The Women of Easter [part 2 of 2]

This is part 2  in a 2-part series on the Women of Easter. 
In part 1 -- the Women of Easter + Timeline of Holy week + What made these women different (unalike) 
​In part 2 -- the Women of Easter, + What these women had in common + What we can learn from them

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Today's post is [part 2] of Women of Easter. (There was just so much to share with you on the Women of Easter, I had to keep writing about it.) The thoughts below may make more sense if you read The Women of Easter [part 1], first. ​

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Before you start reading, I think it is important for you to know a couple of things me; I think it may help you see what I see and why I use so many words and verses when I KNOW that blogs are supposed to be short and sweet: 

1. On the Strengthsfinder I score high on Learning, Intellection and Connectedness.
2. ​As a 3 on the Enneagram, the following weigh heavy on my conscience:

• balance and
• accuracy

You may be asking, why does this matter? 

Well, because of these attributes of my design I want desperately to communicate ALL the ways ALL of this is important to your life and how it is ALL connected together and to you and me. 

Secondly, aiming to being balanced and accurate is hard to do in a world of 30 second videos, Instagram and Twitter character limits and 25 word purpose statements. Especially, when it comes to discussing four different accounts of the same story about one of the most significant events the history of the Church. So, it is hard for me to keep the word count down.
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Why would you need to know this? ​

I tell you this to give you permission to skim and pull from the content what you need (but please, return to your intense focus at the closing). And I also want to challenge you to dig deeper into these insights sometime in your future. Believe it or not this is my “skinny” version. (If you want to see the full, very messy write-up, you can locate it here.) 

Now back to the point of you being on this page:  The Women of Easter, as different as they were [see part 1], had qualities in common that made them available and ready to be a part of the Holy week.

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​First, they saw what others didn't see. 

• Mary (of Bethany) saw that to be with Jesus was the best place to be. When others saw her pouring perfume on Jesus as “too lavish- and a waste”, she saw an opportunity to bless and adore Jesus. And Jesus said to those who judged her actions, “Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended for my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me” (John 12:7-8). 
• Alabaster Woman sought out Jesus to adorn him with alabaster because she saw in him what she saw in no one else--he was a healer, a redeemer, a worthy object of their actions of sacrifice. Those observing still only saw Jesus as a man, a good teacher. Even if she didn’t know in her head Jesus’ death was imminent, her actions served to prepare the way for his calling to the cross. And Jesus calls out what others don’t see in the woman, “She has done a beautiful thing to me. . . She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial” (Mark 14:6-9 & Matthew 26:10-13).  
• Servant girl(s) of the High Priest’s courtyard see Peter when others didn’t notice him.  “A servant girl saw him [Peter] seated there [high priest’s courtyard] in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, ‘This man was with him [Jesus].’ / But he denied it” (Luke 22: 56-57). This recognition served as a catalyst to Peter’s denial (which needed to happen in order for Jesus’ words over Peter to come to fruition).
• Pilate’s wife saw in a dream Jesus’ innocence and the need for her husband to know of it. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Wailing and mourning women saw that the death of Jesus’ was wrong and cruel. And then he saw them and didn’t stop them but redirected their mourning. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Women at the Cross saw the need to be present. When others scattered out of fear, they remained. They saw Jesus--son, friend, Rabboni (Teacher) nephew, the hoped for Messiah-- not the crowd, not the soldiers, not the appraisal or dismissal of man, but the person they loved. They stayed where He could see them. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Women at the burial saw to it that his body was wrapped in spices and prepared properly for burial. They were of the very few who knew with certainty where he was buried because they saw him placed in the tomb and the stone rolled over it. In addition, they saw that to obey the Sabbath was more important than attending to Jesus’ body the day after His death.  [See part 1 for Bible reference.] ​​
• Women at the [empty] tomb got to see what no one else in history was every eye witness to--angels, an empty tomb and the first news of Jesus' defeat of death. When the soldiers guarding the tomb fell down in fear and trembling at the sight of the angels, the women remained conscious and were able to look up and see.  “The guards were so afraid of him they shook and became like dead men. . . . The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know you are looking for Jesus. . . He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples” (Matthew 28:1-7).
• Mary Magdalene saw Jesus as more than just a man--in her sight he was Rabboni (in Aramaic - teacher and master, yet with personal implications of friendship). And she was first to see the resurrected Jesus. And, “She was the first person to be entrusted with the news that Jesus was who He said He was, that all hope was not lost, that help and redemption were on the way” (Jess Connolly, You are the Girl for the Job). [See part 1 for Bible reference.] 

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Second, they didn’t hold back. 

