On the Edge (Easter Sunday 2026)

Have you ever been on the verge of something new? The familiar is ending. Something new is about to begin, but it hasn’t taken shape yet. That’s an exciting, scary, wonderful, nerve-wracking place to be. Can you imagine it? Have you been there? A new relationship, a job change, a move to a new city. I have a grandchild who’s about to be born. Could even be today! That’s being on the verge of something new. It’s exciting and it’s just a little scary, all at the same time. And I’m just the grandfather, imagine what it’s like for mom, and for dad!

In the gospel we just heard, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary are on the verge of something new - but they don’t know what it is yet. The old has ended, for sure, their friend and teacher is dead. But they remember Jesus talking some crazy talk about rising on the third day. Today is the third day. They feel like they’re on the verge of something new. It’s a new day, a new dawn, and they want to know what happens next. So they get up early on the Sunday morning to go and see. They go to see the tomb. What were they expecting? The body had been lain inside, that they’d watched on the Friday afternoon. The tomb had been sealed with a great stone and a guard of soldiers had been placed around it. What was there to see? What comes next?

Suddenly as they approach, the earth starts shaking under their feet. Whatever is happening, this is big. An angel, flashing like lightning, descends on the stone and rolls it back. The guards start to shake and then fall to the ground like dead men. And from his perch, seated on top of the stone, the angel urges the women to come closer: “Do not be afraid. Come and see.”

Daring to come closer, they see that the tomb is empty. And they know that they are on the very edge of something new, and this is big. The earth has moved under their feet, and they will never be the same again.

Have you ever wanted to be part of something big? I think that at some level, we all yearn to connect with something greater than ourselves. To be part of movement, to work for a cause, to make the world a better place, even to be part of the crowd that erupts in joy when the home team scores in overtime to win the playoffs.

The two Mary’s lives are about to get bigger. Much bigger. The angel gives them the message that they long to hear:

“Do not be afraid. I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.” This is my message for you.”

How do you respond to a message like that? The Mary’s respond with fear and great joy. What a beautiful way of putting it. What a combination. It sounds like a contradiction, but I think we can relate. Great joy, of course, the one who was dead has been raised. Yet fear. Fear is how we respond to the unknown. Fear is how we respond to a new truth that will change our lives. Fear is natural when you’re on the verge of something new. Fear and great joy.

The one thing that fear and joy have in common without a doubt is that they both energize us. And so, doubly energized, the Mary’s run, they run as fast as the can to go and tell the disciples, and the only thing that interrupts their sprint - is Jesus himself. Suddenly he meets them and greets them, and they screech to a stop. Time stands still just for a moment. They take hold of his feet and they worship him. Then he commissions them, reassuring them, repeating the same message they’d been given by the angel. “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Not only are these two women part of something new, not only are they part of something big. They are now the leaders of this big new thing that is still to take shape. Fear and great joy.

It’s not like every problem has been solved. It’s still dawn. There are still shadows. The guards around the tomb are going to wake up eventually. But the earth has moved and a new course has been set. Not just for the two Mary’s, but for all of us.

We too are on the verge of something new. The risen Christ has the power to change our lives too.  Do you yearn for something more in your life? Are you ready for something new?

In a few minutes we get to participate in the baptism of this baby girl. Baptism is the sacrament of the new life that awaits us in Christ, an outward and visible sign of a profound spiritual reality. In baptism we turn to Christ and are anointed by the power of the Holy Spirit. We embark on a new life, a new way of life marked by the promises of our baptismal covenant and by our promise to put our trust in Christ, risen and alive and always with us, just as he promised to us through his disciples. When we do this, we too are on the verge of something new. Something that has yet to take shape, but promises to be new and exciting. Fear and great joy? Absolutely.

May this child be blessed in the new life she begins this day. May our participation in her baptism be a blessing for us this day.  May this Easter and the power of the risen Christ change our lives and open up new possibilities for each one of us. And may you know the love and power of the God who raised Jesus in your life, at the dawn of this day and in all your days to come.

Amen.

Easter, April 5 2026, Trinity

Acts 10.34-43; Psalm 118; Colossians 3.1-4; Matthew 28.1-10

Image by Alican Helik