He is Risen! -Postcard Friendship Friday #354

“But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet.

“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." Saying this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.

“Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?"

“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, ‘Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’

“Mary Magdalene went and said to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord;’ and she told them that He had said these things to her.”

~John 20:11-18

I can only imagine the tenderness in His voice, as He said her name.

I can only imagine the joy and awe Mary Magdalene must have felt. When she realized who He was she could hardly keep from throwing her arms around Him.

Dear Friends, He calls all of us by name.  He sees our endless tears--through His wounds he brings healing to our deepest hurts. He is Risen!  He is Risen indeed...such is the true meaning of Easter.  A joyous Easter to you all!

And Happy Postcard Friendship Friday.


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Mary and the Empty Tomb

The story of Mary Magdalene's visit to the empty tomb is captivating.  As a child I loved to think about this lovely woman's encounter with the risen Lord.

It was early in the morning on the first day of the week after the Lord had been crucified and buried.  Mary Magdalene went to visit the tomb where He had been buried.

But when she arrived, she was astonished to discover the massive stone the Romans had placed over the opening, had been rolled away from the entrance.  The official seal had been broken and the guards who'd been assigned to watch the tomb were nowhere to be found.  The tomb was empty.

She must have been in a state of shock as she ran to where the disciples were gathered, to tell them the tomb was empty. Peter and another disciple didn't believe her, so they returned with her to the tomb, to see for themselves.

When they entered, Peter saw the discarded linen burial cloths. He must have been completely stunned to find the tomb was actually empty.  Then the two men left together, leaving Mary outside the tomb weeping.  Her eyes blurred with tears, she noticed someone standing nearby.  It was the Lord, but she didn't recognize him.

"Woman, why are you crying?" He asked.

Mary, believing He was a gardener cried out, "Sir, if you have taken my master away, tell me where he is so that I can go to him."

In a tender voice the Lord said her name, "Mary!"

When He spoke her name, suddenly Mary knew who He was. "Teacher," she cried through her tears.  She ran to Him and in her great joy, she grabbed Him and Hugged him.

"Stop clinging to me," The Lord said with a grin (or so I  imagined), "for I have not yet ascended to my Father. "Now, go and tell my brothers that you have seen me and that I am going to return to my Father."

So Mary ran to find the disciples rejoicing and saying, "I have seen the Lord."  And indeed, He was alive--before the Lord went up into Heaven, He visited many people throughout the land. Then He was caught up into the clouds.

Have a lovely Easter weekend everyone!