THE EASTER COMMANDMENT

An Easter Sunrise Meditation

Zion Baptist Church

April 4th^th, 7:00 am

Dr. Charles J. Tomlin

You don’t normally think of commandments at Easter do you?  Well today, early this Easter morning, I want to change your thinking.

Do you know what is God’s most persistent commandment---the one commandment God makes most frequently in the Bible?”  

How would you answer?   Let’s play the guessing game a minute.  How about the commandment to love?    That’s a good one… Love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, and mind and strength…or love you neighbor…or maybe it’s go and sin no more… or perhaps, go and do likewise… 

What is God’s most persistent commandment in the Bible?  The answer is this “Don’t Be Afraid!”

 Why do think God continually reminds us not to be afraid?  Is it because it IS EASY FOR US TO LIVE OUR LIVES IN FEAR?   There are many things these days to be afraid of---the economy, the people who are losing it over political issues, the people who are hurting themselves and others?  We have all kinds of other “normal” things to be afraid of too!  We can be afraid of failure, of isolation, of rejection, of meaninglessness, and of death. 

Did you know there are at least 527 different types of phobias?  Claustrophobia, fear of closed in spaces.  Homiliphobia is the fear of sermons.  Ecclesiaphobia is the fear of church.  And phobophobia is the fear of fears. There was a study in which 500 people were surveyed and asked to list their fears.  Only 500 people mind you, but these 500 people came up with a combined list of more than 7,000 different types of fears.  This may seem staggering, but for me the interesting piece is that we have all of these fears, yet we rarely talk about them.

I think that’s one reason we enjoy children.   Instead of denying, children normally talk about fears.  They are constantly talking about the boogieman or the monster that lives in their closet or under their bed. They even make “monsters” out of cookie eaters. One little girl who was being tucked in by her mother one summer night.  There was a severe thunderstorm approaching with lightning flashing all about.  Her mother was about to turn off the light switch, when the little girl said.  “MMMommmmy could you sleep in my room tonight?  Smiling the mother gave her daughter a warm and reassuring hug and said, “Honey I can’t.  I have to sleep in daddy’s room.”  A long silence followed, but just as the mother was about to leave the room, she heard her daughter say, “That big sissy!”

From Genesis to Revelation, the advice that the children of God hear most frequently is “Don't be afraid.”   The first appearance of this commandment goes back to the 15th chapter of Genesis. God appeared to tell Abraham that his barren wife Sarah was going to conceive, and the first words out of God's mouth were, "Don't be afraid."   God says the same thing in encounters with Isaac and Jacob. When you get to the New Testament, the angel of the Lord appears to Mary. She's a little bit troubled. The first words he says? "Don't be afraid." The same thing happens to Zechariah.  Whether it’s the disciples in the boat during a storm or even the women at the tomb, where we are today, the same phrase is uttered more than 360 times in the Bible…”Don’t be afraid!”

There’s a Christmas story that has an Easter message and reminds us that fear does not have to rule our lives.  The story takes place in an old downtown church that's been in business for well over a hundred years.  Unlike some downtown churches, it continues to be vibrant.

For many in the church, the climax of this downtown church's year is the Christmas pageant.  On Christmas Eve everyone gathers in this huge sanctuary and at the end of the worship service the pastors dim the lights and then the pageant begins down the center aisle. And so on this one particular Christmas Eve pageant the congregation begins to sing "Silent night, holy night" and the procession begins, of course led by the angel of the Lord, followed by Joseph and Mary who place the baby in the manger, and then the shepherds and the wise men, and all of the little angels who take their places.

Sitting near the center aisle is a family known to everyone in the church, a huge family. Their name is the Brinkers. And they're well known to all in the church because the Brinkers are world-class foster parents.  Many a child who has been unwanted, abused, or just plain hurting, has been placed in the Brinker home. Sitting at the center aisle, in the pew that people pretty much reserve for the Brinkers is a little 4-year-old girl with two broken arms and a bruised face. It's the first time she's ever been in church. And when she hears "Silent Night," sees the candlelight, and then sees the procession led by the angel of the Lord and followed at the very end by little angels, she is so swept up in it all that she just steps out into the aisle and joins the procession towards the baby Jesus.

Well, in the back of the sanctuary is this church's head usher. And this usher has been in charge of things for about 150 years. The pastor only thinks he runs the show, it is this head usher who always has the final word.  When he saw this little girl step out to join the pageant, he kind of panicked and thought, "Oh, my goodness," and began barreling down the aisle. Well, the angel of the Lord, seeing it all, stood forward, and although she didn't say, "Halt," you knew the way she held out her hand - that the head usher was supposed to stop. Not even the head usher can argue with the angel of the Lord. And so the angel of the Lord stepped down into the aisle, and she reached out for the hand of this 4-year-old battered child, and she said, "Don't be afraid. It's okay. Come up here. I have something to show you." She leads this little child up to the manger, and she says, "This is Jesus' birthday, and we're a church, and we're celebrating his birthday, and you're perfectly safe here. You don't have to be afraid." And then the 17-year-old angel of the Lord said to the little girl, "The first time I came to this church I came with the Brinkers, and I was hurting, and I was so scared. But I learned that the Brinkers are a safe family and that this church is safe and that here you don't have to be afraid."

She then asked, "Would you like to hold the baby Jesus?" And the little girl’s eyes just lit up. So the angel of the Lord lifted this 4-year-old girl onto Mary’s lap. She reached into the manger, took out the baby Jesus, and the angel of the Lord placed the baby Jesus into the arms of a battered child and said, "Don't be afraid." And it was one of those moments when the church became the church.  (Don't recall source of this story)

Friends, it’s Easter Morning and Christ has risen, and he's aware that many of us bring fears with us today…shattered hopes and dreams, the loss of a job, the loss of a relationship, or the loss of a loved one. Some of us come to this place carrying a whole truckload of guilt.  Some of us come debilitated with grief, and many of us come concerned about what the future holds, perhaps it’s about a job, or about a health situation, and for many of us it’s about the economy or the war, or our global situation. And God’s words are the same for us today as they were on that very first Easter morning…"I'm with you. I will be with you always. I'm here to deliver you into the world of hope, so don't be afraid." 

The message of Easter is that there is no tragedy that God cannot redeem. There is no loss the Risen Christ cannot overcome.   So, whatever your situation, and whatever your circumstance hear the words of God…”FEAR NOT!”  “Don’t be afraid”  The Lord is risen!”  Amen.

© 2010 All rights reserved Charles J. Tomlin, B.A., M.Div. D.Min.