The Healing Word

Pastor Jack Morris: Mary was crying because she was lonely. Her Savior was gone. She had experienced a great loss. I'm sure she was thinking, "How can I go on with my life? I don't even have a grave to come to. He's gone." But I feel like saying, "Mary, He isn't dead. He isn't dead, Mary. It's only moments away until He talks to you and you see Him. You're going to make a great discovery in just a few moments."

Guest (Male): Welcome to The Healing Word, a radio ministry of the Largo Community Church. Here's Pastor Jack Morris with today's message that will grow your faith in God and lead you to a closer walk with Jesus.

Pastor Jack Morris: This is the story of the very first person who saw Jesus alive and spoke to Him after He arose from the dead. He appeared to one person; her name was Mary Magdalene. Before her conversion, Mary is described in the Word as an immoral woman, a woman who was a great sinner. This was before her conversion. Friends, before our conversion, we were all something, and that something was sinner. But today, we're saved by the grace of God. Thank God for His mercy and for His grace.

After her conversion, after your conversion, God makes all things new, doesn't He? After her conversion to Jesus, she and several of the other ladies followed Jesus and the disciples all through the region of Galilee, everywhere they went, preaching the Gospel and healing the sick. Mary Magdalene, along with several other ladies, followed Jesus and the disciples, supporting them financially and also supporting them domestically. They followed the Lord because their hearts were devoted to the Lord Jesus Christ.

This was a great woman who had a great experience, all because Jesus is a great Savior. She was at the cross when Jesus was crucified. She saw them nail Him to the tree. She saw Him taken down, a dead body, a corpse, and carried to the tomb. And she followed that dead body to the tomb. She was there when they rolled the stone over the mouth of the tomb. Then she had to leave early that evening because the Sabbath was coming on, and she was a Jew, and she followed the customs of the Jews.

Now, some of the early theologians feel that Mary Magdalene was the one who, when Jesus was invited to a Pharisee's house for dinner, walked up behind Him and began to weep. She dropped tears from her eyes over His feet and began to dry His feet with the hair of her head. The Pharisee looked at Jesus, and in his mind, he was thinking—you know, God knows what you're thinking. He knows your thoughts. There is absolutely nothing hidden from the Lord.

The Pharisee said to himself in his own mind, "If this man were a prophet, He would know that this is a sinful woman." Jesus knew exactly what he was saying. Most of the time I pray out loud. Sometimes I'm whispering. I like to pray with my lips. I like to say the words. But sometimes I'm in a crowd, and I can't say a word. I can't whisper even a prayer. My mouth is shut, and I have to think my thoughts in prayer. But those prayers that are thought through our thinking are as effective and efficacious as the words that we speak when we pray.

Jesus knew his thoughts. And Jesus said, "This woman loves much. Listen to me, this woman loves much because she has been forgiven much." Do you know how much you have been forgiven? You know, and I know, what God has saved us from. What a wonderful Savior He is to do these great and mighty things. Now, some of the early theologians think that this may not have been Mary Magdalene. Others think that this woman was Mary Magdalene. Her name is not there, but this is what is written in Luke chapter 7:36, that this woman who anointed the feet of Jesus with her tears and dried them with the hair of her head lived a sinful life. I'm inclined to think it was Mary Magdalene.

Friend, how do you worship the Lord? Do we do anything extraordinary, out of the ordinary, that maybe we didn't do before we knew the Lord Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior? Yesterday, I called some of my relatives in Western Pennsylvania and invited them to go to church up there somewhere. I talked to them one by one. I didn't think that they were going to church anywhere. I remember my first cousin said to me, "Go to church tomorrow?"

I said, "Yeah, why don't you go to church tomorrow? It's Easter." Well, she said, "I can worship God and praise God here at home just as much as going to church. I have company coming in. My family's coming in." Then she told me she had ham and baked pies. She started enumerating all of that to me. I go to church because I'm told by the Lord to go to church. But that's not the only reason. I go to church because I love the people of God. There's something different about being in the house of the Lord with the Lord's people, to mix together, to pray together, to sing together, and to mingle our voices.

We are the family of God. Yes, I can stay home and worship the Lord, and I do. But when it comes to the Lord's Day—remember, the Lord's Day. Say it: the Lord's Day. It's not my day, it's Your day. You're doing good today. Well, let's look at what happened on Resurrection Morning. Sometime early in the morning on the first day of the week, angels descended. First, one came down, and then others came down. And there was a violent earthquake according to the Gospel of Matthew. Those angels looked like lightning.

