Don't Touch Me!

 

 During the COVID-19 pandemic, a friend told me that she was going through "hug withdrawal" because of social distancing related to coronavirus. As a "hugger" myself, I know how she feels -- virtual or phone encounters are a poor substitute for the body of Christ assembling together (Hebrews 10:29), greeting one another with a holy kiss (Romans 16:16).

Yet Scripture tells us that there is a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing (Ecclesiastes 3:5), during a pandemic the latter, out of love to protect one another from potentially lethal infection. Although the circumstances were totally different, the command to refrain from embracing reminded me of when Jesus Christ in His glorified body told Mary Magdalene "Don't touch me!" The post below originally appeared on this blog in 2014:
 

After Christ’s resurrection, why did He tell Mary Magdalene not to touch Him when He appeared to her at the empty tomb? This seems to contradict His instructions to Thomas and the other disciples shortly thereafter, when He told them to “handle” Him and to feel His side.

John 20:17 Jesus saith unto [Mary], Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.

…27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. 

It seems that in both these appearances, Christ was in His glorified resurrection body, and not a disembodied Spirit. Mary did not recognize Him (v. 14) until He called her name (v. 16), but there must not have been anything ghost-like about His appearance, as she assumed He was the gardener and asked Him questions about where they had taken her Lord (v. 15). 

Some suggest that this was a gender issue – that it was not appropriate for Mary to touch the risen Christ, whereas Thomas and the apostles were permitted to do so. But during His earthly ministry, Jesus did not rebuke the sick woman who touched the hem of His garment for healing (Luke 8:43-48), nor did He prohibit Mary from anointing His head and feet with oil and drying His feet with her hair (Luke 7:37-39; Matthew 26:7-13). According to social standards of the time, Mary’s lavish physical acts of worship would have bordered on scandalous, but He did not deny her this intimate contact. He knew that her motive was not fleshly lust, but pure adoration of her Lord Jesus Christ.

Clearly His glorified resurrection body was different from the physical body He inhabited during His time on earth, but would that alone have prevented contact? He told His apostles to “handle” Him to see that He was made of flesh and bone (but not blood; Luke 24:39-40), and He ate in that body (Luke 24:39-40; John 21:15). Yet He was able suddenly to appear and to vanish, apparently instantaneously passing through solid walls (Luke 24:31,36; John 20:19). 

Jesus in His risen body told Thomas to thrust his finger into His nail-scarred hands and his hand into His pierced side. The other apostles had already seen these wounds and believed Jesus had risen (John 20:20), but Thomas demanded a tactile experience (John 20:25), which the Lord did not deny him. 

At first reading of John 20:17, it might seem that between Christ’s appearances to Mary, and then to Thomas and the others, He ascended to His Father. If that is the case, it might be that Jesus had to present Himself to the Father to verify His completed work on the cross (John 19:30; Hebrews 2:14-15), and He had to remain pure of earthly contamination until then. This does not seem sensible to me, as even stepping on the ground might be a form of contamination – particularly the ground around a tomb, which would be unclean by Mosaic Law (Leviticus 10:10; Numbers 19:11,14,16). 

To me, it makes more sense that as His physical body perished, His Spirit went immediately into the hands of the Father (Matthew 27:50; Luke 23:46) and was in Paradise that same day (Luke 23:43). Three days later, as foretold by the prophets and by Himself, He rose from the dead and appeared to His followers in His glorified resurrection body (Luke 24:7,21,46, 1 Corinthians 15:4; etc.). 

Scripture tells us that Christ ascended into Heaven 40 days later (Acts 1:2-11), being observed by the 11 remaining apostles and by angels. “I ascend” in John 20:17 therefore seems not to mean “I am at this moment completing the act of ascension,” but rather, “I am in the process of ascending, or about to ascend, which will not be completed until 40 days later.” 

