Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another throughout the Galilean countryside, proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom of God. His twelve intimate disciples traveled with Him plus many women who had been healed and set free from bondages by Jesus.
The women wanted to assist Jesus in appreciation. Their earthly gratefulness became a heavenly commitment.
By allowing women disciples to travel with Him, Jesus showed to the Jewish culture of the time that all are equal under God. Jesus did not treat women the way the Jewish culture did and by this it showed women to be of great merit and very necessary in ministry.
These women helped to aid Jesus' ministry out of their own resources. Jesus and His ministry team were upheld by the means of these grateful women who traveled with Him.

One of the women was Mary Magdalene, from whom Jesus had cast out seven demons. Although she was a woman of high standing and lived comfortably, she had suffered from time to time on the edge of insanity. Her suffering was severe because of the domination of demons.
The Bible does not record how she came to be demon possessed, but it does record that she met The Messiah, Her Saviour, who came to destroy all the works of the devil and to set the captives free.

After the release from the oppression and cruel affliction of the demons that had possessed her, she was a faithful and trusted disciple of Christ. She became a devoted follower of Him. She left her home to follow in service to Him and to His other disciples. In helping Jesus, she became a co-worker and partner in His evangelism, His teaching, His preaching, His ministering to deliver others.

Her name, Magdalene identified her place of birth. Magdala was a very prosperous town on the coast of Galilee, three miles from Capernaum, and the town was known to have harlots, but Mary was not one of them. She was a sinner in the same manner as any other human, born in sin because of being born in Adam.

She is not to be confused with the sinful prostitute who washed Jesus' feet. Many people assume that she was that same woman, nor was she Mary of Bethany.

Mary Magdalene was a wealthy woman and she came from an affluent community, which enabled her to serve and help The Lord's ministry. She witnessed first-hand the ministry of The Lord Jesus Christ.
Under the Old Testament laws given to Moses, which Jesus lived in obedience, for He was born under The Old Covenant Laws, a rabbi, teacher or any priest could not live off the earnings of a prostitute.
She with the other women traveled with Jesus from Galilee to Jerusalem to care for His needs. Mary Magdalene saw all what Jesus went through, watching from a distance.

Although Jesus' intimate friend deserted Him, Mary Magdalene and the women who faithfully ministered to Him did not leave Him. She wept as Jesus was led to Calvary to be nailed to a tree. She was there when He was declared physically dead. She remained sitting and watching as they took Jesus' body to the grave.
She sat opposite the tomb watching Joseph of Arametha and Nicodemus, who were prominent men on the Jewish Sanhedrin Council and both were disciples of Jesus., as they buried His body. She was there when The Lord Jesus first appeared after he was resurrected from the dead.
Just as she was the last to witness these events, she was the first to witness the most important occurrence in all history, The Resurrection of Jesus Christ, The Son of The Living God.

On the first day of the week, armed with spices to anoint the body of Jesus, an act of love and devotion, for she had no expectation that there would be no body. Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and found the stone had been rolled away from Jesus' burial chamber.
An angel spoke to her, telling her not to be afraid and that Jesus' body was no longer there and to go quickly and tell the other disciples that Jesus had risen. Though she was afraid, she was also filled with joy.
She ran to Simon Peter and John and told them that the tomb where they laid Jesus was empty. They went to the tomb, but they could not understand what had happened to Jesus' body.

When the disciples left the tomb, Mary Magdalene stood outside the empty grave crying. As she wept she bent over and in the tomb she could see two angels in dazzling white brilliance. One was seated where Jesus' head had been and the other where His feet had been. (a very strong symbol of Christ, being the mercy seat from the ark of the Covenant with Moses and the people of Israel 1500 years prior).

The angles spoke to her asking why she was crying and she turned around and saw Jesus there. He called her by name and he too asked her why she was crying. He told her not to be afraid and to go and tell the other disciples that she had seen Him risen from the dead.

She was the first person to whom The Lord Jesus Christ appeared in His Resurrected Body after being raised from the dead by The Power of The Holy Spirit of God.

The disciples did not believe Mary's report of The Resurrected Lord and when Jesus did appear to them, He rebuked them for their stubbornness in not believing her.
Jesus' own family did not believe in Him as The Messiah, except His mother, but now after His resurrection, they all became believers and were amongst the disciples of the early Church.

After they all saw Jesus ascend to heaven, they joined together with the all the women, including their wives and Mary Magdalene and Jesus' mother, meeting regularly to pray. The number of believers at this time was 120 people.
Mary Magdalene was there when they all gathered together on the Day of Pentecost (The Festival of the Harvest), and all the believers were baptized in The Holy Spirit, which Jesus had promised them from the Father, to all believers anywhere and to future believers down through the coming generations.

She occupied a prominent place in her service to The Lord, she is at the front amongst the godly women who have rendered their assistance. No other woman has replaced Mary Magdalene in her complete dedication to her Lord and personal Teacher.
Mary of Magdala not only witnessed the teachings of Jesus, but His Death as prophesied, His Burial as prophesied and she was unique in being the first person to see Him after his Resurrection from the dead and she was the first person from among men and women chosen to tell the Good News that Jesus Lives. She was also one of the first believers to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

Being faithful in service she was rewarded. She was given a privilege that can never be taken away from her, the first to see and speak to The Risen Lord and commanded to tell others.

Even though we have not had the honours of Mary of Magdala, we can be just as grateful for our New Lives In Christ as she was and show it just as she did, and tell others as she did.

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