Rev. David Holwick U Women of the Bible
First Baptist Church [very well-received]
Ledgewood, New Jersey
June 5, 2016
Luke 8:1-3
MARY MAGDALENE: JESUS’S COMPANION
I. Few Bible characters are more misunderstood.
A. What people think they know about Mary Magdalene.
1) She was a notorious prostitute.
2) She was married to Jesus.
One website has this history of Mary:
Mary was 27 when she married Jesus.
Mary had their first child at age 30, a girl named Tamar.
At age 34 she gave birth to their second child, a son
they named Jesus.
Mary was a Gnostic and Jesus respected her right to
choose her own religion.
Mary Magdalene died in AD 63 aged 60 years old.
She died in southern France. [1]
3) Mary wrote the gospel of John and is the "beloved disciple."
4) Dan Brown, who wrote "The DaVinci Code," knows more about
Mary Magdalene than anyone else.
B. What the Bible says about Mary Magdalene.
1) She probably wasn't a prostitute, wasn't married to Jesus,
and didn't write the Fourth Gospel.
2) What we do know is that she loved Jesus very much - and
Dan Brown doesn't know the Bible very well.
II. Mary was a damaged woman.
A. One personal detail is that Jesus cast seven demons out of her.
1) Seven would be very serious, though some people had more.
2) We do not know if they manifested in a physical sickness
or a severe psychological problem.
3) However, demon possession is distinct from sinfulness.
4) We would assume her deliverance is when she became a
follower of Jesus.
B. The assumption she was a prostitute arises from confusion.
1) There are many Marys in the New Testament.
a) In Hebrew it would be "Miriam," the sister of Moses
who put the baby in a boat in the bulrushes.
b) It must have been a popular name because of the four
women named at the crucifixion, three are Marys.
c) Mary took the name of her town, Magdala, to
differentiate her from the others.
2) One Mary - the sister of Martha - anointed Jesus' head.
a) In a different episode, in the previous chapter in
Luke (7:37), an unnamed woman with a bad reputation
also anoints Jesus, perfuming his feet.
1> We assume this woman was a prostitute because that
is a typical category for a female "sinner," as
the dinner host thinks in his mind.
2> Jesus only says she is forgiven a lot because she
has loved him a lot. 7:47
b) Later scholars fused these two episodes together and
Mary became Mary Magdalene, a prostitute.
1> Sometimes, like in Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion
of the Christ," Mary even becomes the woman
caught in adultery whom Jesus rescues (John 8).
2> But if Luke thought Mary was the notorious sinner,
he would have introduced her differently in 8:2.
III. Mary was elevated by Jesus.
A. Women had a tough time in the ancient world.
1) Women were forbidden to go beyond a certain point in the
Temple. [2]
2) They were excluded from conversations in public and
restricted to roles as spectators. #34683
3) Jesus rejected this.
B. Jesus honored women.
1) He taught them, healed them, and saved them.
2) His disciples were both male and female, which would have
scandalized religious Jews of his day.
3) Jesus shocked his own followers by talking to those who
were typically rejected -
a) a hemorrhaging woman on the road.
b) a Samaritan woman drawing water at a well.
4) Jesus brushed aside every discrimination and injustice.
Author Ed Silvoso writes:
"One of the main reasons Christianity spread so rapidly
in the early years is because its message restored
honor and inner worth to half of the world's
population, this is, women."
#19771
5) This doesn't mean Jesus was a feminist in the modern sense
- he defends different roles for the genders - but he
definitely valued women, and they valued him.
IV. Mary loved Jesus.
A. Everyone loves a romance story.
1) Jews did as well, and assumed most people would get married.
2) Dan Brown and others have argued from this that Jesus HAD
to be married.
a) Brown has had a big impact through his book and the
movie that was made from it.
b) In a survey conducted by the religious website
Beliefnet, 19% of respondents said they believed
Mary Magdalene was in fact Jesus' wife.
c) There is even a heretical Gnostic document from the
second century which says Jesus had a wife.
B. Some believe a married Jesus is easier to relate to.
1) Dr. Mark Roberts wrote an internet article on whether Jesus
was ever married and got a ton of feedback.
It seems that many people wanted him to be married because
it made him more human, more like them.
(I hear similar arguments on how Catholic priests should be
allowed to marry like us Baptists, who almost demand
a preacher be married so the church can get a 2-for-1
deal.)
Dr. Roberts figured that many people overemphasize the
deity of Jesus and diminish his humanity.
He seems only barely human.
This kind of Jesus feels distant, judgmental, and uncaring.
[3]
2) This is not a way to prove Jesus was married, but it shows
the motivation some people have in promoting it.
C. There would be no problem with Jesus being married.
1) It would not discredit his claim to be God.
a) As Pastor Ken Baugh points out, marriage would only be
inappropriate for him if sex was evil.
b) Having sex with your spouse is not a sin in the Bible.
