John 20:17 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.'"
I don't know about you but I have heard and read the resurrection story many times over the course of my life. Okay honestly every year at Easter this story is told. I listened and listened for 53 years but I missed this verse. I glanced right over it without paying attention. How do I do that? I just don't get it. Am I so busy paying attention to the service that it just flew over my head? Was I so prideful and arrogant, thinking I have heard this reading a thousand times that should have I known by heart? How did I ever miss this?
Okay let me clarify what I am talking about. One of the worst possible witnesses to the resurrection was Mary Magdalene. Why the worst? Well she was a prostitute, a criminal, her past was shady to say the least and to top it off she was a woman. (Back then, women were to be seen and not heard. Women were second class citizens.) So here we are on the day of the resurrection and Jesus appeared to her. Really? Now days she would be laughed out of court, but back then as an eyewitness to the risen Savior, well that just seemed like a dumb idea.
What was Jesus thinking? Wouldn't it have been batter if He had appeared to the Pharisees or to Ceasar? That would have been radical and mind blowing. But no He chose a sinner. Why?
Jesus appeared to her because although her past was somewhat questionable even by today's standards, Jesus saw her heart! He knew how much she had changed since she first met Him. He knew that her sin, her criminal background was in the past. He had given a reason to change. He loved her when no one else would. He reached out to her when everyone else was ready to stone her to death. He freed her from her past life and the demons that haunted her. She was transformed from the inside out because of Jesus Christ. Her heart was pure, in fact it was purer than the religious leaders. He chose her because she loved Him more than her own life.
The picture I cannot get out of my head is the one my pastor explained yesterday, and this is the big part I have missed my entire life. Mary Magdalene fell at the feet of her risen Savior and clung to Him. In other words, she grabbed a hold of Him and was not going to let go! She did not want Him to vanish, she wanted to stay by His side forever. How do I know this? Well Jesus had to tell her "Do not cling to me." She was holding onto Him for dear life.
But then the other thing about this verse that struck me was Jesus told her to go and tell the disciple that He would be ascending to "My Father and your Father, My God and your God" Did you get that? I almost missed it. I've known it for many years but hearing Jesus say it just brings me to my knees. God is my Father, my dad, my daddy. Does that sound wrong to call God my dad? I don't think so.
You know Jesus could have appeared to any of His followers yet He chose Mary Magdalene. Mary was probably disowned by her own father, or perhaps he father sold her into prostitution. Mary did not know what the true love of a father felt like and now Jesus was telling her that His Father, was her Father. Which meant for possibly the first time in her life, she was loved by a Father. And not just any Father, but God Himself. How amazing is that?
If we would just take time and stop rushing through these scriptures we would pick up these little tidbits that the Holy Spirit keeps trying to point out to us. Reading the Bible in a year is all well and good, but not if we are missing out on these little bits of golden truths that God wants us to know. It's not about how many Bible verses we have memorized or how many times we have read through the entire Bible, it's about knowing the true heart of God and embracing the wisdom that fills the pages of the Bible. Don't miss out on one impactful verse because you have to read 3 more chapters. You could be missing out on some pearl of wisdom that you need.
Lord, although Mary Magdalene was a sinner, you used her in a profound way. Please use me! Open my eyes to what I may be missing out on. Open my ears to hear what message you have for me. Open my heart so that I can be transformed from the inside out, in Jesus name I pray, amen!
Thank you for this lovely post! Reflecting on it, I come to think we may see Jesus as "Number One" where The Father is "The One And Only". The Son is The President if The Father is The King.
ReplyDeleteBut that is just a way of seeing it. Jesus is The King. :-)
Mariah must have been a remarkable woman. As you point out, she did not hesitate to show her love. Obviously, she was not artificial. :-)
And I love your remark on reading The Bible. :-) There really are treasures to be found. :-)