Scripture: John 20:11-18; Luke 5:17-26
Today, we begin a new 4 week series regarding the sightings that many received of the resurrected Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:3-7). There were similarities between all 4 sightings, but there were also some unique aspects of each. You might wonder why these are important for the church to understand. But the truth is that these reports are the visual
proof that Jesus arose from the tomb, with a specific purpose in mind for our
lives, and to live again, in spite of the world’s death, which just couldn’t
hold Him any longer!
The Lord’s Life Eternal versus the world’s unending
death – two very different possibilities with two infinitely different
outcomes. And we have very little to say about the decision! It is all on the Lord
Jesus when He returns to sit in Judgment over the world. And our part?
It all hangs on whether we have chosen Him as our Lord, our Redeemer and
our Savior, or Not! We have the opportunity
to either choose the way of Jesus for our life, or to live in the allure and
resulting condemnation of the world’s lies.
Today, we consider the very first resurrection
sighting of the Living Lord which occurred right outside of the tomb.
Read John 20:11-15
These verses begin with the recollection that Mary
was heartbroken and teary eyed over the loss of her Lord and Teacher. We read in Luke 8:1-3
that Jesus had driven 7 demons out of Mary’s life. And because of Jesus’ wonderful gift to her,
she wanted to give Jesus a gift in return, which she would do very soon, but in a totally
different way than she had expected. But
for now, in His suffering and crucifixion, she had lost the only love that she
had ever truly known. For Mary, as well
as for many others, Jesus had been their purpose for several years.
That doesn’t mean that they understood everything
that He taught, because they didn’t! But
as was mentioned at the Northeast Convening Conference of the Global Methodist
Church this past week – they had begun to realize that the only business that
they would ever accept again was Jesus!
And now He was gone – or so they thought. The men, as well as the women, who had been
following the Lord, had heard Him speaking to the masses, and had seen His
healing touch change the lives of people who others had shunned, and Jesus’
inner circle had seen the life He lived in such a radically different manner from
the one which they had always known.
When Mary turned back from the tomb, she saw a man
through her moistened eyes, but didn’t recognize Him. The angels hadn’t
been any help to her – they only made her miss Him more. The other women who had come to help her in
preparing the body for final burial were in just as difficult a situation as
Mary was. And even if they knew where
the Body was, how could they, even all of them together, possibly carry it all the way back
to the tomb?
Read John 20:16-18
What was Mary to do?
She was lost, she had no answer for her dilemma – until, that is, the
stranger spoke her name. She had heard
Jesus call out to others with the words – “Come and follow Me!” He may have even called her with those same
healing and loving words, but when she heard her name this time, her life
totally changed. When she heard the
voice of her Savior call out her name once again, she knew, without a doubt,
who it was that wanted her service.
Have you heard the Lord call your name sometime in
the not-too-distant past? What did He
ask you to do? Do you remember what it
was? But the most important question is
this – what did you do about it?
Consider what it was that Mary was asked to do – to carry a message
specifically for the disciples who were holed up in the Upper Room! Now we might at first believe that this would
be a rather simple thing to do. But if
we read of the impact that Mary’s message had on the men in Luke 24:9-12, we discover that they weren’t about to readily
accept her words, as they sounded like “nonsense”! Even Peter wasn’t ready to listen - he had
to run to the tomb to see for himself!
The tasks that the Lord asks of us are usually
nowhere near as dauting as Mary’s was. I
will admit, however, that there have been times in my life when the call of God
wasn’t all that appealing to me at first!
And yet, as I began to live out those calls, I came to experience the
blessings and the joys of each and every one.
I guess God really knows what He’s talking about!
The mission statement of the Global Methodist church
includes a call to “witness boldly”.
That is exactly what Mary did on that Easter morning, and what each of
the disciples would begin to do as they were called into service in the name of
Jesus Christ. And the truth is that when
our name is called by the Lord, He expects us to begin stepping out into action
right away. He expects us to
begin stepping out into action right away - not to take time to get proof, not to finish up what we had just started, but to get working in Jesus business
right away!
Read Luke 5:17-26
It makes you wonder if these learned men ever
heard their name being called by God!
The problem is that if a person doesn’t know the Lord Jesus, then Jesus
doesn’t know them either. The Pharisees
had been following Jesus around for most of His ministry, so they should have
known Him and His way very well, and yet, they didn’t have a clue. If our faith hasn’t prepared us to even hear
our name being called, how are we going to be able to do what the Lord asks of
us? And if we aren’t listening to the
Lord, how will He ever be able to guide us and prepare us to live a life in Him? There were only a few Pharisees who would
ever come to Christ, and their listening ears would struggle to understand the
truth of Jesus. But in time, their trust
in Christ would grow, and they would be ready to step out “boldly”, in faith
and service in the name of Jesus Christ.
But it seems that Mary heard better than all of the rest, and she went
to work in the only business that she truly cared about – the business of
Jesus!
May each of us make a decision to know Jesus perfectly
today, and to have the ears to hear, as well as the conviction to go and do just as we are
told to do, as faithfully as Mary Magdalene did on that day.
