Sermon “Nugget”:
Resurrection — The Walk of Life
“Why do you seek the living among the dead?” ask the two young men of the terrified women. “He is not here. He is risen. Remember what he told you.” We are here because we need to remember this story, not because we honor an old tradition, but because we need reminding of the truth of it for today. Resurrection is not an historical event, locked in time, nor is it about life after death. Resurrection is about the here and now. It’s about how we live. Resurrection is what helps us do the walk of life through the valley of the shadow of death.
The Walk of Life is an old Dire Straits song. It’s about Johnny, a musician who comes “singin' oldies, goldies, bee-bop-a-loo-bop baby what I say.” Johnny’s got what it takes. According to the lyrics:
He’s got the action, he’s got the motion,
Oh yeah, the boy can play,
dedication and devotion,
turning all the night time into day.
And after all the silence and the double-talk
There’s a song amidst the trouble and the strife
You do the walk…you do the walk of life.”
Jesus came with action and motion and shook his world up. He came with dedication and devotion to bringing about the reign of God on earth. The Light of the World came shining in the darkness turning night into a new day. Jesus broke the silence for the outcasts and overcame the double talk of the religious authorities with a new message of hope. His life was the song amidst the trouble and the strife. He said, “Come follow me,” and offered a walk away from death and toward life.
On that first Easter morning, God said, YES to the walk that was Jesus’ life — his ministry to the poor, the outcast and the penitent. The resurrection breaks the silence of the grave, and leaves double-talking death babbling. Jesus rose out of the trouble and strife of Good Friday to keep walking. The women who ran from the empty tomb testified to what they had seen and so joined Jesus’ walk of life. Peter and the others soon realized it was not an idle tale, and began to live as people of the resurrection, moving to the beat of the walk of life.
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