Ever listened to someone who's delirious? Perhaps they're seriously ill — maybe not. But they're animated, excited, quite convinced they're making sense. To you, however, it sounds like nonsense.

There's a time that happened long ago, on a Sunday morning. And this particular crazy talk is quite a breath of fresh air.

Early in the day, a group of women went to the tomb of Jesus. There wasn't time earlier to properly prepare his body for burial — because the day after his death was the Jewish Sabbath day, the day of rest. Now, on the Sunday morning, some women make the trek to the tomb, laden with spices, to embalm and anoint.

But they're given quite a surprise. They find the tomb empty! Two men, who gleam light lightening (did anyone say "angels?"), ask them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? Remember what he told you."

Then they rush back to the disciples. The tomb is empty — but their minds are anything but! When they talk to the apostles about what they've seen and heard "their words seemed to them like nonsense." (Luke 24:11)

It might interest you to know that Luke was a doctor. And the word he uses to describe their talk is found in the medical textbook of Hippocrates to describe delirium. When the women rush back from the grave of Jesus, they first seemed to be suffering from delusions.

Refreshing⤒🔗

That's how the first news of the resurrection of Jesus Christ was received. Easter seemed crazy.

Isn't that refreshing? If this story was invented, perhaps you'd see the disciples, the early church leaders, being a bit more understanding. If people in those days were, you know, a lot more gullible than we are when it comes to the supernatural, then this wouldn't be such a big deal. If the resurrection was just a metaphor for the fact that Jesus lives on in his influence, his teaching, then no problem. But clearly it's none of that.

It's crazy talk!

While We Sleep...←⤒🔗

Let's cover some of the details of that first Easter. First of all, the timing.

Very early in the morning, at deep dawn, Luke says, the women come to the tomb. But the tomb is already empty. So Jesus arose before the first glimmer of sunshine, very, very early on Sunday morning.

You often find the God of the Bible doing incredible things at this time of the day. It is during the last watch of the night, from 3-6 a.m. that centuries earlier all of Pharaoh's army is thrown into confusion and drowned in the Red Sea. In 2 Kings 19 it is during the night that half the Assyrian army, encamped around Jerusalem, is killed. When the people wake up, they see in surprise that that God has already saved them.

The resurrection of Christ happened while it was still dark. What a beautiful picture of God's grace and might! God has done incredible things apart from us. We don't make the slightest contribution! When it's too dark for us to do anything, he's at work. When we're sleeping, he's busy to bless us! It tells us that salvation from sin and death, from the power of the devil, is entirely God's gift!

God doesn't have to wait for the first light of dawn. His work of salvation has its own light and glory. It's not in the sunrise that a new day begins. It's in Jesus, breaking forth from the tomb, that morning has broken!

In One Ear...←⤒🔗

But the people of God are still in the dark. A group of women go to the tomb to anoint the body. A noble gesture, but so misguided. They are completely out of touch with what God has done.

It seems strange, doesn't it? The Mona Lisa of miracles has happened — Jesus conquering, sin and death — but it passes everyone by!?

Jesus had explained this to them no less than three times. Sometimes, he even said, "Listen carefully. I will be mocked, insulted, flogged, and killed. But on the third day be raised from the dead." (see Luke 18:32-33 for instance.)

But they didn't get it. It was all in one ear and out the other.

Did the disciples have a hearing problem? It was worse than that. They had a heart problem! Ultimately — they didn't think the Son of man had to take on death and the devil. They didn't think it was so bad. They didn't think that they were so bad.

Preconceptions←⤒🔗

And we're made of the same stuff, unfortunately.

We have our own idea of what needs to be done in our lives. The people of the New Testament thought the Romans were the big enemy. We often think we need (more) money, stuff, entertainment, vacations. Maybe we are a little more sophisticated and say we need love or world peace or education.

But all of this makes us deaf to the voice of God. Blind to ourselves we become blind to God. It means that we have all sorts of preconceptions about what we think God must do, we have our own categories into which he supposedly needs to fit. And as a result the salvation of God completely passes us by.

The Real Crazy Talk←⤒🔗

The woman seemed crazy. It seems a bit strange, perhaps. That God does something greater than we expect, in ways greater than we expect — that isn't such a strange thing. From one angle, then, an empty tomb is not the real crazy talk.

The real crazy talk is you and me, the world around us.

We like to think that we can fix the problems of our lives, of this world, on our own. Perhaps that's the great seduction of the environmental movement. It puts the future in our hands. When we do talk about heaven, we often think we're expected guests — because we're nice people, human nature is basically good.

We insist that death is a normal part of life. That our biggest problems are outside of ourselves. We like to point fingers. We insist that our actions "don't hurt anybody." We are all like the alcoholic thinking that he or she can manage their problem, that's it not really such a big deal.

That's the real crazy talk.

Remembering←⤒🔗

The two angels rebuke the women. Remember what he told you? And after this Luke tells us, "Then they remembered his words." (Luke 24:8)

There is a beautiful pun in the Greek. The Greek word for "tomb" is from the same root — "to remember." Like our word "memorial." A tomb is a memorial, it stands as a reminder to someone's life. It helps us remember.

But at this tomb, a different kind of remembering needs to happen. Remember his words. Remember what he told you.

Like these women, we too need to remember. We need to pick up the Word of God to understand the work of God. That's the only way to come to grips with Good Friday and Easter. What God has done is so much greater than anything we might think or expect.

Are We Listening?←⤒🔗

God tells us that there is salvation, life, only if he comes and dies for us! He tells us the problem is far worse than we like to admit! He tells us we are in way over our heads, that we are all essentially terrorists, intent on bringing no one less than God himself down! He tells us that we are by nature in league with the devil, intent on creating a world devoid of divine glory. He tells us we need a love like his — a love that gives everything, that endures our hatred, and overcomes it.

All the Difference←⤒🔗

There's no doubt about it. Easter is crazy talk!

It would take the unfathomable for us to be saved. God, becoming one of us, bearing his own wrath. The One who has been so sinned against suffering so deeply.

But God has loved us this greatly! The Author of Life was put to death! The Lord of glory was put to shame!

And so Christians believe that through the death of this one man, all of world history has turned a corner. The power of sin, which brings such misery and death, which so permeates human existence that we can hardly see it, has been broken by a man who had it nailed to the cross; through him. Through the crucifixion of Jesus, sin, and everything that belongs to it, death and the power of the devil, has been dealt a fatal blow.

Crazy with Joy←⤒🔗

"Then they remembered his words."

The angels call the women to do that. That's what everyone who would enjoy the victory of Christ must do. Pick up a Bible, talk to a Christian. Attend a church service. Don't judge God by your standards, your preconceptions. Read his Word. Pray.

Sound crazy?

It will make you crazy.

Crazy with wonder, crazy with joy!