He Knows Your Name.

She’s grieving, standing outside the tomb, just wanting to find her Lord. She thinks He’s the gardener—and as we’ve already established, she wasn’t wrong. But now the conversation begins to unfold. Mary starts to speak… and Jesus responds in the most unexpected, yet intimate way:

“Mary.”

That’s it. Just her name. And instantly her eyes are opened.

This was the man who had delivered her from demons. The one she saw crucified. And now, standing face to face, He speaks her name—and she knows.

Because that’s what the Gardener does:
He calls you by name. It’s personal to Him. Always has been.

There are two voices trying to define you. One that calls you by your sin—and one that calls you by your name.

Satan knows your name and calls you by your sin.
Jesus knows your sin and calls you by your name.

From the very beginning, Jesus has always been the One who calls us personally.
Before anyone else named you, He already had.

In the Garden of Eden, God called out to Adam and Eve by name. And in the garden tomb, Jesus reveals Himself to Mary the same way—by calling her name.

That’s who He is. The Gardener knows us. He calls us. And He’s still calling.

He covers your shame.

He clothes you. And come on—who doesn’t like new clothes?

In Eden, after Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they suddenly realized they were naked. Exposed. Ashamed.

Adam took matters into his own hands and made clothes out of fig leaves. That’s how the Lord found them—covered, but not clean.
But have you noticed? They didn’t leave the garden in fig leaves.

“The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.” — Genesis 3:21

On their way out, what they were wearing couldn’t prepare them for where they were going. So God made them new clothes—clothes that cost something. Because here’s the thing about skin…

You can’t just borrow it. Skin is taken. It’s not freely given—there’s a cost. And that cost is a life.

That spotless animal was a sacrifice, a foreshadowing of the One to come.
From Eden to Calvary, we’ve been wearing the same spiritual clothes—temporary coverings that dealt with our shame, but not our sin. Fixes that tried to hide the external, while the internal remained broken.

But then Jesus came.

He didn’t come to patch up the old clothes. He came to give you something entirely new—not made from the skin of an animal, but by the blood of the spotless Lamb of God. A once-and-for-all covering. A spiritual healing. A new identity.

“He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness…” — Isaiah 61:10

Jesus didn’t come to patch fig leaves or restitch animal skins.
He came to give you something completely new.

What He’s doing in you isn’t a touch-up. It’s a transformation.

The old coverings—shame, striving, self-righteousness—can’t contain the new life of the Spirit.
Just like old wineskins can’t hold new wine, the old you can’t carry the weight of the new calling

“No one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined.” — Luke 5:37

You need new clothes. And He provides them.

“And with that, he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” — John 20:22

What was Jesus doing?
The Gardener was handing out new clothes.

The old garments of law and sacrifice were fulfilled. A new covenant had begun. And with it, new spiritual clothing—clothed in Christ Himself.

He sends you in His name.

And when He clothes you, He commissions you.

In the first garden, Adam and Eve were commissioned to cultivate life. But when sin entered, they were separated from God. Sent out—not with a blessing, but with a curse.

But only One could undo the curse.
Only One could walk back into the garden, take on the shame, and rework the story for His glory. And that’s exactly what Jesus did.

When Jesus calls you, He doesn’t curse you—He commissions you.

He sends you to the very people who need to hear what you’ve experienced. And He goes with you—not as a weight on your back, but as the wind in your sails.

“Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers…”

And Mary goes. She tells the disciples, “I have seen the Lord.”

In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were sent out under a curse.
But in the garden tomb, Mary is sent out with a commissioning on her life.

This was radical. Mary’s testimony, as a woman in that time, wasn’t even admissible in court. She would’ve needed another woman with her just to be taken seriously. And yet Jesus sends her—to be the first evangelist. The first to tell the story of the resurrection.

Jesus chose the one culture would’ve dismissed.
Her voice wasn’t valid in a courtroom, but it was trusted in the Kingdom.
And maybe that’s the point—Jesus doesn’t wait for the world to validate your voice before He commissions it.
He sends those the world would overlook—because He sees something they don’t.
Maybe you don’t have the degree. Maybe you’re not the best public speaker. Maybe crowds make you nervous and you feel unqualified.
But the Gardener isn’t looking for credentials—He’s looking for obedience.

“Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ…” — Romans 8:17

Real Talk

Maybe after reading this, you’re struggling with being called — “Jesus, if You only knew what I’ve done…”
He does. And He still calls you.

Adam & Eve sinned — but God called them.
Mary had a past — but Jesus called her name.

You are not disqualified because of your sin.
It actually puts you in good company.

Jesus qualifies you when He calls you.

Maybe you’re struggling with receiving from Jesus—new clothes.
He died so that you could receive the free gift of salvation.
Take off those dirty rags and embrace the gift of being made clean.

Maybe you’re struggling with being commissioned.
Maybe you don’t have the degree. Maybe you’re not the best public speaker. Maybe crowds make you nervous and you feel unqualified.
But the Gardener isn’t looking for credentials—He’s looking for obedience.

Real talk—evangelism isn’t my strong suit.
I’d rather sit one-on-one, build a relationship, and talk about Jesus over time.
But here’s what I’ve learned: Jesus doesn’t commission comfort zones.
He commissions people.
And the moment I say “yes” to His leading, even when it’s uncomfortable, is the moment I step into what He’s actually called me to do.
You don’t need a platform. You just need obedience.
And obedience starts with a yes.

“If I say, ‘I will not mention His word or speak anymore in His name,’ His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones…” — Jeremiah 20:9

When the Gardener calls you—He calls you by name.
When He gives you new clothes, He gives you new confidence.
New purpose. New identity. New life.

We’ve been wearing the same old shame since Genesis 3. But now?

We’ve been clothed with Christ Himself.

You are not who you were.
You are called.
You are covered.
You are commissioned.

Live like the Gardener is with you right now. Because He is.

🌿 Discussion Questions

1. Which voice are you listening to most right now—one that calls you by your sin, or one that calls you by your name?
2. What “old clothes” (shame, striving, fear) is Jesus inviting you to take off so you can be clothed in His righteousness?
3. Where might God be commissioning you that feels uncomfortable—but necessary?

Connect with Me

What stood out or challenged you?
How can I be praying for you this week?

Reply directly to this post or drop a comment below — I read every one.

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We’re just getting started, and I’d love to walk this journey with you.

Praying for you always,

-Alec

P.S. – You’re crushing it.

Previously in This Series

• Part 1 — Jesus the Gardener
• Part 2: The Gardener Who Seeks