2024_08_21 Insight Post- Rusty Coram
This week’s reading- Matthew 27:56, 61, Matthew 28:1-10, Mark 15:40-47, Mark 16:1-19, Luke 8:1-3, Luke 24:1-12, John 19:25-27, John 20:1-18
Reading about Mary Magdalene this week has gotten me thinking about how God works with ordinary people who show up. We are surrounded by cultural messages that can easily lead us to believe that to have a truly good life, we need to be beautiful, connected, powerful, influential, and lucky. We begin to believe that we need to focus on self-promotion, and while helping others is a nice thing, it needs to take a backseat to our own interests. Reading about Mary Magdalene, we get a very different and more compelling picture!
Before meeting Jesus, Mary was tormented by demonic spirits. We don’t know the nature of their influence in her life, but when she came to Jesus for help, He made them leave (Mark 16:9/ Luke 8:2) – no power is greater than Jesus! From then on, we find Mary in the group that faithfully followed and supported Him. She is mentioned in all four of Jesus’ biographies and at pivotal moments like His crucifixion and the morning of the resurrection where we read after the risen Jesus appears to her, “It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened. 11 But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it.” Luke 24:10–11 (NLT)
Mary (and the other women) had one thing that distinguished them alongside their trust in Jesus – they showed up. We regularly read about them being in close proximity to Jesus, whether it was a meal, a large gathering for teaching, or when the opposition was closing in. Mary’s devotion to Jesus was not one born of convenience but gratitude for all He had and was doing in her life. In Christ, Mary found freedom, love, hope, and purpose. She focused her life on being available to Him, and this led to her being in the right places at the right times. Being one of the first to see Him resurrected was directly related to serving Him.
This week, I am asking myself where Jesus wants me to be in serving His interests. To do this, I have to recognize my natural tendency to build my priorities around me, my goals, and my desires. Following Jesus means putting His interests first and humbly choosing what will honor Him and fulfill His desires.
Mary sure sets a great example to follow!
Rusty Coram
Senior Pastor