2 Kings 1-3 Luke 24:1-35

“The women left the tomb and told all these things to the eleven apostles and the other followers.” (Luke 24:9 NCV)

If you wanted to start a new religion in ancient Israel, there would be many different ways you could try to do that. Having women be the first witnesses to the defining event in your religion would not be on the list. Women were not respected in those days. Women were not considered reliable witnesses. It was, in every sense of the phrase, a man’s world. Yet, when Jesus rose from the dead, the first witnesses were women. It wasn’t that Jesus was trying to make a statement so much as that the women were doing what they were supposed to be doing in society at that time. They’d gone to anoint the body of Jesus. The men? They were hiding in the upper room…er…let me put it this way: they were making strategic plans to grow their group in the upper room while the women did their thing.

While I don’t think Jesus timed His resurrection to make a social statement about the believability of women, this should have opened a major door in understanding how God treats us equally. These ladies received this most amazing message from God because they were doing what they were supposed to do. God’s work gets done when we’re doing the things we’re supposed to be doing. That’s probably why women get so much more done in the church than men do. We tend to wait for revelation or a word from the Lord. How often do we need a special revelation to do those things that God has already told us to do? “Lord, should I give money to the church? If so, how much?” “Lord, do You want me to share the gospel with that person?” Men pray like that. Women go ahead and do those things. If we do the job God has called us to do, it’s amazing how many opportunities we find to serve Him throughout each day. As I think about myself, it’s even more amazing how many times I avoid taking advantage of those opportunities. Maybe if we spent more time responding to God than questioning Him when we find opportunities to serve, we’d see a lot more of God’s work being done.

Lord, you place opportunities in front of me every day. Too often, I fail to respond the right way. Help me to show others Your love and grace, knowing that I’ve already been commanded to do so. Give me a willing heart to be obedient to You.

Scripture taken from the New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.