John: Alive!

John 20:1-18 

Mary was from a small town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee—a town called Magdala. Jesus met her while he was preaching and teaching in that region. I cannot imagine exactly how she looked, but in my mind, I see a woman with matted hair, a tormented face, and clothes little more than rags. She was possessed—not by one, but by seven demons! (Luke 8:2)

But then she met Jesus!

Jesus changed everything. The Lord delivered her from these demons, and she began to follow him. Joanna, whose husband worked for Herod Antipas, and Susanna also began following Jesus around the same time. These women even helped provide for Jesus and the disciples “out of their own resources” (Luke 8:1–3).

But now, things had changed. Mary was one of the women who gathered at the cross and watched Jesus breathe his last. She followed Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus to the tomb to see where he was buried. No doubt, from the time of his burial through the Sabbath, Jesus occupied her thoughts and questions.

It was still dark on Sunday morning when Mary arrived at the tomb. The heavy, wheel-shaped stone that had been rolled in front of the tomb for security had been moved from the entrance. She was sure someone had invaded the tomb and stolen Jesus’ body.

John 20:2
So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”

Peter and John took off running toward the tomb. John outran Peter but stopped short of going inside. When Peter arrived, he went straight in.

John 20:6-9
[Peter] saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.  

There is much discussion among commentators regarding what Peter saw. Were the burial cloths folded, or were they lying in place as if a body had been resurrected through them? Regarding the face cloth, one commentator speculates that it was wrapped under the chin and tied at the top of the head to keep the mouth of the corpse from falling open. John specifically notes the detail of the face cloth being folded “in a place by itself.” 

Although John outran Peter to the tomb, he only entered after Peter had checked out the inside. “He saw and believed.” John adds an explanation: this was the first time they completely understood that Jesus “must rise from the dead.”

By this point, Mary had returned to the tomb. Peter and John left; Mary stayed.

It’s interesting to me that Peter and John do not discuss their belief in the resurrection with Mary. Perhaps they were intent on getting the word back to the other disciples. Mary still believed Jesus’ body had been stolen.

John 20:11-13
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb.  And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”

The Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) note that other women were with Mary, and when they saw the angels, they were “alarmed” and “terrified” (Matt. 28:1–5; Mark 16:5–6; Luke 24:4–5). But John, writing in 85–90 AD, knows that the other Gospel accounts have already been read. His focus is not on the angels, but on what happens next with Mary.

After telling the angels that Jesus’ body had been stolen, Mary turned around to find Jesus standing behind her. But through her grief and tears, she did not recognize that it was the Lord.

John 20:15-18
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).  Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father…. but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.

I love the fact that when Mary heard Jesus call her name, she knew it was him. That always reminds me of the great passage in Isaiah where God says, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine” (Isa. 43:1). Jesus literally called Mary Mariam, the Aramaic pronunciation. When she heard him say her name, she immediately turned around and, respectfully—and no doubt emotionally—called him, “Teacher.”

Mary’s first response was to embrace Jesus and hold onto him. Jesus said, “Do not cling to me…” The construction of the Greek indicates that he was telling her to stop an action already in progress. Jesus said,

John 20:17-18
…But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her. 

Mary experienced the tremendous privilege of being the first to see the resurrected Lord—and the first to announce his resurrection to the disciples. She had come a long way from that small town on the western shore of Galilee, where demons had once possessed her.

She met Jesus! And the resurrected Lord changed everything.

He still does!

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD
Time in the Word: Read and reflect on John 20:1-18. Reflect on the emotions of Mary as she saw Jesus alive!

Talking to God: How has the resurrection of Jesus changed your life?

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