With all the accounts in the news of the callous disregard for human life that is happening in today’s world, the story of Resurrection of Jesus brings great comfort. Human beings in their sinfulness brought about his suffering but God changed the whole story and raised him to new life. John uses darkness and light to illustrate this. Mary of Magdala came in darkness, presumably to pray at the tomb. It was customary for Jews to do this after death, for it was believed the spirit lingered for three days afterwards. Mary had stood resolutely at the cross and watched Jesus die a horrible death. She must have been shattered. Her reaction to the empty tomb was understandable. Someone must have stolen the body. It appears she didn’t go into the tomb and see the neatly folded grave-clothes. That would have told her that grave robbers couldn’t have taken him. Nicodemus had brought an enormous amount of myrrh and aloes to anoint Jesus. This would have stuck to the body and been impossible to remove.
In spite of her failure to realise that he had risen or in fact to recognise him when he appeared to her, Jesus chose to appear first to Mary of Magdala. She had been steadfast as a disciple, while all the others except John had deserted him. She knew him when he called her by name and she came into the light.