Women of the Bible Part 27

Jesus not only knew Mary's name, he knew everything about her. He remembered the day he had cast the demons out of her. He remembered her many practical kindnesses. He saw how she suffered with him as she watched him die on the cross.

Just as Jesus knew the intimate details of Mary's life, he knows about you. When you are tempted to lose hope, when life seems too empty to go on, when grief overwhelms you -Jesus cares. When those you love have let you down, when you think you can't go on for another minute, when your problems crush you -Jesus cares. He calls your name, just as he called Mary's. And you, too, can go on like the women who went from the tomb, perhaps still a bit afraid yet "filled with joy" (Matthew 28:8).

Promises in Scripture Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

- Isaiah 43:1 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

-Matthew 10:29 - 31 [Nothing ] will be able to separate us from the love of G.o.d that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

-Romans 8:39 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

- i Peter 5:7 Friday HER LEGACY OF PRAYER.

Jesus said to her, "Mary."

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).

-John 20:16 Reflect On: John 20:1 - 18.

Praise G.o.d: That the Father has revealed his love so powerfully in Jesus.

Offer Thanks: For the death and resurrection of Jesus, his Son and our Savior.

Confess: Your doubts about G.o.d's power or willingness to deliver you from some evil in your life.

Ask G.o.d: For the grace of deliverance.

Lift Your Heart One day this week set your alarm clock so that you wake up a half hour before dawn. Find a spot where you can watch the sunrise. In the early morning shadows, tell G.o.d about some area of darkness in your own life or in the life of someone you love. Perhaps it's an illness, a persistent sin, loneliness, a troubled marriage, an addiction, or a wayward child. Whatever it is, surrender it by imagining yourself placing it in the garden tomb next to the body of Jesus. As the sun rises, meditate on that first Easter morning and remember that when Jesus walked out of the tomb, you walked out with him. Ask G.o.d for the faith to wait and watch for his delivering power.

Lord, make me a woman like Mary Magdalene, who follows you not because of a legalistic understanding of her faith, but because of an overwhelming sense of grat.i.tude and love for your own extravagant grace. Help me surrender my darkness to you and flood me with the light of your presence.

Dorcas HER NAME MEANS.

"Gazelle"; "Tabitha" Is Its Hebrew Equivalent Her Character: An inhabitant of Joppa, a town on the Mediterranean coast, thirty-five miles northwest of Jerusalem, she belonged to one of the earliest Christian congregations. She was a disciple known for her practical works of mercy.

Her Sorrow: To have suffered a grave illness.

Her Joy: To serve Jesus by serving the poor.

Key Scripture: Acts 9:36 - 43 Monday HER STORY.

The winds roared over the coast, piling water in noisy heaps along the rocky sh.o.r.eline. But though she lay quietly in the upper room of her house near the sea, Dorcas did not hear them. Nor did she notice the waves of grief that spilled into the room from the heart of every woman present. For once she had nothing to offer, no word of comfort, no act of kindness to soften their suffering. Instead, she lay still as other women ministered to her, tenderly sponging her body clean to prepare it for burial.

As Peter approached the house, he could hear the noise of mourning, a sound more desolate than the tearing wind. Two men had summoned him from Lydda, where he had just healed a paralytic. They urged him to come quickly because one of the Lord's disciples in Joppa had died. He had come in haste, hoping to reach Dorcas before she had to be buried.

As soon as he entered the room where her body lay, the widows surrounded him with tangible evidence of the woman they had loved, weeping as they held up robes and other items Dorcas had sewn to clothe the poor. Quickly, Peter shooed them from the room, as though to clear the atmosphere of despair. Then he knelt beside her body.

As Peter prayed, he remembered a promise Jesus had made: "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father." His faith rising like the wind outside, Peter addressed the dead woman, saying, "Tabitha, get up." Taking her by the hand, he actually helped her to her feet.

The next day, Dorcas stood alone on the roof of her house. The sh.o.r.e was littered with driftwood, trinkets from yesterday's storm. She breathed deeply, inhaling the sea's salty tang, soothed by the sound of waves lapping the rocks below. Strangely, the view looked somehow transparent, as though another world waited just behind the curtain of this one. Dorcas shaded her eyes with her hand, peering out at the sea. But she saw nothing other than the usual collection of fis.h.i.+ng boats bobbing in the waves.

