Excerpted from 2025 Lenten Guide: The Year of the Lord, a Lenten Guide for Lectionary Year C from the North Carolina Council of Churches.
Luke 24:1-12
But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body. While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. The women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to the hands of sinners and be crucified and on the third day rise again.” Then they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told this to the apostles. But these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; then he went home, amazed at what had happened.
Remember. It is a curious directive from the dazzling duo told to the women who were the first to visit Jesus’ tomb on Easter morning. Remember.
They remember the song Mary sang to them after her visit from the angel, the stories Mary told them about Jesus’ birth in a manger. They remember when Jesus disappeared as a teenager and they found him teaching in the temple, as if that were perfectly normal. They remember Jesus’ baptism by John in the Jordan River. They remember when the heavens opened, and the Spirit descended on him while a voice from heaven called him the beloved Son. Remember.
They remember what it was like to join Jesus’ band of followers, to hear him teach and be so compelled by his vision for the world that they abandoned their work and their lives as they knew them and left everything to follow him. They remember the miracles, the healings, the nets full of fish, the meal for thousands made from a meager lunch. They remember the time he ate at the home of a despised tax collector, the conversations with prostitutes, and other contacts with impure, ostracized members of society. Remember.
They remember what Jesus said, taught, who he was. They remember how Jesus loved them, included them, changed everything, is still changing things. Jesus is not here. He has risen. Remember.
And suddenly, just as quickly as those sequined messengers appeared, they were gone, and the women remember. They remember and their remembering compels them to bear witness to the other disciples. And we remember too. We weren’t there that first Easter morning, but we have our own stories which bear witness to the power and wonder of resurrection. We remember.
We remember the time we received grace and mercy when we were expecting judgment. We remember the time when a near stranger sent a card, delivered a casserole, offered support or encouragement the moment we needed it most. We remember the people who taught our Sunday School classes, with their flannel board stories of Jesus. We remember the feeling of presence in the quiet of a hospital room, giving us strength to sit vigil through the night at a loved one’s side. We remember the many realities of resurrection life breaking through in our lives. We remember and, like the women, we should be compelled to bear witness to this reality to all of God’s creation.
We remember the immigrant. We remember the LGBTQ+ community. We remember the disproportionate number of men of color who inhabit our prisons. We remember the children who don’t have the same access to education simply because of their address. We remember our sick, dying, and hurting who don’t have access to healthcare. We remember and we should bear witness, just like the women on that first Easter morning.
As you live into this Easter season and the wonder of resurrection life, remember and bear witness. God will take care of the rest. Alleluia. Amen.
