Mary of Bethany and her siblings were very dear friends of our Savior. It is quite possible that Jesus stayed in their home in Bethany many times when he visited Jerusalem, which was just a 20 or 25 minute walk just over the Mount of Olives.  Luke 11:38-41 notes one particular visit: “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, ‘Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, tell her to help me.’ And Jesus answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. 42 But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.’”  Mary, her sister Martha, and their brother Lazarus were all disciples of Jesus.  But in this text, we are reminded of how important our discipleships must be to us, how carefully we must dedicate ourselves to them, and how sincerely we must devote ourselves to them.  Mary deserves our consideration as we examine the nature of our own discipleship.   I would like to meet her; I know I would like her very much.

Mary was born somewhere around 16-20 BC, and though we do not know where she was born, she certainly lived at least some of her teenage years in Nazareth of Galilee. The Galilee of the time of Jesus was not only the richest, fertile farmland, cultivated to the utmost – it was covered in towns and villages filled with working class families and served as the center of many trades and industries; it was important land for the nation of Israel. Galilee was in an area with several very busy roads that accommodated the commerce of the world at that time. Nazareth was a city with one of the great caravan routes – leading from the sea to Damascus. People of all nations, busy with another life than that of Israel, would appear in the streets of Nazareth daily. For Mary, this meant she was accustomed to many thoughts and associations related to the outside world that would be discussed and introduced in Nazareth by these travelers. Mary would have gone to the market and done her daily business in the streets with people from all over – with all kinds of new products and ideas.

In Acts 9, we view a small snapshot of the life of Ananias from Damascus. We meet him after he has accepted the gospel of the Way, in the capital city of Syria, about three years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. We don’t know how Ananias has become a disciple of Christ, but verse 10 tells us that he is a disciple. It is possible that he has heard the gospel message of the new kingdom while visiting Jerusalem or another area of Judea or from another zealous disciple who had returned with the good news. But he is a Christian, he is living in Damascus, and he is defined by his belief and obedience to do the will of God. I would love to meet him; I know I would like him.

I love the song that Solomon wrote; it is one of my favorite texts to teach. There are several opinions about how many main characters there are in the beautiful “Song of Solomon.”  The opinion that I am most comfortable with is that there are three main characters who interact in the song.  There is the King, who I believe is Solomon himself.  There is a young Shulamite woman, who has been taken to the palace to become part of the court of young ladies.  There is a shepherd, who tends sheep in the hills of Ephraim having already won the heart of the young Shulamite.

Luke 19 tells us of an interesting encounter as Jesus makes his way through Jericho to the capital.

After John the Baptizer is beheaded by Herod Antipas, Jesus retreats to mourn and makes the statement, “For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he” (Luke 7:28). I sure would like to meet him; I know I would like him. 

I think I would like many of the folks who spent their days in the temple courts at Jerusalem during the days of Jesus. We are not given information of the many who must have daily spent hours there. However, there is no doubt that many faithful and righteous among those referred to as “the multitudes” in the Gospel messages were awaiting the arrival of the Messiah. Though disillusioned with the political nature of the leadership in the temple they clung to the sanctification and hope in the center of religious activity in the capital city. We read of two such righteous people; Simeon and Anna, and I think I would like them both.

I think I would like several of the Roman centurions who appear in the New Testament, they are a remarkable group. R.C. Foster tells us in his Studies in the Life of Christ that “they bear witness to a high degree of valor, good judgment, and honesty as part of this second line of officers in the Roman army.” The most famous among the centurions we read of in scriptures is surely Cornelius in Caesarea, the first Gentile to be baptized and enter the kingdom; there is no doubt in my mind that I would like him.

There are many people that I read of in the Bible, who I think I would like very much; I wonder what they must look like, what their homes must have been like, who their families were.  So many details are left unknown for us as we read of those who lived in the various days of the text we are given.  Isn’t it interesting how well we know them, though very few details of their lives are made known to us?