This week is post Easter week. Yesterday you hopefully were able to experience the writing and reflections of Holly Vogel, our Communications Director. She did a fantastic job of capturing the God’s story and our story.

Today, I want to go after a little bit different perspective, because I think when we spend time around Easter, no matter our faith journey, I think we can struggle through a lot of different questions. And as you know, questions are natural. They start with children.

I love the curiosity of kids and the questions they ask, no matter if their questions are social or defiant, they are looking to understand, looking to know more. But what happens when our “why” questions, as adults, aren’t satisfied by our child-like curiosity? What happens when our “why” questions keep building and building that it stunts our faith or squeezes out our belief? Or what happens when we believe our “why” questions need to be answered before we believe, have faith or even trust?

Why is there evil in the world? Why do bad things happen to good people? Why did God send his son to die? That doesn’t sound very loving. Why did Jesus have to die anyway? Why is there hell? And who is going? Why would a loving God send anyone to hell? Why do I have to believe in one man who lived and died 2,000 years ago in order to experience eternal life or heaven or whatever, if anything, is on the other side?

Hold that thought…. Because in part, when I was preparing for this week’s Easter message, in the middle of my prep, my prayer, and reflection on Friday, I got up from my desk, and I went and sat in your seat. Not every seat, but I sat throughout the sanctuary, sitting where you sit. Praying and reflecting as I sat in your seats.

Wrestling with how do I bring the things in my world, in your world, and in the past world all together? Because that’s what we are doing, right now. My world is intersecting with your world, as we intersect with the world of the past. Coming together to remember and celebrate the death AND resurrection of Jesus.

Our worlds are colliding even if for a moment, even if you don’t want to be here and have already tuned me out. Even if you have more doubts that belief. Our worlds are colliding even if you have more questions than answers or even if you have more hope than you could have ever dreamed. Because you know Easter is about bringing dead things back to life and your life was dead until you met Jesus.

That’s the wonder of Easter. That all of our worlds are colliding, here in this moment and I believe the questions I have had over time and the questions you have, are similar to the questions the people of Jesus’ time had as well. Not only the followers of Jesus, but even the questions Jesus asked.

Let’s look at two different firsthand accounts of the resurrection event. The resurrection is an event, not a story. Not like, “once upon a time, in a land far, far away.”. This is an event in history. His story, God’s story intersecting with our story. The first account I want to look at is from John 20; we will start in verse 1. Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

What do you notice right away? Mary Magdelene went to the tomb, but found something very other, something she wasn’t expecting; the stone rolled away and no body. She was distraught, she ran back to Peter and John, asking questions. Where is Jesus’ body?
The next few verses are about foot race to the tomb between Peter and John. John wins and goes in first, then Peter. But then notice what happens after Peter and John go back to tell the other disciples. Notice this interaction that Mary has.

John 20:11-16- 11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. 13 They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. 15 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

We see the emotion of Mary, but we also see her questions, still looking for Jesus. We also see other questions, “why are you crying “from the angels, but Jesus echoes that same question, “why are you crying”.

I love the power of that interaction. John doesn’t shy away from the questions, the bewilderment, the fact that her life was in misery because all hope was lost, or so she thought.

But then do you notice Jesus’ next question. “Who is it you are looking for?”

Which can be a question we ask today. Who are you looking for? Who are you looking for that will answer all your questions? Who are you looking for that will give you purpose? Give you hope? Give you success? Give you love? Maybe it isn’t a question of who, but a “what”? What are you looking for? What are you looking for that will give you hope? Give you success? Give you love? What are you looking for? Is it the next job? The new ______________? The right retirement plan? The right spouse? All real-world questions and nothing wrong with those questions; who or what are you looking for? But how will you
know it will satisfy? Or has your life been one giant question of searching and you are still left wondering if there is more?

Take a moment with God today and go through the questions that were asked in John. How may he meet you in those questions, for yourself.