Elyse Fitzpatrick, ““The hope we have in the gospel is that the fullness of God condescended to us in Jesus Christ. WE don’t have to wonder about the Father’s disposition toward us; we don’t have to speculate for one moment about our future. We can have a strong and sure hope, because we can see the invisible God by looking at the gospel.”
The women we will be studying are real-not fairy tales, their life-changing encounters are the Gospel. Their accounts of LOVE colliding into life are li...
Elyse Fitzpatrick, ““The hope we have in the gospel is that the fullness of God condescended to us in Jesus Christ. WE don’t have to wonder about the Father’s disposition toward us; we don’t have to speculate for one moment about our future. We can have a strong and sure hope, because we can see the invisible God by looking at the gospel.”
The women we will be studying are real-not fairy tales, their life-changing encounters are the Gospel. Their accounts of LOVE colliding into life are lights in the night sky drawing us to where we belong, to become who we were created to be.
Elizabeth-picture an older woman steady faithful, good, upright-not perfect, but humbly seeking forgiveness when she sins, committed to a right relationship with her God, her husband, her community. In her eyes a sorrow, a sadness. She is missing the very thing she would have most longed for-a baby. She suffers from disgrace, often subjected to the words or at least looks of those in her community who believe she is being punished by God for some reason. She is barren and her wrinkled face will never look upon her own child, her aged spotted hands never hold her husband’s child.
Mary: By contrast picture a young teen girl in small dusty poor village in Palestine where everyone knows everyone! She is deeply devoted to her God, longing to do what He has asked of her. As her young hands tend to animals, her youthful face tries to smile as her voice greets those in her village. She wonders, “What will happen to me when it is discovered I am pregnant? Will anyone believe that I am still a virgin? How can I tell Joseph, whom I am to marry that I am with child by the Holy Spirit?
God says yes to stopping for a woman living a complicated and lonely: It’s the heat of the day and a woman is alone gathering water. Her strong arms and hands lifting water jars out of the well. Sweat dripping down her back under her long folds of fabric. Her face shows evidence of hard life, her hollow lifeless eyes expect condemnation. Rejected by five husbands and now living with a man who has not married her, she is shunned and lives an isolated life.
God says yes to the sacrifices of a “Sinful” woman: A feast is happening in the home of a highly respected religious leader. The smell of roasted meat and simmering spices fill the dusty air. The who’s who of the community are reclining at a table, likely in their best robes made of beautiful fabrics. Conversation is lively and purposeful. And then an awkward almost indignant or angry hush of shock falls upon the party. A woman, who is well known for her immoral behavior, defined by it, enters where she is not welcome, dressed, smelling and behaving scandalously. Her long hair falls beyond her shoulders, an likely unexpected and unwanted sweetness fills the air as she approaches Jesus. Unable to control herself, she wets Jesus’ feet with her tears, gently drying them with her hair
A Woman diseased: Jesus is traveling in the middle of a huge crowd, pressing in on all sides. Imagine a moving wall of hot sweaty bodies all pressing in on Jesus, wanting to be near Him, to hear Him to watch what He will do next. Making her way through the dense, moving, noisy crowd is a woman who has been bleeding for twelve years. Her bank account and her hope is depleted… almost. She grabs for the robes of Jesus. She-takes one last chance, reaching for a man she has heard can heal. A robe made by human hands covers the Son of God and now runs through the fingers of an unclean outcast who health has put her out of society. Immediately Jesus knows He has been touched. Amidst the pushing, the throngs of sweaty bodies all around Him, He feels the touch of the sick woman and he stops the moving crowd. Bodies bump into each other as Jesus asks, “Who touched my clothes?”
God says ‘Yes” to serving sisters Martha and Mary: Real sisters, real life, real family issues. Clanging of dishes getting louder and louder as one sister is getting exasperated with work while her sister refused to help and instead just sits at this teacher, Jesus’, feet! Anger rises as Martha believes Jesus is allowing her sister to slack-off! Tension rises until Martha cannot hold in her anger and resentment. She lashes out at both the teacher and her sister. One can only imagine Mary’s expression. Was she clueless to Martha so intently listening to Jesus or was she rolling her brown eyes for the hundredth time.
Women at Cross and Tomb: All that had been done in the very real lives of these very real women was only the beginning.. Jesus, the light of the world, was interested in so much more. And He made His move. As these women continued to watch His real life unfold they began to understand what this light of the world really is.
