The Mystery of Mary
Magdalene
continued
page 2
Prior to his death
from Leprosy, Lazarus did not believe
that Jesus was the Messiah. I make
this assertion based on four reasons
First, as a leper (Matthew 26:6)
Lazarus was forced to live in
isolation (Leviticus 13: 45,46), and
therefore, he could not live with the
family. So, it seems reasonable to
conclude that most of the knowledge
Lazarus obtained about Jesus came
through hearsay. Second, the Bible
does not indicate that Lazarus was
acquainted with Jesus prior to his
resurrection. When Martha called for
Jesus to come to Bethany because
Lazarus was near death, she referred
to Lazarus as “the one you
love.” Many commentators have
interpreted this expression to mean
“your very close friend.”
However, I think there is a more
poignant explanation. First, there is
no indication in the Bible that
Lazarus and Jesus were close friends
unless we treat Martha’s
invitation to mean such. Second, Mary
and Martha knew that Jesus came to
seek and save the lost sheep of
Israel. (Luke 19:10; Matthew 18:
12-14) In other words, Jesus came to
save the unlovely – the
prostitutes, tax collectors and
lepers. Therefore, we should
understand the phrase, “the one
you love” as meaning the one
lost sheep whom Jesus came to
save. Mary and Martha wanted
their brother to accept Jesus. In
this light, Martha’s request for
Jesus was directed at Christ’s
mission, and His friendship with
Lazarus. (Smart woman.) Third, since
Lazarus was a Pharisee (Luke 7:36),
it is quite likely that his religious
beliefs blinded him to the divinity
and mission of Jesus. Fourth, Lazarus
must have been a leper for some
period of time before he died. If
they had been such good friends, why
didn’t Jesus heal Lazarus of his
disease earlier? We know the disease
eventually killed Lazarus and we also
know that leprosy is not a short-term
illness. When these four
considerations are harmonized, I
conclude that Lazarus and Jesus
probably knew of each other, but I do
not think Lazarus became a believer
until Jesus resurrected him.
Jesus Honored
After Jesus
resurrected Lazarus, Lazarus held a
feast at his house to publically
honor and thank Jesus for healing him
and restoring him to life. This feast
was particularly offensive to the
teachers and Pharisees because Lazarus
was a Pharisee. This made the
Pharisees so angry that they schemed
to kill Lazarus, too. (John 12:10)
According to Matthew 26:6 and Mark
14:3, Lazarus had a surname. He was
called Simon and “Simon the
leper.” (See Matthew 26:6; Luke
16, and also in the reading room of
this site titled, “The Rich Man
and Lazarus.”) When Simon
Lazarus held this feast, he did not
know that Jesus had set Mary free of
seven demons some months earlier.
This ignorance could be due to
several reasons such as isolation
while suffering from leprosy, the
final months of illness, and/or his
refusal as a Pharisee to tolerate
anything said about Jesus. With these
things in mind, consider this passage
from Luke 7:
“Now one of
the Pharisee [Simon Lazarus] invited
Jesus to have dinner with him, so he
went to the Pharisees house and
reclined at the table. When a woman who
had lived a sinful life in that town learned
that Jesus was eating at the
Pharisees house, she brought an
alabaster jar of perfume, as
she stood behind him at his
feet weeping, she began to wet his
feet with her tears, Then she wiped
them with her hair, kissed them and
poured perfume on them. When
the Pharisees who had invited him saw
this, he said to himself, ‘If
this man were a prophet, he
would know who is touching him and
what kind of woman she is – that
she is a sinner.
‘”
(Note: Even
after Lazarus had been resurrected by
Jesus, did you notice the skepticism
that remained in Lazarus’ heart?
Lazarus said to himself, If this
man [Jesus] were a prophet, He would
know who is touching him and what
kind of woman she is – that she
is a sinner.” Simon’s
skepticism affirmed two points. First,
Lazarus and Jesus had not been the
best of friends as many people claim.
Second, Lazarus had evidently not
been close to his sisters, perhaps
due to his illness or religious
views, because during the past six
months they began to believe that
Jesus was the Son of God.)
The Bible discusses
this feast in four places –
Matthew 26, Luke 7, Mark 14 and John
12. Because there are differences in
the details, some people conclude
there are two or more feasts. I am
convinced the verses refer to one
event. Four different writers wrote
the gospels years later and this is
why their perspectives are somewhat
different. According to Luke 7:37,
the woman who anointed the feet of
Jesus had lived a sinful life in that
town and Simon Lazarus was well
acquainted with her past. According
to Mark 14:3, Mary anointed the head
of Jesus instead of His feet. I do
not believe Jesus was anointed
several times with very expensive
perfume by different women. Jesus was
anointed one time with the most
expensive perfume money could buy.
“Jesus
answered him, ‘Simon, I have
something to tell you,’ Tell me,
teacher,’ he said. ‘Two men
owed money to a certain moneylender.
One owed him five hundred denarii,
and the other fifty. Neither of them
had the money to pay him back, so he
canceled the debts of both. Now which
of them will love him more?’
Simon replied, ‘I suppose the
one who had the bigger debt
canceled.’ ‘You have judged
correctly,’ Jesus said. Then he
turned toward the woman and said to
Simon, ‘Do you see this woman? I
came into your house. You did not
give me any water for my feet, but
she wet my feet with her tears and
wiped them with her hair. You did not
give me a kiss, but this woman, from
the time I entered, has not stopped
kissing my feet. You did not put oil
on my head, but she has poured
perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell
you, her many sins have
been forgiven – for she loved
much. But he who has been
forgiven little loves little.’
Then Jesus said to her, ‘Your
sins are forgiven.’”
(Note: At
the feast, Jesus assured Mary that
her sinful past had been forgiven.
Why did He need to assure her of
this? After Jesus set Mary free of
demonic possession, she felt a burden
of guilt and worthlessness. Her sense
of unworthiness overwhelmed her every
time she thought about her sordid
past. Mary’s past could not be
changed, but her soul had been freed
of demonic control. Consequently,
Mary was full of sorrow realizing
that Jesus had come to die for her
– one of the lost sheep of
Israel. She loved Jesus as she loved
God – in the highest and holiest
sense. As a healed prostitute, her
love for Jesus had nothing to do with
sexual attraction. As she anointed
Jesus with expensive perfume, her
tears and the great sorrow she felt
flowed from a genuinely repentant
heart. On the basis of her genuine
sorrow for her sins, Jesus
lawfully forgave her! [Ephesians 2:
8,9; 1 John 1:9] Meanwhile, a
resurrected but self-righteous
Pharisee named Simon Lazarus was
talking to Jesus, but he did not
really love Jesus as Mary did. At
this time, Lazarus did not yet
realize his need for a Savior. He was
happy to be alive again, and he was
happy to be freed of leprosy, but
Lazarus had not come face to face
with the condemnation which
God’s law imposes on sinners.
This is why Jesus said to Lazarus,
“But he who has been forgiven
little loves little.” Pharisee
paradigms die-hard.)
The Anointing
When the day of the
feast for Jesus drew near, I am sure
the Holy Spirit inspired Mary to do
something that would never be
forgotten. Mary purchased the most
expensive perfume that money could
buy. Three gospel writers agree that
the perfume came in an alabaster
bottle. She bought the perfume to
“anoint” Jesus before His
death, even though it was the custom
to anoint the bodies of people after
they had died. (John 19:40) In this
case, the Holy Spirit prompted Mary
to anoint her sacrificial lamb before
He died. As the magnificent scent
wafted through the crowd at
Simon’s house, the fragrance
caused everyone to stop and notice
that Jesus was being anointed by a
woman who had lived a very sinful
past. One of Jesus’ disciples
expressed disgust at Mary’s
extravagant actions and complained
about the money wasted, but Mary did
not notice. Her own soul had been set
free from guilt. She was forgiven and
she wanted the world to know that God
Himself was in their midst.
Obviously, Mary’s actions had
touched Jesus and He promised her
that whenever this story was told,
she would be remembered for what she
had so generously done. (I have often
wondered if the scent from the
perfume remained on Jesus for a few
days and if the fragrance was
detected as He prayed for all of His
disciples in the garden. – John
17)
“The other guests
began to say to themselves, ’Who
is this who even forgives sin?’
