Mark Study 23

Dear Student of the Word,

Greetings from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. I am here on a layover into Israel and thought I should send this next installment, since for the rest of the week I will be a busy pilgrim in the Holy Land. This is the next to last installment of our Mark study and this week we finish looking at Jesus' death and move into His resurrection. Aren't you glad the story didn't end with His death? We wouldn't be talking about the "gospel" or good news of Mark, that's for sure.

This week I wrote:

16:1 -- Then some more women came forward to identify with Jesus, but where were the disciples? These women were not afraid, but the disciples were terrified and disillusioned. This is why I don't understand why women are so discriminated against in the Church. They are often brave, spiritually-sensitive and gifted. yet more often than not, we ignore them only because they are women! It makes no sense. Yes, Paul wrote that Eve was deceived and then Adam fell, but should that now affect how women are treated and utilized in the Church?

It seems that the Church is trying to accomplish its mission with one arm tied behind its back when it doesn't fully utilize women and their gifts. I know it can be said that the women in this case were only coming to anoint Jesus' body, something that was women's work anyway. I say it took tremendous courage to do so in the face of what had just occurred. The Jews or Romans could have taken offense at or even arrested them for what they were about to do. Yet they did it!

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Download this week's study: Mark Study 23.doc

Comments

[D Zerby]

That is a good topic for debate. Men are not sovereign but God and through Jesus indicated He planned on them being the primary carriers of the good news. Women have been and will be prominent in ministry through out history. Let God handle his plan He can probably do it with out our help.