Sorrow to Joy

John 20:11-18

Turn with me over to the gospel of John chapter 20. The gospel of John chapter twenty and tonight we are going to be looking at verses 11-18 of the gospel of John chapter 20.

The tittle of this message tonight is: sorrow to joy. Jesus reveals Himself to Mary Magdalene, and She becomes the first of the followers of Jesus, He appears too.

Out of all the themes that emerge from this passage, I think the one John had in mind most was love. The Love of Mary Magdalene for Jesus, and the love of Jesus for Mary.

When we read this passage you can’t help but be impressed by Mary’s devotion to Christ, and in turn, her devotion was rewarded, and it is a great example for us.

It is important we understand, this kind of devotion cannot be manufactured in the hopes of being rewarded, but it can inspire us to seek that kind of relationship with Christ for ourselves.

Well, in our passage tonight, love was the motivation for Mary seeking Jesus that morning at the tomb, and it was the love of Jesus that choose to reveal Himself to Mary first, and we get to see Mary’s sorrow and grief turned to joy by the love of the risen Savior.

John 20:11–18 KJV

But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master. Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her.

Background and context

Our passage this evening takes place on Sunday morning, the first day of the week. The women who followed Jesus waited for the Sabbath to pass.

And now, Mary, the mother of Jesus, Joses, Salome, and Mary Magdalene gather together at the tomb of Jesus on what would become Easter morning.

Their intentions were to anoint the body of Jesus with spices and ointments to preserve it, while in the tomb. However, if you remember, Nicodemus had already done that, he brought 100lbs of ointment and spices, and he and Joseph of Arimathaea removed the body of Jesus from the cross, wrapped it with grave cloths and spices and laid it in the tomb.

So, this act by the women, was not necessary, but was a labor of love, and before the sun has a chance to rise, these women are back at the tomb to express their love of Jesus. However, when they arrive they find the stone rolled away.

Then John and Mark record for us, Mary Magdalene as the first to discover the empty tomb. Mary was shocked by what she found, and not expecting a resurrection, she runs to tell Peter and John something has happened to Jesus’ body!!

In turn, Peter and John run to the tomb, to get to the bottom of this, where John finds something compelling about the linens in the tomb: they are undisturbed, as though Jesus body resurrected right through them, and we are told John believed.

That brings us to our passage tonight and what we learn from this story is: Our sorrow is turned to joy by the love of the risen Savior.

The first thing I want you to see in this passage is:

I. Mary’s Grief Vs. 11-13

Like any of us, Mary was overcome with grief because she lost someone she loved.

Notice the beginning of Vs. 11 “But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping:”

The word “but” in (NASB & KJV) connects this back to Verse 10. Peter and John have returned home now to Galilee. Apparently, John did not see Mary on the way, and tell her what he found at the tomb, and what he believed has happened. Remember Vs. 8 tells us John was the first to believe in the resurrection.

Also, the other women who came to the tomb, with Mary that morning, have missed her as well, and didn’t get to tell her of their encounter with the angels. They have gone to witness to the disciples, and now, Mary is back at the tomb, she is alone, and she is weeping.

The word “weeping” here is the Greek word “Klah-ho” which is describing an uncontrollable wailing and sobbing. That is the emphasis in this passage, Mary is having a breakdown. After everything she has been through she has reached the point of emotional end.

On Friday she stood at the cross and watched her faith, hope, and love die, and now she believes, there has been one final act of desecration to the body, that will rob her even of her memories of Jesus. This was all more than Mary could bear and she stands in front of the tomb and she is wailing. She has had enough.

Now, notice the rest of Vs. 11, “and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,”

Notice again she has to stoop down to look into the tomb. Why does she do that? Well, maybe she missed something. She is searching for anything that will give her a glimmer of hope.

That is the way we all respond when we are overcome with grief. Hope is what drives us to seek a second opinion from the doctor. Hope is what causes us to fight and try to hold onto the ones we love. And hope is what Mary is seeking as she looks back into the tomb.

Notice what she saw. Vs. 12 “And seeth two angels in white sitting,”

Now, we don’t know why these angels didn’t appear to Peter and John. We do know Hebrews 1:14 tells us Angels are ministering spirits, sent out to minister to God’s people.”

So, Mary was the one who needed to be ministered to, in this moment. We know the angels appeared to the other women who came to the tomb. While Mary was taking the news of the empty tomb to Peter and John, the other women were commissioned by angels to go and tell the disciples what they found.

Some skeptics have pointed to the different accounts of these angels at the tomb, as a discrepancy in scripture. For example, Matthew and Mark mention one angel, while Luke and John mention two. But, that is just because those were the ones we were allowed to see.

I imagine the resurrection of Jesus was a moment similar to His birth, when a multitude of heavenly hosts appeared to Shepherds in the field, saying, “ Glory to God in the Highest, Peace on earth and good will toward man.”

