Mark 15:40-41 – Women in ministry

It’s not unusual to find family and relatives at the scene when a condemned man was crucified. Mark tells us that some women from Galilee, who had accompanied Jesus, were looking on from a distance. While only three were named here, verse 41 tells us that there were also many who came to Jerusalem with Him. According to Luke 8:1-3 these women were healed or delivered in the Lord’s ministry. In gratitude they were supporting His ministry financially.

In verse 40 we are told of the three Mary’s. The first Mary was probably from the village of Magdala, so she came to be called Mary Magdalene. And Jesus had delivered her of seven demons that dominated her life. The second Mary is referred to as the mother of James and Joses. This is probably Mary, the earthly mother of the Lord. And we are told that the third Mary was Salome. According to Matthew 27:56, she was the wife of Zebedee, the mother of two of the apostles, James and John.  

They would become eye-witnesses to all the events that would be declared in the Gospel. In verses 40-41 they saw His death. In verse 47 they saw where His body was buried, and Mark 16:4-6, they witnessed His resurrection. These verses came as a surprise. They suggest that these women actually came with Jesus, followed Him from Caesarea Philippi to Jerusalem, accompanying the 12 men. And there were other women who followed as well.

Why weren’t they mentioned earlier? Why did Mark only tell us when the journey is nearly over? Perhaps to contrast their faithfulness to the disciples’ unfaithfulness. Besides, in a Jewish male dominated society, female witness was not valued. However, Mark considered them valuable so He included them here. They were there, they saw everything and that made their testimony reliable.  

The fact that we see so many women in the Lord’s ministry tells us that they have a place in the heart of God. They seemed to be more concerned than the male disciples, who fled the scene where the Lord was crucified. Women have an important place in the ministry of the Gospel and now in the church of Christ. In most churches today we find that women still outnumber the men. We must not downgrade the role of women in ministry. The Lord did not and so we mustn’t.