On The First Day of the Week 

John 20:1-18

Christ and Mary Magdalene at the Tomb, Rembrandt van Rijn, 1638

On the first day of the week, the third day after his crucifixion, Jesus appeared to his followers alive from the dead. John’s account is the only one among the Gospel writers to specifically present himself as an eyewitness to this event. He begins, though, with Jesus first appearing to Mary Magdalene - interesting because Mary is not otherwise a particularly significant figure in any of the Gospels.

Rembrandt shows the emotional and dramatic moment when Mary turns and recognizes that the man she thought was the gardner was actually her Lord, now risen from the dead. Humorously, Rembrandt shows Jesus in the garb of a gardner.

But in all seriousness, what do you know about Mary Magdalene? My suspicion is that for many of us it’s less than we think. But in this lesson you may find out something you didn’t know before.