It is holy.
c) God created sex and all the pleasure and beauty that
goes with it in the context of marriage.
Sermon #22659
2) A charismatic single guy who was surrounded by women would
have excellent prospects for getting married.
a) We know that many of the apostles were married.
b) But there is no indication that Jesus ever was.
c) In his final moments on the cross, Jesus gave his
mother into the care of the Apostle John. John 19:26
1> No other widow, or woman, was entrusted to him.
D. Jesus was different than most men.
1) He often did things that were contrary to what the Jews
of his day did.
2) He lived a vagabond lifestyle and once said he had no place
to lay his head, unlike even wild animals who have dens.
3) He also said that some are single for the sake of God's
Kingdom. I think that can be applied to him. Matt 19:12
V. Devotion to someone doesn't require marriage.
A. We often pin too much on relationships.
1) If you don't find the right person, you will never be happy.
2) Who you really need to find is God.
This was brought to my mind this week by an article in
Christianity Today magazine.
It was about a student at my alma mater, Wheaton College.
It is considered America's premier Christian college and
it is very conservative - and expensive.
Like many other Wheaton students, Tyler Streckert grew up
in a conservative Christian home.
But from an early age he realized there was something
different about him, something he couldn't talk about.
On an afternoon in April of 2013, he posted a piece of
paper on Wheaton's communal forum board.
It is sort of a noteboard for the whole college.
Tyler's note said he was a male who was attracted to other
males, and he struggled with anxiety and depression.
He had prayed to be changed to straight, but it hadn't
happened after eight years.
He said he still loved God, and wanted to be open to
everyone.
Tyler wasn't sure what to expect from his note, but he
soon found out.
Every response was positive. No one expressed hate.
He was rather surprised by this.
Even a very conservative professor reached out and Tyler
said it was a wonderful witness to Jesus' love and mercy.
Tyler has made a commitment to be celibate.
He knows the Bible condemns the practice of homosexuality.
But the Bible, in Genesis 2:18, says it is not good for
anyone to be alone, and he knows he needs love and
connection to other humans like everyone else.
He wants a genuine connection with Christians and a true
love for God.
Tyler has what Mary Magdalene had - a relationship with
Jesus that transcends human marriage and friendship.
#65236
B. Mary was more than a follower.
1) She and other women were constant companions of Jesus and
also supported him financially.
2) She stuck by Jesus to the bitter end.
a) She was among the last to be at the cross.
b) She was the first to come to the tomb, and was the one
who noticed the stone was rolled away.
1> After the others checked it out, they went back
to the city.
2> Mary stayed at the tomb, weeping. Jn 20:11
c) She was the first to see the resurrected Jesus. Jn 20:14
1> She clung to him and wouldn't let go. Jn 20:17
2> She did not understand that their relationship
was now elevated to a supernatural level.
C. Mary loved Jesus because she had been saved by him.
1) People who have an experience like hers are often more
grateful for their salvation.
2) Just having "head knowledge" usually leads to a cool faith.
3) How intense is your relationship to Jesus?
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
1. This illustration comes from Rev. Carla Powell’s sermon, “What Can We
Learn From Mary Magdalene?” July 2001, Ebenezer Lutheran Church of
Chicago, Illinois, www.SermonCentral.com, Kerux Sermon #65231. The
original source seems to be the webpage “The Magdalene” by Tom
Sharples of Cambridge, England; <link>. Sharples says it is a
“unique website based upon channeled insights into the Arthurian
Grail Legends” <link>. Note the word “channeled.”
2. In the video version of this sermon I say that I think Gentiles could
get closer to the Temple than Jewish women could. I looked at some
online diagrams and found that, technically, Gentile men could
stand closer to the Holy of Holies that a Jewish woman because of
the oblong shape of the complex. See <link>.
3. “Does The Gospel of Jesus’ Wife Show That Jesus Was Married?” by
Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts and Patheos, May 2014; <link>.
A more detailed article can be found at Kerux Illustration #65233,
“Was Jesus Married? A Careful Look at the Real Evidence,”
Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts, 2004; <link>.
#34683 “A Radical Grace,” Jill Carattini, A Slice of Infinity: Ravi
Zacharias International Ministries, June 1, 2007; <link>.
#65236 “A Homosexual At Wheaton College,” adapted by Rev. David Holwick
from the article "Coming Out at Wheaton College," by Tyler
Streckert, Christianity Today, June 2016, p. 63.
Sermon #19771 “Women Who Worship,” Rev. Brian Bill, Pontiac Bible Church
of Pontiac, Illinois, May 9, 2004, <link>.
Sermon #22659 “The Da Vinci Code: Who Was Mary Magdalene?” Rev. Ken
Baugh, Coast Hills Community Church of Aliso Viejo,
California, <www.SermonCentral.com>.
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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