Easter He is Risen | John 20:11-18

In this Easter Sunday meditation of our Lenten series, I AM: A Lenten Journey with Jesus, we slow down with John 20:11–18 and the first resurrection encounter:

“I have seen the Lord.”

Today we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ—the day death was defeated and hope was restored.

John’s Gospel brings us into a tender and personal moment. Mary Magdalene stands outside the empty tomb weeping. The stone has been rolled away. The body is gone. The disciples have already left, confused and uncertain.

Mary stays.

She sees angels. She sees Jesus. But at first, she does not recognize Him.

Then He speaks her name:

“Mary.”

And everything changes.

In that single word, grief turns to recognition. Despair gives way to joy. The impossible becomes reality.

In this guided Scripture meditation, you are invited to step into the garden with Mary. Through slow readings of John 20:11–18, you will be guided to reflect on the meaning of the resurrection, celebrate the hope we have in Christ, and consider how this life-changing truth invites you to move forward.

The resurrection is not only an event to remember. It is a reality to live in.

Because Jesus is risen:
We are restored.
We are made new.
We are invited into abundant life.

He is risen—and that changes everything.

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• Space to journal, pray, and notice what God is revealing

Here are some additional helpful links:

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This journal includes:
• Each week’s Scripture passage
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• Space to journal, pray, and notice what God is revealing

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Today’s Scripture

John 20:11-18 NLT

11 Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. 

12 She 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.”

14 She 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.’”

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

 

Today’s meditation music entitled Crowned, was generously provided by Simon Wester. If you enjoyed the music, make sure to listen to and follow him on Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/artist/2qUycRIHExBVUPIoq6RUkO?si=vQranvhdRW6NNoMNG7Q9dQ

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Life Audio. Well, hey there, friends, I'm Jody Nisnick and
happy Easter. He is risen. He has risen. Indeed, whether
you listen to this on Easter or at another time,
my prayer is this quiet moment of reflection will help

(00:24):
you celebrate and rejoice as you contemplate the resurrection and
what it means for your life. Will begin our meditation
after a brief word from our sponsors. Before we begin
our meditation, I want to invite you to head into

(00:44):
the show notes, where you will find a link to
download the free I Am Companion journal that I've made
for this series. It has each scripture that we are
meditating on, all of the reflection prompts, and it gives
you space to take notes on your prayers and meditation time.
I do hope you'll take advantage of this free resource. Well,

(01:06):
with that, let's get started. Well, let's begin with a
few deep in and out breaths. And as you breathe
deeply in, just notice God is here and let that

(01:30):
fill you with joy today. And as you exhale, also
notice what's weighing on you right now. Ask God to
hold it. You will keep taking those deep in and
out breaths and let me pray for us. Lord Jesus,

(01:53):
thank you. Today is the day we reflect on and
celebrate your resurrection, the day when everything changed, the day
when you defeated death and you defeated sin. Lord, thank
you for what this means in our life. That we

(02:15):
are a new creation in you, that we are restored
in relationship with you, and that we are invited to
walk in an abiding life with you, a life of fruitfulness,
a life of abundance. Lord Jesus, as we meditate today,

(02:37):
guide and lead us, fill us with joy for the
new life that we have in you. We pray this
and the name of Jesus, Amen well. Today is a
day for rejoicing because through the death and ready erection

(03:00):
of Jesus, sin and death have been overcome. Today. Our
passage describes the first encounter with Jesus after his resurrection.
Mary Magdalene, one of Jesus's followers, has gone to the
tomb to care for Jesus's body and to hold vigil

(03:20):
The stone, though had been rolled away and the body
was missing. Mary ran back to where the disciples were,
and she told Peter and John, who then ran to
the tomb to see and verify her account. When they
saw that Jesus was not there, they went away bewildered.

