Meeting The Gardener On Easter

Happy Easter! Each Gospel recounts the resurrection with a slightly different focus. They all have Mary Magdalene going to Jesus’ tomb to attend to His body, finding the stone rolled away from the entrance, and seeing that the tomb is empty. In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, an angel appears and explains that Jesus has risen from the dead. In John, Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene himself, although at first she doesn’t recognize Him. 

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”

At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

 He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

 Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

John 20: 11-16

I like John’s story so much, because Mary’s emotions and reactions seem so real. 

I like John’s story so much, because she doesn’t recognize Jesus at first. 

I like John’s story so much, because she thought He was the gardener, and accused Him of taking Jesus away. 

I like John’s story so much, because I can feel the love in Jesus’ voice when He says, “Mary.” 

I like John’s story so much, because it reminds me that God does not desert us, that His love is reflected in the friends, family, and strangers who surround us, and that if we listen for His voice, we will hear Him calling our names.

[Tweet “Why I Like John’s Easter Gospel”]