Women in the Word Pt. 1: Mary Magdalene
Today we are beginning a new blog series entitled “Women in the Word.” Each week we will look at a different woman in scripture, their impact, importance, role in God’s larger story, how their stories point to Christ, and our place in their stories. I won't place the spotlight on every woman in scripture, and some more well-known figures like Ruth and Esther will not feature in the series because I've preached on both of them somewhat recently. We will kickoff with a look at Mary Magdalene.
Not much is known about Mary or even said about her in scripture, but what is mentioned about her is extremely important. She not only helped fund Jesus’ teaching and miracle-working ministry, but was also one of the first followers of Christ to discover his empty tomb. Despite the mystery surrounding Mary’s life, there is enough to know that God had taken her from darkness to deliverance to discipleship.
Clearing the air
Before we unpack the darkness that surrounded Mary’s life prior to being delivered by Jesus, clearing the air about who Mary really was is in order. Myths abound about the life and person of Mary Magdalene, and society has made her famous for all the wrong reasons. Consider some of the more well-known myths about Mary. We all know that Jesus had a beloved disciple–the one who laid his head on Jesus’ chest, John the apostle. However, in 1998, Ramon Jusino proposed that it was actually Mary Magdalene who was really the disciple Jesus loved. Why can’t we believe Ramon? Well, because John in chapters 19 and 21 of his gospel gestures quite clearly that he is the disciple whom Jesus loved.
Another myth about Mary was that she was engaged to John. Yes, the same John who was the disciple Jesus loved. But the evidence for such a claim is suspect at best. Towering over all other myths is the one propagated Dan Brown in his famous novel, and later movie, The Da Vinci Code. The basic plot line of the book is that the main character is trying to find and use the mythological Holy Grail, the cup Jesus drank from at the Last Supper, to prove that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and had some children with her. The main character would then weaponize this information and attempt to destroy the Vatican.
Sound far-fetched at all? It certainly does to me, but millions of people believed this to be true and this myth caused hundreds of Christians to doubt and even leave the faith. What was mind-boggling to me was that Dan Brown said that the novel was historical fiction. Fiction! But people believed it anyway.
Will the real Mary please stand up?
So who was Mary, really? Let me begin to tease that out by first saying that Magdalene was not Mary's last name. It was actually a place-name. Mary was from Magdala or Magadan. The second worth pointing out is that Mary Magdalene is not the woman from Luke 7 or John 8. What do I mean? Plenty of scholars believe Mary Magdalene to be the woman caught in adultery in John 8.
You know the story. The Pharisees caught some woman in the act of adultery and brought her to Jesus to test him by stating that the Law demands she be stoned, but Jesus says, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” The Pharisees are stumped and so they leave, but the woman stays standing there and Jesus asks her, “Where are your accusers, has no one condemned you?” She replies, “No one, Lord.” Jesus tells her, “I don’t condemn you either, go and sin no more.”
Famously, Mel Gibson, in The Passion of the Christ, portrays Mary Magdalene as this woman. The thing is the Bible does not assert this claim, nor does it make this connection to Mary Magdalene. Let's move on to Luke 7. Luke tells the story of a woman who found out Jesus was dining at a Pharisees house, so she invites herself and begins to weep over Jesus’ feet and dries them with her hair. This woman was simply deemed a sinner, likely a prostitute, and many believe this may have been Mary Magdalene, but that is simply not true.
If we harmonize the accounts with the other evangelists, we come to find out that the woman who anointed Jesus' feet with her tears was Mary the sister of Martha (Jn. 12:1-8). An additional point to note there is that both Mark and Matthew, in documenting this incident, state that this happened in Bethany, and Mary and Martha, along with their brother Lazarus, lived in Bethany.
Furthermore, Luke, in Luke 8, casts Mary Magdalene as a woman disciple of Jesus. So why wouldn’t Luke, a chapter earlier, mention her name if Mary Magdalene was the woman weeping at Jesus’ feet? I rest my case.
What we do know about Mary Magdalene is that she was single, likely a widow, she was a woman of means (she helped fund Jesus’ ministry), and she was once in a very dark place in life. Prior to meeting Jesus, Mary Magdalene had seven demons. But Mary having seven demons doesn’t necessarily mean she was a sinful woman, that may have been true, but demon possession usually was associated with mental or physical disorder. So, while Mary could have led an immoral life, it was more likely the case that she suffered from some sort of mental or physical disorder imposed on her by these demons.
