박찬권 선생님의 영어 통역문입니다
Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18)

Today is Easter Sunday.  Share a greeting with those sitting around you.  Say Happy Easter or Jesus has risen and share the joy of the resurrection.

When Mr. Lee Myung Bak, President-elect of Korea, was head of the Hyundae Construction Company, he took charge of building the chapel for his Hope Church and provided great assistance.  He took on the great responsibility with all his abilities and influences.  However, in many instances, it is not always those with great abilities that take on the great responsibilities in church.  If you assume that someone will do great things for the church because that person possesses many abilities or talents, then it is often wrong.  On the contrary, it is those unexpected persons who volunteers through self-sacrifice for the church and we see this in our Christian fellowship.

Then who indeed serves God through sacrifice?  Bible says it is those who have been blessed.  The extent of one’s sacrifice to God is not reflected by one’s wisdom, wealth, health or power but is reflected by the extent of blessing received by that person.  Jesus told us this truth in Luke chapter 7.  One sinful woman poured expensive perfume onto Jesus.  Many people said including Judas criticized that she should sell the expensive perfume to help many poor people instead of wasting it.  Then Jesus said, “Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven – for she loved much.  But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”

Mary Magdalene in today’s verse is a good example of this.  Magdalene is a geographic designation.  It means Mary who comes from Magdalene.  Some people say that the sinful woman who poured the perfume is Mary Magdalene but there is no Biblical evidence.  Also, Pope Gregory in year 591 said that Mary was a prostitute and many people believed this but there is no Biblical evidence.  In Da Vinci’s Code, it is said that Mary was Jesus’ lover but again there is no Biblical evidence.  The only truth about Mary in the Bible is that Jesus cured her by driving out seven demons.  Being possessed by a demon means that our mind and body is not controlled by ourselves but by the demon.  Some time ago, after the morning prayer service, I saw a morning TV show which introduced a catholic priest performing an exorcism.  The TV anchor asked of the priest the difference between being possessed by an evil spirit and having a mental illness.  The priest said that a possessed person can suddenly have a different person’s voice.  He means multiple personality.  For example, a young man can suddenly make an elderly woman’s voice.  Sometimes they make animal noises.  Possessed people appear in various forms in the Bible.  Life of a demon-possessed person becomes shattered.  Mary Magdalene was with seven demons.  I can imagine how desperate her situation was.  In Luke Chapter 11, Jesus tells a parable of an empty house.  When the evil spirit is driven out, the house is swept clean and put in order but the spirit takes seven others more wicked than itself and the final condition of that man is worse than the first.  Seven is a symbolic number in the Bible so being possessed by seven demons signifies the worst of the condition.  She could have flipped any time.  She was probably committing atrocities possessed by evil and did not know it.  Simply, she would have been running crazy. 

Jesus met Mary Magdalene.  And he drove the seven demons from her.  The joy that she felt that day could not be put to words.  It was the day which she regained her body, mind, mouth and face.  It was as if she was reborn.  No longer was her life controlled by the evil spirit but rather her life was her own, having regained her freedom and salvation

What kind of life do you think Mary Magdalene lived after having received such salvation?  In Luke 8:3, it is said that she helped support Jesus and his disciples with her own means.  The story of Mary Magdalene did not end with the seven demons leaving her.  Today, many will say and be emotional that they were saved from sin and death through Jesus.  Their story ends with salvation from sin through Jesus.  However, Mary Magdalene’s story did not end with her receiving blessings from God but rather her story starts there.  Wherever Jesus went, she followed and did whatever she could with happiness and self-sacrifice.  Not only was she someone who received blessing from Jesus, but she became someone who followed Jesus with all that she had.  Mary received great blessing from Jesus.  It didn’t stop there.  She went further and worshipped Jesus.  She was a beautiful woman who knew the blessing she received.

