“In the Garden” – John 20:10-18

Where’s your “quiet place?”

I think most people have a place in their imagination where they can go to find serenity. For some, it may be a real place that they visit on vacation. For others, it may be only in their imagination. The place can be real or not. It can be outdoors or inside. The outdoor setting could be a seashore or a mountain area. It may be on the porch overlooking a peaceful setting. The more vivid imagination can see the breeze blowing, perhaps a gentle rain falling or graceful clouds in the sky.

An indoor setting may be the kitchen table with a coffee or tea in a cup, looking out the window at the landscape. It may be a favorite room like a den or a study. There may be a fire glowing in the fireplace while sitting in a comfortable chair or sofa.

In our quiet places, do we imagine ourselves spending time with Jesus? Sitting in a quiet place with Jesus would be a wonderful place for fellowship and prayer with our Lord.

Today’s hymn evokes a place and conversation with Jesus that brings us to peace and comfort.

Background

The hymn was written by C. Austin Miles in 1912. Mr. Miles worked with a music publishing firm, and whether it was related to his career or a hobby, Mr. Miles told the story that he was sitting in the dark room with his Bible. His Bible opened to the passage we’re looking at today. He said it was as if he was transported to the garden, and he watched Mary at the empty tomb. He saw her leave. He watched as John appeared, then Peter. He watched the two disciples leave, and Mary returned. He watched the exchange between Mary and Jesus.

When his vision was over, he said he wrote the words of his best known hymn. He wrote the music later that evening.

The events that are recorded in today’s passage speak to a very personal encounter between Jesus and Mary. Mary Magdalene had watched as Jesus had been tortured and crucified. She had watched as His body had been carried away to the borrowed tomb. The time had not allowed for the proper preparation of the body for burial, and now Mary and a few of the other women had come to cover the body of their Master with the spices customary with burial.

As the women neared the tomb, wondering how they would be able to remove the boulder covering the tomb, they noticed with some consternation that the boulder had already been rolled back, and that the tomb where Jesus lay was open. Had someone come already to properly prepare Jesus’ body for burial?

As they drew closer, they noticed that the body was no longer in the tomb. They were confused. They had watched Jesus die. They knew that a dead person could not leave a tomb of their own volition.

The women ran to where the disciples were hiding and told them that someone had stolen Jesus’ body. Peter and John immediately ran to the tomb, John arriving first. Peter, the older of the two disciples, reached the tomb and, unlike John, Peter entered the tomb. He saw the empty grave clothes and that the shroud covering the face was neatly folded and placed to the side. John finally gathered the courage and also entered the empty tomb. Neither men understood what had happened, and returned into hiding without any answers.

The Bible tells us that Mary returned to the garden where the tomb was located. Alone in her misery and confusion, she returned to the only place she knew to look for Jesus. It is this moment that Mr. Miles was inspired to write about and that we look at today.

Central Truth: Being with Jesus brings peace.

Mary experienced:

1. comfort (10-16)

“Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, ‘Woman, why are you crying?’ ‘They have taken my Lord away,’ she said, ‘and I don’t know where they have put Him.’ At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. ‘Woman,’ He said, ‘why are you crying? What is it you are looking for?’ Thinking He was the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have put Him and I will get Him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned toward Him and cried out in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher).

This wasn’t a good time for Mary Magdalene. I don’t know if she was a morning person or not, but her morning had been shaken and she was in a sea of confusion. The trauma of the previous days and of preparing a body for burial was hard enough, but now to find the tomb empty and no answers to what happened to the body just compounded the difficulties of the day. Her tears were tears of frustration, sorrow and probably anger.

I don’t know why Mary looked inside the tomb again. Was she hoping to suddenly discover that she’d been mistaken, that the body was really there? Was she looking to confirm what she already knew? It may be that she was looking because that was the last place she could identify as the place where Jesus should be.

When she looked, her day took another turn. The tomb was no longer empty. Instead, two angels sat in the tomb, one at the head and the other at the feet where Jesus’ body had lain. The angels asked a simple question: “Why are you crying?” She explained her tears to them. Perhaps she heard a sound behind her, because she turns away from the angels and the tomb and sees a man standing not too far from her.

The Bible says she did not recognize Jesus, and some people find it hard to believe that she could not recognize Him. I think that’s too harsh. I’ve been places where I didn’t expect to see someone I knew. It took me a few moments to realize that I knew that person. It may have taken them greeting me before I came to the realization. When was the last time you went to a gravesite and expected to see the deceased there waiting to greet you? In all my years, I have yet to have that happen. Add to that the lighting was probably not great. The sun was still low in the sky, and the early morning sun filtering through the vegetation of the garden may have created shadows and difficulty in seeing.

