What’s stopping you from seeing Jesus? Mary had seen the empty tomb. She saw the angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus was. The other gospel writers tell us that they even told Mary that Jesus had risen, but she just couldn’t hear their words. And even when Jesus showed Himself to her, she didn’t recognize Him at first. She had all the important information right in front of her – and yet she couldn’t see Jesus.

What’s stopping you from seeing Jesus? For Mary, it was her grief that got in the way. She was so disappointed, so crushed that her Lord had been taken away from her that she couldn’t think straight. She couldn’t see anything clearly – not even Jesus.

What’s stopping you from seeing Jesus? Are you grieving over a lost loved one? Are you or a loved one facing a bad diagnosis? Maybe you’ve lost a job or have gotten into a lot of debt. Maybe you’ve fallen into a bad habit or even an addiction, and you just can’t shake it. Maybe someone you love has broken your heart. For whatever reason, maybe some of the circumstances of your life have made it hard for you to believe in Jesus’ power to save, or even that Jesus loves you. Maybe your disappointment, your heartache, or your grief has made it hard for you to see Jesus.

Well, what was it that helped Mary see Jesus? It was Jesus Himself. He came to her in the garden. And even when she didn’t see Him at first, He didn’t give up on her. He called her name. And once she saw Him, she was filled with joy.

Now, that doesn’t mean all her problems were solved. In verse 17, Jesus said that He would have to go away from her again. She wouldn’t be able to go on clinging to Him as she wanted to – at least not right then. In fact, after His ascension, Mary would in a very real sense be in the same situation as she was when she was weeping in the garden – her Lord would once again be taken away from her.

And just because Jesus shows Himself to us doesn’t mean that all our problems will magically be solved either, or that all the difficult circumstances of our lives will be instantly be straightened out. Like Mary, we may have to wait for Christ to return for all the wrongs to be set right, for all the hurts to be healed, for all the tears to be wiped away.

But what made all the difference for Mary can transform our lives just as fundamentally: the Lord is risen. He does in fact hold all power in His hands. He has in fact loved us enough to die in our place, taking all our sins upon Himself. He is in fact the Son of God. And He has come to us, even in our pain and problems, even in our cluelessness and heartbreak.

So, no matter what you are going through today, believe in Jesus’ resurrection power. Trust in Jesus’ unconditional love. And rejoice even in the midst of your sufferings, for He is coming soon to wipe away every tear from our eyes (Revelation 8:17; 21:4).

John 20:1-18 (ESV)

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.
2 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.”
3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb.
4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in.
6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there,
7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.
8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed;
9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.
10 Then the disciples went back to their homes.
11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb.
12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet.
13 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.”
14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
15 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.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).
17 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.'”
18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”– and that he had said these things to her.