Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.”
NL Daily Devotion for Sunday, April 17, 2022
by Dr. Kimberly Leetch, Clergy Stuff
Main Idea: There is an excitement and urgency to the work that the risen Jesus has set out for us to do.
With love, tenderness, and respect, Jesus’ followers had placed his body in a tomb and had wrapped it with spices in linens to preserve it and honor him as their king. What a terrible shock it must have been for his followers—Mary, Peter, John—to discover that his body had been removed from the tomb!
Without the body, there is no closure, and healing from grief is drawn out—there is no end when the loss is unknown.
As if they hadn’t been through enough, the disciples now had to face this final insult. How would they move on? But then, a glimmer of hope—witnesses (angels) who might know what happened. And then the gardener—surely he would know what had happened. And then the greatest surprise ever to occur on this earth—the gardener was Jesus himself!
What a whirlwind of emotions Mary must have felt! From the lowest low to the highest high in an instant! But there was no time to linger—Jesus had work for Mary and the other disciples. Mary returned immediately to share the good news. He is risen!
There is an immediacy, anticipation, and excitement about this event. It seems there is no time to revel in the miracle; there is work to be done and it is pressing. Mary is already sent—the others soon will be.
Sometimes I think many of us have become too complacent in heeding God’s call. We have lost our sense of urgency. Maybe this Easter we can revel in the miracle of Jesus’ resurrection—for a moment—and then get to work! Whether the work is small or big, the urgency and excitement we bring can effect change in the world.
