Whom Are You Seeking? - John 20:13 -16

 Then 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.” 14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” - John 20:13-16.

    Mary Magdalene worshiped her Lord while he was alive and present with her. She held fast to her faith in Him even before He was crucified. Scripture tells us that she was a fixture among the disciples during Christ’s last days (Luke 8:2, John 19:25).
    Mary had been exorcized of seven demons by Christ. To all of us whom have been saved in Christ - how many demons has He exorcized from our lives? It is little wonder that Mary worshiped Jesus; the miracle had left an indelible faith in her heart. She gladly would have followed Jesus to the ends of the earth. But His time was at hand. Prophecy had to be fulfilled. There had to be a way for reconciliation to take place between man and God - Christ was to be both the fulfillment of prophecy and that reconciliation.
    What transpired upon the cross was not only the temporary death of Christ’s humanity, but the divine defeat of death itself!  The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. - 1Corinthians 15:26.   
    Christ had told His disciples of His impending “death” and resurrection.  From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. - Matthew 16:21. The apostles were fully aware of Jesus’ words, yet they still, somehow, didn’t understand. For them, to die was final; to die was the end of life, not the beginning.
    Twice, Mary was asked, “Why are you weeping?” Her answer reflected her heart-felt angst and that of the rest of His disciples - “They have taken away my Lord.” The sorrow and confusion of that moment were fed by the fact that Mary anticipated seeing her Lord and Savior in the state of death, not alive and standing before her. Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. - Mark 16:1. It was common in those days for the departed to be embalmed, as it were, with expensive herbs and spices. This passage and its parallel in Luke 24 is evidence that Mary believed Christ to be dead.
    After Christ asked Mary why she was weeping He added one more question - “Whom are you seeking?” Still under the haze of disillusionment Mary mistook her Lord for the gardener until Jesus called he by name. It was though a pall was lifted from her eyes as she saw the risen Lord, Jesus Christ, standing before her - in the flesh!
    Jesus knew whom Mary was seeking all along. Her deep-felt longing for Him was evident in her very demeanor. And in those moments when we find ourselves disillusioned with our faith because of life’s circumstances we must never fall into such despondency or hopelessness. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. - Jeremiah 29:13.
    Like Mary Magdalene, let us constantly be seeking the Lord with all our heart. Let us ‘go out quickly from the tomb with fear and joy and bring His Word,’ to all the world! Happy Resurrection Day! Happy Easter.