Do you remember who the first person to encounter the resurrected Jesus was? Her name is Mary Magdalene. She did not get a lot of attention in the Gospels during the ministry of Jesus, but she is prominent in the final events of Jesus’ life. She was one of only five people, including Jesus’ mother and John, who are specifically identified as being present at the crucifixion (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40; John 19:25). She was one of only four people, including Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, who are specifically identified as being present at the burial of Jesus (Matthew 27:61; Mark 15:47; Luke 23:55). And she was one of three women who first discovered the empty tomb when they went to anoint the body of Jesus at dawn that Sunday morning (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:1-2; Luke 23:56-24:1, 10; John 20:1).
According to John 20:11-18, after she and the women who went with her to anoint Jesus’ body discovered the empty tomb, they informed the Apostles, which prompted Peter and John to investigate it for themselves (Luke 24:12; John 20:3-10). After everyone else saw the empty tomb, they went home, but not Mary Magdalene. She was so distraught over the missing body of Jesus that she diligently remained by its last known location. Luke 24:11 says that she “stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept, she stooped to look into the tomb.”
Mary Magdalene is devastated because she believes the powers that be have stolen the body of Jesus and thereby have prevented her from demonstrating her love for Jesus by anointing his dead body with spices and ointments. It’s in this moment of emotional turmoil that Jesus appears to her.
But there’s a problem. According to John 20:14, Mary Magdalene “did not know it was Jesus” talking to her. The text tells us that she thought she was talking to the cemetery’s caretaker (John 20:15). You would think that if anyone would be able to recognize Jesus, it would be a disciple who was so devoted to Him that she was there when He hung on the cross, there when His body was placed in tomb, and there holding vigil by His grave when everyone else left.
Mary Magdalene had already been told by angels that Jesus was alive (Matthew 28:5-7; Mark 16:6-7; Luke 24:5-7), but she couldn’t wrap her mind around that. She was so caught up in her own emotional turmoil that she couldn’t make the connection between what the angels said and what Jesus taught them about His death and resurrection in passages like Mark 8:31 where we are told that “he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again” (cf. Matthew 12:40; Mark 9:31; 10:34; John 2:19). And, so, she was looking directly at Jesus, she was conversing with Jesus, but she did not realize that it was Jesus until He said her name (John 20:16).
Why did Mary Magdalene fail to recognize Jesus? I think the problem for Mary Magdalene was that she was so focused on what she was going through that she wasn’t able to focus on Jesus. I think she was so caught up in her own pain, her own turmoil, her own emotions that she was oblivious to Jesus. And I think that still happens today. One of the reasons we become oblivious to Jesus is because we become so fixated on ourselves. We can get so focused on our needs, our interests, or our problems that we push Jesus to the periphery. May Mary Magdalene’s story be a reminder to us to never take our focus off of Jesus.
- There are three other instances in which Jesus appeared after His resurrection and people didn’t recognize Him: 1) the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35), 2) the Apostles in a locked room in Jerusalem (Luke 24:36-49; John 20:19-23), and 3) Peter and his fishing companions on the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-14). Read each of those accounts and discuss why you think those individuals failed to recognize Jesus.
- Have you been guilty of failing to recognize or acknowledge Jesus in your life? If so, how?
- Read Hebrews 12:1-2. According to this passage, why is it important that we “[fix] our eyes on Jesus”?
- What are some practical steps you can take as an individual or a family to ensure that Jesus is always your focus?