Mark 16:1-8 Resurrection, empty tomb, and fleeing in fear.
There is a meme about Jesus being a zombie. You can find it with
everything else, on the internet. In the 19th century, people were deathly
afraid of being buried alive, so much so that there were bells attached to a
string that went into a coffin, so that if the buried person was alive, they
could ring the bell.
We are so amazed and impressed, and frankly, used to the story of
Easter, of being an Easter people, of being a people whose faith is
centered on the Resurrection, that we sometimes overlook what is
happening. A dead man is alive. Risen from the dead, not where he should
be. It could be the opening for a horror film. So, I think, it is not surprising
that the women run away in terror and amazement. Their world has been
turned upside down. They are prepared for the dead, and they get the living
(not the living dead).
In one final way, God turns things around in the Resurrection. God
reverses human expectations again. In those days, this is perhaps the most
surprising thing God could have done. It may well be the most surprising
thing God could do today. What do you think it would take for God to
reverse our expectations in this momentous a way today?
