Wrong Doctrine; Right Heart

John 20:11-16

On Resurrection Morning, Mary Magdalene stood outside the tomb of Jesus weeping, for she saw that His tomb was empty and she did not know where He was. Her first assumption is the natural one: Jesus’ body had been stolen in the night and moved to another location. She was there to anoint His body in the Hebrew custom, and now she would have to go home without having accomplished her task.

In her state of trouble and fear, she seems unfazed at the two angels that speak to her from within the empty tomb; one seated at the head and one at the feet. Just like the cherubim’s that cover the Mercy Seat on the Ark, these two angels now sit at the place of God’s mercy and justice. With the tomb empty, Jesus is alive, meaning that He is now able to live in the hearts of all mankind. It may have been lost on Mary Magdalene, but may it not be lost on us!

Mary turns to leave the tomb and sees Jesus, though she “knew not that it was Jesus” (John 19:14), supposing Him to be the garden keeper (verse 15). In His glorified state, Jesus obviously had a different look about Him, though it becomes obvious that He retains the same physical qualities that He had while on this earth (John 20:27). They hold a brief conversation, within which we learn an important lesson into the heart of God.

“Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou?” (John 20:15) is the question that Jesus poses to Mary. She doesn’t recognize Him and answers, “Sir, if you have taken Him from here, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away” (John 20:15). It had become common knowledge that Jesus had been buried in a borrowed tomb, so the assumption might have been that the gardener had come and removed the body so that it could be buried in a family tomb, now that the Jewish feast of Passover was finished. Her response shows that she has no suspicion that Jesus has resurrected, but rather that He is still dead in another location.

Notice that Mary does not believe in the resurrection of Jesus. She walked with Him and talked with Him, but she still has problems with her doctrine. In spite of the obvious flaw in her faith, Jesus reveals Himself to her by saying her name, “Mary” (John 20:16). There was something about the way that He said her name that made her heart leap with joy. The intimate sound of Jesus whispering your name will still warm the heart of even the coldest sinner. There is nothing like knowing Jesus, except perhaps the revelation that He knows you!

With this serious doctrinal flaw (not believing in the resurrection), surely Jesus would not give a revelation of His love, right? We are often taught that if there is a problem in your doctrine that God will not bless you. In fact, I used to hear it preached by men that I greatly respected (and still do respect), that “God will not bless error”. They meant that if your doctrine is wrong, your blessings are limited. According to that teaching, Jesus should have just answered “Sorry mam, I haven’t taken Him anywhere”. It would have been an answer perfectly acceptable to Mary based upon her question. Thank God that Jesus sees past our doctrinal flaws and peers all the way into our hearts!

You may not have it all figured out today (join the club!), but you can rest assured that Jesus knows your heart, even when your doctrine falters. He will give you a revelation of His love by saying your name when He sees that your heart is hungry for more of Him. Seek Him and you will find Him, even when you are seeking in the wrong places.

I See Nothing Wrong!

Numbers 23:18-21

Call me biased, but I see nothing wrong in my children. My son and my daughter make mistakes, no doubt, but I see nothing wrong with them, for they are mine and I love them unconditionally. There is no error that they could make, no wrong that they could perform, that would cause me to beat them, break their legs, rob their future, or destroy their dreams. I love them too much to cause them pain, for they are an extension of me. I may see problems in your kids, but not in mine!

God views every person on the face of the earth as a sheep. Many of the sheep have gone astray and are living on their own in the wilderness, and they need to come to the shepherd to find eternal life. The sheep that dwell with the Savior know His voice (John 10:27), and He refers to them as more than sheep. Those who are saved, He calls His friends (John 15:15).

When Balak, king of Moab, hired Balaam to curse the children of Israel as they passed through his land, Balaam jumped on the opportunity to make some easy money. After ascending a mountain to view an arm of Israel as it sat at camp in the valley, Balaam opened his mouth to curse God’s people, but a blessing came out instead (Numbers 23:11). When Balak moved him to another mountain in order to view Israel from a different vantage point, the result was much the same, with Balaam commenting, “I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it” (Numbers 23:20).

Though Balak had moved Balaam to a different mountain in order to see Israel in a different state (he would do it a third time as well in 23:27), each time God prompted a blessing instead of a curse. Remember, the people that Balaam wants to curse have done plenty to deserve it.

They murmured in the wilderness about having no water (Numbers 20) and then about having to eat manna (Numbers 21). They have been a complaining, miserable people since they left Egypt, yet look at how God views them in Numbers 23:21, “He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them”. No matter how bad they had lived, God did not see the sin in His people, for He had provided a way of escape through the brazen serpent of Numbers 22.

There is the shout of a king among God’s people when they learn that their heavenly Father is not mad at them, and that He sees no iniquity in His people. It is not that we are living without sinning; it is that God views His Son’s sacrifice over our sins. WE are the ones that dwell on our wrong-doing, while God is dwelling on Jesus’ finished work at the cross.

Just as I know that my children are not perfect in their every action, our heavenly Father knows that we are not perfect either. He no more demands that we be mistake free than we would demand such impossibility from our own children. It is not that God is soft on sin and failure, but it is rather that God was hard on sin and failure in the body of His Son at the cross. God cannot be just if He is hard on Jesus for your sin and then hard on you as well. The price has been paid in the blood of Jesus, so when God sees us, he sees us as His own. Praise God that when the Father sees you, He sees the Son!