(03:43):
Mary stayed though, and this is where we pick up
the passage. As you listen, allow this account to unfold
in your imagination. Don't worry about getting all the details right.
That is not the point. It is to enter into
this story, to slow down and to see what God

(04:04):
helps us notice in this account. Our reading is John
twenty Verses eleven through eighteen in the New Living Translation.
Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept,

(04:26):
she stooped and looked in. She 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. Dear woman, why are you crying? The angels
asked her, Because they have taken away my lord, she replied,

(04:52):
and I don't know where they have put him. She
turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus,
but she didn't recognize him. Dear woman, why are you crying?
Jesus asked her, who are you looking for? She thought

(05:15):
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, Mary, Jesus said.
She turned to him and cried out, rabboni, which is
Hebrew for teacher, don't cling to me, Jesus said, for

(05:38):
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.
Mary Magdalene found the disciples and told them I have

(05:58):
seen the Lord. Then she gave them his message as
I read the second time, Allow yourself to step into

(06:18):
this moment with Mary. Take notice of anything that feels
meaningful to you, perhaps an emotion, a phrase, or something else.
I'll give you space to reflect on it. After the reading,
Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept,

(06:42):
she stooped and looked in. She 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. Dear woman, why are you crying, the angels

(07:04):
asked her, Because they have taken away my lord, she replied,
and I don't know where they have put him. She
turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus,
but she didn't recognize him. Dear woman, why are you crying,

(07:30):
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, Mary, Jesus said.

(07:55):
She turned to him and cried out, Rabahoni, which is
Hebrew for teacher. 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

(08:16):
father and your father, to my God and your God.
Mary Magdalene found the disciples and told them I have
seen the Lord. Then she gave them his message. Take

(08:39):
a moment to reflect on what you notice, asking the
Lord how this applies to your life right now as

(09:46):
I read a third time, imagine the encounter again. This time,
ask God to help you celebrate what his resurrection means
and to know how you should move forward with this
life change information. Mary was standing outside the tomb crying,

(10:10):
and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. She
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. Dear woman, why

(10:30):
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. She turned to leave and
saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn't

(10:52):
recognize him. 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

(11:14):
where you have put him, and I will go and
get him, Mary, Jesus said. She turned to him and
cried out, rabboni, which is Hebrew for teacher. Don't cling
to me, Jesus said, for I haven't yet ascended to
the father. But go find my brothers and tell them

(11:40):
I am ascending to my father and your father, to
my God and your God. Mary Magdalene found the disciples
and told them I have seen the Lord. Then she
gave them his message. Take a moment to sit in

(12:04):
gratitude with Jesus, thanking him for who he is, his resurrection,
and asking him how he wants you to move forward
with this life changing information. Lord Jesus, thank you, Thank you,

(14:21):
for your resurrection, for everything that means, for the life
that it brings us. Thank you for this tender account
between Mary and Jesus recorded for us, for her not understanding,
but for when you spoke her name, everything made sense. Lord.

(14:46):
All it takes is a word from you, and often
things make sense. So we pray that as we sit
in the glorious truth of your resurrection, the reality that
we have life in you, we ask that you would
speak to us like you spoke to Mary, that you

(15:10):
would say our name and love, and that you would
tell us how we are to move forward sharing this
life changing news with those around us. Gracious Lord, we
thank you again for what today means, because it changes everything.

(15:32):
We pray this in the name of Jesus, our risen Savior. Amen.

(16:07):
Well friends, if you are new to the So Much
More podcast, or if you're new to the season of LINT,
I want to invite you head into the show notes
and grab the free I am Meditation Journal. I unpack
a little bit more about what LINT is and why

(16:28):
Christians have been practicing it for a very long time.
You'll also see in the notes my partner Life Audio,
and I encourage you to check them out at lifeaudio
dot com. Finally, if you are enjoying these meditations, one
of the greatest things you can do for me is

(16:48):
either share these with a friend or follow on Apple
Podcasts and Spotify, and if you're able, leave a review.
All of those things, they just go a really long
way and spreading the word and in helping get these
meditations into the hands of those who might need them.

(17:10):
As always, my friend, thanks for joining me on so
much more because we really do believe Jesus has so
much more to say to us, and this is one
way we are creating space to listen.