The Roman guards that had sealed the tomb were standing there—strong, robust, wicked, hardened men. They became so fearful at the appearance of these angels that they fell like dead men. And the stone was rolled away. The Scripture says the earth shook violently. Then the women visit the tomb. They knew nothing of what had happened with the coming of the angels. As a matter of fact, the women were talking among themselves, "Who's going to roll the stone away?" Mary saw the stone placed there. Who's going to roll it away?

But that didn't deter the women from going to the tomb, did it? No. Don't allow stones to get in your way. He still moves mountains. He's a mountain-moving God, and He handles the impossible that you and I cannot handle. These weak women—three strong men couldn't have moved that stone. But here these three women, they knew the stone was there, but they kept on going. Don't allow anything to deter your walk with the Lord. Just keep on going with your focus on the Lord Jesus Christ.

It was early in the morning. In Jewish time, that was anywhere between 3:00 AM and 6:00 AM. So these ladies started out while it was still dark, and they got to the tomb just about the time that daylight was coming, and they saw that the stone had rolled away. It was the first day of the week. It was Sunday. The Jewish Sabbath is Saturday, but Christ is still dead on Saturday. That's why the church worships on Sunday because we worship a living Christ.

I have a feeling that some of us may have forgotten that Jesus is alive and with us today to do great and mighty things and to bless us abundantly. He's here. He's alive. It was on the first day of the week, and the stone was rolled away. Now, Peter and John come to the tomb. They come running. John outruns Peter. John, no doubt a younger man, maybe thinner also, had been working out. He got there first, and he stopped, and he looked in, and he saw the grave clothes.

Peter got to the tomb. He didn't even stop. As his custom was, he went right in. I wonder sometimes if a person like Sherlock Holmes would have gotten there and examined the grave clothes, what conclusion would he have come to? They examined the clothes and they left. It is indicated strongly that John believed. It was like a light went on. He realized He had risen. But he couldn't convince Peter. I'm trying my best to convince you this morning, and myself, that He's alive and here to do something beautiful and great for us. Peter went back, and they were perplexed. It was so awesome and wonderful, but it was also very perplexing.

Peter and John went away, but Mary stayed at the tomb, and she was weeping. I wonder why she was weeping. Maybe she was thinking of how cruel people were to Jesus. They had beaten Him nearly to death. Then they had crucified Him. They took His body and put it in a tomb and rolled a stone in front of it. And now the grave robbers have come and stolen His body. I imagine she was thinking, "Can't they leave Him alone? Why all of this abuse? Why all this cruelty? He's dead. Give it up. Leave Him alone." And she was weeping.

But here's the stronger argument. She wasn't crying for Jesus. She was crying for herself. When a loved one dies and we weep, we don't weep for that loved one who has left behind the cancer that destroyed their body, or the heart disease, or the stroke. That loved one left behind a world of sin, of sickness, and death, and now has gone into the presence of the Lord, where there is perfect joy, love, and peace. That person is well off. But you and I have to stay behind and continue to fight sin, sickness, disease, trouble, and temptation. Their battle is over. They're happy, and they're blessed.

Mary was crying because she was lonely. Her Savior was gone. She had experienced a great loss. I'm sure she was thinking, "How can I go on with my life? I don't even have a grave to come to. He's gone." But I feel like saying, "Mary, He isn't dead. Mary, it's only moments away until He talks to you and you see Him. You're going to make a great discovery in just a few moments." Are you ready for a great discovery here this morning?

The Lord is here to discover Himself to us: His healing, His blessing, His forgiveness. We can go on because of Him, not because of us. He's the one that conquered death, temptation, sickness, and sin for us. It is Jesus. The Scripture says in Psalm 30:5, "Weeping may remain for the night, but joy comes in the morning." Hey, it's Resurrection morning for somebody here today! Joy comes in the morning. Revelation 21 says He will wipe away every tear. You can go ahead and weep when Jesus is dead. But Jesus is alive!

He will wipe away every tear from our eyes. In that day, there will be no more death, no more crying, no more mourning, and no more pain. For the Scripture says the former things have passed away. Friend, you're not the same woman you used to be. You're not the same man you used to be. You're a new creation in the Lord because of His grace and mercy. John the Revelator said, "I saw a new heaven and a new earth." Thank God this old earth is going to go away someday. This place is in a bigger mess today than it has ever been before.

It really needs our prayers. But there's going to be a new heaven and a new earth. John said he saw the new heaven and the new earth and heard a voice coming from the throne. Now is the presence of God with His people. Old things have passed away, and all things have become new. Friend, there's so much for you and me to look forward to. Stop looking at the empty tomb. Stop considering death. Look to the Jesus who is alive forevermore for us.

