Jesus Loves Females!

I want you to take your Bibles and find Luke 8:1. I want to share a message with you entitled, “Jesus Loves Women!”

 

These three verses that begin chapter 8 may seem relatively innocent in meaning.  However, there is much here especially as it relates to females. 

 

As we continue in our study of Luke’s gospel, I want to show you three reasons why Jesus loves women.  Jesus loved the women in this passage, and He loves women today.

 

 

1. Jesus loves women as demonstrated by His creating them, Luke 8:1-2a.

1 Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, 2 and certain women…

 

Beginning in verse 1, we see that Jesus went from town to town preaching and evangelizing.  As a matter of fact, when some people think of Jesus and His earthly ministry, they think He was primarily about ministering and healing and caring for those in need. 

 

While He did do those things, Jesus was primarily a preacher.  Furthermore, His primary ministry was preaching and evangelizing. 

 

Luke said that He was bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  Literally, that means he was preaching the good news or the gospel of the kingdom of God.

 

What is the gospel of the kingdom of God?  God is holy, and He created humanity holy.  However, Adam and Eve sinned and every human to come after them has sinned too except Jesus.

 

Because we have sinned, our sin has separated us from a holy God.  Therefore, everyone human is in need of salvation and a savior.

 

The only One qualified to save us is Jesus.  Why?  Jesus is the only One who has ever been sinless, and He died on the cross in our place for our sin.

 

Therefore, anyone who put his or her faith in Christ alone as Lord and Savior will be saved.  That is the good news of the kingdom of God. 

 

That was Jesus’ message.  That is our message, and His resurrection from the grave never to die again affirmed the truth of the gospel. 

 

Verse 1 continues and says that the twelve disciples or twelve apostles were with Jesus along with certain women.  Luke goes out of his way to differentiate these women from the others.

 

Why? Jesus created women.  Keep in mind, these aren’t men identifying as women.  These aren’t effeminate men.  These are biological women.

 

Jesus created them as women.  Jesus loved them as women, and Jesus loves women today.

 

BTW…If you are going to promote a story, this was not the way to do it in the first century.  Women were not valued and to include them in your inner circle was counter-cultural.  This reality demonstrates the authenticity of Jesus’ ministry and Luke’s account thereof.

 

Also, did you know that Luke has been called the gospel for women because it is the gospel that spotlights so many women?  Consider these examples.

 

1:5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

 

2:36 Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity.

 

7:37 And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil…7:50 50 Then He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”

 

10:38 Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word.

 

13:10 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. 12 But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.”

 

15:8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’ 10 Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

 

18:3 Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ 4 And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, 5 yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’”

 

21:1 And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, 2 and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. 3 So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; 4 for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

 

Evidently, Luke was greatly impressed by Jesus’ ministry to women.  He continued to spotlight them in Acts: Dorcas or Tabitha in Acts 9, Lydia in Acts 16, Damaris in Acts 17, and Priscilla in Acts 18.

 

 

2. Jesus loves women as demonstrated by His healing them, Luke 8:2b-3a.

2 and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities—Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, 3 and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna…

 

While it is true that women were not highly thought of in the Old Testament and in first century Judaism, that is very far from the truth with Jesus.  Jesus absolutely loved and valued women, and we can see that here in verses 2 and 3.

 

Again, it is highly unusual for Luke to mention these three women by name: Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Susanna.  These three women, along with others, were some of the first followers of Christ along with the twelve male disciples. 

 

Even though Mary Magdalene often carries a bad reputation as having been a prostitute, that is only speculation.  Folks have said that about her as they have connected her as the sexual sinner from the end of Luke 7. 

 

The truth is that all we know about her, other than she witnessed the resurrected Christ, is found her in Luke 8.  She was demon-possessed but then fully and complete healed by Jesus.  Remember, the number 7 is often times used to connote full and complete.

 

As for Joanna, she too was an eye witness of the resurrected Christ, and she was the wife of one of Herod’s men.  Evidently, the gospel had made it to the palace. 

 

As for Susanna, she is never mentioned again in all of the Bible.  However, her legacy and memory live on here and for approximately 2000 years.

 

 

3. Jesus loves women as demonstrated by their providing for Him, Luke 8:3b.

And many others who provided for Him from their substance.

 

The last part of verse 3 tells us that of these first century followers of Jesus, many were women, and they provided for Jesus from their substance.  Your translation may say, “them,” so that would be Jesus and the Twelve.

 

These women didn’t just receive from Him.  They gave back to Him and the twelve and their ministry.  Thinking back to last week and Self-righteous Simon and the Sexual Sinner, if you love Jesus, it will be proven more with your works than your words. 

 

Today, women in this church love Jesus, and they demonstrate that love by giving to Him and His ministry.  They give financially.  They give their prayers, and they give by ministering to so many. 

 

 

Invitation

As I close this morning, here me again.  Jesus loves women, and that includes you.  If you didn’t know that previously, maybe your response today is calling on Him to save you.

 

Because Jesus loves women, EBC needs to love women.  If this is the church that God is calling you to join, would you respond to this morning’s invitation?

 

Finally, Jesus loves women, but do you?  You may need to repent of your feelings and behavior toward women.  Our invitation is for you.