Female Followers of Jesus
Luke 8:1-3 describes Jesus' second Galilean tour. Besides the twelve original disciples, who else accompanied Jesus on this tour?
Luke is very explicit that women accompanied Jesus on His missionary tours. This should not be surprising, because Luke's Gospel emphasizes the salvation and the release Jesus brought to the outcasts, the women.
"Luke is the only gospel writer to record many of the details of the early life of Jesus, and often does so from the viewpoint of the women most concerned—Mary, Elisabeth, and Anna. . . . It is as if Luke were saying the gospel of the kingdom of heaven was as much for women as for men, and that their part in its proclamation was equally important."—The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, pp. 769, 770.
Jesus' act of allowing female disciples was unique. Various religious movements in that time did not include women. Some teachers said that women were emptyheaded, were not to be taught, should not be seen in public with men, and should be confined to the home and domestic arts. Yet from the earliest pages of the Gospel right up to the end, women, in one way or another, were involved in the life and mission of Jesus.
Read Matthew 27:55, 56 and Mark 15:40, 41. What more do they add about the role of women in the ministry of Jesus?
Having been healed of various maladies, some of these women showed their love and devotion by assisting in His work and providing for His sustenance. Some of them might have been widows since they were part of the missionary tour and had sustenance to provide for the needs of Jesus and His disciples. Whatever the specifics, the Word of God shows that women played an important role in the earliest days of the church.
Read Galatians 3:28. Looking beyond the immediate context, what should these words tell about how contrary to the principles of Christ prejudice is? Examine your own heart. What attitude and prejudices might you be holding that are contrary to God's Word?
No comments:
Post a Comment