Easter Sunday

John 20

The Resurrection

1Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. 2She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

3Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb. 4They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. 6Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, 7while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. 8Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed— 9for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead. 10Then they went home.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

11Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. 12She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. 13“Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her.

“Because they have taken away my Lord,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”

14She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him. 15“Dear woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asked her. “Who are you looking for?”

She thought he was the gardener. “Sir,” she said, “if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.”

16 “Mary!” Jesus said.

She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”).

17 “Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

18Mary Magdalene found the disciples and told them, “I have seen the Lord!” Then she gave them his message.

Still Dark, Still Searching (John 20:1–2)

Mary comes in the dark—before understanding, before hope.
She assumes loss: “They have taken the Lord…”
We often start in the same place—grief, confusion, or expectation of loss.
But resurrection begins in unexpected places.

Looking, But Not Recognizing (John 20:3–10)

The disciples run to the tomb. They see… but don’t yet understand.
The empty tomb alone doesn’t create belief—it creates questions.
Faith is often a process, not an instant recognition.
Seeing is not the same as perceiving.

Shift: Being Known (John 20:11–16)

Mary stays—she lingers in her grief.
She encounters Jesus but mistakes him for the gardener.
Perhaps she's not mistaken, He is the gardener
Everything changes when Jesus speaks: “Mary.”
This is the heart of the story:
Not explanation
Not proof
But recognition through relationship

Truth:

Jesus is not just risen—he is present

From Recognition to Response (John 20:16–18)

Mary responds: “Rabboni!” (Teacher)
She moves from grief to proclamation: “I have seen the Lord.”
She becomes the first witness of resurrection.
Being called by name transforms us into people who can follow, respond, and testify.

Resurrection and Baptism

Baptism is participation in this story:
Death → Burial → Resurrection → New Life
In the water, we are saying:
“The old story is not the final story.”
Jesus calls us by name—and we rise to follow him.

The Ongoing Call

Jesus still calls people by name.
We are still invited to:
Follow
Respond
Trust
Live as though we are seen

Easter Litany of Trust

Leader:

God of love,

you meet us in the wilderness and call us your own.

People: