The New Man and His Eve

As the Easter season transitions into Pentecost, I have been pondering on the resurrected Christ and his first word when He wanted to be known. He was with Mary Magdalene, and when she didn’t recognize Him, He called her name “Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ ” John 20:16. He could have appeared to his best friend or mother, but he showed himself to the woman with many sins. When Christ died, she lost everything. He was probably the only person that saw her as she was and forgave all her sins. With Him dead, there is no witness left to prove her innocence. 

When the first Adam pointed to Eve and balmed her for his sin and shedding light on her sins, it severed their relationship, the way God charged them. Now the New Adam, which is Jesus breathed His first breathe of life back into her. This new breath of life is attainable between New Adams and New Eves. 

We know that biblically Mary, Jesus’s mother, represents the New Ave born without sins. Jesus died to this Mary born into sin, acted in sin can also have new life. He conquered death for her so she would not die. He crushed the devil for her, so she no longer feels ashamed. He beholds her as His beloved. How wonderful would it be to be Mary and look deep into the face of her lover and see him looking back at her so tenderly and full of love?

Christ did what the old Adam failed to do by laying down His life for His beloved. He took all the blame and conquered death and sin. He restored the severed ties between Adam and Eve. St. Paul charged men with laying down his life for his beloved. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,” Ephesians 5:25. Your Eve will be able to see through you into Christ and adore and obey you. What ended in the beginning as SHE did will convert into HE restored to the beginning of a new ending. 

May the LORD give us strength to sacrifice ourselves for the ones we love and, in doing so, save our souls. Amen.

Image: Marie Bracquemond Under the Lamp, 1877