The sounds of death are frightening. They can be loud, public sounds of police and fire sirens heading to a huge accident on the freeway. They can also be the quiet and private sounds of a dying person’s slow breaths in the hospice home.
The sounds are all around us. They are unpleasant. Upsetting. Disturbing.
This is the way Jesus’ followers felt as they heard the stone being rolled in front of Jesus’ tomb. Their friend was crucified. Their rabbi had been killed. Their Savior was dead. It was all so final. There was no hope anymore. The only thing the disciples could do was hide from the enemies, so they didn’t end up in the grave, too. The only thing the women could do was prepare Jesus’ corpse for a proper burial.
But Jesus is not dead! The stone has been rolled away! The tomb is empty! Jesus Christ is alive!
The silence of the cemetery is broken. The mourning has turned to rejoicing. The muted praise of Lent is over. The Alleluias have returned with Easter.
Verse one: Christ the Lord is ris’n today; Alleluia! Christians, hasten on your way; Alleluia! see the place where he was laid; Alleluia! praise him for the ransom paid. Alleluia!
The angel told the women at the tomb, “Don't be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him” (Mark 16:6). Through his third day resurrection, Jesus has reversed the irreversible. Jesus controls the uncontrollable. We run to the open tomb to see where he was laid. Now we know with confidence that the ransom for our salvation was paid.
Verse two: For the sheep the Lamb has bled, Alleluia! sinless in the sinners’ stead. Alleluia! “Christ is ris’n,” today we cry; Alleluia! now he lives, no more to die. Alleluia!
Scripture repeatedly calls Christ’s followers sheep. It also calls Jesus the sacrificial Lamb. The perfect, sinless Lamb sacrificed himself so we sinful, scared sheep might be saved. Now we no longer have any reason to be afraid of the prowling lion of the devil or his demonic dogs. By his resurrection, Jesus has destroyed the power of the devil. By his resurrection, Jesus has demolished the devil’s ability to keep us afraid of death. Christ promises us, “Because I live, you will live” (John 14:19).
Verse three: Christ, the victim undefiled, Alleluia! God and sinners reconciled, Alleluia! while, in strange and awe-full strife, Alleluia! met together death and life. Alleluia!
The rolling away of the stone revealing the empty tomb has changed everything. By taking upon himself the curse of sin and the sting of death, the dying process loses its fear for us. Now a little girl can say with all confidence to her Christian mother who is dying of cancer, “I’ll see
you in heaven, Mommy.” Now the family gathering together at the ER after their father’s unexpected heart attack can repeat with Job, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. May the name of the Lord be praised” (Job 1:21). Now the elderly Christian can repeat with his pastor the words of the twenty-third Psalm with his dying breaths.
Here are sweet words from a man in his 90s: “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. ... Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). You can go gently when you know the resurrected Christ is waiting for you.
Because Jesus Christ is risen today, we have hope on the day we stand at the coffin of a Christian loved one. Because Jesus Christ is risen today and that garden tombstone was rolled away, we have complete confidence when we lay down our head upon our own death bed. This is because Jesus, who appeared as a Victim on the cross proved he is the Victor out of the grave. With his crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus has reconciled sinners with God.
Verse four: Christ, who once for sinners bled, Alleluia! now the firstborn from the dead, Alleluia! throned in endless might and pow’r, Alleluia! lives and reigns forevermore. Alleluia!
For the Easter Christian, the sound of the sirens has been replaced with the sound of the angels’ trumpets. The sound of silence has been replaced with the song of the saints. The sound of mourning tears has been replaced with the sound of eternal laughter. For the sound of the rolling stone has reverberated through time and eternity. It not only opened the entrance to the tomb of Jesus, but also opened the gates to God’s heaven. When you hear the rolling stone, you know that the sounds of death have been replaced with the sounds of life.
The sound of our Alleluias have once again returned to our churches. We will sing these triumphant Alleluias this Easter season in God’s house here on earth. One day, we will sing these Alleluias for all eternity there in God’s heavenly house.