Mary Magdalene - The God Who Renames the Shamed
Mary Magdalene - The God Who Renames the Shamed
Mary Magdalene
The God Who Renames the Shamed
Mary Magdalene appears in all four Gospels. Before encountering Jesus, she suffered from severe spiritual oppression. Her condition caused society to label her, fear her, and dismiss her. People defined her by what tormented her instead of who she truly was. When Jesus delivered her, she became one of His most devoted followers. She traveled with the disciples, supported Jesus’ ministry financially, and stayed near Him even as others fled. She is the first eyewitness of the resurrection and is often called the apostle to the apostles.
Mary’s life is the story of a woman the world wrote off and God rewrote with destiny.
Primary Scripture: John 20:16, NIV
“Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’”
Expanded Reflection:
Before she ever encountered Jesus, Mary was a woman trapped inside an identity she did not choose. People looked at her and saw dysfunction. They did not see her heart, her value, her strength, or her purpose. She lived beneath stigma, the whispers of neighbors, and the assumptions of religious people who believed her condition was her fault.
Many women today share this experience. Some were labeled by their past. Some were defined by trauma they never asked for. Some were trapped inside wounds that kept them unseen and unheard. Mary’s story shows us that Jesus does not approach His daughters with judgment. He approaches them with deliverance.
When Jesus set Mary free, He did more than remove oppression. He restored her humanity. He looked at her and saw the woman God created, not the woman society rejected. Her deliverance was not just a miracle. It was the beginning of her calling.
Mary followed Jesus faithfully. When others left, she stayed. When the disciples scattered in fear, Mary remained near. When death seemed final, she showed up at the tomb with devotion that refused to quit. And when Jesus rose, He did not appear first to a king or a priest or a disciple. He chose Mary.
Her name was the first word the resurrected Christ spoke.
Mary.
Not woman.
Not sinner.
Not outcast.
Not the labels her town had used.
He called her by her true name, the one heaven had spoken over her since creation.
There is power in being called by name. There is healing in being seen when the world has overlooked you. Mary’s encounter with the resurrected Jesus was not an accident. It was a divine declaration that God places honor where others placed shame, authority where others placed doubt, and purpose where others placed judgment.
When God renames you, every label loses its power.
Your past does not disqualify you. Your trauma does not define you. Your deliverance is not the end of your story but the beginning of your ministry. Mary was entrusted with the greatest announcement in history. That is what God does with daughters who have been dismissed by the world and restored by His hand.
Supporting Scriptures:
Isaiah 62:2
Psalm 34:5
Joel 2:25
Luke 8:1 to 3
Reflective Questions:
What labels have others spoken over you that God is breaking off.
Where has shame tried to define your identity.
What assignment might God be entrusting to you because of your healing, not in spite of it.
Prayer:
Jesus, speak my name as You spoke Mary’s. Remove the weight of shame from my shoulders. Heal the places where others misunderstood me. Restore my identity and reveal the calling You have placed within me. Make me a witness of Your resurrection power in my life. Amen.
Outcome:
Mary becomes the first herald of the resurrection, trusted by Jesus with the message that will change the world. Her life moves from stigma to strength, from bondage to purpose, and from silence to proclamation.
Closing Blessing:
May her courage encourage us to trust God more fully; He who was faithful to her is faithful to us.