Good day beautiful people
I hope that this post meets you well and that you’re making it a habit to give your body the rest that it needs? Today’s write up is going to be centred around a few women described in the Bible. All over the world during the month of March (March 8th to be precise) women’s contributions are acknowledged and praised. It is also a time where people in the United Kingdom celebrate Mother’s Day and I thought it would be nice to do a write up celebrating women. I’d like thank all the amazing ladies who have positively impacted their communities through their work, wisdom, loving kindness and gracious words. A massive shoutout goes to my amazing mum and sister’s I sincerely thank God for your lives and the encouragement you give. Without further ado I shall jump straight to God’s word.
So, what does the Bible say about women?
Luke 2:36-38 ~ “Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer. She came along just as Simeon was talking with Mary and Joseph, and she began praising God. She talked about the child to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem.”
I came across the above passage whilst reading through my Bible plan and I thought it was amazing to note that Anna was described as a prophet. A prophet is regarded as a person who is inspired by God and proclaims God’s will. This tells me that God desires to use women and wants all women to be saved and experience His unconditional love. Anna like many others where waiting expectantly for the Messiah to come. She waited in faith and through the revelation of the Holy Spirit was able to identify that baby Jesus was the promised Saviour, and at the age of 84 she was able to set her eyes upon our precious Lord and Saviour. God kept His promise to Anna, and she got to enjoy God’s presence in such a spectacular way. And not only that she used her encounter with Christ to tell others about God’s salvation plan, she pointed people to God. God is not anti women, throughout history He has used women to display His glory. Christ died for all (both men and women), and women can make valuable contributions towards expanding God’s kingdom through the power of the Holy Spirit. Which leads me to my next point… Women have vital roles to play within the church.
During Jesus earthly ministry he had a lot of support, and this support was not only from His disciples but from several women (His mother included). Jesus did not prevent women from contributing towards His ministry. Many helped Jesus through acts of service and financial support.
Luke 8: 1-3 ~ “Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.”
The next point I want to highlight is a MAJOR ONE!!!! One of the major events talked about in Christian history is Jesus death and resurrection, and it’s because Christ lives that we are able to enjoy the free gift of salvation, and salvation is the foundation of the Christian faith. And guess what?……. Drumroll please 🥁 🥁 🥁.The first person to see Jesus after His resurrection was a woman 🤭😮😲. Yes a woman, let that sink in please. God love’s women and is not anti women.
Mark 16:9 ~ “After Jesus rose from the dead early on Sunday morning, the first person who saw him was Mary Magdalene, the woman from whom he had cast out seven demons.”
Now let’s look at an interesting case in the Bible relating to human rights. I like to call this case ‘Justice for 5 sisters’.
Numbers 27:1-8 ~ “One day a petition was presented by the daughters of Zelophehad Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. Their father, Zelophehad, was a descendant of Hepher son of Gilead, son of Makir, son of Manasseh, son of Joseph. These women stood before Moses, Eleazar the priest, the tribal leaders, and the entire community at the entrance of the Tabernacle. “Our father died in the wilderness,” they said. “He was not among Korah’s followers, who rebelled against the Lord; he died because of his own sin. But he had no sons. Why should the name of our father disappear from his clan just because he had no sons? Give us property along with the rest of our relatives.” So Moses brought their case before the Lord. And the Lord replied to Moses, “The claim of the daughters of Zelophehad is legitimate. You must give them a grant of land along with their father’s relatives. Assign them the property that would have been given to their father. “And give the following instructions to the people of Israel: If a man dies and has no son, then give his inheritance to his daughters.”
When reading the above passage one can see that God protected the rights of these women. God sees men and women as equals, He cares about women’s rights and our concerns are legitimate to Him.
