MONDAY Genesis 1:26-28, 2:18-23
Hebrew creation stories God made male AND female in God’s image, and the woman was man’s helper and partner, not his servant.
• If both men and women were created “in God’s image,” what does that say about God? Have you ever noticed that the Bible compared God to a gently loving mother as well as to a protecting father (cf. Psalm 131:1-2, Isaiah 49:14-16, Isaiah 66:13)? At what times do you most need to know that God loves you with more tenderness than the best earthly mother?
TUESDAY Luke 10:38-42
Jesus treated women as—well, people. Most other rabbis thought women couldn’t learn, and were not worth time or attention. But when Martha grumbled that her sister wasn’t filling the typical “woman’s” role, Jesus said it was good for Mary to learn from him.
• Today Jesus’ conversation with Mary may seem normal. But in his time, it was most unusual— and it was not an isolated incident (cf. Luke 8:1-3, Matthew 27:55-56, and women as the first resurrection witnesses, as in Luke 24:11). How does Jesus’ model speak to attitudes and actions that still treat women as second-class citizens in homes, workplaces or other settings?
WEDNESDAY Genesis 2:24-25, Song of Solomon 1:15–2:4, 8:5-7
The Hebrew Bible was much more open about human sexuality (for good and ill) than many church people tend to be. Both the Genesis story of creation and the poetry of Song of Solomon celebrated physical intimacy as a good gift from God.
• How does the presence of Genesis 2 and Song of Solomon in the Bible show that God’s Hebrew people believed God is in favor of sexual attraction, and saw it as a force for good? In what ways did this bold Hebrew love poetry join the strong pull of sexual attraction with God’s larger intention that the union of bodies should bond hearts together?
THURSDAY Matthew 19:3-8, 1 Corinthians 6:12-7:2
Once again, Jesus’ enemies quoted “Bible” to him (this time Deuteronomy 24:1). Jesus said, in effect, “that was the best Moses could do,” but the Creation story showed God’s ideal more clearly. To people living in the wildly immoral Greek and Roman societies, the apostle Paul too upheld that ideal: one partner, one unchanging love commitment (except in the case of choices so bad they destroy the relationship beyond repair).
• Some rabbis taught that Deuteronomy 24:1 allowed divorce for any offense—even burning breakfast! It was in the Bible, they argued, so it must be okay. As in other cases, Jesus looked at all of the Bible, not just a verse here and a verse there, and taught a higher, more loving ideal. When have you seen snippets of Scripture used, as the Pharisees did, in ways that hurt rather than helping people?
• The Greco-Roman world scoffed at the idea that sex meant anything more than physical release. Paul, like Jesus, drew on the creation story’s ideal. If sex made two people “one flesh,” he said, then the choice of a partner (not, mind you, partners) was spiritual, not just physical. In what ways does the idea of honoring God with your body run counter to much thinking today about sex? What helps you “avoid sexual immorality”?
FRIDAY Matthew 9:9-13
Through the ages, various groups have been outcasts unwelcome in “religious” inner circles (e.g. Deuteronomy 23:1-2 banned eunuchs and illegitimate children). To Pharisees amazed that he would eat with “tax collectors and sinners,” Jesus said his kingdom was different and all were welcome. Inhis short letter, Jesus’ brother James underscored the same idea. His words about breaking even one commandment were not meant to discourage. Instead, they put us all in the same boat. All of us must trust that, with God, “mercy overrules judgment.”
• In Jesus’ day, as in ours, some religious people thought holiness included showing your virtue by loudly condemning “unworthy” people (which generally meant “different”). To what extent do you believe non-religious and nominally religious people are right in expecting church people to judge and criticize them? If Jesus brought Matthew and his friends to your worship service or small group, how welcome would they be?
SATURDAY John 8:2-11
The accusers in this sad scene weren’t satisfied with shaming the woman. They wanted to stone her to death, quoting verses like Deuteronomy 22:22. Jesus valued the Bible, but did not blindly follow every word in it. Over the centuries, Christians have wrestled with many tough issues that couldn’t be settled by just quoting a few Bible verses. We have to trust the Holy Spirit to continue guiding us in discerning and living into the spirit of Jesus.
• Imagine yourself on the ground like this woman, encircled by “righteous” men who reject and condemn you. Hear Jesus saying, “I don’t condemn you.” How precious is his gift of grace to you? Now imagine it’s you holding a stone. Who—what person or group—did you throw to the ground before Jesus? What “sins” make you most upset with the “sinners” who sin them? Lay before Jesus the fears, feelings and incidents that make those people so offensive to you. Ask him to help you take a fresh look at your complex feelings, and to guide you as you daily grow into dealing with people as he did.