<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Mark 16;9-11<div><br></div><div><b>9. &nbsp;Now when he rose on the first day of week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he cast out seven demons.</b></div><div><b>10. &nbsp;She went out and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept.</b></div><div><b>11. &nbsp;But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>The second sermon of Easter was preached by a woman to Jesus’ disciples. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Mary had been commanded by an angel to speak the Good News of the resurrection to the disciples. &nbsp;She obeyed the angel, and&nbsp;did what she was told to do.<span></span></div><div><br></div><div>The disciples did not believer her. &nbsp;They at first rejected the Good News. &nbsp;Why?</div><div><br></div><div>Was the Good News too Good to be true? &nbsp;The disciples had witnessed Jesus call Lazarus from the dead, also Jairus’s little&nbsp;daughter, and the widow’s son, all had been raised from death. &nbsp;Jesus had even told them that he was to be killed, but on the third day be raised. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>I believe it was the disciples pride that blinded them to the Good News. &nbsp;They still looked down on Mary Magdalene as a worthless person. &nbsp;Even though Jesus had cleansed her and&nbsp;allowed her to travel with the other women, her words carried no weight for them. &nbsp;Even though other women attested to Mary’s witness, their words, which were&nbsp;‘God’s own Words’ were rejected.</div><div><br></div><div>Why did our Lord make Mary Magdalene the first human&nbsp;to proclaim the resurrection, the very heart of the Gospel? &nbsp;I believe it is God’s way of rebuking all of us in our pride. &nbsp;True holiness and perfect servanthood belongs to all forgiven Believers, no matter how unclean and wicked was their former life.</div><div>We can no longer judge others by their past. &nbsp;The only things that matters is their’ and our present!</div><div><br></div><div>In our private, daily lives, we are <u>all</u>&nbsp;to proclaim the Risen Christ, there are&nbsp;no exceptions, the command to <i>“Go, and make disciples of all nations” &nbsp;</i>(Matthew 28;18-20) belongs to us all. &nbsp;There is no one who is unworthy, Christ has made us all worthy to serve the loving, Life-giving will of the Father.</div><div><br></div><div>This general Commission to be evangelists and disciple-makers belongs to the whole Church. &nbsp;</div><div>The public Office of preaching the Gospel,&nbsp;administering the Sacraments, publicly absolving the repentant Believers who gather for witness is limited to men, not because women are not worthy or capable, but because of God’s Order of Creation and the duty of men to lead their household.</div><div><br></div><div>The Church is the Household of God. &nbsp;Christ is the Head, pastors stand in the place of Christ as they administer the Means of Grace publicly. &nbsp;As Christ came as the Son, His rightful voice <u>is</u>&nbsp;male. &nbsp;He speaks with the <u>Father’s&nbsp;</u>voice. &nbsp;On Sunday morning in Divine Service, it is the ‘voice of Christ’, (which is the voice of the Father) which we are hearing. &nbsp;The Father’s voice is the voice of authority, just as God has given fathers the responsibility to sacrificially&nbsp;lead, teach, and protect their wife and children. &nbsp;The ‘voice’ of the Father is final, it brings ultimate comfort.<i></i></div><div><br></div><div>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, bless us to hear Your voice in the Absolution in Divine Service. &nbsp;Bless the man in Office to be truly transparent, to the point that we loose sight of anyone but Jesus, for it is&nbsp;He who&nbsp;is speaking to us on Your behalf. &nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</div><div><br></div><div>Love,</div><div>Dad/Baba/Eric</div><div>Grandpa Pickle Pastor</div><div>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation, and we are His.”</div><div><br></div><div><br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Mark 16;9-11
9.  Now when he rose on the first day of week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he cast out seven demons.10.  She went out and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept.11.  But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.
The second sermon of Easter was preached by a woman to Jesus’ disciples.  
Mary had been commanded by an angel to speak the Good News of the resurrection to the disciples.  She obeyed the angel, and did what she was told to do.
The disciples did not believer her.  They at first rejected the Good News.  Why?
Was the Good News too Good to be true?  The disciples had witnessed Jesus call Lazarus from the dead, also Jairus’s little daughter, and the widow’s son, all had been raised from death.  Jesus had even told them that he was to be killed, but on the third day be raised.  
I believe it was the disciples pride that blinded them to the Good News.  They still looked down on Mary Magdalene as a worthless person.  Even though Jesus had cleansed her and allowed her to travel with the other women, her words carried no weight for them.  Even though other women attested to Mary’s witness, their words, which were ‘God’s own Words’ were rejected.
Why did our Lord make Mary Magdalene the first human to proclaim the resurrection, the very heart of the Gospel?  I believe it is God’s way of rebuking all of us in our pride.  True holiness and perfect servanthood belongs to all forgiven Believers, no matter how unclean and wicked was their former life.We can no longer judge others by their past.  The only things that matters is their’ and our present!
In our private, daily lives, we are all to proclaim the Risen Christ, there are no exceptions, the command to “Go, and make disciples of all nations”  (Matthew 28;18-20) belongs to us all.  There is no one who is unworthy, Christ has made us all worthy to serve the loving, Life-giving will of the Father.
This general Commission to be evangelists and disciple-makers belongs to the whole Church.  The public Office of preaching the Gospel, administering the Sacraments, publicly absolving the repentant Believers who gather for witness is limited to men, not because women are not worthy or capable, but because of God’s Order of Creation and the duty of men to lead their household.
The Church is the Household of God.  Christ is the Head, pastors stand in the place of Christ as they administer the Means of Grace publicly.  As Christ came as the Son, His rightful voice is male.  He speaks with the Father’s voice.  On Sunday morning in Divine Service, it is the ‘voice of Christ’, (which is the voice of the Father) which we are hearing.  The Father’s voice is the voice of authority, just as God has given fathers the responsibility to sacrificially lead, teach, and protect their wife and children.  The ‘voice’ of the Father is final, it brings ultimate comfort.
Prayer:  Merciful Father, bless us to hear Your voice in the Absolution in Divine Service.  Bless the man in Office to be truly transparent, to the point that we loose sight of anyone but Jesus, for it is He who is speaking to us on Your behalf.  In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/EricGrandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation, and we are His.”


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