Good morning. My name is Matthew Capone and I'm one of the pastors here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church and it's my joy to bring God's word to you this morning for Easter Sunday we're stepping out of our series in the book of Romans and we are picking up where we left off on our good Friday service if you were here on Friday you know we read through the entirety of John chapter 19 and so now we turn to
John chapter 20 with the story of the resurrection. Now there are multiple stories actually going on here in this one story. There is the story of Simon Peter. There's the story of John but the biggest story outside of Jesus' resurrection of course is the story of Mary Magdalene. I'm not going to spoil it for you. I'm not going to tell you up front. I just want you to ask. We're going to ask what is so special
about Mary and why does Mary in these 18 verses get more screen time than anyone else? Why does Mary steal the show? We're going to look at two things. We're going to look at Mary's love and Jesus' love and you don't need to remember it because it is the sermon title. It's on page 7 of your worship guide. In fact I invite you to turn with me there to John chapter 20. You'll find it on pages 6 and 7.
of your worship guide. And as we turn there remember Psalm 19 tells us that God's word is more precious than gold even the finest gold and it's sweeter than honey even honey that comes straight from the honeycomb. So that's why we read now John chapter 20 starting at verse 1.
Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early while it was still dark and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.
So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple the one whom Jesus loved and said to them
they have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we do not know where they have laid him.
So Peter went out with the other disciple and they were going toward the tomb.
Both of them were running together but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
And stooping to look in he saw the linen cloths lying there but he did not go in.
Then Simon Peter came following him and went into the tomb.
He saw the linen cloths lying there and the face cloth which had been on Jesus' head.
Not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.
Then the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in and he saw and believed.
For as yet they did not understand the scripture that he must rise from the dead.
Then the disciples went back to their homes.
Verse 11
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb.
And she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had lain.
One at the head and one at the feet.
They said to her, Woman, why are you weeping?
She said to them, They have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have laid him.
Having said this she turned around and saw Jesus standing but she did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom are you seeking?
Supposing him to be the gardener she said to him,
Sir, if you have carried him away tell me where you have laid him and I will take him away.
Jesus said to her, Mary.
She turned and said to him in Aramaic, Rabboni, which means teacher.
Jesus said to her, Do not cling to me for I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, I have seen the Lord and that he had said these things to her.
I invite you to pray with me as we come to this portion of God's word.
Our Father in heaven, we do thank you and praise you again most of all for the great mercy and grace that you've shown us in our salvation in Jesus Christ.
We thank you for calling and bringing us together again this morning.
We ask that you would be at work here and now in a special way by your Holy Spirit,
stirring up and softening our hearts that you'd remind us of the great truth of the gospel.
that you'd show us our need for it and that that would lead us to set our eyes on Jesus Christ.
That he'd be more beautiful and glorious to us than anything else.
We ask all of these things in his name. Amen.
Every year around this time, around Easter, there are plenty of memes and jokes and videos
around one of the funniest parts of the Bible, which is right here in this passage.
Okay.
It starts in verse 2.
Mary tells Peter and John that the tomb is empty.
And then,
oh, by the way, it's John because it says, verse 2,
the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.
John's the author of the gospel of John.
That's why it's called John.
So he's not going to use his own name.
Okay.
So he's referring to himself indirectly.
So Mary tells Peter and John,
and then we find out verse 4,
both of them go running together.
But the other disciple, that is John,
outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
And that's the joke.
Okay.
John, in his own gospel, which he writes,
lets everyone know that he is actually faster than Peter.
And in case we missed it,
he repeats it again in verse 8.
Then the other disciple,
which one?
The one who reached the tomb first.
Okay.
So we have this serious passage,
which is the climax of all of Scripture,
the 66 books that God has given to his people
in the New Testament and the Old Testament.
Jesus has risen from the dead.
He's defeated death and sin.
All the promises of God are yes and amen in Jesus Christ.
And John's a faster runner than Peter.
There are many theories to try to explain
why it is so important to John
that we all know that he's a great sprinter.
The one I find most convincing is this.
John is saying that there is nothing that could hold him back.
The alternative to beating Peter
would have been to slow down.
It would have been to hold back.
And he could have done that.
Right?
But John's eyes were on the prize.
Now, whatever theory you believe,
I don't think John is bragging here.
And here's why.
As focused as John was in this passage,
as unwilling as he was to pull back
and wait for Peter,
someone else was more focused.
And that's Mary.
Mary beats all the boys.
John arrives to the tomb in verse 4.
Peter arrives to the tomb in verse 6.
Mary was already there.
In verse 1.
Now, on the first day of the week,
Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early,
and in case we're wondering how early,
while it was still dark.
If John is looking to pat himself on the back for his speed,
he has done a really poor job.
In fact, it's not just that Mary is there first.
Mary is also there last.
Verse 10.