Numbers 36:1-6 ~ “Then the heads of the clans of Gilead descendants of Makir, son of Manasseh, son of Joseph came to Moses and the family leaders of Israel with a petition. They said, “Sir, the Lord instructed you to divide the land by sacred lot among the people of Israel. You were told by the Lord to give the grant of land owned by our brother Zelophehad to his daughters. But if they marry men from another tribe, their grants of land will go with them to the tribe into which they marry. In this way, the total area of our tribal land will be reduced. Then when the Year of Jubilee comes, their portion of land will be added to that of the new tribe, causing it to be lost forever to our ancestral tribe.” So Moses gave the Israelites this command from the Lord: “The claim of the men of the tribe of Joseph is legitimate. This is what the Lord commands concerning the daughters of Zelophehad: Let them marry anyone they like, as long as it is within their own ancestral tribe.”
^^^In the past it wasn’t uncommon for people to marry their distant relatives in order to keep wealth within the family. This is still practiced in some countries around the world today.
Another great thing to know about God’s loving nature is that God does not cast people away because of their dark past! He forgives, He loves and uses what Satan intended for evil in our lives for good. He turns a mess into a message, and we can see this when looking into the lives of the women listed in the genealogy of Jesus.
The genealogy of Jesus (Matthew 1:1-17)
Tamar: Tamar disguised herself as a prostitute and in doing so ended up getting pregnant by her father in law. Yet God turned her life around, and through her linage comes the birth of Jesus the Prince of peace (Genesis 38).
Rahab: Rahab was also a prostitute and a Gentile (non Jew). Yet demonstrated faith by believing that the God of Israel is all powerful, through showing hospitality to the Jews who entered her city
Hebrews 11:31 ~ “It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.”
Ruth: It’s amazing to know that there are books in the Bible named after women (Ruth & Esther)! Ruth has her own book where the story of her faith and trust in God has been recorded for all to read. She was a Moabite, she came from a culture where there was heavy idol worship, yet she was willing to lay that down to follow her mother in law Naomi. She embraced Naomi’s homeland and tradition and as a result ended up being drafted into God’s family and became an ancestor of Jesus. Ruth was one of king David’s great grandmothers.
Ruth 1:15-16 ~ “Look,” Naomi said to her, “your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. You should do the same.” But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”
Bathsheba: A woman who had an affair and got pregnant in the act! I believe that both her and David repented and I know that God forgives. She experienced the loss of a child but her story did not end there. She gave birth to a son called Solomon who was a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ (2 Samuel 11 & 12:1-25).
Mary: A young woman from a very humble background chosen to birth and nurture the Messiah… A pregnant virgin (impregnated through the power of the Holy Spirit) [Luke 1:26-38].
From the above descriptions we can see that God can use anyone no matter their past, status in society, sex or how much they own. God chose to use women to do great things for His kingdom in the past and will continue to do so even know.
Finally, God doesn’t ostracise women because of their sexual history but tells them to sin no more. We have a perfect example of this when reading about Jesus interaction with the woman at the well and the woman caught in the act of adultery.
The woman at the well
John 4: 6-18 ~ “Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.” He was alone at the time because his disciples had gone into the village to buy some food. The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?” Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.” “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water? And besides, do you think you’re greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his animals enjoyed?” Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.” “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her. “I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied. Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband— for you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!”
^^^ Many people cast judgment on individuals who have encountered failed marriages, especially in cases where a person has gone through divorce more than once. But when observing Christ’s conversation with the woman at the well one can note that Jesus did not shame her for having had 5 previous husbands. Instead He lovingly shared the truth of the gospel with her, which greatly shocked his disciples.
The woman caught in the act of adultery
John 8:3-11 ~ “As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”
^^^God doesn’t hate people or condemn them. He came to save the world not to condemn it. He hates sin, but is faithful and just to forgive those who confess their sin (wrongdoings).
I hope that you enjoyed today’s write up? Also I’m excited to share that I will be launching a series on godly femininity some time in the future, so stay on the lookout! Have a wonderful week.
Love and blessings from
Christian Lady After God’s Own Heart 💜
1 John 1:9 ~ “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.”