Expert: Thurman C. Petty, Jr. - 5/31/2006

Question
Thank you Pastor Petty, for being available for this question.  God bless you and your ministries.  Here is my question...

In John, we read that Lazarus, a man from BETHANY, was sick and with his sisters Mary and Martha.  We read that Mary is the person who used her hair to clean the feet of Jesus.

I thought THAT Mary, described in the hair incident, is known as Mary Magdalen, Magdalene, or Magdalena.  I thought this meant that she was from a place named Magdalen.

The opening words about the day that Jesus raised Lazarus from death, seem to describe THAT Mary, sister to Martha, as being from BETHANY.

Please tell me, did Jesus weep when he saw the sorrow of Mary Magdalena, or is it another Mary about whom we read in the John account of Jesus raising Lazarus.

I have written a poem, including the vollowing verse, and now I am questioning my facts:

"He understood Magdalena's tears,
wept with her, now us, in sorrow.
He raised up Lazarus that day, and all the dead tomorrow."

I don't know what your monitor or print-out will give you, it is supposed to be a 3-line verse.

Beyond the verse in my poem, ofcourse, I seek to learn and remember as much as I can about everything that Jesus did during his public ministry.

Thank you for your time, and I hope you can get back to me quite soon.

In Christ, Maria.


Answer
Dear Maria,

I like your poem. You capture the emotion of the moment through Mary, and through Jesus.

If you’ll remember, Jesus cast seven devils out of Mary Magdalene (Matthew 16.9; Luke 8:2).
Many scholars believe that the devils were actually one devil that led her into prostitution, and
that she kept “backsliding” after Jesus cast the devil out, allowing the devil to come back.

Jesus is a very forgiving person (as is the Father as well) and continued to forgive Mary, as she
kept coming back to Him, repenting. When a person is willing to repent, God never turns him/her
away. (1 Jn 1:9)

So how does this Mary relate to Mary of Bethany? One author, whom I greatly respect—Ellen G.
White, the most prolific woman writer in history—presented the two as the same person. It seems,
Simon of Bethany, a Pharisee, lured his niece—Mary— into sexual sin. It so devastated her that
she left Bethany and went to Magdala where she became a prostitute. (There was a Roman
garrison nearby.)

After Jesus had cast the devils out, and Mary was Jesus’ disciple, she went home to Bethany to be
with her sister Martha and her brother Lazarus. At the feast in Simon’s house, of course, Mary
would not have been invited—even as a servant. But she came anyway, and washed Jesus’ feet,
with her tears and ministered to Him by giving Him all her savings—the box of pure nard.

So Mary Magdalene, Mary of Bethany, and Mary who washed Jesus’ feet are actually one person.

Study all 4 gospel stories of the crucifixion of Christ. You’ll notice that Mary was at the cross
when Jesus died; she followed the men to see where they buried Jesus; she rested the Sabbath day
according to the commandment; she was with the first women at the tomb; she stayed at the tomb
after the others left; and she was the first to actually see and touch Jesus after the resurrection.
                                
Some are saying that Jesus was married to Mary. But that is a lie of the devil.

Mary loved Jesus because He had healed her of the devils: Jesus was her Savior. She loved Jesus
the same way we do when we accept Jesus as our Savior.

Thanks for your question. It brings to memory again, the “warm fuzzes” of life around the Master.

Sincerely,

Thurman C. Petty, Jr.
Petty@hyperusa.com

Check out my web site. Especially the book entitled Quest for the Super Leader. It’s all about
Jesus and how He relates to us. www.PettyPress.com