Yet something important and wonderful had clearly changed since Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead on the third day, as He told Mary to tell the news not to His “apostles,” or “disciples,” or even His “friends,” (John 15:13) but rather to His “brethren!” (Matthew 28:10; John 20:17) He was their Lord and Master (Matthew 10:24-25; John 13:13-14), but because He had now paid the price for all our sins and redeemed us from sin and death (Romans 8:1-4; 1 Corinthians 15:25-27), all who trusted Him became His brethren (Hebrews 2:11,17). 

As Jesus Christ would later reveal to Paul, believers in Him were now His joint heirs, adopted children of the Father (Romans 8:14-17); and even His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20). Yet Jesus is the only begotten Son of the Father (John 3:16), and the Lamb of God (John 1:29,36), which is why He made the distinction between “my Father” and “your Father” and “my God, and “your God” (John 20:17). 

The best explanation for why Jesus told Mary “Touch me not,” may center on the word translated “touch” in the KJV. Some other versions translate this as “cling to” or “hold fast,” which may be closer to the Greek word haptomai, which some commentaries say means “grab hold of.” We see the other women holding the risen Jesus by the feet to worship Him as they realize Who He is (Matthew 28:9). 

What was Mary’s reaction as she realized her beloved Jesus was not dead, but standing beside her? Any of us encountering a loved one we had given up for dead would have the same reaction – to want to fling our arms around them, clasp them tightly, and embrace them as if we would never again let them go. 

But Jesus did not rise from the dead to give earthly comfort to those He loved during His ministry; He rose to give all who trust Him eternal life (1 Corinthians 15:12-26). He wants us to cling to Him, abide in Him (John 15:4-7), and remain in Him (Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 1:2; etc.) – not physically, but spiritually. 

Not until we reach Glory will we have the awesome privilege of not only seeing Him face to face, but of knowing Him fully as He now knows us (1 Corinthians 13:12). Not only may we fall prostrate at His feet and feel His healing touch (Revelation 1:17), but He will tenderly wipe away every tear from our eyes (Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 7:17; 21:4). I believe He will embrace us lovingly as He did the children brought to Him for a blessing (Mark 10:13-16). 

I believe Jesus was telling Mary, in effect: “Don’t try to keep me here with you, as much as you want to, but know that I am going to my Father so that all who love me can abide in me spiritually until I come again to bring all of you to myself. I have walked the earth with you for three years, but now you must learn to walk by faith, not by sight.” (John 14:1-3; 2 Corinthians 5:7) 

So why did He allow Thomas to perform a physical examination of His wounds? Thomas’ motive for touching Jesus was different than Mary’s. She wanted to cling to Him out of love, blended perhaps with fear that He would again leave her. The other disciples trusted their vision to know that Jesus’ wounds proved His identity, yet Thomas doubted their account and needed tactile proof. Even though Our Lord was merciful in allowing Thomas the evidence he needed, He said that those with greater faith, who did not need sensory evidence, were blessed indeed ((John 20:25-29).  

That would be all of us who have faith in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only way to Heaven (John 14:6), based on His Word, without the luxury of having seen or heard Him in person! Praise God that Jesus Christ did not remain on earth, but instead ascended to the Father, where He continually intercedes for us (Romans 8:34; Hebrews 7:25), and where He is preparing a special place where each of us will spend eternity with Him! (John 14:1-3) Praise God that He ascended so that He could send the Holy Spirit, the Comforter (John 14:16,26; 16:7), to live within each believer’s heart! 

© 2014 Laurie Collett
Edited and reposted from the archives

How Does God Love Me? Let Me Count Three Ways.

 

Photo by Sheba_Also 2016

Valentine’s Day started me thinking about perfect Love, the Supreme Lover, and the ultimate Loving Gift. God’s love for us is infinite, eternal, and unconditional, for it has no limits, transcends all time, and requires nothing in return.]