• Mary didn’t hold back her perfume or attention. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Alabaster woman didn’t hold back her expensive ointments or affection. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Servant girl(s) didn’t hold back her recognition of Peter (leading to the fulfillment of 3 times denying Jesus). [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Pilate’s wife didn’t hold back from telling Pilate of her dream about Jesus. [See part 1 for Bible reference.] 
• Women at the crucifixion didn’t hold back their mourning & wailing nor did they hold back from being present at Jesus’ darkest hour. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Mary & women at the burial didn’t hold back their burial rituals and care. (Also, didn’t hold back from obeying the command of the Sabbath). [See part 1 for Bible reference.]
• Mary Magdalene [in the empty tomb], at hearing Jesus say her name, and only then recognizing it was him didn’t hold back an ounce of her admiration and relief. [See part 1 for Bible reference.] 
• Mary & women at the tomb didn’t hold back the news of Jesus’ resurrection, instead they RAN to tell the others all they had seen and heard. [See part 1 for Bible reference.]

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Third, they were chosen (to be used to fulfill the purpose of Jesus’ mission to save us all).  

• Mary (sister of Lazarus) and other Alabaster Women - Jesus chooses to use the moments that follow the pouring out of tears and alabaster to rebuke those who don’t understand their actions as worship, adoration and the preparation of his coming death. (In the Luke 7 account, there is even hint at the women’s anointing provoking the Pharisees to come against Jesus. Setting Jesus up to begin his journey to the cross.) “Then Jesus said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven. / The other guests [Pharisees] began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this who even forgives sins?’ (Luke 7:48-49). Thus, the Father chose each of these women to move others to see Jesus for who he was and to move Jesus toward the cross. 
• Servant girl(s) - God uses these young girls to move Peter toward his denial, making Jesus’ words to be true, and also Peter’s pride to come full-on crashing down -- a catalyst for Peter’s future abilities to be a humble minister of the Gospel. [See part 1 for Bible reference.] 
• Pilate’s wife was chosen to receive the dream of Jesus’ innocence. And though it didn’t prevent Jesus’ death, Pilate’s knowledge of her dream combined with his personal experience with Jesus at his “trail” allowed for him to easily dismiss Jesus to be executed by “his own” people so that the words of the prophets would be fulfilled: “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (John 1:11). [See part 1 for Bible reference.] 
• All the Marys and the other women at the cross and tomb - When most of the disciples had scattered out of fear or denied knowing Jesus these women remained by his side. Luke says of them, prior to Easter week, “Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joaana the wife of Cuza, and manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means” (Luke 8:1-3). The Father had these women in place before-hand to continue Jesus’ ministry even after he was in the tomb and many of the men were in hiding. As a result, they are used to propel the ministry forward by  becoming the “apostle to the apostles” (Maurice Casey). ​

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Sisters (And brothers, if you are reading too, thanks for doing so!), can you see it? ​
Do you understand what these women reveal to us when we set their differences and likenesses next to each other and alongside Jesus?
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We too are able to see what others don’t see. We too are able to choose not to hold back. We too are chosen to fulfill the purpose of the continued ministry of Jesus--playing our unique part in seeing to it that no one perish, but everyone to come to him (1 Peter 3:9). 

​These women don’t get a lot of press, and we don’t need a lot of press either. Because what allowed them to be vessels of the greatest story ever told making its way to the ends of the earth is also what equips us to do the same:

1. Jesus’ relationship with us, 
2. the Father’s sovereignty over the locations, vocations and statuses of our lives 
3. our devotion, actions and proximity to Jesus, made possible through the Holy Spirit. "Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father" (John 14:12).  

These women--loyal, humble, faithful, full of adoration, set on obedience, moved to action--we  too are this kind of women!

​How do I know this?

Because the same Jesus who was with them, he is with us. The same Jesus they walked with, watched die, and watched rise again, he walks with us. As we experience the joy of things around us thriving and the pain of other things dying, his resurrection power lifts our eyes to His goodness in the midst of it. ​

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• Do you love Jesus? 
• Do you adore him? 
• Do you crave his presence, his healing, and his voice saying your name? 
• Do you believe he is who he says he is?

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• Do you see things others don’t see? 
• Do you want to live, holding back nothing, but being fully who God has made you to be? ​
• Do you believe you are chosen to play a role in the most important narrative, one being written even as we speak?

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Then my friend, you are an Easter Woman. And I am praying that you will always and forever live like you believe this.

GO, live for Jesus in ways that TELL the rest of the world that your life depends on Him. He is worth living and dying for.
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Go, be a Woman of Easter, all year long. ​

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Jaclyn is a wife, mom, educator, visionary, and avid runner who uses her writing to pick up and examine life, culture, faith and running, probing to discover the awe of God who is sovereign over it all. She is a firm believer in the powerful, effectiveness of the body of Christ united together to live out theGreat Commission. Because we are stronger, healthier and lovelier when living on mission together, she desires to help others know their unique design and purpose for such a time as this. Invite her to come teach at your event or retreat by heading to her Go & See. page. Check her recently released book here.