Mark 16:9-11 John 20:11-18
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9 [Now after He had risen early on the first day of the
week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons. 10 She went and reported to those who had been with Him,
while they were mourning and weeping. 11 When they heard that He was alive and
had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.
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11 But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so,
as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; 12 and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head
and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. 13 And 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.” 14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus
standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 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.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in
Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not
yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend
to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’ 18 Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I
have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to
her.
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One of the most amazing things about God is the people He
chooses. We tend to pick or gravitate to
those that have special skills, are highly intelligent or very successful in
whatever they do. God seems to
specialize in taking the ordinary and making them extraordinary. He chooses flawed individuals and loves them
into being His children. Pride is one of
the most dangerous sins because it inhibits our ability to be used by God. The path to productivity in the work of God
is always one of humility where we recognize and confess our sins and turn to
Him for forgiveness and grace.
GOD CHOOSES THE UNLIKELY: Of all the people we would expect
to be the first chosen to see the resurrected Christ, Mary Magdalene seems very
unlikely. We might have suspected Peter,
James or John or any of the other disciples.
Mary is an unlikely choice because she is a woman and the testimony of
women was not considered reliable in that day.
The choice of Mary is unlikely because she had previously been demon
possessed. Though the Scripture does not
make this clear, some believe that she was the woman who anointed the feet of
Jesus that was then identified as a sinful woman which may be a reference to
her having been a prostitute. It is true
that after her conversion she became one of the women who cared for Jesus and
the other disciples by preparing food and serving in other practical ways. One thing that is clear in Scripture is that
God can use anyone. He often chooses the
weak, the sinful, the needy and the rejected to do His work. There is hope for all of us no matter what
our limitations might be. God is never limited
by human frailty.
GOD USES THE UNBELIEVING: One of the themes that seems to reoccur
in the Gospels is the unbelief of the people who we would expect to be the
first to believe. In this passage, Mary is
still stuck on the idea that someone has stolen the body of Jesus. She had already been told by angels earlier
in the morning that Jesus had risen form the dead. When she and the other told the disciples,
they did not believe her and had to run to the tomb to see for themselves. Now Mary is back at the tomb herself and once
again has two angels tell her that she should not be weeping and when she sees
Jesus, she originally mistakes Him for a gardener and asks if he knows where
the body is. Once Mary understands that
she is seeing Jesus, she goes and tells the disciples that now she has seen
Jesus alive, but they still do not believe her.
Scripture said Jesus would rise from the dead. Jesus said He would rise from the dead. Angels told them Jesus had risen from the
dead. Jesus appears to Mary after rising
from the dead. They still can’t believe
that its true. And these are the guys
that Jesus had invested in and that He would use to lay the foundation of the
church. These are the men whom God used
to bring thousands to Himself. We cannot
please God without faith, but I am so glad He is so patient to build faith in
the lives of those He chooses to use.
APPLICATION: No matter how unlikely we think we might be for
the Lord’s use; God can still use us despite our history or limitations. The power of God’s forgiveness can overcome anything
in our past present or future. Strengthen
our faith in the Lord but understand that it is a gift from God. Be thankful for His patience and
understanding of our frailties.
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