ways to Jesus.  He is that good!

So, these women are scared almost to death as they enter the tomb and see the angel instead of the body of Jesus.  The angel understands this and tells them not to be afraid.  The angel says, “Don’t be alarmed.  You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified.  He has risen!”  Let me repeat that last part.  He has risen!  These women were afraid but they would soon know that they never have to be afraid like this again.  Jesus has risen and He is in control.  Cast that evil devil out of your life and ask Jesus in.

As I just said, people are scared to death to give up their old lives.  People like what is familiar to them and if they have been living with Satan for 40 years, then that is familiar.  We have to take the place of the angel in our story and let people know that there is nothing to be afraid of.  We need to tell people that they have never experienced real joy or real love without Jesus.  They need to know that they will never have fear like they do now if they come to know Jesus.  They need to know that by giving up their old life, they will be gaining a new life that is far, far better than they could ever imagine.  This is Jesus living in your heart.

If you need more proof that Jesus will love you and guide you at all times then look at what the angel says.  The angel tells the women that Jesus has gone on ahead of them.  This has to be reassuring to us today.  Jesus has gone ahead of you into this new business venture or marriage.  Jesus has gone ahead of you in this failure or divorce or getting through a death.  Jesus has gone ahead and made a way for you to follow.  All you have to do is obey Jesus in all you do.  It is when you don’t obey that you get into trouble.  Trust and obey for there is no other way.  Where ever you go, whatever you do, Jesus has gone ahead to help you.

Now let’s use our imaginations a little here for the last part.  You are standing in a tomb where the body of your best friend ever is supposed to be.  What you find instead in this dark dreary place is a man who is so bright that he lights the whole place and then some.  He is obviously not from this world.  He is telling you not to be alarmed that Jesus is no longer there.  He gives you directions on what to do so that you will see Him again.  You’ve figured out by now that this is an angel and he tells you to go and tell the others.  He doesn’t want you to linger in this dark place but rather he wants you to go out into the sunshine and tell of what you have seen.  These women were born to be evangelists.  So, they left that tomb, even though they were still scared and trembling, to go back to the disciples.  What Mark means by saying that they said nothing was that they didn’t talk to anyone on their way back.  But they did talk to the disciples.

This is the part where we might think that we fall down a little.  How do we do at going out and telling others about this wonderful true story?  Do you go and tell of the wondrous birth of the one who is God?  Do you stand proud to be a Christian in a world that is perfectly willing to hate us?  Have you been inviting people to join you in your various Easter services?  We have lots of room!  I have seen “The Passion of the Christ” many times and I think it is time that we all watched it again.  You should schedule this in the near future.

The angel in the tomb is calling you to do the same thing that Jesus said when He told us to go and tell the whole world that Jesus is King.  It’s called the great commission.  Jesus Christ’s blood washed away all your sin and gave you a new life that is better than the best.  That’s what He did.  Then He told you to go.

According to Pastor Strite, many years ago there was a great meeting of all the religions known to the world in Chicago.  There was many a speech given to support this or that religion.  During one of the sessions, Dr. Joseph Cook of Boston said:  “Gentlemen, I beg to introduce to you a woman with great sorrow. Bloodstains are on her hands, and nothing will remove them. The blood is that of murder, and nothing will take away the stain. She has been driven to desperation in her distress. Is there anything in your religion that will remove her sin and give her peace?”  A hush fell upon the crowd as Dr. Cook went from one religious leader to the next.  There was not one person who could answer the question, “is there anything in your religion that will remove her sin and give her peace?”
Raising his eyes to heaven, Dr. Cook then cried out, “I will ask another the question. John, can you tell this woman how to get rid of her awful sin?”  He was calling out to the Apostle John.  The great preacher waited as if listening for a reply. Suddenly he cried, “Listen, John speaks “The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son cleans us from all sin.”  This comes from 1 John 1:7.

Jesus did so much for us that I cannot even begin to tell you about it in a lifetime.  It all began for me and you that first Easter morning when the tomb was empty.  Praise the Lord that Jesus Christ is so good and faithful.  We ask that He help us to be the same.  Thank you, Jesus, for first loving us.  Happy Easter!  Let’s pray.