April 16 I Thursday

1 Samuel 30-31

Luke 13:23-35

“…no one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.”   —1 Corinthians 12:3

Why do we ask questions? We ask questions to gain information such as, “Where is the nearest gas station?” Or we can ask questions to find what is going on inside a person like, “Why in the world did you do that?” Then there are questions we ask to make a person face the reality of their own situation; for example, “Why do you think your wife left you?” That is a hard question but it exposes issues that are going on inside that one never faced before.

When Jesus asked Mary Magdalene, “Why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” (John 20:15) and the disciples, “Why are you troubled?” (Luke 24:38). He was not trying to solicit information but to cause them to face, “what is going on inside of me?” Mary was weeping because she thought someone took away the body of Jesus. But everything changed for her when Jesus said, “Mary” and immediately, Mary turned and said, “Rabboni”, which means “Teacher, Lord, Master.” With the disciples, Jesus appeared amongst them saying, “Peace be with you!” But they were troubled because they thought they saw a ghost. Jesus told them, “Look at My hands and My feet. It is I Myself! Touch Me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have” (Luke 24: 36, 39). When the disciples recognized Jesus, they were overjoyed.

For Mary, Jesus spoke her name; and for the disciples, Jesus showed them His body. When we hear the voice of the Lord Jesus speaking in our heart and see His wounds, then it all makes sense and we realize He is real. Paul tells us, “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:14).

When we know the risen Christ and come into a relationship with Him through the Spirit, we humbly respond to His calling, His speaking and His working in our heart. We say, “Lord, I face my sin and I confess it and turn from it. I acknowledge that You died my death, rose again, and are alive today.” Like Mary, we do not need to keep searching, for we have found Him in whom there is life to the fullest and, like the disciples, we do not need to let our hearts be troubled as we place our trust in Him.

The answer to Mary’s tears, Mary’s searching and the disciples’ fear is the risen Christ.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I surrender all that I am to You. Forgive me of my sins and come live in my life. Make me a child of God. Thank You, Lord.