Ensign: The Apostle Mary Magdalene
All ye inhabitants of the world, and dwellers on the earth, see ye, when he lifteth up an ensign on the mountains; and when he bloweth a trumpet, hear ye. Isaiah 18:3
AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 24 July 2015
She doesn't usually show up in the list of Jesus' apostles, does she?
But just when you think you know something, you have to look at it a different way. And sometimes when I'm reading in the Word -- or trying to get my mind focused in the Word through using a devotional -- I come to a passage like this:
Mary's declaration, "I have seen the Lord!" marks her as the first apostle in John's gospel. Her qualifications were few and simple: she loved Jesus, she had witnessed his resurrection, and Jesus wanted her to proclaim that good news. Interestingly, she was not at all disqualified by her gender.
And that last sentence tacked on as I type it makes me wonder -- why would God bother creating two genders if one was always going to be disqualified or subordinate in doing Him service? (There's no RIGHT way that's going to come out, so please get your mind out of the gutter now.)
Mary in that paragraph is Mary Magdalene, so called not because of her last name but because of where she's from -- Magdala, a town on the western bank of the Sea of Galilee. She's the one Jesus cast seven devils out of (see Mark 8:2) and a leader among the "certain women" with Him in ministry, and the first apostle.
The passage comes from the devotion I read Wednesday morning, Christ In Our Home, and even though the twelve disciples (Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James bar = son of = Alpheus, Jude, Simon "the Zealot", and Judas; the listing's slightly different in each Gospel) first get called apostles in Matthew 10:2, THEY didn't see Jesus after He'd risen from the dead ... before Mary did.
Now I doubt there's anyone Jesus doesn't want proclaiming the good news of His resurrection, but we've got to do it the right way. Have you noticed throughout Scripture that God and His Son Jesus never force someone to follow them -- it's not because they can't do so; it's a safe bet that the Creator of the universe could force his will upon any one of us He wants.
But that would be missing the point; having people in heaven, in eternal fellowship with God who really didn't want to be there (some who didn't even acknowledge Him in their lives on Earth) -- THAT would make a hell of heaven. And that is perhaps the ONLY time you will see me borrow a phrase from John Milton's Paradise Lost.
In case you're confused, all apostles are disciples, but not all disciples are apostles. But "apostle" isn't necessarily a step up in being one of Jesus' followers, and He doesn't love you more if you're an apostle (someone who loves Jesus, someone who witnessed his resurrection, and someone Jesus wants to proclaim that good news). There are no "mere disciples" or "just disciples" of Jesus.
You and I are both created by an everlasting God with a purpose. And I really must share this sometime -- I didn't welcome Jesus as my Lord and Savior when I was a teenager because I necessarily wanted Him to be (like any relationship this takes time), but because I wanted a purpose, I wanted someone to provide a purpose, for my life that was bigger than I live and I die.
We're not given a lot of Scriptural background on Mary Magdalene herself outside what I've excerpted here, and accounts you may have read that she was Jesus' wife are ridiculously spurious. But the fact that she was willing to help Jesus in His public ministry, was at the foot of the cross when He died, and was the first to see Him risen from the dead -- that makes all the difference.
Today you and I have a difference to make too. And interestingly, we are not at all disqualified by our gender, our age, or our life experiences.
David
P. S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with you, and I hope it encourages you too. If I'm not or you want me to get lost, please let me know -- thank you!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to You in praise and prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even the ones we don't know we have! Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.
Thank You, Lord, for all of us in leadership and service here and abroad, as well as for opportunities we have and the promise of new life! I pray we all seek and have a blessed week. Amen.
AN ENSIGN ON THE MOUNTAINS 24 July 2015
She doesn't usually show up in the list of Jesus' apostles, does she?
But just when you think you know something, you have to look at it a different way. And sometimes when I'm reading in the Word -- or trying to get my mind focused in the Word through using a devotional -- I come to a passage like this:
Mary's declaration, "I have seen the Lord!" marks her as the first apostle in John's gospel. Her qualifications were few and simple: she loved Jesus, she had witnessed his resurrection, and Jesus wanted her to proclaim that good news. Interestingly, she was not at all disqualified by her gender.
And that last sentence tacked on as I type it makes me wonder -- why would God bother creating two genders if one was always going to be disqualified or subordinate in doing Him service? (There's no RIGHT way that's going to come out, so please get your mind out of the gutter now.)
Mary in that paragraph is Mary Magdalene, so called not because of her last name but because of where she's from -- Magdala, a town on the western bank of the Sea of Galilee. She's the one Jesus cast seven devils out of (see Mark 8:2) and a leader among the "certain women" with Him in ministry, and the first apostle.
The passage comes from the devotion I read Wednesday morning, Christ In Our Home, and even though the twelve disciples (Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, James bar = son of = Alpheus, Jude, Simon "the Zealot", and Judas; the listing's slightly different in each Gospel) first get called apostles in Matthew 10:2, THEY didn't see Jesus after He'd risen from the dead ... before Mary did.
Now I doubt there's anyone Jesus doesn't want proclaiming the good news of His resurrection, but we've got to do it the right way. Have you noticed throughout Scripture that God and His Son Jesus never force someone to follow them -- it's not because they can't do so; it's a safe bet that the Creator of the universe could force his will upon any one of us He wants.
But that would be missing the point; having people in heaven, in eternal fellowship with God who really didn't want to be there (some who didn't even acknowledge Him in their lives on Earth) -- THAT would make a hell of heaven. And that is perhaps the ONLY time you will see me borrow a phrase from John Milton's Paradise Lost.
In case you're confused, all apostles are disciples, but not all disciples are apostles. But "apostle" isn't necessarily a step up in being one of Jesus' followers, and He doesn't love you more if you're an apostle (someone who loves Jesus, someone who witnessed his resurrection, and someone Jesus wants to proclaim that good news). There are no "mere disciples" or "just disciples" of Jesus.
You and I are both created by an everlasting God with a purpose. And I really must share this sometime -- I didn't welcome Jesus as my Lord and Savior when I was a teenager because I necessarily wanted Him to be (like any relationship this takes time), but because I wanted a purpose, I wanted someone to provide a purpose, for my life that was bigger than I live and I die.
We're not given a lot of Scriptural background on Mary Magdalene herself outside what I've excerpted here, and accounts you may have read that she was Jesus' wife are ridiculously spurious. But the fact that she was willing to help Jesus in His public ministry, was at the foot of the cross when He died, and was the first to see Him risen from the dead -- that makes all the difference.
Today you and I have a difference to make too. And interestingly, we are not at all disqualified by our gender, our age, or our life experiences.
David
P. S. I write this weekly devotional to keep in touch with you, and I hope it encourages you too. If I'm not or you want me to get lost, please let me know -- thank you!
Thank You, Lord, that we can come to You in praise and prayer and that You provide for all our needs, even the ones we don't know we have! Let us pray for the peace of Jerusalem on both sides of the fence there and around the world.
Thank You, Lord, for all of us in leadership and service here and abroad, as well as for opportunities we have and the promise of new life! I pray we all seek and have a blessed week. Amen.
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