His infinite love reflects His almighty power (Genesis 17:1, 18:14; 28:3, Jeremiah 32:27; Colossians 1:16) to give us all good things (Matthew 7:11; Luke 11:13); His perfect wisdom, to know and do what is best for us (Psalm 139; Romans 8:28; 11:33-36); and His omnipresence, to protect, embrace and comfort us no matter where we go (Psalm 139; Revelation 1:8).

 

 He alone is love itself (1 John 4:8), the source of all blessings (James 1:17), and the light that overcomes all darkness (2 Samuel 22:29; Psalm 112:4; Isaiah 9:2; Matthew 4:16; John 1:5; 8:12; 12:35,46; 1 John 1:5). He made His loving plan for us (Jeremiah 33:2-3) from the foundation of time (2 Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 1:4); He loved us from before we were even conceived (Psalm 139:16;Jeremiah 1:5); and His love is everlasting, continuing throughout eternity (Jeremiah 31:3). We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).

 

We know His unconditional love through His grace, as He gives us blessings we don’t deserve (Ephesians 2:8); His mercy, as He spares us from the punishment we do deserve (Psalm 109:26; 136:26; Isaiah 30:18; Romans 11:30; Ephesians 2:1-7) and His universal acceptance of all who have faith in His Son’s death, burial and resurrection as the only way to eternal life (1 Corinthians 15:1-4; John 14:6), regardless of their race, sex, or religious heritage (Galatians 3:28).

 

Because His love is unconditional, it is self-sacrificing to the point of death (1 John 3:16), it flows from a servant’s heart (John 13:5-14), and it is unmerited, for there is nothing we can do to earn it (Ephesians 2:8-9). He gave us the perfect Gift of His sinless Son, Who willingly laid down His life for us (John 15:13), empowered by the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 12:2-4). And He did all this while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8; Ephesians 2:5), rebels against His truth (1 John 4:3), and His enemies (Romans 5:10).

 

The incomprehensible richness of this love is possible only because He is One in Three Persons: our Father (Matthew 6:9); Jesus, our Bridegroom (Matthew 9:15); and the Holy Spirit, our Comforter (John 14:16). Each Member of the Trinity not only exemplifies what each of these relationships should ideally be like with their earthly counterparts, but each is perfect, complete, and ever present to sustain us.

 

God the Father sits on His throne in Heaven (Psalm 45:6; 47:8; Matthew 5:34, from which He rules all things, everywhere, throughout all time, commanding all matter, space and time. Yet He is our Abba Father (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6), our Daddy Who loves for us to come running to Him for reassurance, forgiveness, and encouragement (Luke 15:20). We can boldly approach His throne (Hebrews 4:16) with our requests because when our Holy Father looks at us, He does not see our sins, but only the perfect righteousness of His Son Who was the perfect sacrifice reconciling sinners to Holy God (Romans 3:25: 1 John 2:2). 

 

Not only was Jesus that perfect Sacrifice, and now the High Priest Who intercedes for us while sitting at the right hand of God the Father (Hebrews12:2), but He is also our Betrothed, for the church of born-again believers is His bride. He is our Bridegroom (Matthew 9:15), Husband (2 Corinthians 11:2), and Beloved (Song of Solomon 2:3,8-10,16,17). 

 

According to the Jewish marriage custom, a man seeking to marry breaks bread with his beloved and her father, and if she accepts his proposal, she drinks from the same cup that he does. He then returns to his father’s house to build an addition for himself and his bride, and when his father decides the new home is ready, the groom returns unannounced to claim his bride, carrying her off with a great shout in the middle of the night. Therefore, the bride-to-be must keep herself pure and ready, for she knows that he will come back for her, but she doesn’t know when. 

 

When we place our faith in the power of Christ’s shed blood, it is as if we drink of that cup of suffering with Him, and during the remainder of our earthly life we become more conformed to His image through those sufferings and through the power of His resurrection (Philippians 3:10). We are the bride awaiting Christ’s return, and only the Father will determine when the mansion He is preparing for us is ready (John 14:2-3; Matthew 24:36; Mark 13:32). Without warning, at the sound of the trumpet, He will snatch us away to meet with Him in the air (1 Corinthians 15:52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16) and take part in the marriage ceremony and feast (Revelation 19:7-9).