Wrong Doctrine; Right Heart

John 20:11-16

On Resurrection Morning, Mary Magdalene stood outside the tomb of Jesus weeping, for she saw that His tomb was empty and she did not know where He was. Her first assumption is the natural one: Jesus’ body had been stolen in the night and moved to another location. She was there to anoint His body in the Hebrew custom, and now she would have to go home without having accomplished her task.

In her state of trouble and fear, she seems unfazed at the two angels that speak to her from within the empty tomb; one seated at the head and one at the feet. Just like the cherubim’s that cover the Mercy Seat on the Ark, these two angels now sit at the place of God’s mercy and justice. With the tomb empty, Jesus is alive, meaning that He is now able to live in the hearts of all mankind. It may have been lost on Mary Magdalene, but may it not be lost on us!

Mary turns to leave the tomb and sees Jesus, though she “knew not that it was Jesus” (John 19:14), supposing Him to be the garden keeper (verse 15). In His glorified state, Jesus obviously had a different look about Him, though it becomes obvious that He retains the same physical qualities that He had while on this earth (John 20:27). They hold a brief conversation, within which we learn an important lesson into the heart of God.

“Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou?” (John 20:15) is the question that Jesus poses to Mary. She doesn’t recognize Him and answers, “Sir, if you have taken Him from here, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away” (John 20:15). It had become common knowledge that Jesus had been buried in a borrowed tomb, so the assumption might have been that the gardener had come and removed the body so that it could be buried in a family tomb, now that the Jewish feast of Passover was finished. Her response shows that she has no suspicion that Jesus has resurrected, but rather that He is still dead in another location.

Notice that Mary does not believe in the resurrection of Jesus. She walked with Him and talked with Him, but she still has problems with her doctrine. In spite of the obvious flaw in her faith, Jesus reveals Himself to her by saying her name, “Mary” (John 20:16). There was something about the way that He said her name that made her heart leap with joy. The intimate sound of Jesus whispering your name will still warm the heart of even the coldest sinner. There is nothing like knowing Jesus, except perhaps the revelation that He knows you!

With this serious doctrinal flaw (not believing in the resurrection), surely Jesus would not give a revelation of His love, right? We are often taught that if there is a problem in your doctrine that God will not bless you. In fact, I used to hear it preached by men that I greatly respected (and still do respect), that “God will not bless error”. They meant that if your doctrine is wrong, your blessings are limited. According to that teaching, Jesus should have just answered “Sorry mam, I haven’t taken Him anywhere”. It would have been an answer perfectly acceptable to Mary based upon her question. Thank God that Jesus sees past our doctrinal flaws and peers all the way into our hearts!

You may not have it all figured out today (join the club!), but you can rest assured that Jesus knows your heart, even when your doctrine falters. He will give you a revelation of His love by saying your name when He sees that your heart is hungry for more of Him. Seek Him and you will find Him, even when you are seeking in the wrong places.

I See Nothing Wrong!

Numbers 23:18-21

Call me biased, but I see nothing wrong in my children. My son and my daughter make mistakes, no doubt, but I see nothing wrong with them, for they are mine and I love them unconditionally. There is no error that they could make, no wrong that they could perform, that would cause me to beat them, break their legs, rob their future, or destroy their dreams. I love them too much to cause them pain, for they are an extension of me. I may see problems in your kids, but not in mine!

God views every person on the face of the earth as a sheep. Many of the sheep have gone astray and are living on their own in the wilderness, and they need to come to the shepherd to find eternal life. The sheep that dwell with the Savior know His voice (John 10:27), and He refers to them as more than sheep. Those who are saved, He calls His friends (John 15:15).

When Balak, king of Moab, hired Balaam to curse the children of Israel as they passed through his land, Balaam jumped on the opportunity to make some easy money. After ascending a mountain to view an arm of Israel as it sat at camp in the valley, Balaam opened his mouth to curse God’s people, but a blessing came out instead (Numbers 23:11). When Balak moved him to another mountain in order to view Israel from a different vantage point, the result was much the same, with Balaam commenting, “I have received commandment to bless: and he hath blessed; and I cannot reverse it” (Numbers 23:20).

Though Balak had moved Balaam to a different mountain in order to see Israel in a different state (he would do it a third time as well in 23:27), each time God prompted a blessing instead of a curse. Remember, the people that Balaam wants to curse have done plenty to deserve it.

They murmured in the wilderness about having no water (Numbers 20) and then about having to eat manna (Numbers 21). They have been a complaining, miserable people since they left Egypt, yet look at how God views them in Numbers 23:21, “He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he seen perverseness in Israel: the LORD his God is with him, and the shout of a king is among them”. No matter how bad they had lived, God did not see the sin in His people, for He had provided a way of escape through the brazen serpent of Numbers 22.

There is the shout of a king among God’s people when they learn that their heavenly Father is not mad at them, and that He sees no iniquity in His people. It is not that we are living without sinning; it is that God views His Son’s sacrifice over our sins. WE are the ones that dwell on our wrong-doing, while God is dwelling on Jesus’ finished work at the cross.

Just as I know that my children are not perfect in their every action, our heavenly Father knows that we are not perfect either. He no more demands that we be mistake free than we would demand such impossibility from our own children. It is not that God is soft on sin and failure, but it is rather that God was hard on sin and failure in the body of His Son at the cross. God cannot be just if He is hard on Jesus for your sin and then hard on you as well. The price has been paid in the blood of Jesus, so when God sees us, he sees us as His own. Praise God that when the Father sees you, He sees the Son!