She Saw Something More

And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.  John 20:12

A remarkable sighting to be sure, and yet it becomes more so with the rest of the story. Peter and John had been there and gone into the tomb before Mary. John had seen the linen graveclothes lying there. Peter had gone in and seen the graveclothes and the head cloth folded, and both had gone in and seen the place where the body should have been. But neither disciple had seen any angels in the tomb. And Peter and John did not turn to see... a gardener! Wait, no, it was not the gardener as she thought, but the Lord Himself. As we read the story in the comfort of our homes so many years later, we might pause to wonder why it was that Mary of Magdala was privileged to see so much more than Peter and John. We may never know why one and not another in the miracles all around us. 

John later reports that he saw and believed that Jesus had risen from the dead. He did not seem to know what to do about it though, for both he and Peter went to their respective homes with this great knowledge. Mary, meanwhile, gets to meet the risen Lord Jesus first. Did Peter and John rush right by that Gardener? We may never know. 

Let us not rush through life so that we miss the Lord standing there waiting to greet us in His word, or in a song of praise, or perhaps one day in person. 

Bucky