Peter and John go home.
Verse 11.
Mary stays.
And by the way,
if Mary stays in verse 11,
and she was there in verse 1,
and she told Peter and John in verse 2,
we know then that Mary must have made
at least not one,
but two trips to the tomb.
So she's not just there first.
She has lapped them.
John is not shining a spotlight on himself.
The running is not about John's ego.
No.
John, the author of the gospel,
is highlighting Mary.
That brings us back to our question.
Why?
Why does Mary show up earlier and stay later?
To answer that,
we have to remember Mary's backstory.
So there's several Marys in the gospels
that are kind of hard to keep track of.
That's why she's called Mary Magdalene
to distinguish her from all the others.
And in Luke chapter 8,
we find out that Jesus
had healed Mary Magdalene
of seven demons.
Now seven demons
are not a small number of demons.
Okay?
It's not a small thing
that Jesus had rescued Mary
in this way.
Jesus, in fact,
had rescued her in a huge way.
That's Luke 8
where we find that out.
At the end of Luke 7,
just a few verses before,
Jesus lays out this principle.
And the principle is this.
The one who has been forgiven much
loves much.
The one who has been forgiven little
loves little.
Why was Mary
the one who showed up early
and stayed late?
Mary had been forgiven much.
And so Mary loved much.
Mary had been rescued
from seven demons.
And so Mary was all in
with Jesus.
It's on page seven
of your worship guide.
Jesus had cast seven devils
from Mary.
She had sinned much.
She had been forgiven much.
And she loved much.
John
was not healed
of seven demons.
Nor was Peter.
And so John and Peter
do not understand
the extent
of their need
for rescue
in the way
that Mary does.
Mary knows
more than all the others
how much
Jesus
has saved her
from.
Now you might say
that's not fair.
It's not Peter
and John's fault
that they didn't have
seven demons in them.
And that's true.
It's not their fault
they didn't have
seven demons.
But Peter
and John
did not need
rescue
any less
than Mary.
Peter
and John
just didn't
know
their need
as much
as Mary.
Peter
and John
did not
need
rescue
any less
than Mary
did.
They just
did not
know
their need
as much
as Mary
did.
That's why
Jesus
says
it's easier
for a camel
to enter
the eye
of a needle
than for a rich
person
to enter
heaven.
Not because
the rich
do not
have need
but because
the rich
don't know
their need.
It's hard
to see.
It's hard
to know
how desperately
you need
Jesus
if your
life is
filled
with comfort
and ease.
The point
is this.
The resurrection
of Jesus
Christ
from the
dead
is a
great
joy
to us
to the
extent
that we
understand
how great
our sin
is.
The
resurrection
of Jesus
Christ
from the
dead
is a
great
joy
to us
to the
extent
that we
understand
how much
we've
been
forgiven.
The more
we realize
how much
we need
the gospel
the greater
our celebration
on Easter
will be.
there are
people
who think
overall
they are
pretty
great
and maybe
they just
need
Jesus
to tweak
a few
things
here
and there
and if
that's
you
you will
not have
Mary's
great love
for Jesus
because you're
already
too in
love
with
yourself.
if that's
you
Easter
will
wash
over
you
with
little
effect.
The
one
who has
been
forgiven
much
loves
much.
The
one
who has
been
forgiven
little
loves
little.
There
were lots
of people
that day
in Jerusalem
who were
much better
off than
Mary.
There
were people
that morning
who had
a gourmet
breakfast.
There
were people
in Palestine
with fat
bank
accounts.
There
were people
who were
younger
and stronger
and more
beautiful
than Mary.
None
of them
not one
of them
had as
much joy
as Mary
had.
If you
don't
get
jazzed
up
about
Easter
and the
resurrection
you're
not going
to be
able to
make
yourself
get
excited.
If
the
resurrection
is
boring
to you
it is
because
you do
not know
how
desperate
you are
for God's
mercy
and grace
and forgiveness.
until you
know that
the
resurrection
will wash
over you.
When you
know it
like
Mary
you will
not want
to leave
Jesus
side.
Peter
and John
leave
in verse
10
Mary
stays
captivated
by his
beauty
worthy
tribute
haste
to bring
let his
peerless
worth
constrain
you
crown
him
now
unrivaled
king.
