Person-2-Person - May, 2020

It’s time for my twenty sixth annual post-Easter Person-2-Person. I’ve written about many things over the years but this year is certainly different. This year our church—and the entire country if not the world—is in the midst of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 worldwide and sickened countless more. Like many churches around the world, we aren’t able to worship in person. Instead, we watch our pastor conduct services online with a “skeleton crew.”

My wife, Charlotte, and I got up early for the Easter “sunrise service” and then went back to bed for a brief nap. Then we sat and watched our pastor’s Easter message on a laptop computer in the living room in our pajamas. There were no typical Easter festivities in between: no Easter breakfast, no Easter egg hunt, none of the usual activities. But for all that was missing, the Holy Spirit was present (1 Cor. 3:16). And Christ was present. Jesus promised, “‘For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.’” (Matt. 18:20 New American Standard Bible). And that is true whether we are gathered physically or only in spirit.

During the days of Lent, like many folks at church, I read each day from the devotional book, Wondrous Love. On Easter Saturday, the day before Easter, the text was Matthew 28:1-10. When Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” arrived at the tomb, there was an earthquake and then an angel rolled back the stone that had blocked the entrance to the tomb (vs. 1-2). The guards were afraid but the angel said to the two women, “‘Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said.’” (vs. 5b-6a NASB).

On our most recent Easter Sunday morning, our pastor preached from a different Gospel passage, John 20:1-18, but she also spoke about fear and uncertainty, and our hope that death doesn’t have the final say, hope in the face of death and hope in the face of life. She spoke about God’s dream for us, a dream of the “kingdom of God.” In the kingdom, no one needs to be afraid and everyone cares for each other.

When Jesus sent the twelve apostles to proclaim the kingdom (Matt. 10:7), he told them, “‘Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul;’” (vs. 28a NASB). The same command applies to us today.

“Do not fear.” “Be not afraid.” These words echo down through the ages, spoken by our God, who is faithful (Deut. 32:4; 1 Thes. 5:24), to Joshua (Josh. 1:9), through king Hezekiah of Judah (2 Chr. 32:7-8a), to Jeremiah (Jer. 1:8), and through the psalmist (Psa. 56:4).

John wrote that “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear,” (1 John 4:18b NASB). Christ’s perfect love has conquered death. “‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’” (1 Cor. 15:55 NASB). We live in uncertain, disturbing, frightening times but our certainty is in Christ. Speaking at the “New Wine” conference in 2016, Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, said, “And we know, you know, I know, there is only one certainty in the world and that is Jesus Christ.” His words ring just as true today, not only for Anglicans but for all Christians.

The people of Israel asked plaintively, “How can we sing the LORD’S song / In a foreign land?” (Psa. 137:4 NASB), a refrain made familiar by the song “On the Willows,” from the musical Godspell. How can we have Easter without our traditions? How can we be the church without being able to gather? But as one of our former church traditions affirms, we can still sing, “Every morning is Easter morning from now on!” We are called to be “Easter people,” in good times and especially in bad.

“And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. . . . Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me.’” (Matt. 28:8-9a, 10 NASB.)