Well, in the same way, Angels were there to announce the arrival of the Son of God, they were there to declare His victory over hell and death.

Notice the way these angels were sitting. Vs. 12 “the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.”

What we have here is a living picture of the ark of the covenant and the mercy seat of God. Once a year, on the day of atonement, the priest would take the blood of the sacrifice, enter into the holy of holies, and sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat of God, as an offering of forgiveness for the sin of the people.

On each side of that mercy seat sat cherubim, whose wings would stretch out over the ark and touch one another. I think that is what John is describing here. Jesus has become the mercy seat of God. The one time sacrifice and atonement for the sin of the world.

BTW, I find it interesting that in less than 40 years after the resurrection all sacrifices in Israel ended. 37 years after the resurrection the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, and orthodox Judaism has never been practice since.

Also, I find it interesting that Jesus in His death was placed between two criminals. But in His exaltation He lay between two angels.

Angels were always present and ministering to Jesus throughout His life on earth, Matthew 4:11 and Luke 22:43. And I believe they are always present and ministering to us. Hebrews 1:14.

Notice what the angels say, Vs. 13 “And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou?”

There are two things I find interesting here. 1. Notice the angels have no idea why Mary is so upset. They don’t get it. To these angels Mary’s crying was completely inappropriate considering what has happened. This was time for celebration not weeping.

Why is that important? because it teaches us a great lesson about angels: They are not omniscient. In other words, they don’t have complete knowledge or know everything that is taking place.

1 Peter 1:12 describes how angels long to look into the mysteries of the gospel. Matthew 24: 36 tells us, angels don’t know the hour or the day of judgment. And here at the tomb of Jesus, these angels don’t understand why Mary is so upset!!

The second thing I find interesting in this verse is: Mary’s grief is so great she doesn’t even acknowledge that these are angels. Now, it is true, angels in the bible appear in human form, but the people they appear to were frightened and recognize them as supernatural.

But not Mary, Why? Because she is completely fixed on the fact that Jesus is gone and she wants to know where He is.

Notice Mary’s response to the angels, Vs. 13, “She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.”

Notice she refers to Him as “My Lord.” Even in His death, He is still her Lord. Throughout this whole passage Mary refuses to refer to the body of Jesus.

She says, “they” and we don’t know who they are, she believes is responsible. But, they have taken Him away, and again. “Not taken the body” but taken my Lord.

He devotion to Christ is an example for us. She is so focused on seeking Jesus, everything around her has become unimportant and irrelevant. If only we could seek Jesus that way, that even when confronted by angels we are unmoved.

So, the first thing we see in this passage is Mary’s grief. She was overcome by the loss of Jesus but her sorrow would soon be turned to joy.

The next thing I want to show you in this passage is:

II. Mary’s Encounter Vs. 14-15

Here we see Mary Magdalene becomes the first to encounter the risen Savior.

BTW, as a side note. John’s version of the story coincides perfectly with what Mark reports in Mark 16:9 “Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons.” And remember we believe Mark’s gospel is Peter’s story.

Notice 14 “And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.”

After Mary speaks with the angels she turns and notices someone behind her. Now, we don’t know why Mary didn’t recognize Jesus. Perhaps the tears flooded her eyes, blurring her vision.

Some scholars have said she was prevented from recognizing Jesus. In the same way the eyes of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24:16, were prevented from recognizing Him. We don’t know.

Other scholars suggest there was a more spiritual reason. They believe it was because Mary was only looking for a Jesus who was dead. That the Jesus Mary was looking for, didn’t exist anymore, and she couldn’t see the Jesus who was alive.

I know many Christians suffer with that problem today. They believe in a historical Christ. A man who walked the earth two thousand years ago and had the power to change peoples lives. But they don’t believe in a Christ that is living today and has the power to transform their lives now.

And because we have a limited view of Christ in our hearts we have a limited power of Christ in our life. We don’t know why Mary didn’t recognize Jesus but we do know she was not looking for a living Christ. She was looking for a body.

Notice the two questions Jesus asks, 15 “Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou?”

The word “woman” here is a term of endearment. It is a shame it has become something inflammatory in our culture. However, Jesus uses it with respect.

His first question is the same as the angels., because Mary’s uncontrollable weeping was in appropriate in this moment.

His second question is more revealing. “ whom seekest thou?” In other words, what kind of Messiah are you looking for? Mary, who did you think I was? and what did you think I was going to do?

His questions are a combination of compassion and a mild rebuke. “ Why are you crying? did you not believe what I told you and that I was the Son of God? However, notice Mary doesn’t answer either question.

Look at the rest of Vs. 15 “She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.”

At this point, Mary has tunnel vision. Her grief has made her irrational. She thinks the gardener has moved the body. But her devotion to Jesus is incredible. She is not going to give up.

She is even respectful to this person, who she believes is responsible. She calls him “sir.” And she is willing to take the body of Jesus with her and leave.