Mary, only moments from now, is going to have a great discovery. She's going to see Jesus, and she's going to talk with Jesus. But before that, she saw angels. God opened her eyes, and she saw angels, one at the tomb where Jesus' body lay at the feet and the other angel at the head. She was looking into that tomb, and those angels were talking to her: "Woman, woman, why are you weeping?"

A few years ago, we remember our brother John Patterson, who is now in the presence of the Lord. Like on a Sunday morning, we would come into the sanctuary and walk across the platform. I would come up and check everything out. John would sometimes play the piano, then he'd go over and do something at the organ. I was here checking out my place, standing right where I am now. John came walking by, and he stopped and talked to me. We started talking about angels. He said, "I believe in angels." I said, "John, I believe in angels." He said, "I believe in angels too."

Little did any of us know that only a few days from that final conversation, John was going to be escorted by those angels that he believed in into the presence of Jesus. That's the hope of every believer and every child of God. We have hope in this life, but we have hope in the life to come. So here's Mary talking to those angels. And Mary says, "They have taken away my Lord, and I don't know where they have put Him." Listen carefully. She reveals her inner spiritual, emotional state. She said, "They have taken away."

An absent Jesus leaves us forsaken, weak, unknowing, and susceptible to sin, to temptation, and to death itself. There are things that are going on right now in your family, in your home, and in your work that are going to take Jesus away. Things want to get Jesus out of your sight. The focus needs to be on Jesus, and we need to be humble before Him and submit to Him. Don't let anybody take Jesus away from you or out of your sight. Keep looking. Keep focused. Jesus is alive. Jesus is well. Jesus is here.

Without Jesus, we live and end up not knowing. But you can know today. You can know in whom you have believed. You can have faith that will move mountains and be wonderfully blessed of the Lord. While she was talking to the angels, Jesus walked up behind her. Friend, listen to me. He's closer than you think! She was talking to angels, and we wonder why did she turn around and look? I suspect that one of the angels pointed when she was telling them, "I don't know where they have taken Him."

Jesus is pointing you and me to Him today through the choir anthems, the Scripture readings, the prayers, and the sermon. Let's see Jesus today. Let's go away and say, "Hey, I've had a resurrection. I've had an Easter experience." This is the day the Lord has made, and I'll rejoice and be glad. She turns around and she's weeping, and she looks up, and there's Jesus. But she didn't know it was Jesus. You know, it's possible to come to church, to sing and pray, to do a whole lot of good things and feel good, and still miss Jesus. That's a possibility. And it happens too often.

She was crying, and the tears distorted her vision. Have you ever tried to read something when your eyes are filled with tears? You have to stop, wipe your eyes, and clean your glasses. She looked up, and Jesus asked her the same question that He's asking untold numbers of people today: "Woman, why are you crying?" Her answer was just the same. And then she turned back and looked at the tomb. Friend, if you keep looking at the problem, at the thing that has gone wrong and disappointed you, you're going to miss Jesus altogether.

Mary turned about and looked at that empty tomb again that was as empty as her life. It doesn't take much to get our eyes off of Jesus. The most insignificant thing sometimes becomes a great significant thing that takes us away from Jesus. There's everything going on today to take our focus away from Him. She turned and she looked back at that empty tomb that had caused the tears in the first place. Mary, if you don't recognize Jesus, you're going to die weeping. Healing's not going to come.

Then Jesus speaks, and He calls her name, "Mary." From the depths of despair to the heights of ecstasy, that woman turned around. It was Jesus. Look at her reckless devotion. She grabbed for His feet. Have you ever done something outlandishly reckless for the Lord? No, we calculate. We think through. We check our calendars and our wallets to see whether we have the wherewithal, the time, and the money. She was reckless. All she cared about was Jesus, and she grabbed for His feet. Nobody's going to take Him away anymore. She was going to hang on for dear life.

Jesus now is healed. The last time she saw Him, His flesh was torn and hanging from Him. He was covered with blood. But now here He is. He looks so young, healthy, vibrant, and whole. She didn't recognize Him through the tears and through His appearance. Jesus always reveals Himself in wholeness and completeness to all of His people who look to Him and call upon Him. I'm coming to a close now, but I pray that you'll hear with your heart. He knows your name—who you are and where you are. He knows the disturbing thoughts that are haunting you. You can move beyond. Jesus is alive. He is here. You can move beyond in Jesus. You can serve Him, you can do His will, and you can go forward.

Guest (Male): Do you need Pastor Morris to pray with you about a struggle or decision you're wrestling with? The Pray Now app is available to you right now. Go to thehealingword.com, click Pray Now, and select the topic that matches your request. Pastor Morris will provide encouragement, pray with you, and deliver a brief message on overcoming and living in victory. Again, Pray Now at thehealingword.com. Join us tomorrow for another Healing Word message. Until then, blessings on you.