There are a few reasons why she may not have recognized Jesus when she first saw Him, but surely she would have recognized His voice, because Jesus asks her the same question that the angels asked: “Why are you crying? Who is it you’re looking for?” Again, not expecting to see or hear Jesus, it’s understandable that Mary would not immediately recognize the voice.

Mary, assuming the person who is speaking to her is the gardener, asks Him the reasonable question of did He know where Jesus’ body was? Again, a reasonable question. She knew that the grave had been a borrowed grave, it is possible that the owner, Joseph of Arimathea, had found a more permanent gravesite. All Mary wanted to do was take care of the body of someone she loved.

Here is where Mary finds the comfort. Jesus calls to her, “Mary.” Just the speaking of her name, the realization that the gardener knew her, allowed her to finally see and understand. All the turmoil of the morning suddenly disappeared when she heard her name. The heartache of the weekend turned to surprise, wonder, joy and peace as she came to the full awareness that Jesus was not dead. His body had not been taken. He was alive! He was standing before her, calling to her as He did before.

In the other gospel accounts, only Matthew tells us that the women—Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James—saw Jesus. Matthew tells us the women clutched at His feet and worship Him. John simply tells us that Mary called Jesus “Rabboni,” Aramaic for “teacher.”

There are times in our lives when we may feel as though we’ve reached the end of the road. It’s at those times when we feel as though the darkness has descended and shows no possibility of lifting. Our sorrow is such that we can’t imagine ever feeling happiness again. It’s at those times that we can turn to our garden and find Jesus waiting, calling us by our name. He knows us. He knows our hurt. He knows our fears and our doubts. Come to the garden and find the comfort that only Jesus can give.

2. direction (17-18)

“Jesus said, ‘Do not hold on to Me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, “I am returning to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.”’ Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: ‘I have seen the Lord!’ And she told them that He had said these things to her.”

I considered looking at the passage concerning the Mount of Transfiguration to accompany the hymn, “In the Garden.” It is on that mountain that Peter offers to build shelters for Moses, Elijah and Jesus. Peter’s hope was to stay in that glorious place and never leave Jesus’ presence.

That must have been how Mary felt. She thought she had lost Jesus forever. Now, she was there with Him, and the feelings that were sweeping over her probably wanted her to never let this moment end.

Jesus had more important things to take care of, and He had to tell Mary she had important things to do, too.

First, Jesus needed Mary to know that He had to return to the Father. There are those who maintain that Jesus’ ascension that is recorded in Acts 1 was the final ascension. They believe that Jesus ascended to the Father on the day of His resurrection. It is possible this is what Jesus is telling Mary. Jesus had someone else He needed to be.

He’s also telling her that the relationship she had with Jesus has changed. No longer is He her teacher; now He is her Savior and her Lord. The change is at once subtle and epic. She had known the Jesus that had lived and taught as He headed to the cross. Now that He had laid down His life and had taken it up again, He had returned to His glory and was now worthy of worship and praise. She and the others would come to see Jesus in a new light, and the relationship would never be the same again.

Mary had a chore to do, as well. She was to go to Jesus’ brothers and tell them that He had risen. Notice Jesus’ words: “I am returning to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.” Jesus’ words separate Him from the others, because Jesus was not just another person. He is the Son of Man and the Son of God. He is Savior, Lord, exalted at the right hand of the Father.

When we come to the garden with Jesus, we want to stay with Him, but the truth is we always need to leave the garden and go tell His good news, just as Mary did. Jesus goes with us from the garden, but He leads us to share Him with our world.

3. We, too, can meet Jesus “in the garden.”

The hymn speaks to us of personal moments with Jesus. It speaks to us of fellowship and a close relationship with the One who saves us. We see it in the way Jesus referred to His disciples. Notice, He didn’t tell Mary to go to the disciples. He told her to go to His brothers. In the Upper Room, Jesus had told the disciples they were His friends. Those promises are for you and me, too.

Paul speaks of our fellowship with Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 1:9, he writes, “God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.” He also speaks of our fellowship with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in 2 Corinthians and Philippians. John writes about our fellowship with God in 1 John.

The point of the New Testament is to let us know that God’s grace enables you and me to have a close, personal fellowship with Him through Christ. We are made God’s children by God’s choice. We are reconciled to Him through Christ and we are a new creation. We have eternal life, and we know the Father and the Son through the Holy Spirit.

Conclusion

Almost everyone has a quiet place, a place they go to, either in their mind or a real place. When we go to our quiet place, let us remember to invite Jesus to join us. He will give us comfort, direction and fellowship.