Jesus said to the woman, ‘Your
faith has saved you; go in
peace.’ After this, Jesus
traveled about from one town and
village to another, proclaiming the
good news of the kingdom of God. The
Twelve were with him, and also some
women who had been cured of evil
spirits and diseases: Mary (called
Magdalene) from whom seven demons had
come out; Joanna the wife of Cuza,
the manager of Herod’s
household; Susanna; and many others.
These women were helping to support
them out of their own means.” (Luke
7:36-8:3)
Conclusion
Contrary to what some
people may say, whether or not the
woman caught in adultery is Mary
Magdalene is not a
“serious” theological
matter. I base this on what the Bible
teaches; that it is wrong to worship
dead people. The Bible declares,
Worship God!” (Exodus 20:3;
Revelation 19:10) So, I would include
this study in the category of
“interesting topics.”
Nevertheless, I will close with four
conclusions. First, I am 95%
convinced that Mary Magdalene and the
unmarried prostitute caught in
adultery were one and the same
person. I say this for one of the
following four reasons. (1) The only
way that Jesus could have upheld the
Law of Moses and saved the woman
caught in adultery from certain death
was because she was demon possessed.
We know that Mary Magdalene had seven
devils cast out of her, even though
there is no record of Jesus doing so.
(2) I also believe that Mary
Magdalene was a sister of Lazarus and
she was the woman with a sinful past.
Because Jesus set Mary free and
forgave her, out of gratitude she
spent a fortune on perfume. (3) Mary
Magdalene became a very bold woman
for Christ and she stood bravely with
the mother of Jesus at the foot of
the cross. She was also the first
person to see Jesus after His
resurrection because she no longer
feared the religious police after she
saw Jesus deliver her from their
schemes. (4) The Bible is clear that
Mary and other women who loved the
gospel supported Jesus and His
disciples out of their own means
because they wanted everyone to know
the joy and freedom that comes
through Christ.
Mary
Magdalene’s story is a beautiful
one illuminating the love of Jesus
and the power of His gospel. This
story is important because it
continues, even today, to mirror two
types of people. Mary Magdalene was
in bondage to seven demons. Her soul
was dead until Jesus gave her life
and set her free. She was condemned
to die as a prostitute, but
Jesus’ lawfully extended grace.
Similarly, Lazarus was also in
bondage. His body was covered with
leprosy and his mind corrupted by the
ideas of the Pharisees until he died
from the disease. Then, Jesus called
him forth to life and I am sure that
Lazarus eventually received Christ as
His Savior. As interesting as all
this is, remember that our heavenly
Father also called Jesus to life so
that Jesus might continue to
implement the magnificent plan of
salvation. All this that one day, all
of God’s children can sit
together under the Tree of Life and
ask Mary Magdalene, in person, if she
was the woman caught in adultery who
Jesus set free!
Since the four gospels
were canonized in the fourth century,
there has been an on-going debate
among Christians about the identity
and character of Mary Magdalene. Was
she a prostitute, was she a woman
caught in adultery in John 8, or was
she the woman with a “sinful
past” who washed Jesus’
feet in Luke 7? In A.D. 591, Pope
Gregory I attempted to settle the
debate. He announced that Mary
Magdalene was in fact the woman
caught in adultery in John 8, the
sinful woman who washed Jesus’
feet in Luke 7, and was the sister of
Martha and Lazarus. Seventeen
centuries later, the debate has
resurfaced. Certain Catholics say
that on April 3, 1969, Pope Paul VI
quietly reversed Pope Gregory’s
decision by creating three separate
versions of Mary in a papal Missale
Romanum. I have reviewed this missale
and I saw nothing about Mary
Magdalene. (Perhaps there is an
oblique statement in this missale
that changes her status and I missed
it.) Nevertheless, Mary
Magdalene’s identity has become
a topic of controversy once again.
Some people have claimed that Mary
Magdalene was not a prostitute, but
instead was a wealthy woman who was
married to Jesus. Others have
suggested that she and Jesus were
lovers – and the speculation
goes on and on. Given the
controversy, I decided to take a look
for myself. I find Bible sleuthing
fascinating and if a person is
willing to dig beneath the surface.
It is amazing how many facts
percolate to the surface. I hope you
will consider the conclusions of my
study.
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