In many ways Mary’s first encounter with the risen Savior reminds me of every believers first encounter with Christ. In the beginning of our faith we are unable to see the bigger picture. We are unable to see Jesus for who He is.

Jesus asks us, “whom do you seek?’ In other words, what kind of Messiah are you looking for? Are you looking for a Jesus who meets your every need and fixes your every problem, or are you looking for a Jesus who forgives you of your sin and saves your soul for eternity. Who do you seek when you seek Jesus?

So, the first thing we saw in this passage was Mary’s grief. Mary was overcome by her belief that she had lost Jesus and couldn’t find Him.

The second thing we saw was Mary’s encounter. Mary encountered angels and she encountered a Jesus she didn’t recognize.

The final thing I want to show you in this passage is:

III. Mary’s Joy Vs. 16-18

What we see here is Mary’s sorrow turns to Joy when she recognizes Jesus for who He is.

Notice Vs. 16 “Jesus saith unto her, Mary.”

This is one of the great reveals of the bible. Jesus doesn’t wait very long before revealing Himself to Mary. But, notice the way He reveals Himself is personal. He calls her by name. This is an example of the personal relationship Christ wants to have with each of His followers.

Look at Matthew 10:29–31 ““Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. “But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. “So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.”

Even the Old Testament reinforces the idea of a personal God. Turn over to Psalm 139:1–6 “O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, And are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it.”

In John 10:14-15 Jesus gave Himself the tittle of the Good Shepard who knows His people and His people know Him. And here in John 20: 16 He calls Mary by name.

Notice the way Mary responds to Jesus is intimate and personal. Vs. 16 “She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.”

Again, we are given an example to follow here. Just like Mary, we have to turn ourselves from the world. We are to turn ourselves from the sin, and we are to turn ourselves to Christ.

The word “Rabboni” was a term of respect and honor. This was obviously a name Mary used for Jesus.

John then breaks into the narrative to explain what this name means to his readers. The KJV renders this as “Master,” and I like that because that is truly what Jesus is. He is our master, but the idea of teacher, better describes what Mary actually said.

What this was is: an expression of joy by Mary in this moment. She was relieved and in an instant, the incredible grief she felt was changed. Her relationship with the one she loved was restored.

Some scholars have pointed out that the men were quick to intellectually grasp the meaning of the empty tomb, but Mary was rewarded because of her emotional connection to Jesus.

IDK if there is any truth to that. But it sure seems right from scripture, Christ intimately connects with those who are emotionally connected to Him.

Notice Vs. 17 “Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father:”

Obviously Mary’s excitement involved more than just words. She must have reached out and grabbed Jesus, refusing to let go. Perhaps afraid she might lose Him again.

The ESV interprets this phrase to say, “do not cling to Me.’ The NIV has it, “Don’t hold on to Me.’ So, there was more going on here than a touch. Mary in her excitement has grabbed a hold of Jesus.

Some scholars have see something more spiritual here as well, suggesting Jesus is telling Mary, things are different now. In other words, You must let go of the Messiah you once knew and embrace the Messiah I have become.

Some say He is preparing her heart for when He leaves again, by saying I am going to ascend to the Father and you have to be able to let go of Me!!

Other scholars say she couldn’t touch Him because of His glorified body. However, I don’t agree with that because later He will tell Thomas come and put your fingers in wounds, Come and touch my side Thomas and see it is me.

So, I do think there is something spiritual intended by Jesus response to Mary clinging to Him. Then notice there is a change in relationship.

Look at the rest of Vs. 17 “but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.”

Here we see Jesus describing His relationship with believers, and their relationship with the Father in a whole new way. Earlier in the gospels Jesus referred to the disciples as His servants. And then In John 15:13-15 He referred to them as friends.

But now, For the first time, He calls them brethren. The disciples have become the half brothers of Jesus and have been officially adopted into the Kingdom of God. God is now my Father and your father.

This also applies to every believer today. We share in the privilege of God being our God and our Father the same way He is the God and Father of Christ. The death, resurrection, and ascent of Christ forever changed the relationship with God of all who believe.

Notice Vs. 18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her.

As an obedient disciple of Christ Mary did what she was told. She went and testified of what she had seen and heard, and this is prescriptive for all disciples today.

This is an example of what we are supposed to do as believers and as a church. We are to proclaim what Jesus has spoken to us. But how do we do that? through His Word.

Every believer should know the bible well enough to quote an appropriate passage whatever the situation. We should be able to convey God’s truth to the world. Matthew 28:18–20 “And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.””

Conclusion

We saw three things from this passage. We saw Mary’s grief, Mary’s encounter, and Mary’s joy. She loved Jesus so much her sorrow was turned to joy be the love of the risen Savior.

In the same way we can have joy In spite of the sorrow we face in this world. When we focus on the fact that Christ is no longer in the tomb, but He is alive and on the throne today, because He is our God and we are His people. Because Christ is alive, we to shall live!!