I come to the garden alone 26/07/2021

I come to the garden alone,

While the dew is still on the roses;

And the voice I hear, falling on my ear,

The Son of God discloses.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,

And He tells me I am His own,

And the joy we share as we tarry there,

None other has ever known.

This hymn was published by an American Gospel song writer named Austin Miles in 1913. It has been adapted and sung by various singers over the years including Jim Reeves (1958), Elvis Presley (1967) and Anne Murray (1999). Another singer who popularised this old hymn was Deniece Williams in 1998.

In 2016 I was preparing to give a talk to the coffee morning at Townhead Christian Fellowship in Stevenston and I decided to investigate the story behind this hymn. I had always found it hard to work out what the hymn was about. The original hymn was written away back in April 1912 - the Titanic sank in that month. Austin Miles was in a darkroom where he processed his photographs in the days before digital cameras. He also had an organ in this room but no view of a garden. What inspired his writing was a fresh reading of chapter 20 of John's Gospel. Here is how Austin Miles described the experience.

"As I read it that day, I seemed to be part of the scene. I became a silent witness to that dramatic moment in Mary's life, when she knelt before her Lord, and cried, Rabboni! (which means Teacher)

My hands were resting on the Bible while I stared at the light blue wall. As the light faded, I seemed to be standing at the entrance of a garden, looking down a gently winding path, shaded by olive branches. A woman in white, with head bowed, hand clasping her throat, as if to choke back her sobs, walked slowly into the shadows. It was Mary."

So the writer of the hymn writes in the first person. He writes as if he is Mary Magdalene and he is entering into her feelings.

He speaks and the sound of his voice is so sweet the birds stop their singing

And the melody that he gave to me within my heart is ringing

It is evident that there is a close bond between Mary and Jesus. She has been given a prominent place in the Gospel records and, in the next Day Share, we will see that she is given the responsibility and the privilege of being the first to tell the apostles that Jesus is alive again. In my lifetime, I have witnessed that when a person is elevated, this often provokes a backlash of jealousy and resentment. Does that explain why some in the early church stigmatised her as a prostitute? In 591 A.D., Pope Gregory the Great said this in a sermon: “She whom Luke calls the sinful woman, whom John calls Mary [of Bethany], we believe to be the Mary from whom seven devils were ejected according to Mark." This was probably not the beginning of this attempt to discredit Mary by suggesting that she was a prostitute. Sadly, even today there is a prejudice against prostitutes and a reluctance to acknowledge the great extent of God's grace. So even if the unnamed woman who is described as a 'sinner' in Luke's Gospel (Luke 7:37-38) was, in fact, Mary Magdalene, this is not a justification for downplaying the role she played in the Gospel records. Are we saying that prostitutes are beyond the reach of God's grace. On the other hand, there were also suggestions that she was married to Jesus. There is absolutely no Biblical evidence for this latter suggestion although Dan Brown has popularised that myth.

If we turn to Luke's Gospel, we find a clue which helps us to understand the real Mary Magdalene.

After this, Jesus travelled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. [Luke 8:1‭-‬3 NIV]

Notice two things from this passage. Firstly, it is clear that women played an important role in the ministry of Jesus, though perhaps they tend to be in the background in accordance with the cultural norms. They supported him materially - and they were prepared to sacrifice their own 'wealth' for him. Secondly, Mary is one of those whom Jesus has cured of demon possession but her deliverance was exceptional - Jesus had released her from the possession of seven demons. 'The Chosen' portrays Mary Magdalene powerfully. She came from Magdala in Galilee and this is how she was distinguished from the other women with the same name.

It is Mary's deliverance from the overwhelming power of demons which is the real reason for the close relationship. She was deeply grateful to the Son of God who had delivered her from the domination of evil spirits. She had been forgiven much so her love was proportionate to her deliverance. Whether or not she is identified as the woman who bathed the Lord's feet, the tender words of forgiveness from the Saviour applied equally to her.

"I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven - for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." [Luke 7:47 NIV] Is it true that our love for the Lord is weak because we underestimate the amount of forgiveness we have received from the Saviour. We have basked in our respectability and self-righteousness and fail to appreciate the depravity of our sinful nature. At the Pharisees house when there was the visit from the woman of the city, Jesus had told the parable of the two debtors- one owed five hundred denarii and the other only fifty. He was making the point that the one who had the 10 times bigger debt was more appreciative of his forgiveness.

[See also Day Share entitled Parable of Pharisee and Tax Collector * Luke 18:9-14 01/02/2020]

From the perspective of someone who has never known what it means to be set free from sin's cruel slavery, it is easy to mistake this genuine gratitude for something sexual but this is to misunderstand the depth of Mary's gratitude. There are some women on the Day Share group who could find it easy to identify with Mary from Magdala. After an encounter with the risen Jesus, they too have been set free. It is lovely to think of the way Mary enjoyed fellowship and a close relationship with the Lord. As you listen to this hymn, reflect again that this is Mary speaking -

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,

And He tells me I am His own,

And the joy we share as we tarry there,

None other has ever known.