You can read about them in Matthew 27:56. We missed it. Friday last was the commemoration of the myrrh bearers known as Joanna. Salome and Mary. These were women who cared for and maybe financed Jesus and the disciples in their ministry. The came to the party early and stayed late and they are the ones who faithfully sought to do for Jesus the last act of care and love that they could. Their service through His ministry were the simple things that had to be done like preparing meals and getting things ready at various places where the disciples stayed. Nothing flashy, but simple service to the one who came to serve us all. There final act of service was to try and go and prepare Jesus body for a real burial. Of course that simple act was interrupted by grace and a miracle of Resurrection that meant the salvation of a sinful world, the destruction of death, and the beginning of new life. In a world where we laud the arrogant and the loud mouth, the self assertive and even film them as heroes, these women worked behind that scenes and did what some would denigrate as “menial”. Pastor John Rikert, “A Lutheran in South Carolina” wrote, ….”While fallen human nature exults the proud, the arrogant, the conceited, and we even teach people how to be more so as we encourage them to be more self-confident and self-assertive, the Lord exalts the humble and opposes the proud (Luke 1:52; James 4:6, 10; 1 Peter 3:8). Therefore these humble servants of the Lord are also an inspiration to each of us to serve our exalted Lord in all humility”.
The commemoration was last Friday and I missed it. That is the way with humble service and faithful ministry. We usually miss it.
