During Jesus' lifetime on earth, women were viewed as second-class citizens, with few right and privileges. What did that mean? It meant women were viewed as inferior, a hindrance and distraction to men. They were not deemed worthy to study the Torah, so important in Jewish life and outlook. They were segregated, confined mainly to their houses and the property of their fathers until they married. Then they became the property of their husbands. And if they did appear in public, it was viewed as unsuitable for a man to speak to a woman, even it she was his wife. A woman's status in first century Jewish society was similar to that of a slave.
Here's the amazing thing. While Jewish men prayed daily, "Blessed be God that he has not made me a woman," Jesus did the opposite! Even though Jesus was a Jewish male, he broke all the rules of the day in his attitude toward women.. The gospel stories reveal an unusually protective tenderness and compassion in Jesus' interaction with females. He went out of his way to validate them. He once intervened and took the side of a woman who was being harshly judged and criticized by his disciples, telling the men to back off and leave her alone. He thoughtfully saved the day for a young bride whose wedding feast celebration was about to fall apart. He compassionately restored the life and dignity of an abandoned, insane woman who had been reduced to living in squalor and filth on the outskirts of town. He didn't hesitate to rescue an adulterous woman caught in the act from the clutches of a band of self-righteous and devious religious leaders. The list goes on....
For many years, I didn't know that Jesus. A serious lack of understanding and an unhealthy fear of God in general, prevented me from feeling personally connected and emotionally attached to Jesus, the son of God and the son of man. He wasn't a part of my intimate circle of loved ones. Indeed, he should have been at the very center of that circle.
This one-on-one connection with Jesus is at the heart of the eternal plan. It's not just an interesting bit of theology, a passing fancy, a fad or something we might tire of. The Jesus personage of the Triune God came, with indescribable humility and sacrifice as a human to this earth to make it possible for the common and the supernatural to come together in unimaginable union. He came to us so that we might easily identify with him and know who God is. If we interject ourselves into the life stories of our Lord, sitting silently in the corner and listening to him talk, watching him interact with women, children, the sick, the cast-offs, following the crowds as he healed and lifted up, he will become increasingly real to us. Jesus himself tells us to know him and the One who sent him is eternal life (John 17:3).
And that's why I love to tell the story of Jesus and his love.
