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Day 333

John 20:11-18 "JUST ONE WORD"

Day 333 – John 20

JUST ONE WORD

What kind of impact could just one word have on a person? Just one word from Jesus to Mary, and instantly her tears dried up! Just one word, and her night was turned to day! Just one word, and her sorrows ended immediately. Let us read this brief sentence with a deep sense of awe.

“Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!'”
John 20:16a

Just one word – ‘Mary”. That was enough! She had heard that beautiful voice before! There was only One person who had that unique voice! His voice was inimitable! Many had addressed her by her very common name, over and over again. But there was only One Person who could speak volumes by the way He pronounced her name! “Mary!”

Could it be? Could this really be the voice of her beloved Master? Could it be possible? Was she having delusions? Could her love for her Teacher cause her to be mistaken? How could this gardener imitate the voice of her beloved Teacher? Impossible! John tenderly recorded her swift response!

“She turned and said to Him,
‘Rabboni!’ (which is to say, ‘Teacher’).
John 20:16b

She also had just one word to say to Jesus. Just one word was enough. He would understand what she meant when she spoke in the Hebrew tongue, ‘Rabboni’. This was the language of her heart! Her heart leapt to her mouth as she cried out to greet her beloved Rabboni!

He was alive! He was truly alive! How could it be? But why couldn’t it be possible? Had He not raised people from the dead? Why should He be denied that which he had so freely given to others! Why couldn’t God raise Him from the dead?

These thoughts should have been in her mind before. However, sorrow drove these thoughts of faith far from her! With just one word, her faith was rekindled. Her Rabboni was alive! Death had not been able to overcome Him! He had conquered death!

The powerful joy that surged through her caused her to cling to Jesus! Perhaps, she fell at His feet and clung to Him for dear life. She would not let Him go this time! She had been through so much already. Nothing would separate her Master from her side again!

A PRECIOUS WORD FROM THE RISEN SAVIOUR!

As Mary clung to Jesus, He said very gently.

“Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended
to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to
them, ‘I am ascending to My Father, and your
Father, and to My God, and your God.'”
John 20:17

How wonderful it was to hear the voice of Jesus once again! But what was He saying? What did He mean?

The first part was obvious! He was right, of course! She shouldn’t be selfish. She shouldn’t be clinging to Him, as if she was the only one who loved Him. There were others who loved Him just as much. Surely, they too needed to know that He had risen from the dead! Yes, she must not cling to Him!

But wait, there was more! What was this profound truth Jesus was saying to her? How new and strange these words were. What did He mean?

“I have not yet ascended to My Father …”

Jesus had never spoken about going to His Father’s Presence in this way. The last time He mentioned that He was going to His Father, saw Him being crucified! What did He mean now, when He said that He had not yet ascended to His Father?

Did Jesus mean that He could just step into the Presence of His Father, ‘just like that’? If so, then she needed to learn even deeper lessons about her Teacher! Had His resurrection changed some things? Could He now, at will, be at her side, and also at will, present Himself to His Father in heaven? What profound words Jesus uttered! Yes, this was her beloved Master – the Only One who could speak such profound truths!

“My Father, and your Father …”

It was natural to hear Jesus speak of God as “My Father”. There were some who balked when they heard words like that! Surely, they reasoned, Jesus had blasphemed, by speaking of God in such an intimate way!

The Disciples had accepted His choice of words to describe God. He proved that He had a unique relationship with His Father. The intimacy that He enjoyed with God His Father was so obvious. He would spend hours talking to His Father in prayer. He would always make references to His Father. He sought always to glorify His Father.

But wait, did He really say, “My Father, and your Father”? How did He mean her to understand this phrase? Of course, no one could have that same unique relationship with the Father that Jesus enjoyed. But could the Disciples draw much closer to the Father? That would be wonderful. Could this be what Jesus meant?

“My God, and your God …”

God … Mary’s earlier understanding of God did not help her much. Thus she became possessed by seven demons! Then Jesus entered into the picture, and her life was dramatically changed! God became real. God became near and dear! Could Mary and her beloved Teacher address this great God in the same breath? Could she also call Him “Father … and God …” as Jesus had said?

What joy that would be if this was true! But of course it must be true. Had not Jesus, her beloved Rabboni said these things? Her heart was so full now! The empty ache was now filled with a new sense of joy and love for her Risen Teacher!