 

We must therefore be like the wise virgins awaiting the Bridegroom’s return, keeping our lamps trimmed and filled with oil, symbolizing being filled with the Holy Spirit (Matthew 25:1-13). Only through the Spirit is it possible for us to remain separated and holy as His bride, preparing for His return.

 

Meanwhile, the Holy Spirit, Who indwells each believer at the moment of salvation (John 14:17), is our constant Comforter, Companion, and Guide (John 16:7). At the moment of salvation, He gives each of us at least one spiritual gift to use to grow the church by sharing the Gospel, to fortify the church by helping, exhorting, and teaching fellow believers, and to glorify God in all that we do (1 Corinthians 12).

 

Throughout our Christian walk, the Comforter enables us to bear the fruit of the Spirit, described in three groups of three (Galatians 5:22-23): the sweet fruit we enjoy of love, joy and peace; the fruit governing our relationships with each other (longsuffering, gentleness, and goodness), and the fruit of self-control (faith, meekness, and temperance). 

 

As our Companion, He is the Friend Who sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24), for He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). How can He leave us, for He inhabits our very body (1 Corinthians 3:16) as His temple! As our Guide, the Spirit constantly draws our focus to Jesus Christ (John 15:26; 16:13-14), teaches us to understand the Scripture (John 14:26), and allows us to know that we belong to God evermore (1 John 4:13-16).

 

Praise Him that He allows us to be children of God the Father, joint heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17) through our relationship to Our Father and as the betrothed of God the Son, and His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20) through the work of the Holy Spirit!  What greater love could there be?

 

1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. 

 

© 2013 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives

Preparing for Storms

 

Photo by NOAA 2015

In Florida, hurricane season opened with a bang with the threat of Tropical Storm Elsa, which was upgraded to a hurricane before the winds died down sufficiently so that it was downgraded once again. But in the meantime, our home and businesses lay directly in the projected track of U.S. landfall, where the forecast predicted high winds, incessant rain, flooding, thunderstorms, and possible tornadoes, as well as likely power outages.

So my husband brought in or tied down all outdoor furniture and trash cans, barricaded doors in low-lying areas with sandbags, cleared debris from the parking lot drain, drained excess water from the pool at a rental property, filled up the gas tanks, and lugged a generator from a shed to an overhang near the house, where he got it running so that it could be connected to a freezer.

Meanwhile, I filled any empty spaces in the refrigerator and freezer with water bottles, drinks and bags of ice, and cranked up the dials so that the contents would stay cooler longer if we were without electricity for any length of time. I gathered up the flashlights, batteries, and emergency supplies and strategically placed them around the house where they would be easy to find at night. I filled up the tubs with water and charged our laptops and devices. I even cleaned the house so that it would be ready if my son and his wife, who live nearer to a flood zone, decided to stay with us.

Prayer was the most vital part of our preparation (Psalm 143:1; Ephesians 6:18; Philippians 4:6) – for safety for us and for all in Elsa’s path, for protection of our property and businesses against any damage, and for us not to lose power so that we would not have to stop working or to lose perishable food.

Thankfully, Elsa’s track shifted a little and her strength dissipated before making U.S. landfall. God answered our prayers (Psalm 42:8; 66:19-20; Matthew 21:22) for personal safety and for that of our family and loved ones, for protection against any damage, and even for no interruption in power! (Had that last prayer not been answered, I would not be writing and posting this blog post now!)

The following morning, we surveyed the scene and confirmed that all was well, praise the Lord! We then began the long ritual of undoing all we had done the day before – removing the sandbags, taking the lawn furniture outside, and replacing everything to where it was normally stored. Doing and undoing hard work is never pleasant, but we thanked God for answered prayer and that we were doing that instead of having to deal with repairing damage or potentially even worse consequences.

