Name Among All Names (John 20:11-16)

Names aren’t just words or sounds. Names are important. They enable us to make sense of the world. Names are how we talk about things and people. When you want to get someone’s attention, you say their name. When you want to wake someone up, you say their name. In our passage this Easter, we see just how powerful a name can be. Mary is at Jesus’ tomb after his crucifixion, and she is distraught and weeping over Jesus' missing body. Until the gardener said a single word. Mary. He said her name, Mary. And all of the sudden, a spell was broken. His voice broke through her grief and fear. It wasn’t the gardener. It was Jesus. He was alive. And he spoke her name. Her name. Maybe, like Mary, you’ve suffered. Maybe you have a few extra names. Names people have given you. Names you’ve given yourself. And like Mary, you’re at the tomb, deep in despair. Then. Jesus. You think it’s just the gardener, but it’s Jesus. He speaks your name. Your real name. Out of all the names, yours. Out of all the people, you. God has come out of the grave and God is looking all around…for you. The name we speak on Easter is Jesus. And the name he speaks is yours.