"A Heart of Pure Devotion" John 20:1-18 Pastor Allan Wooters, D.Min.
Of all the individuals we meet in the pages of Scripture, no one has been as misunderstood as Mary Magdalene. For example, Mary has been confused with the woman who wiped Jesus’ feet with her hair, a woman all knew was a prostitute. Then in the movie The Passion of the Christ, Mel Gibson depicted her as the woman taken in adultery. Both images are pure fiction. There’s not one shred of biblical evidence whatsoever to prove that Mary was either a prostitute or adulterer. All we are told about Mary is found in Luke 8:2 and Mark 16:9. Luke tells us that Mary was one of several women who followed Jesus on His mission to various villages. This same group of women also supported Jesus financially. Mary was clearly devoted to Jesus. But Mark and Luke also tell us that Mary had been a tormented soul. Before she encountered Jesus, she was possessed by evil. Jesus cast seven demons out of her. It is this fact that caused some in church history to believe that she was an immoral woman. These interpreters simply assumed that if someone is possessed by demonic spirits then being sexually immoral is a given. But that’s not true and here’s why. In every case of demon possession found in the Bible, the individual is portrayed as a victim not some vile individual or some sexually promiscuous person. These people are viewed as tormented people, social outcasts, miserable, lonely, heartsick, and pitiful creatures, not evil sinners.
Mary was a victim. She suffered at the hands of the demonic realm but from such torment Jesus had set her free. Following her deliverance Mary displayed absolute love and devotion to Jesus. And in our text, we see this same dedication continuing. Notice first the depth of Mary’s devotion.
The Depth of Mary’s Devotion
She is devoted despite some very real dangers. Recall that Jesus was crucified during the Jewish festival of Passover. Jerusalem would have been filled with people some of whom were dangerous thieves. This explains in part why the women went to Jesus’ tomb in a group. There was some safety in numbers. In our text, Mary’s presence is highlighted but that John knew other women accompanied her is seen in Mary’s report to the apostles. She says, “we do not know where they laid Him.” This is some true bravery. And more, Mary was even more vulnerable when she stayed at the tomb all alone. Along with thieves, grave robbers were a real problem in those days but more, the Roman soldiers would probably not have been too welcoming. But Mary went to the tomb despite the risks totally committed to Jesus. But there’s more.
Mary was devoted despite her terrible confusion. When Mary arrives at the tomb, her heart sank. Panic would have quickly welled up to grip her soul. The stone covering the tomb was rolled away and Jesus’ body was gone. She makes the logical conclusion: grave robbers. “They had taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him” (v.2). As I said, grave robbers were common at that time. Her words were spoken to Jesus’ disciples to whom Mary had ran for help. Notice, she does not think resurrection. Some skeptics try to debunk the resurrection of Jesus by claiming that people back then inhabited a world steeped in mythology. Thus, they were quick to believe such a fantastic notion as a resurrection. But that is simply foolish. Mary and the others didn’t jump to the idea of a resurrection. They knew dead people really stayed dead. Yes, Jesus had raised three individuals but now Jesus Himself was dead. Who would raise Him?
So, Mary is beside herself. She is confused, shocked, afraid and more. But she does not walk away. She follows Peter and John back to the tomb. Mary did not find the tomb empty and after pondering the matter for a time concludes, “Well, it’s over. Someone stole Jesus’ body. I thought He was the one to redeem Israel but no. He made a difference for a while. He really helped me but it’s over. What’s the point anymore?” Not at all! Her devotion remained not out of ignorance or stubbornness or wish-fulfillment, but because Jesus is worthy of such devotion. He still is!
