Psalm 119:9-16 Colossians 3:1-8 John 20:1-18
Not So Great Expectations
It has often been said that if you aim at nothing, you are sure to hit it. After having been warned repeatedly about the forthcoming betrayal, arrest, trial, and execution of Jesus, one would have thought that the disciples would have been prepared. But this is not the case by any stretch of the imagination. The confusion and mass abandonment of our Lord that began at his arrest follows through all the way to the resurrection.
It is a rather embarrassing and sad testimony to the fickleness and fallibility of humanity. Remember, they had the witness of the Old Testament. They had three years of intensive teaching and training by the one who is, in many ways, the author of those Scriptures. They had all his warnings…he warned them at least three times about his imminent betrayal, arrest, sentencing, and crucifixion in the Synoptic Gospels (1. Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22; 2. Matthew 17:22-23; Mark 9:30-32; Luke 9:43-45; 3. Matthew 20:17-19; Mark 10:32-34; Luke 18:31-34), and there are numerous allusions to his death in John (2;19-22; 10:11, 17-18; 12:23-33, and 13:18-38)…and yet they seemed to be taken by surprise. Of all the male disciples, only John stood with the women at the foot of the cross.
But probably, the most tragic of all, is the pitiful state of the disciples after the death and hasty burial of Jesus. All of them went into hiding. More than likely, the primary reason for their inability to process the death of Jesus was the fact that their own understanding and expectation of the Messiah was radically different from what Jesus came to do. Their presuppositions clouded the message, and the warnings of Jesus got muddled in the space between his lips and their ears.
But think of how people repeatedly either ignored or misinterpreted God’s holy law. The law was meant, not only to teach people about the holiness of God and about the way things were designed to function, but it was also meant to be a deterrent. But it didn’t always work out that way, did it? For instance, even though one would think that if the people knew that stealing would mean paying back at least fourfold, that that would stop them from stealing…but it didn’t, did it? People still went on stealing.
And then there were those who conveniently changed the plain meaning of the law to accommodate their own ideas. Like when Jesus asked the Pharisees and Scribes: “…why do you break the commandments of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, ‘Honour your father and your mother,’ and ‘whoever reviles father or mother must surely die’. But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” he need not honour his father’. So, for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God.”
Ignoring the Word of God and misinterpreting the Word of God are equally wrong and equally disastrous in their consequences. And sometimes it is harder to unlearn what you were taught and once believed to be true, than it is to learn something fresh for the first time. I think that is one of the reasons the disciples had a problem believing Jesus about the crucifixion. They had been taught one thing…they had “heard that it was said”, to use Jesus’ language in the Sermon on the Mount…but when he tried to correct their thinking, they could not make the switch. Well, then there is only one way left to learn and that is the hard way.
The Gospel for today begins with a group of women coming to the tomb to complete the burial rituals they were unable to finish because of the Sabbath. If you recall, there had not been sufficient time to complete the burial rituals because Jesus was crucified, not just the day before the Sabbath, but on the Eve of Passover, which made that day a high holy day. That’s why Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus had packed the corpse with aromatic spices to delay decomposition so that they could do what was customary for burials after the Sabbath and the first night of Passover had ended.
But what I want you to note here is that none of the followers of Jesus expected the resurrection. The women were coming to the tomb to deal with a dead body…not a living Lord.
John tells us that it was the first day of the week, in other words, by Judean reckoning, the third day since Jesus died on the cross. Friday, ending at sunset, the first day, Saturday, ending at sunset, the second day, and now Sunday morning, the third day. Now, this is important, not only because it fulfils our Lord’s predictions and his comparisons between himself and Jonah, but also because it is a fulfilment of an Old Testament promise from Hosea 6:2: “After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him.”
This particular Scripture may be what Paul had in mind when he wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures…” Now, some scholars have questioned whether Hosea was speaking about the Messiah because he used the plural form of the first-person pronoun instead of the third-person singular…in other words he wrote “us” and “we” instead of “him” and “he”. “…on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him.”
But I believe that this is not a mistake or a contradiction, but rather that it demonstrates the unity that exists between Jesus and his people, which is reflected in what Paul said in our Epistle reading for today: “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”
Or, as he said in Ephesians 2:4-6: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved – and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus…”
In other words, Jesus’ resurrection on the third day ensures our resurrection with such absolute certainty that the Scriptures, in this case, Hosea and Paul, view the two as synonymous. Perhaps we need to stop and just think about that for a moment. Jesus’ resurrection on the third day ensures our resurrection with such absolute certainty that the Scriptures, in this case, Hosea and Paul, view the two as synonymous.
