Abandoned

There are several forty-day periods recognized in the Bible: the rain of Noah’s flood, Goliath’s taunting of Israel, Moses on the mountain, the spies in the promised land, Jesus in the wilderness. The number forty seems to be significant. Theologians speculate as to why, but the Bible does not give us that detail. There are a lot of details the Bible doesn’t give us.

Of all the incredible forty-day periods, none can possibly compare to the forty days Jesus spent with His followers between His resurrection and His ascension into heaven. Can you imagine it? Forty days spent with the risen Savior. Truly, a forty-days like no other!
Threads of Mystery

What is most intriguing about this forty-day period is how little we know about it. We get some insight from Acts 1:1-10, and the gospels relay to us a few key interactions, but the vast majority of what took place is unknown to us. Wouldn’t we love to know all that Jesus said and did during those incredible days? We don’t know, and God is OK with us not knowing. Did you hear that? God is OK with us not knowing everything. Are we OK with that?

There are threads of mystery God weaves into the tapestry of His grand story. Some have unusual colors, and from our point of view, they don’t make sense. Others have loose ends, and they irritate our sensibilities. Mysterious threads are intended by God for purposes beyond our understanding, and truth be told, we don’t like them.

Our prideful arrogance demands systematic thinking, binary choices, and definitive answers. Instead, God has designed our true worship to include the faith-filled majesty of wonder.

When Jesus healed the man born blind, the religious leaders gave him a binary choice: was Jesus a sinner or not? They wanted a yes or no answer, but he didn’t have a binary answer. Instead, he said this, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind, but now I see!” See John 9. His worship didn’t need a definitive answer.

My dear friends, most of what divides the church world today is our preoccupation with, and insistence upon, binary questions and “yes or no” answers. It is an essential ingredient in prideful self-worship — we must be proven right and others wrong. Our spirituality is obsessive-compulsive. We have no capacity to allow for a thread that doesn’t fit our pattern or has a loose end. Mystery irritates our sensibilities, so we pull on the thread, but we only succeed at damaging the divine tapestry. My, if the Body of Jesus Christ could only learn to live quietly and walk humbly in the beauty of God’s intentional mystery.

We could talk a lot more on that topic, but we’ll save that for another day. What I really want to share with you today is the first of seven interactions Jesus had with people after His resurrection. It’s a series of articles I’ll be writing called “Resurrection Life!” and I look forward to sharing them with you in the weeks to come.
The First Resurrection Life Encounter – Mary of Magdala

Each of the gospel writers provides unique details regarding the crucifixion, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, but all four connect Mary Magdalene by name. John and Mark offer the most detail, giving us a more intimate glimpse of Mary’s place in the story. The fact that all four mention her by name affirms for us that she was a prominent follower of Jesus.

She lived in Magdala, a small fishing town on the west side of the Sea of Galilee. Luke officially introduces her in 8:1-3. This introduction comes immediately after the story of the woman who wiped Jesus’ feet with her tears and hair and anointed Him with expensive perfume. For this reason, some have suggested that it was Mary of Magdala, but we aren’t certain. There is also speculation that she was the woman caught in adultery. See John 8. But again, the Scriptures don’t give us that detail either. We just don’t know — more mystery.

Luke does provide two important details. First, Jesus had set her free from the possession of seven demons. Second, she was included with a group of women who financially supported Jesus and the disciples. Mary of Magdala was clearly a dedicated follower of Jesus.
Abandoned

There is no doubt that Mary was distraught when she went to the tomb. She had witnessed the brutality of the crucifixion and was traumatized by it. It likely reminded her of the work of demons. Was evil once again in control?

While the disciples cowered behind locked doors, Mary of Magdala bravely went to the garden tomb to be with her Lord. Clearly, she held no fear of the Romans or the Jews. What could they possibly do to her that the demons hadn’t already done? Even if He were dead, caring for His body would give her purpose. He had not given up on her — and she wasn’t going to give up on Him.

Can you imagine what she must have felt when she discovered His body had been taken away — and she didn’t know where it was? She began to cry as she was suddenly overcome by feelings of abandonment.

My friends, have you ever felt abandoned? Left alone without support or care? The feeling is desperate, and for a moment, Mary of Magdala felt utterly alone. The threads of mystery were entangling her heart, and she wanted answers. “Tell me where you have put him?”
Never Alone

Mary of Magdala wasn’t abandoned, and friends, neither are we. Jesus wasn’t where she expected Him to be, but He was there! Imagine her joyful surprise when the man she thought was the gardener turned out to be her resurrected Lord!

In Matthew 28:20, Jesus promised that He will always be with us. In John 14, Jesus promised that His Spirit would take up residence in us! My friends, the only thing abandoned by Jesus on resurrection morning was the tomb. You are not alone today. If you look around, you will find Jesus. He may not look like what you were expecting, but He is there. He is always with you. My prayer for you is that you will clearly hear His voice calling your name today. He is risen! He lives! Hallelujah!