Daily Lesson for Wednesday 25th of September 2024

Almost all of Mark 16:9-20 has parallels to other passages in the New Testament—Mary Magdalene at the tomb seeing Jesus (Matthew 28:1,9-10; John 20:11-18; compare with Luke 8:2); two disciples see Him in the countryside (Luke 24:13-35); the 11 disciples are commissioned (Matthew 28:16-20, Luke 24:36-49, John 20:19-23).

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The first person to see Jesus alive was Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18). Other women saw Him, as well (Matthew 28:8-10). It is significant that the first people to see the risen Lord were women. Because women in the ancient world did not have high status as witnesses, if the story were fabricated, it would have been much more likely to name men as the first witnesses. But it is not men, not the 11, but a woman. She goes to tell the good news to the disciples, but, not surprisingly, they do not believe her testimony, most likely because it seemed fantastic and also, unfortunately, because Mary was a woman.

Apologists for the resurrection story of Jesus have used this fact, that of women being the first ones to have seen Jesus, as powerful evidence for the veracity of the story.

Of course, if they were making the story up, why would they have made themselves look so bad? Jesus had to rebuke them for their “hardness of heart.” The Gospel accounts, from the time of His arrest to His appearances after the Resurrection, depict the followers of Jesus in a very negative light—fleeing, denying, disbelieving, and so forth. This would make no sense if the story were made up.

In contrast, their later bold and unwavering proclamation of the risen Christ, and the hope it offers everyone, presents powerful evidence for the veracity of their claims.

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