Les Feldick Bible Study

Why did Mary Magdalene think Jesus was a gardener after his resurrection?

Mary Magdalene thought Jesus was a gardener because she saw Him in the semi-darkness of early dawn and could not clearly define His features. His resurrected body looked common and ordinary, not bizarre or weird, so she took Him for just another person.

Les explains that when Mary saw Him in the semi-darkness of that early dawn, she thought He was a gardener. He did not look weird; He looked very common and ordinary, but she couldn't define His features enough to know who He was. Similarly, the disciples saw Him cooking fish on the shore and did not recognize Him, asking if He had food, because He looked like just another person. Les points out that if Jesus had looked bizarre or different, Peter and the ten would have understood, but they didn't know who He was. Jesus had all the outward appearances of another human being, yet He was now immortal. He ate with them, could go through walls, and be transported instantly. Les teaches that our resurrected bodies will likewise look normal from all human outward appearances, not weird or like a Hollywood concoction, just as the Lord Jesus did during those 40 days from resurrection to ascension.