told you
we were
going to
talk about
two things
this morning
Mary's
love
and
Jesus
love
we've
seen
Mary's
love
in
verses
1
through
10
verses
11
through
18
we get
to see
the
type
of
love
that
Jesus
has
to
make
a
long
story
short
Mary
doesn't
recognize
Jesus
she's
zeroed
in
and
finding
his
body
that's
verses
11
through
13
verses
14
through
15
Jesus
does
appear
but
Mary
doesn't
recognize
him
she
thinks
he's
the
gardener
until
what
until
Jesus
says
Mary's
name
one
of the
patterns
that we
see
throughout
the entire
Bible
is that
God
calls
each
of his
people
by name
if you
were with
us
when we
were in
the series
on
Genesis
the story
of Abraham
think
all the
way
back
to
Genesis
chapter
16
remember
Abraham
and Sarah
would not
call
Hagar
by name
but
God
did
and
when
God
calls
Hagar
by name
in
Genesis
chapter
16
as I
told you
then
it is
the only
time
in
ancient
near
eastern
literature
that
any
God
addresses
any
woman
by name
in
the
New
Testament
Luke
chapter
19
this
is
just
a
few
of
many
examples
Jesus
confronts
Zacchaeus
the tax
collector
who is
a
terrible
man
Zacchaeus
has spent
his life
defrauding
people
and cheating
people
out of
untold
sums
of money
and
Jesus
sees
him
hiding
up
in
the
tree
and
what
does
he
do
he
calls
him
by
name
we
could
go
on
now
Mary
called
by
name
what
does
Jesus
say
in
John
chapter
10
my
sheep
hear
my
voice
and
I
know
them
and
they
follow
me
Jesus
love
is a
specific
individual
love
I had a
seminary
professor
who loved
to come
out to
Colorado
for vacation
and at
one point
he told
us a
story
he was
out
hiking
in the
Rocky
Mountains
and he
just
began
to cry
and he
thought
to himself
the
God
who
made
these
mountains
also
knows
my
name
the
resurrected
Jesus
Christ
who is
sitting
right now
at the
right hand
of God
the
father
who will
return
in glory
to judge
the living
and the
dead
knows
your
name
he knows
your wounds
he knows
your sins
he knows
your failures
he knows
your heartache
he knows
your grief
he knows
your strengths
he knows
your weaknesses
Jesus
knows
all
of it
and he
is still
calling you
by name
have you
answered
will
you
answer
I want
to show
you
one more
thing
this
morning
as we
talk
about
Jesus
love
we don't
just see
Jesus
love
in his
specific
and individual
care
his care
for Mary
and for
us
we also
see
Jesus
love
in his
mercy
and his
grace
Mary
is given
a message
to deliver
in verse
17
Jesus
tells her
who
that
message
is
for
he
says
go
to my
brothers
and who
are these
brothers
during
Jesus
darkest
hour
Mary
stuck
around
Mary
was
there
at the
crucifixion
if you
were here
on Friday
remember
Mary
is standing
there
with Jesus
mother
as Jesus
is abandoned
by everyone
else
Mary
never
left
what about
the disciples
where were
Peter and
John
all the
disciples
abandoned
Jesus
in the
garden
of
Gethsemane
and since
then
they have
been nowhere
to be
found
they are
not
the loyal
ones
and what
does Jesus
call the
people who
ran away
from him
in his
darkest
hour
he calls
them his
brothers
it's the
good news
of the
gospel
Jesus
because of
his death
on the
cross
his death
that paid
the penalty
for our
sins
offers
for those
who have
betrayed
him
that is
you and
me
to be
adopted
by God
as sons
and daughters
Jesus
says
we can
be his
friends
and if
you think
that friend
is too
chummy a
word for
God
I will
let you
hear it
not from
me
but from
Jesus
John
chapter 15
he says
this
no longer
do I
call you
servants
for the
servant
does not
know what
his master
is doing
but I
have called
you friends
for all
that I
have heard
from my
father
I have
made
known
to you
you can
be Jesus
friend
you can
be his
brother
no matter
how much
you betrayed
him
you can
be a
sibling
of
Jesus
no matter
what you've
done
because
of his
death
and his
resurrection
if you
don't know
what that
means
and you
want to
dig deeper
into that
you can
look at
page 17
and 18
of your
worship guide
which spells
out what
it means
to repent
of your
sins
and to
follow
Jesus
in faith
that
friendship
that friendship
with God
is made
possible by
Jesus
death
and his
resurrection
defeating
sin
and death
forever
and earlier
in the
gospel
also in
John
Jesus
explains
this
John
15
greater
love
has no
one
than
this
that
someone
laid
down
his
life
for
his
friends
do
you
know
your
need
will
you
be
a
friend
of
Jesus
he
knows
your
name
and
he's
calling
let's
pray
our
father
in
heaven
we do
thank you
and praise
you
for the
great
grace
and mercy
that you
offer
to us
in
Jesus
Christ
we
ask
that
you
would
be
at
work
in
our
hearts
showing
us
how
desperate
our
need
is
for
you
that
path
of
repentance
would
lead
us
to
great
joy
greater
than
what
we've
ever
known
before
because
we
are
resting
you
in the
mercy
and
grace
in
our
friend
and
our
savior
Jesus
Christ
and
we
ask
all
of
these
things
in
his
name
amen
I
invite
you
to
stand