Psalm 118: 1 – 2, 14 – 24
Colossians 3: 1 – 4
Matthew 28: 1 - 10
A homily by Fr. Gene Tucker, given at Trinity Church, Mt. Vernon, Illinois, on Sunday, April 24, 2011.
“CHRIST IS VICTOR!”
(Homily texts: Matthew 28: 1 – 10 and Colossians 3: 1 - 4)
“For you have died, and your life has been hid with Christ in God,” St. Paul writes to the early Church in the city of Colossae.Ever think about what it means to be “hidden with Christ in God”?
This morning, we remember the empty tomb, with its massive stone rolled away. We remember the greeting of the angel to the women who had come to that tomb, as he said, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay….”
The empty tomb stands as mute testimony to Jesus’ victory over death. He emerges victorious over all the powers that seek to destroy: sin and death.
But what does Jesus’ victory mean, and how does His victory apply to your life and to mine?
The meaning of Christ’s victory, and its importance to us, is the topic of this homily.
Before we explore these two questions, let’s recall that, throughout this Holy Week, we’ve been focusing a little on the matter of the incarnation. That word denotes the reality that Jesus Christ came among us as one of us as fully divine and yet, fully human. He immersed Himself in our humanity, even to the point of a shameful death on a cross, as we noted earlier on.
Jesus Christ’s humanity is an essential ingredient in His ability to redeem us from sin and from the power of the evil one.
Theologians will say that, in order to save us, God had to assume our humanity to do so. The image I used during the Good Friday homily was that of the Old Testament idea of a person who ransomed a relative. Oftentimes, when a relative was either sold into slavery because of debts, or who was captured during wartime, the person who was the redeemer, who acted to redeem the person who was enslaved, had to personally go and pay the ransom, in order to obtain the freedom of the enslaved person.
By taking on our humanity, Jesus Christ shows us just how valuable we human beings are. Enslaved by sin, Jesus Christ comes and pays the price that frees us from our sin and from our bondage. He comes in person to pay that price.
Christ is Victor!
But there is another way in which Jesus Christ’s identity as fully human, yet fully divine, operates to secure us – to hide us (St. Paul’s image from Colossians) with Him in God:
Looking at it this way, we see that as Christ comes, His humanity seems to cloak (at least to some degree) His divinity. To Satan – our ancient enemy – Jesus the Christ looks just like another vulnerable human being, another person to claim as a slave forever. But Jesus Christ’s divinity conquers the power of the evil one to snatch us away from God. It is as if God tricks the ancient trickster (Satan) at Satan’s old game. By over-reaching, Satan is defeated by his own appetites, and we are freed from the power he wields over sin and death.
You may be wondering where this image comes from, of Jesus Christ as the “bait” for Satan, sort of like a fish hook which snares the catch just as the catch’s own desires prompt it to go for the baited hook. This image comes from one of the ancient Church Fathers, St. Gregory of Nyssa (c.330 – c. 395 AD).
If then Jesus Christ has beaten Satan at Satan’s own game, then we, too, are also freed from that same game.
We can claim Jesus Christ’s victory as our own. We can seek God’s help to put away the effects of sin and death, which can often be seen in things like despair, hopelessness, and a sense of powerlessness over the things that come into our lives.
For, you see, the effects of the resurrection are ours, here and now. The eternal life we will share with God in Christ is already present with us, now.
We are hidden with Christ in God, a here-and-now reality which will extend into eternity.
Because we are redeemed, we can be a joyful people, joyfulness being a state which is different than being happy. Joyful people are joyful because of the great blessings they sense are theirs, blessings such as being hidden with Christ in God. By contrast, being happy is often dependent on the things that happen to us, in other words, by the external events that come our way. Joy is not dependent on externals, but is dependent on the internal realities of Christ’s victory, in which we share, and His abiding presence in our lives.
Christ is Victor, and we claim the blessings of His victory by faith.
Thanks be to God.
AMEN.
