There’s just something about contrast that doesn’t sit well with people. Whether it be a manhole cover that had road lines painted on it, and now that manhole cover is crooked and the lines don’t match up, or a cake that’s frosted in an uneven fashion, or a stain in the carpet or on our clothes, we all know that feeling of when something is just off ever so slightly it bothers us. For some people, when something is just ever so slightly off, it will bug them until they can fix it. It will remove peace from their life. For example, say I went through the sanctuary before you all got here this evening and adjusted every third hymnal so it was crooked, I guarantee that 1: you’d notice, and 2: you’d do something about it. There’s something about contrast that just doesn’t sit quite right with us. It’s interesting, then, to know that in the garden where they laid Jesus, there is a strong sense of contrast. There are things that happen in that garden that should not be. But it’s in that garden we find peace. For it’s there we catch the first glimpse of Easter morn.
The first contrast we notice isn’t in the scenery of the garden but in gardens themselves. You would think that after the Garden of Eden, gardens would be grim reminders of what could have been. Eden was supposed to be paradise! It was a place where God intended to dwell with his creation forever. It was there he was able to walk and talk with his creation, just as easily as you and I can talk to one another today. But sadly, that never happened. When our first parents fell into temptation, all of that was destroyed. The garden wasn’t a place of peace, instead it was a garden of guilt, of failure, of shame, of stinging accusations, and of sin. So you would think that gardens would be a haunting reminder of our sin. Yet we all know that quite the opposite is true of gardens.
F. Frankfort Moore was an Irish author who lived in the 1800s. He wrote in one of his books “I believe that if man were ever to hear the word of God, it would be in a garden in the cool off day.” That says a lot about gardens, doesn’t it? Any time you step into a garden, you feel this sense of inner peace and tranquility sweep over you. I remember this distinctly just a few years ago. Where I grew up in mid-Michigan there’s a famous garden in the city of Midland: the Dow Botanical Gardens. The gardens are widely known across the mid-Michigan area as a beautiful destination. The gardens are famous for the wide variety of blooms you can find there in every season. They’re especially famous for the rose gardens, where you can find every shade and color of roses. I remember stepping into those gardens, and it was almost like I had been teleported into another world. All the worries and the cares and concerns I had before stepping into that garden were gone. Despite what should be a contrast, gardens are places of peace. And we see both that contrast and that peace in the garden in which our Savior was laid as well.
The first contrast we see is that our Savior got a burial in the first place. It was typical for those crucified to be cast into a shallow grave in the wilderness, where the animals could feast on the criminals’ remains. Yet that wasn’t the case for Jesus. Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret follower of Jesus, was made bold by Jesus’ death. He personally went to Pilate and requested permission to give Jesus a proper burial. And surprisingly, Pilate allowed it. What’s even more incredible, is knowing what both Joseph and Nicodemus were sacrificing to honor their lord. According to Jewish law, if you interacted with a dead body you were ceremonially unclean for seven days. They were separating themselves from being able to celebrate the Passover with their families. Not only that, but they gave a great deal of material wealth to bury Jesus. They used over 70 pounds of perfumes to bury Jesus. 1 pound of pure nard cost a year’s wages. Now multiply that by 70! These men spent a small fortune to honor their savior in his death. Yes, the garden in which Jesus was laid was, like much of his death, filled with contrast. But there’s really only one contrast we care about here this evening, isn’t there? And that’s the contrast we see in the work our Savior did upon the cross.
On the cross of Jesus’ sacrifice, there was a tremendous clash of good and evil, hate and love. It was there that the loyalty of Jesus’ friends was contrasted with their cowardice. Those who had sworn they would never abandon him fled mere hours later. The man who swore he would die for Jesus denied he even knew his name when he was confronted by a little girl! It was on the cross that Satan and his allies thought they achieved victory, yet were crushed in defeat. Satan’s true enemy was defeated! He had struck the promised messiah on his heel. Yet it was there that God truly crushed his head. It was on the cross that the almighty and righteous justice of God was met with the loving and obedient sacrifice of Jesus. God cannot abide sin. It goes against his very nature to allow sin to exist. A price had to be paid. A judge can’t allow crime to exist in his courtroom. God had to punish sin. And he did so in the person of his beloved son. It was on the cross that the perfection of Jesus was met with the imperfection of the entire world. Never once did our savior fail to do what he was called to do. The man who had been called healer and teacher, friend and rabbi was reviled and scorned like a common criminal. Not only that, but the full wrath of God was poured out on our savior Jesus. The contrast here is almost too much to bear. Yet it’s in that contrast that we find our peace.
With Jesus’ powerful words “it is finished” Jesus pronounced peace once and for all. With those words, Jesus was confirming that his work was fully completed. The price was paid in full. The debt had been wiped clean. The contrast of sinful man and perfect God had been made whole in the person and work of Christ. Christ was able to return to his Father in heaven, knowing that his purpose had been fulfilled. The great divide that separated God and man had been bridged. A peace, a lasting peace, had been formed.
You hear a lot about “peace” right now with what’s going on in Ukraine. We in our churches have been praying for peace. The leaders of NATO, Ukraine, and Russia have been meeting to establish lines of conversation, to allow for the peaceful extraction of civilians and refugees. But we realize that even when Russia and Ukraine lay down their arms, it still won't be the end of war.
Before World War I was called World War I, it was called The Great War, or on occasion, the War to End All Wars. We saw how well that worked out, didn’t it? Not 30 years later, war broke out in Europe again. Then fast forward a few more years. In the 70s it was common for people to protest against the Vietnam war. You would see people marching and waving signs “No More War.” But we realize there has never been, nor will there ever be, peace on earth while sinful humans still inhabit it. That’s why our savior had to come to bring peace. His entire life and ministry has been one of peace. The night he was born, what was it the angels in heaven sang? “Peace on earth, goodwill toward men.” When Jesus went across Galilee, Samaria and Judea, what was it he preached again? “Repent and believe the good news, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Christ’s entire ministry was one of welcoming people with open arms to believe the good news about the peace he came to bring. When Jesus came to visit his terrified disciples on Easter night, cowering in fear in the upper room, what were the first words out of his mouth? “Peace be with you.” He didn’t come to condemn, to scold them for their cowardice or their unfaithfulness. Instead, he blessed them and assured them that peace had been made. Peace between them and him. And more importantly, peace between sinful man and holy God. And he does the same for us, brothers and sisters. He assures us that no matter what we’re going through in this life, he has provided peace for us. Peace in the midst of economic hardship. Peace in the midst of war. Peace in the midst of family struggles. Peace that really, truly lasts.
It’s a strange contrast, the gardens of Eden and Peace. Eden was meant to be our home for eternity. It was meant to be paradise, where we could walk with God and serve him gladly. Instead, it was a place of stinging condemnation, fear, guilt, sadness, and punishment. Yet the Garden of Peace is everything that Eden could never be. It’s there we find our true home, in the work our Savior has done for us. It’s there that we find paradise once again in the perfection of our savior Jesus. It’s there we find absolution, joy, trust, happiness, and an eternal reward. So as we continue on this Lenten journey with our Savior, dear friends, go to that garden of peace. Let your savior remind you of the peace he won for you. Let us go to the garden of peace. Amen.