The tomb was empty. Peter and John had confirmed that point. After they left, Mary of Magdala stood weeping near the gaping doorway. John records it this way:
“But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’ ” Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.” (John 20:11–18, NASB95)
Mary is the first to see the open tomb, and she is the first to see the resurrected and glorified Christ. Not Peter, James, or John. Neither was that first appearance to any of the other disciples, Mary His mother, or other family members. Nor was it to the Jewish leaders or the Roman government. That first appearance was to Mary of Magdala.
We only know bits and pieces of Mary’s story. We know that she had been demon-possessed at one time and that Jesus cast the demons out. (Mark 16:9, Luke 8:2) We also know that Mary, along with other women, traveled with Jesus and the disciples. Luke records that the women financially supported the ministry (Luke 8:1-3). Besides the scene at the empty tomb, that is all we really know about Mary Magdalene.
That vacuum of information has left room for all sorts of speculation and myth. Push those aside. The truth is that Mary was a follower of Christ. Jesus found her broken of spirit and loaded with sin – He healed her and set her free. The same as all of us who call Jesus Lord. Mary followed Jesus, even to His death at Golgotha and His burial by Joseph and Nicodemus. In a way, Jesus’ words to a pharisee also apply to Mary Madelene. “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” (Luke 7:47, NASB95) Mary loved much. Lastly, Mary was the first evangelist to declare the good news of Christ’s resurrection.
We don’t know what happened next. She, along with others, fades into the background. But there is something to glean about what we do know. Mary and the other women were an important part of Christ’s ministry. Far too often, the church has devalued the contribution of women in the continuing work of Christ. Our sisters in Christ are a vital and needed vessels of God’s grace. I know that some of you are egalitarian in this manner and that others are complementarian, and that a few are downright paternalistic. For those that may not know those terms – egalitarian basically means equality in all things; complementarian sets concrete roles based on identified differences, and paternalistic leaves the women out altogether. We are not going to solve that particular disagreement in a short devotional. Suffice it to say that Mary, a woman, was the first – and that should tell us something about how God sees women.
As I think about these things, I wonder something. I wonder if Mary Magdalene isn’t symbolically the antithesis of Eve. Mary Magdalene was, after all, the first to see the empty tomb, the risen Christ, and the first to declare that good news. That’s the reverse of Eve, who was the first to believe Satan’s lie, eat the forbidden fruit, and also the first to spread the lie to another. And yet we dare not take that too far. While Eve is the mother of all living, Jesus is the author and completer of our faith, not Mary Magdalene. But whenever anyone believes in their heart that Christ raised from the dead (Romans 10:10) they have heard Mary Magdalene’s report to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord.”
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