Her story does not end there.  Mark 15:40 states that Mary Magdalene, Mother of Joses Mary, and Salome watched from afar when Jesus died.  Mary Magdalene followed Jesus and the cross and went up Golgotha.  She became a witness to the cross.  At the moment when Jesus died on the cross, she was there.  She remained present where Jesus died and became one of the people to witness the passing of Jesus.  As Jesus foretold that everyone will go in different directions leaving Jesus alone, Judas sold Jesus for silver, Peter denied Jesus three times, and other disciples went their way in front of the cross.  When Jesus was alone and shedding the tears of loneliness, his disciples left him but Mary Magdalene followed Jesus even to his cross.

But the story of Mary Magdalene does not end there.  Mark 15:47 says, “Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he [Jesus] was laid.”  Mary Magdalene followed Jesus to his grave.  Matthew 27:61 says, “Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.”  She showed her love at the grave site.  The Bible records the impressive scene of Mary observing the grave in which Jesus laid. 

But the story of Mary Magdalene does not end there.  In John 20:1, early on the first day of the week while still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb.  Mark 16:1 says that Mary brought spices to the tomb.  Body of Jesus must have been in terrible condition.  Beaten and whipped, hands and feet with nail wounds, and side of the body with the spear wound, his body would have been bloody and now severely dehydrated.  Mary Magdalene came to anoint and refreshen the body of Jesus. 

But the story of Mary Magdalene does not end there.  In today’s scripture, Mary Magdalene who came to the tomb wept and had great sadness when she saw that the body of Jesus was not present and the large stone that block the grave was missing.  Jesus who has risen from the dead said, “woman…why are you crying?  Who is it you are looking for?”  She does not recognize him and asks where the body of Jesus may have gone.  Then Jesus calls Mary.  Mary replies, “Rabboni.”  Mary turns towards Jesus.  Jesus commands Mary.  NIV Bible says “Do not hold on to me.” And NASB Bible says, “stop clinging to me,”  He means do not hold onto him, because he now must return next to God, his father.”  He also commands that the news of his resurrection be spread to the people, the brothers and the disciples. 

Mary Magdalene was a woman possessed by seven demons.  She did not appear to be someone who could help in God’s work but became someone who sacrificed most to serve Jesus, beyond any worldly assumptions.  The reason was that she received a great blessing from Jesus compared to others.  Not only did she give up everything she had to help in the ministry of Jesus, she walked with Jesus when He suffered through the walk to Golgotha and the crucifixion.  In addition, she followed Him to the tomb and showed her adoration.  The next day she visited Him with spices.  She participated in the ministry of Jesus, shared the suffering of Jesus, and experienced the death of Jesus.  The result of this was that she received the glory and honor of seeing the resurrected Christ first.  As the saying goes, the deeper the valley, the higher the peak, Mary Magdalene who walked with Jesus to the lowest of the lowest places, was able to receive the greatest of the honors.

First John 3:2 says that we should hold on to the hope of the glorious future.  “Dear friends…we shall see him as he is.”  Resurrected Jesus is now in state of Glory.  Paul met the Glorious Jesus at Damascus.  John saw the Glorious Jesus at Patmos Islands.  Like Mary Magdalene, we will also meet the Glorious Resurrected Jesus.  We will also see Jesus as he is.  Son of God in his Glory, we will see him face to face.  We will celebrate and be happy forever.  Not only that, our bodies will transform into a state of grace like Jesus.  Philippians 3:21 says, He will “transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”  First Corinthians 15:51 says, “we will all be changed in a flash --- at the last trumpet” and will be raised imperishable.  Under the new sky and on new ground we will live with new body.  When we think about the glory of the future, we cannot despair and be frustrated because of our current suffering.  Misfortune, hardship, imminence, famine, hostility or danger may come, but we can easily overcome with the hope of glorious future.  Always be happy and thankful.  I pray in the name of Jesus that no matter how desperate the situation, you will all overcome with the hope of resurrection.