In God’s administration of His economy, a very important position is assigned to the women. After man was created, what happened to man was very much related to the woman. By this we can see that whether or not God can have His way today in His purpose depends very much upon what the sisters will do. If the women or the sisters will function properly, God will have a success; otherwise, there will surely be a failure or a loss. After the fall of man, God came in, not to do something through man, but to do something through the woman. The subtle serpent, the enemy of God, came in through the woman. Therefore God chose to defeat the enemy also through woman-through the same channel by which he came. In Genesis 3 the serpent came in through the woman, and in the same chapter, God promised that this woman would bring forth a seed who would bruise the head of the serpent (v. 15). Thus, the fall occurred through the woman and the deliverance was promised also through the woman. This shows us the importance of the sister’s position in the Bible.
The first account in the New Testament concerning a direct relationship with the Lord is related to a woman-Mary. The story of the life of the Lord Jesus begins with this woman. Of course, we know that this is the fulfillment of the promise given in Genesis 3:15. In Genesis, God promised that the woman would bring forth a seed which would destroy the damaging serpent. This promise is fulfilled at the very beginning of the New Testament.
Mary, the mother of the Lord Jesus, is not the only Mary mentioned in the New Testament. Do you realize that there are at least six Marys mentioned in the New Testament? The first Mary is the mother of the Lord Jesus and the second Mary is the sister of Lazarus. The third Mary is Mary Magdalene, out of whom seven demons were cast. While the Lord Jesus was dying on the cross a few sisters were standing there with Him. Among those sisters, there were two Marys. One was Mary Magdalene, and the Gospel of John tells us that the other Mary was the wife of Clopas and the mother of James the less and Joseph (John 19:25). This fourth Mary, with the other sisters, saw the death of Christ and also went with Mary Magdalene to the sepulcher on the morning of the resurrection (Matt. 28:1). The Gospel of John only mentions that Mary Magdalene went there, but the other Gospels tell us that there was another Mary (Mark 16:1; Luke 24:10). She is the fourth Mary. The fifth Mary was the mother of John Mark. In Acts 12:12, after Peter was released from prison, he went to Mary’s home, where many saints were gathered together praying. The sixth Mary is in Romans 16:6. Here Paul said to greet the Mary who labored for the church.
These six Marys are very meaningful. One Mary gave birth to the Lord Jesus; another loved the Lord Jesus and followed Him, ministering to Him; two other Marys saw the Lord’s death and prepared something for His burial, pouring ointment on His body. They saw the resurrection and also received the vision of the ascension of Christ. Another Mary was related to the church, praying all the time. Finally, a Mary was laboring over so many in the church life. In the New Testament there are not so many Peters or Johns. But there are so many Marys. This simply means, to fulfill God’s purpose and accomplish His economy, there is a great need for the sisters. In a sense the sisters are more important for the accomplishment of God’s economy than the brothers.
The little family at Bethany recorded in John 12:1-9 is a type of the church. That family was composed of one brother and two sisters. This means it was one-third brothers and two-thirds sisters. A strong, normal, proper church should have one-third brothers and two-thirds sisters. In the church life we need more sisters.
We need to see the position of the sisters in the record of the New Testament. The first position of the sisters is related to the birth of the Lord. What is the Lord’s birth? It is to bring the Lord into the human race. All the sisters must realize that their position in the church is to bring forth Christ to people. Whatever you do must bring forth Christ. You have to pray that the Spirit will come upon you and that the power of the Most High will overshadow you so that you can bring forth Christ. If you are serving in a service group, you must bring forth Christ. If you go visit the saints or have fellowship with the sisters, you must bring forth Christ to them. It is not just a matter of working for the Lord; it is a matter of bringing forth Christ.
According to the Gospels, the Marys were the ones who loved the Lord and followed Him. They ministered to the Lord with their material supplies. Sisters, this is your position. Your position is first to bring forth Christ to people and then to love the Lord Jesus. Can you tell the Lord that you love Him more than your family and your children? We have to realize that the sisters represent the loving ones. You need to love the Lord Jesus, to follow Him, and to minister to Him. One day when I was reading Luke 8:3, I was happy when I saw that among those ministering sisters, one was the wife of a high officer of Herod. Surely she had a high position and many material things. Yet she didn’t love other things; she loved the Lord. She not only loved the Lord, but followed Him and ministered what she had to the Lord and to the disciples. No matter what your position is, you have to follow the Lord, love the Lord, and minister something that you have to the Lord.
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