Sighing, she turned and went inside. She had things to do-clothes to sew, bread to bake, the poor to feed and clothe. But even in the midst of her busy preparations, her longing for that other world increased, like hunger pangs before a feast. She fed that longing with her many practical acts of love.

Though we don't know what went through Peter's mind as he knelt and prayed at Dorcas's bedside, we do know that G.o.d worked through him in an extraordinary way. And though Scripture doesn't tell us how Dorcas responded to her incredible experience, it doesn't take much to imagine her joy. The story of her miracle spread throughout Joppa, leading many to believe.

Tuesday HER LIFE AND TIMES.

DISCIPLES.

In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated into Greek, is Dorcas) (Acts 9:36). She is the only woman in Scripture to be honored with the designation of "disciple." The presence of women in groups of disciples is implied at times, but Dorcas is the only woman specifically called a disciple.

The word disciple in both Greek and English has its roots in verbs that mean "to learn." Those two verbs describe the activity or posture of the disciple of the New Testament. The word disciple is used 296 times in the English Bible. Two of those times occur in Isaiah, and all of the rest are found in the Gospels and in the book of Acts. The Scriptures use the word almost exclusively to name someone who is a follower of Jesus.

A disciple is first of all a learner, a pupil. The disciples of Jesus sat at his feet, and he taught them. They listened and soaked up the knowledge and wisdom of Christ as he talked to them and to the crowds that inevitably gathered around him. Jesus taught them many things, but all of his teaching can be summed up in his command to love G.o.d and love others (Mark 12:31). As disciples, they accepted what Jesus taught as truth, trusting him as their teacher and willingly putting into practice all of his teachings.

Second, a disciple is a follower. The disciples followed Jesus wherever he went. Jesus' first words to Peter and his brother Simon were, "Follow me." When Jesus called to James and John in their boat, they quickly left the boat and their father and followed Jesus (Matthew 4:18 - 22).The word follow here doesn't just mean being willing to walk along with the teacher, it means being willing to adopt the views and way of life of the teacher. The twelve disciples left their families and incomes and former lifestyles to follow Jesus.

A true disciple, Dorcas had learned of Jesus and had decided to follow him. She had adopted his views and lifestyle, lovingly living out his commands by ministering to the poor around her. There was no mistaking it, no quibbling, no uncertainty - anyone who knew Dorcas knew who she was and whom she followed. Her devotion is recorded for all the generations to follow with those simple, yet profound words: "In Joppa there was a disciple named . . . Dorcas."

Wednesday HER LEGACY IN SCRIPTURE.

Read Acts 9:36 - 43.

1. What sorts of things do you think Dorcas was doing?

2. Describe what you think the scene was like when Peter brought Dorcas back to her friends and neighbors.

3. Dorcas was known for doing good and helping the poor. Where do these activities fit in your life?

4. Why do you suppose G.o.d chose to raise Dorcas but not any of the other disciples who presumably died in that year and the succeeding years?

5. G.o.d was definitely glorified through Dorcas's life, death, and resurrection. What if Dorcas had not been raised? Would G.o.d still have been glorified? How?

Thursday HER PROMISE.

G.o.d is glorified in the story of Dorcas, not only in her being raised from the dead, but through her acts of kindness, her generosity, and her willingness to go out of her way to offer help to others. Don't think you must do great and n.o.ble and noticeable acts for your life to glorify G.o.d. He will be glorified through your simple acts of love and obedience, whatever they are, wherever you are.

Promises in Scripture May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

-Psalm 19:14 Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors G.o.d.

-Proverbs 14:31 "He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well.

Is that not what it means to know me?" declares the Lord.

-Jeremiah 22:16 When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

-Matthew 6:3 - 4 Friday HER LEGACY OF PRAYER.

Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

-Acts 9:39 Reflect On: Acts 9:36-43.

Praise G.o.d: For his power over death.

Offer Thanks: For answered prayers.

Confess: Any habit of limiting the power of prayer.

