In John 20:17 the Lord Jesus after His resurrection tells Mary Magdalene to go to His brethren and say to them, “I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and to My God, and your God.” The majesty of these words is almost beyond our understanding. Even natural writings may have a charm that appeals to cultivated intelligence, but how uniquely sublime are the utterances of the Word of God! The words of our Lord on this occasion echo over the sad tumult of the centuries that have rolled by since, and they are as sweet and clear today as when they were uttered.
The work of our Lord on the cross must occupy the central place in our thoughts, for without it we would be still in our sins. But all this was followed by resurrection and ascension, and we do well to dwell on these a little. God allowed forty days between the two in order to demonstrate clearly to man the blessed truth of the resurrection, but the ascension was the crowning act of God in vindicating His beloved Son. It is also true that Christ ascended by His own act, for He says here, “I ascend.” Here we have the divine majesty and sublimity of the passage.
The Tender Relation Comes First
We do not dwell on the incident surrounding the uttering of these words, interesting though it is. Mary Magdalene would have detained the Saviour, not knowing that she, and ultimately the church, must now know Him only after a heavenly sort. It was a high privilege that she did not realize at the time. More than this, we find that the word “Father” comes before “God.” It was the same divine hand that wrote by the same John the phrase “grace and truth.” The tender relation comes first.
However, we note that it is not “our Father,” nor “our God.” That could not be. Whatever the grace shown out, the interval between the creature and the Creator cannot be bridged in that sense. His relationship is a unique Sonship, while at the same time there is an emphasizing that His God and Father is also ours.
Where can we find anything like this in human thought and expression? What comfort and anchorage for the soul are found in these words! A great poet once remarked that “our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought,” but the Christian sings most sweetly in his brightest joys. Unlike Mary, we have not seen the Lord in His humiliation, but we, along with her, will see Him in glory and be with Him, when we too have ascended to the Father.
R. Beacon, adapted from
The Bible Treasury, Vol. N1, p. 312