An unexpected blessing (Romans 8:28; Ephesians 3:20) was that we had a freshly cleaned house and lots of steps and minutes of continuous exercise tracked on our activity monitors!

Preparing for the storm reminded me not only of God’s protection (Proverbs 1:33; 3:23) and faithfulness (Deuteronomy 7:9; Psalm 89:8; Isaiah 25:1; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 1 Peter 4:19), but it also got me thinking about how dependent we are on power to fuel our daily lives. Had the storm struck harder or closer to home, we could have been without light, running water, air conditioning in 90 degree heat and high humidity, refrigeration, flushing toilets, transportation, and Internet or phone communication.

Knowing this, we were highly motivated to do all we could to ensure alternate power sources for these vital needs. But these were a poor substitute for the free-flowing electrical power we normally enjoy, and they would eventually run out.

Praise God, He is the ultimate source of power (2 Samuel 22:33; 2 Chronicles 20:6; 25:8; Job 36:22; Psalm 62:11; 150:1) that never runs out and that created all and fuels all activities in the universe and in Heaven! (Jeremiah 32:17; Romans 1:20). God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). He is the Fountain of Living Water (Song of Solomon 4:15; Jeremiah 2:13; 17:13; John 4:10-11) freely flowing to all who trust in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6).

He is our Sustainer (Psalm 3:5; 55:22; Colossians 1:17) Who provides for our every need (Matthew 6:8, 32; Luke 12:30). He is our Comforter (John 14:16, 26; 15:26; 16:7) Who guides us better than any GPS, teaches us more than we could ever learn online, and gives us the words to speak in prayer (Romans 8:26) even when we are cut off from earthly channels of communicating with others.

Just as we repeatedly face physical storms, we must also contend with spiritual storms, for our battles are not against the earthly realm, but against principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places. But thankfully, we can be strong in God, and in the power of His might. In spiritual warfare, we do not need to barricade our doors with sandbags or board our windows, but we do need to put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18).

When preparing for a hurricane or other danger, it is prudent to prepare (Proverbs 22:3), including putting aside enough water and nonperishable food for our family for at least several days. But God is our ultimate Provider, Who assures us that our physical needs for food, clothing and shelter will be met (Psalm 37:25), provided our first priority is to seek His righteousness (Matthew 6:22-32) through faith in the shed blood and resurrection of His Son (Ephesians 2:5-8).

Even more importantly, He gives us our daily spiritual bread (Matthew 6:11) through His Word, if we take the time to meditate on it daily and to seek His counsel through prayer. He alone can give us the living water that nourishes and replenishes our soul so that we will never thirst! (John 6:35-48)

In today’s developed world, living without power is not only an inconvenience but a potential health hazard and major disruption to our way of life. But we can be so thankful that God’s power is never depleted and is always available to us!

If we experience any sense of ebbing current in our spiritual life, it is not God’s shortcoming but our own. Unconfessed sin (Proverbs 28:13; 1 John 1:9), pride manifest as reliance on our own flesh rather than on His omnipotence (1 John 2:16), rebellion against or unbelief in His Word (Hebrews 3:12), or a husband failing to honor his wife (1 Peter 3:7) can all block His light from shining through us and interrupt His power from flowing through us to bless us and those around us.

But if we find our fellowship with God broken because of these sins, all we need do is repent and take the first step back toward Him, for like the Father of the prodigal son, He is waiting to run to us with open arms! (Luke 15:11-32)

As we face life’s storms, whether physical or spiritual, may we rely on Jesus Christ, our Rock (Matthew 16:18) and Strong Tower (Proverbs 18:10), our Sustainer, Comforter, Counselor (Isaiah 9:6), Light of the world (John 1:9; 8:12; 9:5), and Almighty God! 

© 2021 Laurie Collett