This Sunday, August 6th, we complete our five-week exploration of “Woman of Faith in the Bible.”
During this study, we have explored the life and faith of five women from the
Bible. The first four were Miriam,
Naomi, Ruth, and Rachel. This Sunday, we
conclude by examining the life and faith of Mary Magdalene.
Let’s begin by quickly highlighting
what Mary Magdalene was not. First, despite claims within the Church and
popular culture, there is no scriptural evidence that Mary Magdalene was a
prostitute, whom Jesus had rescued from sin.
Secondly, despite the claims of writers and filmmakers, there is no
scriptural evidence that Mary Magdalene was married to Jesus of Nazareth – or,
that she even had any romantic interests in Jesus.
What little we do know about Mary
Magdalene’s background comes from what we can extrapolate. For instance, given her name, many Jewish and
Christian scholars assume that Mary Magdalene was originally from a town with a
similar name, located on the west side of the Sea of Galilee, north of Tiberias,
in what is now Turkey. At one point in
his ministry, Jesus seems to have gone there (see Matthew 15:39). This town may have been very prosperous,
basing its economy on fish drying, weaving, and clothes dyeing.
We first encounter Mary Magdalene in
Luke 8:2-3, when we learn that she is among the women followers of Christ:
“Soon afterwards he went on through
cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of
God. The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil
spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had
gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna,
and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.”
Luke’s reference to Mary’s “seven demons”
can carry many different meanings. It
could refer to some physical ailment, such as Jesus’ healing of the woman with
the flow of blood described later by Luke in 8: 43-48. Alternatively, it could refer to some form of
mental illness, such as the man Jesus healed in Gerascenes, who was possessed
by a “Legion” of demons, described later in Luke in 8:26-31. The fact that Mary Magdalene was possessed by
seven demons indicates the severity of her condition.
Whatever
her condition, Jesus was able to cure Mary Magdalene, and she continued to
follow him throughout his ministry. Mary
was one of the regular followers of Christ for the remainder of his
ministry. As Luke observes in the
closing verse above, Mary Magdalene was one of a group of women who were
followers and supporters of Jesus throughout his ministry.
Mary
Magdalene was always there, with Jesus, even until the very bitter end of his
ministry. At the Crucifixion, when all
of his disciples—except John—had run away and deserted Jesus, Marg Magdalene
was one of the women who stood near the Cross with Jesus throughout his ordeal
and death (see Matthew 27:56, Mark 15:40, and John 19:25). After Jesus had died and his body was taken
down from the Cross, Mary Magdalene watched as Joseph of Arimathea wrapped
Jesus’ body in a clean sheet, placed it in a new tomb, and sealed the tomb with
a great stone. (Matthew 27:57-61)
All
four Gospels report that Mary Magdalene was among the first to see the empty
tomb on Easter morning, and Mary Magdalene is the first to see the resurrected
Christ in three of the Gospels: Matthew
28, Mark 16, and John 20. John describes
Mary’s first encounter with the resurrected Christ this way:
But Mary stood
weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the
tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of
Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to
her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She said to them, ‘They have taken away my
Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him. ‘When she had said this, she
turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was
Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are
you looking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you
have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him
away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to him in
Hebrew, ‘Rabbouni!’ (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her,
‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to
my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to
my God and your God.” ’ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have
seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
(John 20: 11-18)
There is a
great deal of poignancy in this interchange between Mary Magdalene and the
resurrected Christ. In the exchange, we
can sense familiarity, affection, and intimacy.
Yet, it is not a romantic exchange.
It is more like an exchange between a teacher and student in which a
close relationship has mutually grown.
Mary Magdalene has a close friendship with Christ. Yet, it is not a friendship among
equals. No. In her first word to the risen Christ, Mary says: “Rabbouni!”
This word is an Aramaic word, which is a form of endearment for a teacher
or master. In this exchange, we learn of
Mary’s close, intimate, affectionate relationship with the resurrected Christ.
The question for 21st century Christians
is how can we develop the same close, intimate, affectionate relationship with
the resurrected Christ, which Mary Magdalene had?
If you live in the Lincoln, Nebraska area and do not have a place of
worship, then I invite you to come and join us this Sunday, August 6th, as we
reflect on the life and faith of Mary Magdalene. Come, join us, as we ask how we can achieve
the same close, intimate, affectionate relationship with the resurrected
Christ, which Mary Magdalene had. Christ
United Methodist Church is located at 4530 A Street in Lincoln, Nebraska. Our two traditional Worship Services are at
8:30 and 11:00 on Sunday morning.
Come and join us. Everyone is welcome and accepted because God
loves us all.
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