Women and Other True Believers – Luke 8:1-15

Karen L. King writes,

From the beginning, Jewish women disciples, including Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Susanna, had accompanied Jesus during his ministry and supported him out of their private means (Luke 8:1-3). He spoke to women both in public and private, and indeed he learned from them. According to one story, an unnamed Gentile woman taught Jesus that the ministry of God is not limited to particular groups and persons, but belongs to all who have faith (Mark 7:24-30; Matthew 15:21-28). A Jewish woman honored him with the extraordinary hospitality of washing his feet with perfume. Jesus was a frequent visitor at the home of Mary and Martha, and was in the habit of teaching and eating meals with women as well as men. When Jesus was arrested, women remained firm, even when his male disciples are said to have fled, and they accompanied him to the foot of the cross. It was women who were reported as the first witnesses to the resurrection, chief among them again Mary Magdalene. Although the details of these gospel stories may be questioned, in general they reflect the prominent historical roles women played in Jesus’ ministry as disciples.

I challenge the view that Jesus learned from the incident King describes, but she is certainly on target with the importance of women in Jesus’ ministry.

Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.

   And when a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable, “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

   And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’ Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.  (Luke 8:1-15 ESV)

Jesus gave women a place of honor, allowing them to travel with his disciples, teaching them, healing them.  Several of these women were quite well to do and helped fund Jesus and his disciples so they could do the ministry of proclaiming the good news of the kingdom.  Along with the other disciples they were given the secrets of the kingdom of God.  Jesus used parables to obscure the message from those who were not true followers but also as an invitation to find out the truth.  If someone really wanted to know and wasn’t just following for the miracles, he or she could come to Jesus.

The parable of the sower highlights the reality that there are “followers” of Jesus all along the scale of true belief.  Satan has some ability to obscure the message from some and they register no belief at all.  Some believe for a short time but testing comes and they give up.  Some believe for awhile but they give up the principles of the kingdom to follow their own pleasures.  They may still give lip service to Christianity but don’t live its radical joy or sacrifice.

True believers hold fast to the truth and bear fruit.  They endure through good times and hard.  They live for the kingdom with honest and good hearts.  What kind of believer am I?

 

P.S., I have written a new book, John 1:1 and the Jehovah’s Witnesses. It is free here to download as a pdf.