Who Will See Jesus?
Scripture Reading: John 20: 1–18
“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,” John 20:15–16.
Who Will See Jesus?
Father God, we thank you for the majesty of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We thank you because our purpose on earth is to worship your Majesty. Give us the grace to see you clearly in our lives so that we may worship you with all our hearts.
“The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home. 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,” John 20:1–14.
Mary was determined to find Jesus and, upon hearing his voice, called him “Master,” verse 16. Then, “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,” verses 17–18.
Why was Mary so blessed as to see Jesus? If we want to see the resurrected Jesus in our lives, take note of these seven points:
Mary sought Jesus early, while it was still dark and the others were sleeping.
Mary communicated her finding to the other disciples. If you communicate to others your experience with Jesus, you will see Jesus in action. There is nowhere else that we see the power of the resurrected Jesus except out there in the mission field where we are busy for Him.
Mary was not satisfied with anything less than Jesus. Though the disciples left after seeing the empty tomb, Mary did not. She wanted to see Jesus. In this day, many of us turn aside from seeking Jesus and instead seek great men or women of God.
Mary was not satisfied with angelic ministrations, but with Jesus. When the angels appeared to her and gave her the messages, she did not say, “Okay, I have seen angels. It’s over.” She continued to tarry until the Lord came.
Mary was consistent and focused on seeing Jesus.
Mary was willing to listen until she heard His voice.
Mary recognized Jesus’ voice.
Prayer Points:
Those who possess these seven attributes will see the resurrected Jesus active in their lives. May Jesus show up for you. Father God, give us the grace to seek Jesus early, to communicate our experiences with Him to others, to be dissatisfied when men come instead of Jesus, to be dissatisfied when angels come instead of Jesus, to be committed to seeing Him, and to listen for and recognize His voice. O Lord, like Mary, let us see the resurrected Jesus. Amen.
