But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 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.” Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 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.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). 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.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.
In the midst of our greatest hurt and greatest fear, we can know that God has provided comfort. God is the God of all comfort (2 Corinthians 1:3). One of the first teachings of Jesus was to tell us that, “Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted,” (Matthew 5:4). God sent His Son to comfort us in our deepest hurts. In the above passage we read about Mary’s sorrow. As she weeper, Jesus shows up to give her comfort. The comfort is not what the world offers. Her comfort is the hope of the day she will be forever with Him. Jesus did not talk to her about the things of this earth. Jesus talked to her about the things of hope, of heaven and of eternity. This world was not the point. Mary, the disciples and we have to remember that truth as we sorrow. Paul told us not to sorry over the loss of this life, like the world (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14). We are not to sorrow as those who have no hope. We are to make sure we embrace God’s comfort. But, we must not characterize God’s comfort in the way we like. We are to remember that the real comfort comes from having the hope that Jesus provided in His death and resurrection. That was the most powerful comfort He could give Mary ... and us!!
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