Because he has died, we have died with him. Because he is risen, we are risen in him.
Now think about this. The women approaching the tomb on the first day of that week, already shared in a resurrection they knew nothing about…or at least they knew as much about their resurrection in Jesus as they did about the life they had been given by their Lord’s death.
You see, our salvation does not depend on our cognitive ability to understand or accept what God has done for us. When Jesus spoke that final word on the cross, tetelestai, “it is finished”, indicating that he had accomplished all he had set out to do through his incarnation and that the new creation had, in fact, begun…when he spoke that final word, none of his followers understood the full implications of what they had witnessed. And, I dare say, none of us can ever fully comprehend the greatness of the cross.
But to return to our story here, John tells us the women fled the scene. It is interesting to note that he only mentions Mary Magdalene here, although we know from the other Gospels the women were all together. However, note that when she reported what she has witnessed she used the first-person plural form “we”: “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” So, even though John only mentions her, we know that she was not alone.
Now, the women fled because they may have been afraid that the body had been stolen by the authorities or that the grave robbers could still have been busy with their grisly deed. You see, robbing tombs was actually quite common at the time. The Emperor Claudius, who reigned as Caesar from AD 41 to AD 54, decreed that those found robbing graves were to be executed. So, we assume, anyone engaged in such a practice, would not hesitate to silence a group of women. So, wisely, they fled to fetch the men…not that their behaviour from the arrest on was any indication of courage, but I digress.
Again, it may be that John was simply being his redactor-like self and so, like with the women and Mary Magdalene, he only mentioned Simon Peter and John here. And yet, as seems to be the case with the other Gospels, all the disciples were present in the room when the women burst in. It is possible that they were singled out here because they were two of the three “inner circle group”. Or it could be that in John’s mind, Peter and John represented two extreme ends of the courage spectrum, Peter having denied Jesus while John was the only male disciple present at the cross…who knows.
Another interesting detail left out of John’s account is that the women all encountered the risen Jesus as a group according to Matthew 28:9-10. The most common explanation of what appears to be a discrepancy in the retelling of the event, is what is known as the Sequential Encounters Hypothesis. This view suggests that Mary Magdalene initially went to the tomb with other women but, after seeing the stone removed, ran ahead alone to tell Peter and John (John 20:1-2). Meanwhile, the other women stayed, encountered the angel, and left (Matthew 28:5-8). After Peter and John had visited the tomb and had also left, Mary remained alone at the tomb and encountered Jesus first (John 20:14-17). The other women then met Jesus later as they all left to tell the disciples (Matthew 28:9-10). This explanation allows for Mary Magdalene to have the first individual encounter with Jesus while also allowing for a later group appearance to the other women.
However, what I want you to notice here is her statement to Peter and John. “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Besides the obvious use of the first-person plural “we”, as we’ve already examined, there are two things we need to see here.
First, she assumed someone had stolen the body, either the authorities or grave robbers. “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.”
But second, and probably more important, is the fact that her statement reveals once again that there was no anticipation of the resurrection despite what Jesus had told them more than once. Mary and the other women had gone to see a body…nothing more.
As we read here, Peter and John reacted immediately and the two raced to the tomb. John arrived first, perhaps because he was younger, but it was the impulsive Peter who ran on by and entered the tomb itself.
The fact that John mentioned the grave-cloths is important because grave robbers would not have taken the time to unwrap the body, nor would they have removed the staggering amount of spices mentioned before, nor would they have neatly folded the grave-cloths and laid them on the slab. Those are all things they could have sold…they would not have left them behind.
Now, there have been various theories regarding these grave-cloths, including the famous “Shroud of Turin”, but what is important for us to note in that what was left behind was left behind! Jesus had forsaken his burial clothes forever because he had risen!
Another technical detail is that it was important that there were at least two men present at the tomb because firstly, the testimony of women carried little weight in that society, and secondly because the law demanded the evidence of two or three witnesses to establish any legal matter. However, both these men were equally clueless as verse 9 tells us. They did not yet understand the Scriptures.
Some scholars have claimed that there is a contradiction here as in verse 8 John tells us they “saw and believed” and then in verse 9 he said that “for as yet they did not understand”. But I think the word “believed” in verse 8 has to do with the report of the women…they did not believe the report of the women at first until they had seen the empty tomb for themselves…then they saw and believed what the women had told them. The word here does not refer to their comprehension of the resurrection which verse 9 seems to make clear.
But note the sad resignation of both men. They simply left the tomb, not knowing what else to do. As all hope was gone, why stick around an empty tomb? Even if they had found the body, so what? To them everything had died with Jesus.