Author John Piper lists some reasons why Jesus is worthy of our devotion. For one, Jesus is the unique Son of God, but His glory is mingled with humility. He became one with us. In Him majesty and meekness are perfectly united. Moreover, Jesus could confound the religious leaders of His day with His unmatched teachings, but He was simple enough that even children loved to hear Him. Most of all Piper notes, Jesus had the power to still violent storms, feed thousands, and raise the dead yet He refused to use that power to come down from the cross. He chose rather to put aside His power and die for rebels, for sinners, for me, for you. Jesus is the living Lord, the high King of heaven, and is fully worthy of our devotion. [1]
Mary had a commitment to Jesus nothing could crush. May God cultivate such dedication in our lives! But the story does not end here. Peter and John check out the tomb and leave to go home pondering what had happened. Mary then becomes the focus of the narrative in vs.11 – 18. Here we discover her reward due to her devotion.
The Reward of Mary’s Devotion
Mary returns to the tomb and is overcome with grief. The text says she is “weeping.” The word denotes a loud wailing, a gut-wrenching type of sobbing. She is so distraught that even the appearance of two angels does not move her. She probably didn’t even recognize that they were angels. I say this because she doesn’t recognize Jesus either when He arrives on the scene. The text says she thought Jesus is the gardener who cares for the cemetery.
But why does Mary not realize the man is Jesus? Some say her eyes were so clouded from her tears that she couldn’t recognize Jesus. But wait, I’ve seen a lot of people cry at funerals, many very distraught but never so overcome that they didn’t recognize familiar faces. What I think happened to Mary is the same as what happened to two disciples later that day on the Emmaus road. According to Luke 24, Jesus walked up to these two disciples but “their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him” (Luke 24:16). Who prevented it? God! I think it was the same action on God’s part with Mary.
But why would God do this? The only reasonable answer is to show us how we come to know Christ. Think for a moment. Mary did not recognize Jesus because she saw an empty tomb and realized He was alive. She didn’t recognize Jesus because the angels talked with her. She had no mystical revelation because of coming to the garden alone while the due was still on the roses. Mary recognized Jesus in His Word to her! When Jesus spoke only then did Mary perceive it was Jesus. It is still the same. We know Jesus because He reveals Himself to us through the words of Scripture. The Bible is it! It’s not through our reasoning ability, our life experiences, or pondering the majesty of the natural world. It is only in the Word of God that we are shown who Jesus is. God’s Spirit using Scripture, opens our eyes to see Jesus. That’s why we emphasize the Bible so much at this church. It is why I do what is called expositional preaching which means I take a text and open its meaning and then seek to apply it to today. It is through the words of Scripture that Christ is revealed to us just like He was revealed to Mary after His resurrection.
This was part of Mary’s reward for her devotion to Jesus; she had the risen Christ appear to her personally. In fact, Mary is the first person to encounter the risen Jesus. Jesus didn’t appear first to His men but to this devoted woman.
But this stunning privilege is just the start. What Mary got was another new start in life, a new purpose, and a new future. Her relationship with Jesus was changing but all for the better. Jesus had given her the first step in all this amazing change when He banished the evil that had possessed her. Now He gives her another new start through His resurrection. He still does the same for us if we heed His word.
I may be speaking to someone this morning who has been putting off a decision for Christ. You know down deep you need Jesus. You know you need what Mary received which is your sins forgiven and a new direction in life. It is not wise to put off doing what we know we should. Life tries to teach us this lesson all the time. One of the most shocking reminders came back in 2003. That year, beloved actor John Ritter died of a torn aorta in his heart. He was only fifty-four years old. Millions were shocked and saddened by the news. It was such a seemingly needless and senseless death. However, none were as heartbroken and angered as his wife. She sued a cardiologist and radiologist for negligence to the tune of $67 million dollars. The verdict? Not guilty. It was an easy decision. In court proceedings it was revealed that Ritter’s death was his own fault. It was learned that in 2001 John had been warned he had significant problems involving his heart and that he needed to quickly follow up with other doctors. He never did. He chose to ignore the warning putting off what he knew he should do and thus paid the ultimate price for such neglect.
Before you now stands the greatest decision you will make in your life. Will you now make the decision to reach out to Christ as Mary did? Your sin is not the last word on your life. You can have a new life one of pure devotion a devotion that will bring you only what is good now and forever.