The Lord announces the word, and the women who proclaim it are a mighty throng
Psalm 68:11
John’s gospel offers the only account of how the Risen Christ specifically and individually reunited with Mary Magdalene, and it typifies the personal encounters Jesus had in His life and after His death to resolve doubts and fears with His purpose and peace.1
In the dark of morning on the first day of the week, Mary went to Jesus’ tomb only to find the stone rolled away from the entrance; the Lord’s body was not there. Mary stood outside the tomb crying, and when she looked inside the tomb again, she saw two angels sitting where Jesus had previously been laid.
“Why are you crying?” the angels asked.
“They have taken my Lord away, and I don’t know where they have put Him,” Mary said.
As Mary turned away from the tomb, Jesus stood before her, but she did not recognize Him. There could be a number of reasons for this – maybe the early morning sun had a bright glare or maybe the glory of Jesus’ resurrected form was too astonishing to instantly comprehend.
But what is more curious is the one detail John does provide: Mary thought Jesus was a gardener.
It seems to be an insignificant fact, a moment of mistaken identity, but John gave it priority in his gospel narrative. Contextually we have to wonder why. So, let’s consider one of the last conversations Jesus had with His disciples before the crucifixion.
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener,” Jesus said.2
Mary’s confusion might actually reveal transcendent clarity; once again in Christ’s presence, she perceived the fullness of Jesus’ identity as God and Lord.
What sparked her recognition, though, was His voice. The voice of the Good Shepherd who calls us by name, who called her out of darkness and into wholeness.
“Mary,” Jesus said to her.
And she cried out, “Teacher!”
At this point in the story of Christ, we must accept that Jesus always acted with intention – the parables He told, the people He called, and the circumstances in which He appeared in resurrected form. So why show up first to Mary seemingly looking like a gardener?
The gospels say very little about Mary Magdalene, which probably tells us more about the social hierarchy of the day than it does about her. Only Luke explains that she was among the small group, with the 12 apostles, who travelled with Jesus village to village as He proclaimed “the good news of the kingdom of God.” Women in the group were said to have been healed by Jesus, and specifically Mary, “from whom seven demons had come out.”3
Literal understanding of evil spirits in ancient Israel might translate to spiritual blindness or darkened hearts today; however, the bigger point is that Mary Magdalene was receptive to the sanctifying work of the Word, and as she stayed close to the Lord, the truth took root.
Christ first appearing to Mary Magdalene shows us that God is not only focused on what we have done, but also, in the light of His love, what we are willing to do for Him.
Will we weep and wait for Him outside the tomb? Will we listen and turn to His voice? Will we give whatever He asks?
Mary wanted to cling to the Risen Christ, but He gave her a more pressing assignment: “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'”
She went immediately. No questions asked.
“I have seen the Lord!” Mary Magdalene declared to the disciples.4
Like He did with Jesus’ dear mother Mary, God once again chose a woman to be the first to carry the Good News.
Jesus instructed Mary Magdalene to go and tell the disciples our Redeemer lives, the key message of the gospel they would be sent out to share.
This seems like a pretty important job.
Perhaps Mary Magdalene was chosen because God knew she faithfully trusted and believed in the truth she heard, and she would thus fulfill the vow Jesus’ blessed mother made at the announcement of Christ’s conception: “I am the Lord’s servant. May Your word to me be fulfilled.”5
