Easter Day, Sunday, April 5, 2026

Come And See, Go And Tell

Scripture: Matthew 28:1-10 (NRSVUE) – “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.  There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.  His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.  The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.  The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.  Come and see the place where he lay.  Then go quickly and tell his disciples: “He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.  There you will see him.” Now I have told you.’  So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.  Suddenly Jesus met them.  ‘Greetings,’ he said.  They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him.  Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid.  Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.’”

Message: When I read the story of Easter morning, I can’t help but imagine the women making their way to the tomb, surrounded by darkness, and filled with grief.  They have already been through the worst of the worst.  They watched Jesus suffer and die.  When everyone else had left, these women stayed.  Now, as the darkness of the early morning begins to shift, they make their way expecting only more grief, more finality, and more heartache.  

Matthew tells us that as they approach the tomb, the earth shakes and the stone is rolled away. An angel appears and speaks words that change everything: “Do not be afraid;… Come and see.”

Come and see that the tomb is empty and there is life.

This radical reversal does not begin with the women understanding what has happened.  It begins with an invitation where God meets them not with explanations, but with evidence of life.  Even when we expect to find only death and destruction, God is still with us creating new life, inviting us to come close and see. 

Then comes the second invitation: Go and tell the Disciples who are hiding in fear, and who believe all is lost that Jesus is alive.

Matthew says the women leave the tomb “with fear and great joy.”  Joy enters the story and even though fear remains, it is enough to give them the courage to preach the gospel for the very first time EVER!

Easter promises this: no matter where we are in our lives, no matter what we face, we are invited to come and see that Jesus Christ meets us where we are, delivers new life and invites us to experience the transforming power of the resurrection.

Prayer: Father, Creator let us experience the presence of Christ’s love in our life and go tell others about what we’ve found by the love we’ve experienced.  Christ is risen!  And the tomb is not the end.  Amen.

Pastor Emily Edwards

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