But Jesus wouldn't leave her that way. He rescued and delivered her. What’s so remarkable about Mary going from darkness to deliverance is the path it set her on. Jesus healed people throughout his earthly ministry, but not all of them followed him, and not as many followed him as fervently as Mary Magdalene. This woman was more than just a follower, she was a disciple. I think that truth is best captured in Mary's response to the angel's question to her at Jesus' empty tomb in John 20.
She stood at the empty tomb weeping, the angel's ask why, and she responds with “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” There it is, "my Lord." Not "the Lord," but "my Lord." Jesus was her Lord and Savior, and when she saw him she clung to him. Mary was grief stricken at Jesus' death. She loved Jesus, and like everyone else, she forgot that he was going to rise from the dead. She thought someone had taken her Lord, but then Jesus shows up and all he has to say is "Mary," and immediately she knew it was him and she clung to him for dear life. Then she shared the news with everyone (Jn. 20:15-18).
A discipleship like Mary's
In documenting Mary's reaction and interaction with the resurrected Christ, I believe John is trying to teach us about discipleship through Mary’s own discipleship. It is almost as if John is telling us that this is what disciples do: disciples know their master’s voice, they cling to him, and they spread the good news.
Disciples, like Mary, know the voice of their Master. Consider Jesus’ words in John 10:1-5:
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.
Disciples know Christ’s voice and follow it. The voice of strangers is foreign to them. Whose voice are you listening to and following? Disciples also cling to their master. They know that they love because God in Christ loved them first, and this is why they cling to him. They couldn’t love Christ before he delivered them. Mary’s life proves this.
We were in darkness, but Jesus delivered us and now we hear his voice, follow it, and cling to him because he is our Shepherd, Leader, our love, and Lord. Who are you clinging to?
Disciples also spread the good news that Jesus is alive, risen, and seated at the right hand of God. Mary shows us that disciples don’t just keep the gospel to themselves–they are compelled to spread it. Why? Because they want everybody in on the good news, they want people to know that deliverance from darkness has come.
How could we keep silent? Like he did with Mary, Jesus has delivered us by grace and disciples us by grace. Now let's tell the world.
Not much is known about Mary or even said about her in scripture, but what is mentioned about her is extremely important. She not only helped fund Jesus’ teaching and miracle-working ministry, but was also one of the first followers of Christ to discover his empty tomb. Despite the mystery surrounding Mary’s life, there is enough to know that God had taken her from darkness to deliverance to discipleship.
Clearing the air
Before we unpack the darkness that surrounded Mary’s life prior to being delivered by Jesus, clearing the air about who Mary really was is in order. Myths abound about the life and person of Mary Magdalene, and society has made her famous for all the wrong reasons. Consider some of the more well-known myths about Mary. We all know that Jesus had a beloved disciple–the one who laid his head on Jesus’ chest, John the apostle. However, in 1998, Ramon Jusino proposed that it was actually Mary Magdalene who was really the disciple Jesus loved. Why can’t we believe Ramon? Well, because John in chapters 19 and 21 of his gospel gestures quite clearly that he is the disciple whom Jesus loved.
Another myth about Mary was that she was engaged to John. Yes, the same John who was the disciple Jesus loved. But the evidence for such a claim is suspect at best. Towering over all other myths is the one propagated Dan Brown in his famous novel, and later movie, The Da Vinci Code. The basic plot line of the book is that the main character is trying to find and use the mythological Holy Grail, the cup Jesus drank from at the Last Supper, to prove that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and had some children with her. The main character would then weaponize this information and attempt to destroy the Vatican.
Sound far-fetched at all? It certainly does to me, but millions of people believed this to be true and this myth caused hundreds of Christians to doubt and even leave the faith. What was mind-boggling to me was that Dan Brown said that the novel was historical fiction. Fiction! But people believed it anyway.
Will the real Mary please stand up?
So who was Mary, really? Let me begin to tease that out by first saying that Magdalene was not Mary's last name. It was actually a place-name. Mary was from Magdala or Magadan. The second worth pointing out is that Mary Magdalene is not the woman from Luke 7 or John 8. What do I mean? Plenty of scholars believe Mary Magdalene to be the woman caught in adultery in John 8.
