After that day, everything was different. The first disciples witnessed a dead man walking. Their lives would be forever changed, defined by “life before Easter” and life “life after Easter.” On numerous occasions, Jesus showed up in resurrected form before he ascended. In the season of Easter we will examine six “after Easter” encounters with Jesus. What did he say and do? In what practical ways does resurrection change my daily life? Nothing will ever be the same.
Invocation
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Invitation
O God, you are the beginning, the middle, and the end. You are all in all. Lead me. Help me. Forgive me. Keep me from wandering and weariness. Keep my love ready and willing to serve You by serving others. Praise and honor be to You, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God now and forever. Amen.
Confession
O God, how can I believe without your help. I am filled with doubt. “What about . . . ?” “Is it really true?” “How do I really know you’re there? That you’re listening? That you care about me?” I confess with honesty all my fear and disbelief. Spirit of the Living God, fall afresh on me. Melt me. Mold me. Fill me. Use me. I believe; help my unbelief.
Word
“And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:20
Meditation
Today’s meditation is written by Megan Roegner.
In Lord Tennyson’s Idylls of the King, as King Arthur is dying and the golden age of Camelot is falling to pieces around him, he comforts his loyal knight, Sir Bedivere, saying,
“‘The old order changeth, yielding place to new,
And God fulfils Himself in many ways,
Lest one good custom should corrupt the world.’”
As a person inclined to distrust and avoid change, I have pondered these words frequently ever since I first read them almost 20 years ago in my college Victorian literature class. When Tennyson wrote them in the late nineteenth-century, the world was changing at lightning speed. Scientific advancement was ushering in the modern era and challenging the way people understood the world and their place in it. For example, Charles Darwin was born in the exact same year as Tennyson, and he published The Origin of Species the same year that Tennyson began work on Idylls.
We, like King Arthur and Tennyson, are living in a time of rapid change, and when we feel the earth move under our feet, we naturally look for something to hold on to. But it’s so easy to cling to the wrong things. Speaking specifically of the church, how often do we hear a tinge of fear when people talk about shifts in culture and demographics, and the implications of a “post-Christian” society?
When we respond to change with fear, what are we actually trying to hold on to?
How did the disciples feel as they watched Jesus ascend to heaven? The ups and downs of the past few weeks must have made their heads spin. Jesus died and returned only to seemingly leave them again, this time with staggering work for them to do. Yet, his last words to them are “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
The grammarian in me observes that Jesus says the age, not an age. There can be so much power in a little article. The age is the time between his ascension and return. So far in the age, followers of Christ have faced the rise and fall of countless kingdoms, empires, political powers, cultural trends, technological disruptions, natural disasters, pandemics, and other existential threats. Jesus was still with us. He is the steady axis of the world, even when we feel like it’s spinning out of control. He is the one we should hold on to.
Idylls of the King ends with Sir Bedivere watching a barge carry Arthur’s body off to the Isle of Avalon. The very last line is, “And the new sun rose bringing the new year.” The old order may changeth, but as new days dawn, Jesus is still with us. And we have work to do.
12Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for your constant presence in times of change. Help us hold fast to you and your commandments, and help us respond to new challenges with faith, not fear. Amen.
Benediction
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. Amen. (Rom. 15:13)