A Woman’s Place - Jesus

“Mary!” Jesus said. She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”). “Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

John 20:16-17

Several years ago, the Harry S. Truman Library made public more than thirteen hundred letters the late president wrote to his wife, Bess, during their times apart. As president of the United States, Truman traveled frequently, but he never failed to write Bess to let her know he loved her and was thinking of her.

You don’t have to be a licensed marriage counselor to understand that the women in your life—your mother, wife, daughters, sisters—need to know you love, value, and respect them, just as Jesus loved, valued, and respected the women in his life.

Though Jesus chose twelve men to be his apostles, he treated women with a then unheard-of respect. He valued their fellowship and friendship and included them in the work that he did. Consider these examples:

• The woman at the well announced the Messiah to the Samaritans (see John 4:1-41).
• Mary and Martha enjoyed a close personal relationship with Jesus (see John 11:5).
• Mary, Martha’s sister, anointed Jesus prior to his crucifixion (see Mark 14:3-9).
• Mary Magdalene discovered Jesus’ empty grave (see Matthew 28:1-6) and first saw the resurrected Jesus (see John 20:16-18).

Why did women become some of Jesus’ closest followers? One simple answer is that he lovingly and respectfully included them in his work.

In extending such respect to women, Jesus swam strongly against the tide of popular culture. Though most men of Jesus’ day treated women as possessions, Jesus showed how much he valued the women who followed him.

If you want to know how to treat the women in your life with more love and respect, spend some time examining Jesus’ example as described in the Gospels. Jesus, the man perfect in every way, treated the women who faithfully followed him with great dignity and honor.