April 5, 2026 · Rev. Derek van Gulden · Psalm 107; Mark 16:1-8
On Easter Sunday, Rev. Derek van Gulden asks whether the resurrection really changes anything, and answers with the people it brings hope to, among them an elderly couple in the mountains of El Salvador who knew God had not forgotten them. The women in Mark's gospel fled the empty tomb and told no one; we're asked to do the opposite and share our hope.
Transcript
A reading from the gospel of Mark, and I'll be reading from Mark chapter sixteen, verses one to eight. Listen to these beautiful words of God. When the Sabbath was over, the first day of the week, Mary, the mother of James and Mary Magdalene, and Salome bought spices so they could go and anoint him. And very early on that first day, when the sun had risen, they headed to the tomb. Now while they were walking, they said to each other, who will roll back the rock so that we may enter the tomb? And when they looked up, the rock had been rolled out back, and it was very big. As they walked up to the tomb, they looked in and saw a young man dressed in brilliant white, seated on the right side. And they were afraid. And he said to them, don't be afraid. You're looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is not here. Look. See where they laid him. He has been risen. And he is gone before you to Galilee, just like he said he would. So go and tell the disciples and Peter that they can meet him in Galilee. And the women were terrified and amazed, and they fled from the tomb as fast as they could, because they were really afraid. And they told no one. Thanks be to God for these beautiful words.
People of God. Would you join me in a moment of prayer? Gracious and holy God, on this day, this Easter Sunday, on the day where you overcame all the horrible things we could think of and rose back into life and walked among us, we ask you to help each of us learn how to not to be the instrument of our own or anyone else's oppression, but to be an instrument of peace in every step, in every breath, in every moment of every day. Amen.
Recently, one of my fellow pastors says we watch each other's stuff. Not that we steal from each other, but it's good to watch other pastors and listen to the way they preach. And one of them said, you know, you say that thing before you preach. And sometimes it sounds exhausting what you're asking us to do. And one of the other pastors, we were in a group who was new and young, said, yeah, don't you think peace takes some work? It takes a lot of work.
So those are easy steps to take on this day that we celebrate the resurrection, a new beginning. I ask you. Does it really matter? Have things changed overnight? Has anybody really been helped. Where is the hope? Fair questions.
But I will tell you in my beliefs. For that young family who has lost their provider because they've been swept away by ice and they don't know where he is. It brings him hope. For those that are in countries where violence is just pervasive due to war or other reasons. It brings them hope. To families that struggle even though they have two people in the household working. And yet it doesn't seem to be enough to pay the rent, provide food and other necessary things. It brings some hope and it matters to them. To a retired couple who were living on a fixed income who thought they had enough to live on. And yet, as prices skyrocket for many different reasons that none of us can control. It makes a difference to them. For a young woman, a single mom trying to survive in a country where violence against women is pervasive, it makes a difference and brings some hope. Two young children going to school and hearing all these different words used. What's going on? It brings some hope. To people that have suffered through natural disasters. We're in a moment. Everything they had, including their house, is swept away or burnt to the ground. It brings them hope.
I say all these things not well. I do believe them. I believe because for me it's brought hope in many parts of my life. But I have been with people in all those places I talked about and more, where I found people who pushed away medical care when following a hurricane. They had been half buried in their house and yet somehow crawled out and for two weeks lived with no no shelter. And when a medical team that I was working with found him in the mountains of El Salvador. I was working with a doctor and medical students, and they immediately surrounded these two older people. And they sat them down and they started to patch up their wounds. They started to put IVs in them because they were so dehydrated.
And yet when a young nun who I met, who was on a journey throughout Central America to, to find what her calling was, she happened to be a doctor. She grew up in the convent. They put her through school, through medical school. She was their physician and the community's physician. But she felt a call to become a cardiologist. And it might mean that she would leave the convent. When she stepped out of the pickup truck and. She was very tall, statuesque, had her full habit on. It's about one hundred degrees and this couple saw her. They pushed aside all those people, providing medical help for him, and they ran over literally and knelt at her feet. She wrapped her arms around them. And my Spanish is terrible, so I'm not going to try to use it. But she translated for me. They said we knew God would not forget us and send us an angel. In that moment, she got her call.
In those times in all our lives, even on a day where we just get up and look at what we have to do through the day, the resources we need. Everything going on around us. This day that we celebrate the resurrection brings hope. We need more hope. There are people that tell to me, well, why can you find hope with everything happening? I say I listen and sit with people and there are days where I get up and go, oh geez, not again. And yet. I remember those who taught me by sharing what they're going through.
This day. We're the two days before we thought it became the end for those who were there in that moment when Jesus had been crucified. All the disciples, most of whom who ran away that night. All the other people that had been supporting him, the women and others. They lived in a Good Friday world. They didn't know what was going to happen in three days. And yet, can you imagine what it was like for them? Their world had been shattered. Everything they believed in. And the hope was gone. When they got. And that helps emphasize this.
When they heard that the tomb was empty and they heard that he was walking among people again. And later, later on that same day, when Jesus comes to them in a closed room and says to them, peace be with you. Can you imagine what they must have felt like? Hope. Returning. Peace. Having a chance. For Christ was with them.
I believe in theology. It's one of the hardest things to understand. And that may be just me and I study. But on this day, may we find a new beginning and move forward in hope and share that hope with others and share with them why you think you have hope.
One of the biggest things I think we miss in that piece of gospel from Mark is at the end when it says, and the women ran away in fear and in amazement, but told nobody anything because they were afraid to. How often are we afraid to share our beliefs? Simply share our experiences. That's where hope comes from to sharing what we've experienced. Sharing the hope that we find. Let us not be quiet. Let us share. Just takes to share with one person. And then that goes out and out and beyond.
May you remember in this day, share with those this new beginning that comes on Resurrection Sunday, Easter Sunday. And may we be blessed by those who share that with us. Amen.