Wednesday, April 8

Wednesday

Just another reminder that…He is still risen!

Then the disciples went back to their homes, but 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.  “Woman,” he said,  “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.”  She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic,  “Rabboni!”  (which means Teacher).  Jesus said,  “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them,  ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news:  “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.  

– John 20:10-18

On the morning of the Resurrection, Jesus didn’t want Mary to hold on to Him, why not?  I have often wondered about this passage in John’s gospel.  I have wondered why Jesus would tell Mary not to hold on to Him?  Is it a bad thing to cling to Jesus?  Aren’t we supposed to stay close to Him?

One thing is clear, Jesus didn’t mean that Mary was not to touch Him at all, because He told Thomas to touch Him and to see that He was the real thing (John 20:27).  He told her not to “hold on to Him”, but what did He mean?

Mary had experienced a powerful encounter with Jesus. But He didn’t want her to

stop there.  Mary still wanted to hold onto Him.  Mary’s reaction was likely motivated by several things.  One is simply her loving devotion to the Lord.  Mary is overwhelmed by the events of the morning, and as her grief turns to joy, she naturally embraces Jesus.  Another motivation is Mary’s desire to restore the fellowship that His death had broken.  She had lost Him once, and she was going to make sure she didn’t lose Him again - she wanted to keep Jesus with her always.  But Jesus spurred Mary on and commissioned her to share with the disciples about His resurrection.  Jesus had not yet risen with God – He was still on the move.  He was essentially saying, “It’s not going to be the way it used to be.  You can’t hold on to Me in the old way.”

In loosening Mary’s hold on Him, Jesus was, in effect, saying this: “I know you desire to keep Me here, always present with you. I know you want everything to be just the same as before I died. But our relationship is about to change. I’m going to heaven, and you will have the Comforter in My place. You need to start walking by faith, Mary, not by sight.”

Jesus told us that it was better for us that He return to the Father. We, like Mary cannot cling to Jesus’ physical body, we need to know Him, and cling to Him through faith.  We do not need to physically hold onto the "man" Jesus. We need to embrace Him, through faith.  One day we will see Him face to face, but for now, we know with Him and we live in His presence by faith.

One of the biggest tasks we have as Jesus' disciples is to not cling to Jesus, not to hide ourselves away in a church and in the presence of the Lord at the expense of going to share His love with others.  We have a message of hope and forgiveness to share with others who are trapped in hopelessness and despair.  As His disciples, we are not to spend the majority of our time in “holy huddles”, but in out in the world, reaching the lost and the hurting and offering hope in the risen Jesus. 

Jeff Frazier