But it seems the events had finally brought Mary Magdalene to the end of her wits. In many ways, she too was as resigned to the hopeless situation as Peter and John, only she did not leave. She stood rooted to the spot weeping. Who knows what she expected if anything.
Perhaps she just could not believe what she was witnessing…I know I will often look at the same place more than once when I’ve misplaced something important because I simply can’t believe that it is not where I thought it ought to have been! Have you ever done that?
Perhaps that is the reason why, once again, she stooped to look into the tomb…a tomb she knew was empty…and yet this time, as she did, she saw two angels sitting on the slab. The question they asked is at once comical as it is powerful. “Woman, why are you weeping?” She could have shot back, “I’m standing in the doorway of a tomb! Why do you think I’m weeping?” But, perhaps because of her intense grief, she was not even disturbed by the presence of these two heavenly beings…she simply wanted to know where Jesus’ body was.
Now, as she addressed the angels, it is possible that she became aware of a presence behind her because she turned away from them and then saw someone she mistook for the gardener. Remember, it was early dawn and probably still not quite light so this is not so strange as it may seem. Besides, she may have temporarily blinded by her copious tears.
I do think it may be important that John used the word “gardener” here…he could simply have said she saw a man standing there…but he specifically used the word “gardener”. Remember, after God had created Adam, somewhere outside the Garden of Eden…as I mentioned last time, if Jewish folk law is to be believed God created Adam at the same place where Jerusalem and the Temple would later stand and where, they believed Adam finally died…nevertheless, we are told in Genesis 2:15 that after God had created Adam outside the Garden, he took him and put him into the Garden of Eden to work it and to keep it…in other words, to be a gardener. Two Gardens, Two Gardeners, the first Adam and the second Adam. Perhaps this is important, perhaps not…
Nevertheless, the most deeply moving moment in this narrative is surely the exchange between this uncomprehending woman and her Lord. Notice that Jesus did not address her in the harsh, exasperated tone of a frustrated theology professor. No, rather there’s a tenderness in his inquiry. And even when she still failed to recognise even his voice, his use of her name indicates love, compassion, and care. In fact, that was all he needed to say. Her name. “Mary!” That was sufficient. Every bit of incredulity, unbelief, disbelief, doubt…it all crumbled in an instant and she rushed forward to embrace him.
In this joyous, emotional, and yes, perhaps even hysterical form of humble adoration, Mary still displayed an element of uncertainty, and so Jesus encouraged her not to hold on to the physical for fear of possibly losing him again. The word “cling” is a fairly strong word…like the words in the John Denver song, “Leaving on a Jet Plane”: “Hold me like you'll never let me go.”
But gently he told her that she needed to understand that as the risen conquering King, he would soon be ascending to his throne at the right hand of the Father to reign over all creation through his followers…followers like her…like you…like me. And as such, the relationship had changed. Her role now was no longer to care for him as she once did, but to bear witness to him.
And so, as she seems to have finally come to terms with the life-changing, monumental event of the resurrection, she returned to the disciples to become the first proclaimer of the Gospel. “I have seen the Lord,” she declared, and then she repeated what he had told her to say. That, in essence, is what an evangelist is. We simply repeat what he has told us.
It is astounding to think that after three years of the best possible training and after being warned so many times, and after hearing the promise of the resurrection more than once, it is astounding to think that the followers of Jesus had not understood the predictions of Jesus. Imagine how much pain and confusion could have been avoided if they had simply listened and believed.
However, I think we all know that if we bring this passage a little closer to home, we would no doubt find ourselves in the same situation. After all, has God not spoken to us through his Word more than once? “Fear not!” is the most repeated command in the Bible! The Scriptures are full of promises! And yet we are so often blinded by negative events or by emotion or by life itself, that we too are dazed and muddled rather than confident, hopeful, and expectant.
This is why it is important to not only know the Word of God well, but to also believe it and apply it…to hide it in our hearts, as the Psalmist tells us…so that when life takes a turn down somewhere we would rather not go, we take the Word with us into the shadows as the light that exposes the darkness for what it is. Only then will we be witnesses of hope rather than witnesses of hopelessness. The world has no hope…the world is aiming at nothing and sadly, they never fail to hit their target…and because they have no target, they also have no great expectation.
But as followers of Jesus, we share in his resurrected life, and we are seated on the same throne from which he rules and reigns over all creation. Because of the resurrection, we have the great expectation of a life that now is and yet is also still to come.
We have hope, dearest beloved brethren…we have an aim…we have a target. May this reality become more and more part of the warp and the woof of your existence in this world, that you may be living testimonies of hope in the midst of hopelessness.
Shall we pray?
© Johannes W H van der Bijl 2025.
