Salem Church
Mary Magdalene: The First Evangelist
Sunday, May 21, 2023
Important Women of the Bible
Mary Magdalene: The First Evangelist
John 20:11-18
Important Facts About Mary Magdalene
- Who She Wasn’t
- Who She May Have Been
“And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.”Luke 7:37-38
“The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, ‘Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?’ This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, ‘Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.’ And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.’” John 8:3-11
“Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.” Luke 8:1-3
“But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She said to them, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.’ Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned and said to him in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, ‘Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father, and your Father, to my God and your God.’’ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’ – and that he had said these things to her.” John 20:11-18
Main Idea: Without Exception, Every Disciple of Jesus is an Evangelist for Jesus
I. The Challenge of Discouragement – John 20:11
“Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” John 20:1-2
“Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out.” Luke 8:2b
II.The Challenge of Confusion – John 20:12-15
“They said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She said to them, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.’” John 20:13
“For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.” John 20:9
“Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’” John 20:14-15
III. The Challenge of Selfishness – John 20:16-17
“Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’ She turned and said to him in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, ‘Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” John 20:16-17
IV. The Challenge of Silence – John 20:18
“But go to my brothers…” John 20:17
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” Matthew 28:19
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8
God Glorified Himself & Blessed the World Through Four Important Women:
Leah: The Devalued
Esther: The Reluctant Influencer
Mary: The Highly Favored
Mary Magdalene: The First Evangelist
“Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” Matthew 16:24
Sources and Reading Opportunities
The Lexham Bible Dictionary – Barry, Bomar, Brown, etc (2016)
Complete Word Study Dictionary – Spiros Zodhiates (2000)
Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary – Laney & Hughes (2001)
Wiersbe Expository Outlines – Warren Wiersbe (1992)
Who Was Mary Magdalene? – GotQuestions.org
CSB Study Bible – Trevin Wax (2017)
John 20:11-18 ESV