What can we learn from what the Bible says about Jesus and women?

Answer

In a time when women were considered second-class citizens, Jesus broke down prejudices and raised the status of women to unprecedented levels. This equality continued with His apostles. Peter cautioned husbands that if they did not treat their wives with respect, acknowledging that women are co-heirs with them in all that God has promised, their prayers would be hindered “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.”, (1 Peter 3:7). Paul wrote, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”, (Galatians 3:28). The apostles did not adopt their view of women from society; they learned it from their Teacher, Jesus. Jesus treated women with the same love and respect as He did men.

Jesus’ recognition of women’s worth began even before His birth. In God’s divine plan, He selected a woman to initiate His mission of redeeming humanity. God dispatched His angel Gabriel to a young woman in Nazareth with the joyful news that she would be the mother of God’s Son (Luke 1:26-38). Gabriel’s initial words to Mary were, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” God first entrusted a woman with the most crucial message the world had ever received: the awaited Messiah was coming.

When Jesus was just eight days old, the Holy Spirit revealed His identity to a woman,Anna (Luke 2:36-38). So before Jesus was even old enough to declare anyone’s value, God the Father was already at work revealing His heart to His faithful daughters. When Jesus began His earthly ministry, women flocked to hear Him teach, and some even supported Him financially (Matthew 27:55; Mark 15:41; Luke 8:2-3).

What was it about this Teacher that drew both men and women? Jesus was completely without prejudice. He loved every human being regardless of race, ethnicity, occupation, background, or gender. He treated them equally and included several women among His closest friends (Luke 10:38-39; 24:10; John 11:5). The fact that women are called by name in the Bible is significant. In a culture where women could not own property or testify in court, a woman’s opinion or her presence at an event was not even worth mentioning. The New Testament shatters those social norms by including the names of many women and the specific roles they played in furthering God’s kingdom.

Jesus broke down more cultural barriers when He took a detour through Samaria. There, He had an encounter with an immoral woman (John 4:4-26). The fact that she was a Samaritan was enough to bar her from any conversation with a self-respecting Jew, but, to make matters worse in the disciples’ eyes, she was a woman (verse 27). As they watched, their Master transformed that woman and through her impacted an entire city with His message of hope and redemption (verses 39–41).

Another time, an immoral woman was paraded before Jesus by Jewish leaders hoping to entrap Him (John 8:2-11). They demanded that Jesus givee His opinion on the punishment she should receive for her adultery. They considered this an easy win since the law required the death penalty (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22). If Jesus took the woman’s side, He was negating the law. If He took her accusers’ side, He was negating all He had ever taught about forgiveness (see Mark 2:15-17). Either way, they figured, they had Jesus cornered. Jesus turned the tables on them and dealt with their self-righteousness, forcing them to inspect their own lives first: “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone,” He said «So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. », (John 8:7). Again in this case, Jesus used the example of a woman to teach an important lesson about equality in God’s eyes. We are all sinners, men and women. None of us have the right to pass final judgment on another while hiding our own similar actions (see Romans 2:1-3).

Women were last to leave the place of Jesus’ crucifixion and first at the empty tomb (Matthew 27:61; Matthew 28:1), indicating that the transforming power of Jesus had given the women courage and boldness to follow Him openly. In a marvelous display of the women’s faith and God’s approval, those women became the world’s first witnesses of the resurrection «And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word. », (Matthew 28:8).

In all His interactionsIn His interactions with women, Jesus treated them with dignity, compassion, and respect. In doing so, He challenged the prevailing beliefs of that time regarding women and their societal roles. When Jesus summons a man or a woman to follow Him, He transforms them into new beings “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”, (2 Corinthians 5:17). Previous biases and stereotypes no longer define us. Christians are bound together by one Spirit “one Lord, one faith, one baptism,”, (Ephesians 4:5), and we are to regard each other as siblings in the household of God. God does not claim that men and women are identical, but Jesus’ life showed that He esteemed both equally. Both genders bring distinct contributions to the family and the church, and both should collaborate for the progress of all.