2.1 Leading women loved Jesus and His followers. Why?

2.1

Leading women loved Jesus and His followers.  Why?

We hear people today say that Jesus and His church have been and are bad for the health and blessing of women.  I don’t believe it.

Are there some churches were women and discounted and put down?  Yes.  There are because many of those who claim to be Christians are following themselves instead of Jesus.

The early Christians lives in a Roman culture were women had no legal independence and couldn’t own property.  In the early church they even had a group of women who were called deaconesses and were to be supported.  Jesus surprised His disciples and a woman by reaching out to her.  Jesus was loved by Mary and He pointed out the outstanding faith of the widow who gave two small copper coins.   He came to the aid of a woman caught in the act of adultery.  His dying words included care for His mother.  Jesus extended honor to women.

The Roman culture exposed female infants so they would die.  Pagan widows lost all control of their husband’s estate.   Christians protected women by not allowing cohabitation.  If a Christian man wanted to live with a woman expose her to the blessings and burdens of motherhood, they required marriage and gave women legal rights and far greater security.  Christianity took away the double standard that allowed men to have extramarital sex and mistresses.  Christianity elevated the status of women compared to the pagan way of life experienced in the Roman culture.  No wonder leading women were drawn to Jesus and His good news.

Acts 17.

17 Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. ² And according to Paul’s custom, he went to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ^3 [a]explaining and ^[b]giving evidence that the ^[c]Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the ^[d]Christ.” ⁴ And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, ^[e]along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and ^[f]a number of the leading women.

¹⁰ The brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, ^[j]and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. ¹¹ Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, ^[k]for they received the word with ^[l]great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. ¹² Therefore many of them believed, ^[m]along with a number of prominent Greek women and men. ¹³ But when the Jews of Thessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in Berea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds. ¹⁴ Then immediately the brethren sent Paul out to go as far as the sea; and Silas and Timothy remained there. ¹⁵ Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.