WOMEN IN THE WORD: MARY MAGDALENE

A review of “Women in the Word” wouldn’t be complete without looking at the life of Mary Magdelene, for Mary was the first to encounter the Risen Lord Jesus. It’s fascinating that after coming from the grave on the first Easter morn, Jesus didn’t appear first to John the Beloved, or to Peter, or Nicodemus, or Pilate, or to His mother. He appeared first to Mary Magdelene.

In first-century Israeli culture, a woman was a second-class citizen… but Jesus chose to reveal Himself to Mary… a woman.

Mary, an insignificant woman, was from Magdala, an insignificant town on the western banks of the Sea of Galilee. Nothing too dramatic happened in Magdala.

More importantly, Mary had experienced miraculous healing when seven demons came out of her (Mark 16:9; Luke 8:2). Seven demons! She was a sin-filled woman, maybe a prostitute. Still, Jesus chose Mary.

I found a dozen references to her in the Gospels (Matthew 27:56, 61; 28:1; Mark 15:40, 47; 16:1, 9; Luke 8:2; 24:10; John 19:25; 20:1, 18). When Mary is listed with other women, her name often appears first, maybe because she was a leader (Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40; Luke 24:10).

But… Mary is most-remembered for the events of Resurrection Morning…

“Mary stood outside the tomb, crying. As she was crying, she stooped to look into the tomb. She saw two angels in white sitting where Jesus’s body had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, ‘Woman, why are you crying?’ ‘Because they’ve taken away my Lord,’ she told them, ‘and I don’t know where they’ve put him.’ Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know it was Jesus. ‘Woman,’ Jesus said to her, ‘why are you crying? Who is it that you’re seeking?’ Supposing he was the gardener, she replied, ‘Sir, if you’ve carried him away, tell me where you’ve put him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ Turning around, she said to him in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’—which means ‘Teacher’ ” (John 20:11–16).

“… think on these things” (Philippians 4:8, KJV).