Mary II

So yeah, more on John 20. What? Bored of John 20? It’s my blog. So tough…

I was recently reminded that Jesus is always a bit hard to recognize by his followers in the Gospel accounts. I’m not sure why but it seems to be the pattern of  how people see Jesus in his resurrected state. Jesus is the only one that can help the individual recognize his full identity. No one can will themselves to believe in Jesus; that seems to be a running theme throughout Jesus’ ministry.

And I think that’s a major theme in Mary’s encounter with Jesus here. She’s not fully seen Jesus for who he really is just yet. What a daring question to ask ourselves this Easter: Do I really know Jesus or do I have some odd and incomplete picture of his life? Chances are we’re more like Mary when it comes to really understanding who Jesus is…

I’m intrigued by Mary as she apparently mistakens Jesus for the Gardner which to me is so beautiful, right? I mean that’s an amazing comparison of Jesus reinstating all things by his death and resurrection in a garden; that he’s the new Adam who was able to overcome the curse of death by resurrecting in a garden where it symbolically all fell apart in the beginning (Gen. 3). Anyway, it’s this mistaken gardener that eventually transforms into Jesus by a spoken word—the name of Mary. This act sort of tells me it’s not just that Mary loved Jesus; it’s that Jesus also knew and loved Mary. He knew her by name and came to be with her again. It’s really the reason why Mary felt so comfortable calling Jesus my Lord. As if Jesus could be possessed so intimately. I know it’s a bit sappy but seriously, it’s pretty crazy how Mary and Jesus interact in this passage.

I’m also thinking that right about now Mary’s in such an elated state she can barely stand what she’s witnessing. The joy must have been overflowing; there was life in Jesus. He was alive. He was current. He was present. So she clings to Jesus. She hugs him because she doesn’t want to let him go again. She wants to live in a paradigm where Jesus is only physically present; that’s what she’s living for…

But that is exactly what Jesus doesn’t want her to do. He’s not just the present; he’s about the future.

He doesn’t want her to only live for the moment (we say that a ton don’t we; that being, just live for the day). He wants her to live with him for a life time. So his command to her is to let him go; to not hold tightly to him in a physical sense because he’ll point to an inner relationship—the Spirit. And that totally brings a new dimension into Mary’s relationship with Jesus. He ends with this thought: “Greater are those who have not seen and yet believe.”

Seems to me there’s a greater relationship found in the Spirit now and we who live in the new testament era are blessed for having it. No longer do we have to step into some temple, standing afraid of his holy presence. No longer are we separated by space and time. We have a living God who lives in us. And it’s this very Spirit that guides us and reminds us that we belong to him today and when he returns as King.

But one other thing that Mary really reveals to me is something I’ve often done. I think I have a tendency to leave Jesus at the Cross. Certainly Jesus defeats sin there; positive that evil is overcome there as well. But to leave him there at the Cross or in his tomb is to see Jesus like the somber Mary; as if life in Jesus had to be a constant dark place in history. To me that’s such an incomplete Gospel…

I’ve heard speakers often say Jesus loves you, doing their part in explaining the amazing beauty behind the work of Jesus on the Cross. But usually I don’t even get a hint towards the resurrection. It always leaves me a bit disappointed. For sure it’s on the Cross that sins are forgiven but it’s in his resurrection we truly encounter the full extent of his love. His love isn’t just bound to his death; it’s that he comes back for us… it’s that he’ll come again for us… it’s that he’s not dead but alive in us that makes us realize just how much he loves us. I mean isn’t that the real and complete Gospel from Gen. to Revelation?

So as I end this post on Mary, I realize that life in Jesus never ended for her. Life for Mary only got better after she moved from a place of death to life. And maybe for the first time, Mary finally understands who Jesus is because she now sees Jesus for all he is… in his death, resurrection, and in the Spirit.