Happy Easter! Someone needs to hear this today-feel free to share…
John 20 But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had lain. Then they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them,”Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”
Have you ever done that? Stood weeping and staring into the tomb of all your sorrows, disappointment, and fear-wondering where Jesus is? Is there a situation that you’ve been focused on? A tomb full of regret, something that you can’t change, can’t control? Get ready, this is for you. Watch what happens in the next scene.
v. 14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”
Jesus is right there with her as she is weeping, but she must turn around to see him. Sometimes I am so laser focused on my “tomb” and the fact that Jesus is not there, I can’t see anything else. Have you ever felt that way? Turn around! Turn your eyes to Jesus-even if you can’t see Him right away. He’s there. He’s asking why you’re weeping. He’s asking who you’re looking for. Why? Because he cares, he wants you to tell Him. Jesus asks her who she is looking for because at this point, she’s looking for a body, not a risen Lord. Today, we celebrate that Jesus is alive-we need not look for Him in religion and legalism. Those things are dead and he won’t be there…
 Moving on in verse 15 Mary thinks that he is the gardner and is still stubbornly demanding to know where the body of her Lord is so she can “take Him away”. Isn’t that just like us, sometimes refusing to see where Jesus is at work in our lives because we still think there’s something we have to do to make the situation better. I am so guilty of that.
In verse 16 Jesus says to her “Mary” and something about the way he says it triggers recognition and she says to Him “Rabbi” (which is to say, Teacher) I always picture this scene like Mary is frantic and not willing to leave until she knows what happened to Jesus’s body-she is not letting this go. And Jesus is like “Mary-get a hold of yourself, it’s me. I’m here”
Maybe I’m wrong, that’s just the way it reads to me… in any case, I can relate to Mary in a big way.
This Resurrection Day let’s not focus on the tomb of our sorrows, fears, loss and regrets. Let’s turn to Jesus-He’s alive! He’s calling your name! May we, like Mary, turn and say “Teacher” that he may teach us to trust, to love and to know Him better. For the rest of our lives.