Ask G.o.d: To make you a woman whose love for G.o.d has practical ramifications for those around her.

Lift Your Heart Is there a Dorcas in your life, a good woman or perhaps a good man? Maybe this person has been a great support in your own life. Resist the temptation to become depressed about what is happening to them and, instead, spend time this week praying in light of Dorcas's story. Let her miracle increase your faith and shape your prayers. If you have a photograph of the person, paste it to the dashboard of your car, your refrigerator, or your computer to remind you to pray. Ask G.o.d to bring light out of the darkness of their present circ.u.mstances.

Lord, show me how to pray with increasing faith, aware that your Spirit is no less powerful today than it was two thousand years ago. Act on behalf of your servant and glorify your name by what you do.

Lydia HER NAME SIGNIFIES THAT.

She Was a Woman of Lydia, a Region in Asia Minor Her Character: A Gentile adherent of Judaism, she was a successful businesswoman who sold a type of cloth prized for its purple color. As head of her household, she may have been either widowed or single. So strong was her faith that her entire household followed her example and was baptized. She extended hospitality to Paul and his companions, even after their imprisonment.

Her Sorrow: To see Paul and Silas beaten and thrown into prison for the sake of the gospel she had embraced.

Her Joy: That G.o.d's Spirit directed Paul and his companions to Macedonia, enabling her and others at Philippi to hear the gospel for the first time.

Key Scripture: Acts 16:6 - 40 Monday HER STORY.

The wind rustled the branches overhead until they became a swaying canopy whose shadow danced across the circle of women bowed in prayer. It didn't matter that Philippi had too few Jews to support a synagogue; the river's edge had become their place of wors.h.i.+p, a green sanctuary where they gathered each Sabbath to pray.

Lydia listened as a stranger from Tarsus invoked the familiar words of the Shema: "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our G.o.d, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your G.o.d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." Such prayers were like a gust of wind, fanning her longing. A Gentile who had come to Philippi from Asia Minor, Lydia was a prominent businesswoman who sold fine cloth to those who could afford it. Though not a Jew, she wanted to know this G.o.d powerful enough to part the sea yet tender enough to yearn for the love of his people.

Paul did not stop with the traditional Shema; instead, he spoke of a G.o.d whose Son, Jesus, had been murdered for love. This Jesus had risen from the grave after suffering the most agonizing death imaginable. He was Messiah, the merciful and holy One who had come to save G.o.d's people.

The women sat quietly as Paul told the story. Even the branches overhead had stopped their noisy rustling. But in the stillness Lydia felt a strong wind rus.h.i.+ng through her. Tears rolled down her cheeks even though she felt like singing. Afterward, she and her household were baptized in the Gangites River, near Philippi. Lydia insisted that Paul and Silas (and probably Timothy and Luke) accept her hospitality. Her home may have become the very center of the church in Philippi.

Philippi seemed an unlikely place to plant the gospel. It had been named for Philip II, father of Alexander the Great, who had been attracted to the region by gold-bearing mountains to the north of the city. Now a prosperous Roman colony located on the main highway linking the eastern provinces to Rome, its citizens included large numbers of retired Roman soldiers. Despite its size, however, Philippi hadn't even enough Jews to provide the requisite quorum of ten reliable males to form a synagogue - and it had always been Paul's habit to preach first in the synagogue. Even so, Philippi did have its group of praying Jewish and Gentile women.

Interestingly, Paul had not planned to visit Philippi but had been on his way to Asia when he felt constrained by the Holy Spirit to turn aside. Soon afterward, he had a vision in which a man of Macedonia begged him, "Come over to Macedonia and help us." Days later, he found himself on the riverbank, preaching to the women who had gathered there for prayer.

Shortly after Lydia's conversion, she heard news that her house-guests, Paul and Silas, had been whipped and thrown into prison. Paul's crime had been to drive an evil spirit from a slave girl who had been hara.s.sing them. Upset at the loss of profits from her fortune-telling, the girl's owners dragged Paul and Silas before the city magistrates, claiming, "These men are Jews and are throwing our city into an uproar by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice."