You know the story. The Pharisees caught some woman in the act of adultery and brought her to Jesus to test him by stating that the Law demands she be stoned, but Jesus says, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” The Pharisees are stumped and so they leave, but the woman stays standing there and Jesus asks her, “Where are your accusers, has no one condemned you?” She replies, “No one, Lord.” Jesus tells her, “I don’t condemn you either, go and sin no more.”
Famously, Mel Gibson, in The Passion of the Christ, portrays Mary Magdalene as this woman. The thing is the Bible does not assert this claim, nor does it make this connection to Mary Magdalene. Let's move on to Luke 7. Luke tells the story of a woman who found out Jesus was dining at a Pharisees house, so she invites herself and begins to weep over Jesus’ feet and dries them with her hair. This woman was simply deemed a sinner, likely a prostitute, and many believe this may have been Mary Magdalene, but that is simply not true.
If we harmonize the accounts with the other evangelists, we come to find out that the woman who anointed Jesus' feet with her tears was Mary the sister of Martha (Jn. 12:1-8). An additional point to note there is that both Mark and Matthew, in documenting this incident, state that this happened in Bethany, and Mary and Martha, along with their brother Lazarus, lived in Bethany.
Furthermore, Luke, in Luke 8, casts Mary Magdalene as a woman disciple of Jesus. So why wouldn’t Luke, a chapter earlier, mention her name if Mary Magdalene was the woman weeping at Jesus’ feet? I rest my case.
What we do know about Mary Magdalene is that she was single, likely a widow, she was a woman of means (she helped fund Jesus’ ministry), and she was once in a very dark place in life. Prior to meeting Jesus, Mary Magdalene had seven demons. But Mary having seven demons doesn’t necessarily mean she was a sinful woman, that may have been true, but demon possession usually was associated with mental or physical disorder. So, while Mary could have led an immoral life, it was more likely the case that she suffered from some sort of mental or physical disorder imposed on her by these demons.
But Jesus wouldn't leave her that way. He rescued and delivered her. What’s so remarkable about Mary going from darkness to deliverance is the path it set her on. Jesus healed people throughout his earthly ministry, but not all of them followed him, and not as many followed him as fervently as Mary Magdalene. This woman was more than just a follower, she was a disciple. I think that truth is best captured in Mary's response to the angel's question to her at Jesus' empty tomb in John 20.
She stood at the empty tomb weeping, the angel's ask why, and she responds with “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” There it is, "my Lord." Not "the Lord," but "my Lord." Jesus was her Lord and Savior, and when she saw him she clung to him. Mary was grief stricken at Jesus' death. She loved Jesus, and like everyone else, she forgot that he was going to rise from the dead. She thought someone had taken her Lord, but then Jesus shows up and all he has to say is "Mary," and immediately she knew it was him and she clung to him for dear life. Then she shared the news with everyone (Jn. 20:15-18).
A discipleship like Mary's
In documenting Mary's reaction and interaction with the resurrected Christ, I believe John is trying to teach us about discipleship through Mary’s own discipleship. It is almost as if John is telling us that this is what disciples do: disciples know their master’s voice, they cling to him, and they spread the good news.
Disciples, like Mary, know the voice of their Master. Consider Jesus’ words in John 10:1-5:
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.
Disciples know Christ’s voice and follow it. The voice of strangers is foreign to them. Whose voice are you listening to and following? Disciples also cling to their master. They know that they love because God in Christ loved them first, and this is why they cling to him. They couldn’t love Christ before he delivered them. Mary’s life proves this.
We were in darkness, but Jesus delivered us and now we hear his voice, follow it, and cling to him because he is our Shepherd, Leader, our love, and Lord. Who are you clinging to?
Disciples also spread the good news that Jesus is alive, risen, and seated at the right hand of God. Mary shows us that disciples don’t just keep the gospel to themselves–they are compelled to spread it. Why? Because they want everybody in on the good news, they want people to know that deliverance from darkness has come.
How could we keep silent? Like he did with Mary, Jesus has delivered us by grace and disciples us by grace. Now let's tell the world.
Rev. Mike Hernandez serves as the senior pastor of Crossroads Presbyterian Church. He is a graduate of Trinity International University (B.A.), Knox Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) at Reformed Theological Seminary Orlando. He has written for Gospel-Centered Discipleship and is a member of the National Association of Scholars.
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