Whenever we say things like “I’m in the dark”, we usually mean that we don’t understand something, we’re confused or just don’t have the clarity we need. If we say “I’m going through a dark time”, we mean the circumstances and our emotional response to them are difficult and desolate. Darkness as a metaphor is never a positive image. Darkness is something we seek a solution to, a change from.
The creation account in Genesis begins in the dark: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and the earth was formless and chaotic, and darkness covered the surface of the deep”. God intervened and spoke light, order and life.
All of that went wrong when a man and a woman stood in a garden and rejected God’s rule. As a result, darkness, chaos and death again captivated the scene.
After a long time, there is another garden…a man and a woman are standing there…and a new creation is breaking out of the old. God once again dispels the darkness and shines a hope beyond our wildest dreams into the chaos of a broken world. Creation 2.0 has commenced.
We’re going to be reading John 20:1-18 this Sunday (and yes, I’m finally back in the lineup), the account of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.
The themes of new creation are all through John’s gospel, and his symbolism is almost heavy-handed in this section. He just really doesn’t want us to miss the point. All that Jesus did and taught was revealing what God is like and what God is up to – and here in his resurrection we see it in full bloom: redemption; new creation….RESURRECTION!
As you read this account, put yourself in the place of Peter and TDWJL (the disciple whom Jesus loved) – how do you think you would have reacted to Mary’s news? What would you think was going on initially?
V9 says Pete and TDWJL returned to their own home (literally, to themselves). What ways do we turn back to ourselves when we go through dark times?
Mary was inconsolable. She was on task: find the corpse of Jesus and get it re-buried. She was so miserable and fixated on that problem that she didn’t even realize the solution to her dilemma was standing right in front of her. What can that tell us about how we perceive our troubles – how should creation 2.0 affect our expectations?
If I asked you who the first evangelist, ambassador, teacher and missionary of the gospel was…who would you say? I know who v 18 says it was.
Hey…I’m really looking forward to this chapter! This should be some really encouraging stuff for us to explore! Hope to see you there!
WONDERWHAT 
Wow such awesome though provoking questions!! Glad your back Rob! Thoroughly enjoyed Patrick, Barb and Cole too!!!
I suppose if I was Peter or John, the recipient of Mary’s news, after all that I had already seen and experienced from Friday to Sunday …I imagine the first thought that would come to mind would have been an exasperated “what now”? Seriously isn’t enough, enough? They crucified Him now they can’t even let Him rest in peace…Once they got there and observed the scene though it does say John believed…I am guessing that he started putting the pieces together..Jesus had told him that he was going to the father. Maybe in going home, they were wanting to be alone to ponder the events and the recent evidence. I’m sure as we do when dark times or unsettling events occur they began questioning, wondering what this meant for them. Was this it for them in terms of their own lives? Maybe they began worrying they be the next victims of crucifixion? Were they supposed to spend the rest of their days in hiding? Jesus wasn’t there to protect them or to lead any more revivals? What were they supposed to do? Do they go back to fishing and try and forget all of this waiting to join Jesus when they die? What about that return He spoke of?
Mary in her tumultuous state couldn’t see the forest for the trees. Jesus was right there in the middle of her duress. Maybe in our dark times if we could realize that He is right beside us, just as He was in front of Mary and in the boat in the storm with the disciples, we could begin to ask different questions. Like, what is Jesus doing in these circumstances, what can I learn or glean about Him and His character through this experience. Begin asking Him to reveal Himself, His love, His plan or direction in our troubles instead of worrying and assuming the worst..
I LOVE the picture of Mary as the first evangelist!!!! This marginalized member of society is the first one to see and tell of Jesus’ resurrection!! In the blink of an eye Jesus takes her from miserable to minister!!!! God has a plan in the midst of our pain..He brings strength out of weakness, joy from sorrow and purpose out of our pain!! He is the ultimate table turner, nothing we face is in vain or beyond redemption by our Resurrected King!!!