That night, with their feet in stocks, Paul and Silas prayed and sang hymns to G.o.d while the other prisoners listened. About midnight an earthquake shook the foundations of the prison so violently that the doors flew open and the chains of the prisoners fell off. As a result, the jailer and his whole household were converted. After he was released, Paul returned to Lydia's home for a short while.

When Lydia said good-bye to the apostle and his companions as they continued on their missionary journey, she may have remembered the words of his accusers: "These men are throwing our city into an uproar." Indeed, G.o.d had thrown the entire region into an uproar from which it would never recover.

Lydia has the distinction of being Paul's first convert in Europe and the first member of the church at Philippi, a community that later became a source of great consolation to the apostle when he was imprisoned. Perhaps her prayers, joined with those of the other women gathered at the riverbank, helped prepare the way for the gospel to be planted in Europe.

Tuesday HER LIFE AND TIMES.

FABRICS AND DYES.

Lydia's success as a businesswoman in the city of Philippi came from dealing in cloth that had been dyed a particular shade of purple. Originally from Thyatira, Lydia was probably privy to secret formulas for the dyes made there. Only those who belonged to the dyers guild were allowed to work as dyers. Made from the secretions of a sh.e.l.lfish found in the area, these special dyes colored the clothing of the well-to-do. The particular shades of purple ranged from a reddish scarlet to a deep purple tone.

Cloth dyed in various colors is mentioned as early as the exodus from Egypt, when the Lord instructed Moses to receive gifts from the people of Israel in order to make the tabernacle: "These are the offerings you are to receive from them: gold, silver and bronze; blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair; ram skins dyed red" (Exodus 25:3 - 5).

The best red or scarlet dyes were made from a grub that fed on oak as well as other plants. A less expensive form of red dye could be made from the root of the madder plant. The rind of the pomegranate formed the basis for dyes of blue shades. Yellow dyes were made from safflower and turmeric.

The most common garments in biblical times were made from wool, which came naturally in a variety of colors, from whites and yellows to tans and browns. Wool was also easily dyed other colors. Linen fabric was more difficult to dye but was found in early Egypt (Genesis 41:42) and was used in making the tabernacle curtains (Exodus 26). Leather for girdles, s.h.i.+elds, sandals, purses, or pouches could also be dyed numerous colors.

Lydia's occupation, then, was an important commercial trade. She must have been at least moderately successful, for Scripture records the fact that she had her own house as well as servants. Her unique position as a woman in business gave her opportunity to travel, to learn of the Christ, and to offer her home and hospitality to Paul and his companions as ministers of the gospel.

Wednesday HER LEGACY IN SCRIPTURE.

Read Acts 16:11 - 40.

1. How do you think Lydia would describe her first meeting with Paul and his team by the river?

2. How do you suppose the events of verses 16 - 37 affected Lydia?

3. Why did Lydia and the other believers in Philippi need encouragement (verse 40) as Paul was leaving?

4. Think about the words, "The Lord opened her heart to respond" (verse 14). If this has happened to you, what were the circ.u.mstances, and what was your response?

5. Lydia responded to the Lord in a town profoundly hostile to the news of Christ. What response is the Lord currently asking of you, despite whatever obstacles you may be facing?

Thursday HER PROMISE.

Lydia's life reveals a G.o.d who longs for relations.h.i.+p with his people. Lydia's openness to the truths Paul preached was not her own doing; G.o.d saw her hunger for him, and he met her deepest need-her need for him. He is still touching hearts today. The longings you feel for intimacy with him, the emptiness you experience when you've tried everything else and still hunger, the burning need you have for wholeness - these can only be satisfied when you start with the Alpha and end with the Omega, Jesus Christ, your beginning and your end.

Promises in Scripture Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

-Psalm 90:14 Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy?

Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare....

Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.

- Isaiah 55:2, 6 But those who drink the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.

-John 4:14 He said to me: "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give to water without cost from the spring of the water of life."

-Revelation 21:6 Friday HER LEGACY OF PRAYER.

On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.

-Acts 16:13 Reflect On: Acts 16:6 - 14.

Praise G.o.d: For sending messengers of the gospel.

Offer Thanks: That G.o.d enables us to believe by first opening our hearts to faith.