It was His voice

I love this time of the year. At this moment I can pear out my window and see the buds on the trees and plants starting new growth amongst brown twigs and shrubs. More importantly, I love this time of year because we are brought to the cross as we remember and celebrate the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Christ the Lord. If you are not reading for yourself (which you should be) you are at least hearing the resurrection story from the pulpit. The resurrection story can be found in one of the four Gospels, each communicating the story from their perspective. I am partial to John’s (John 20) perspective of the resurrection because it involves an interaction that is short, but yet telling.

The conversation takes place between Jesus and Mary; one we know very much about and the other we know little about. I think you can figure that one out. We have to look at a few other passages to piece together an identity for Mary because John simply mentions her by name. From the Gospel of Mark we discover the tag line associated with Mary. When Mark mentions Mary he does so by calling her – Mary Magdalene, whom Jesus cast out seven demons. In the Gospel of Luke, the author identifies Mary as one of the faithful “women” who followed, served, and provided for Jesus out of her own means. Other mentions of Mary in the Gospels place her at key moments throughout the life of Jesus.

Mary arrives at the grave of Jesus ready to anoint the body of Jesus. To her dismay, she finds it empty and promptly leaves to tell the others. The story then tells of Peter and the other disciple running to the grave to verify her claim, perplexed they immediately leave to go back home. Mary who followed the disciples back found herself alone once again at the empty grave. She found herself face to face with the risen Lord. All it took for her to realize who was in front of her was a simple word. “Mary,” He said. All it took was an gentle utterance of her name to recognize and respond to Jesus. It must have been music to her ears. It must have reminded her of the numerous times he called out to her with pure compassion and love. Undoubtedly, her first interaction with Jesus was recalled; you know the one where he cast seven demons out.

It is my hope and prayer that this Easter you may concentrate on His voice. Our Lord is alive! He still speaks today as he did to Mary in front of the empty tomb; intimately and personally to each one of us. Listen to it, respond to it, and embrace it.