Women missionaries in the Bible

Were there female missionaries in the Bible that we can look to as examples for the modern-day Christian? The answer is a resounding yes! I have highlighted four such women, but I encourage you to look for more. It once again amazes me how a book, written 2,000 or more years ago, continues to speak to us today, in every area of our lives. God is so good!

Esther, whose name appears in the Bible more often than any other woman's, was an orphan Jewess, reared by her cousin. She was born of a noble Jewish family and carried into captivity when Nebuchadnezzar invaded Jerusalem. Four years later, however, she had risen to the position of queen of the Persian Empire.  She was most likely the only one of the king’s court who worshiped the true God. However, as a result of the warning from her cousin Mordecai, the king did not know that she was Jewish. As time went on, she won both his confidence and his love. Her position allowed her to play an incredibly important role in the lives of her people, who had been threatened with destruction. 

Mordecai warned Esther that the Jews were to be destroyed at the request of their enemy, Haman. But Esther, if she was willing, might be able to intercede for them. He told her, "Who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14). In order to seek the king's protection of her people, Esther risked her own life by going unbidden before the king. The end result was the downfall of the wicked Haman, whom the king ordered to be hanged, and the salvation of the Jews.

In today’s day and age, women missionaries are asked, time and again, to approach the throne of grace on behalf of a people group whom Satan has tried to destroy. His methods are varied: cannibalism, violent warfare, infanticide, jihad...but his intent is the same as Haman’s, destruction of the people of God. A missionary goes before the throne of God to plead for this people, more often than not, risking their lives in order to live and interact with these, sometimes dangerous, people groups. The Lord, time and again, recognizes the sacrifice of these modern-day Esthers, and holds out His scepter of pardon and forgiveness to each people group who is willing to acknowledge Him as Savior and Lord. Yet, it is not only the foreign missionary who does this, but each Christian has the privilege and responsibility to intercede for the lost, praying daily for salvation for the unreached people of our world.

Dorcas, (Acts 9: 36, 39) lived in the port city of Joppa, about 35 miles northwest of Jerusalem.  It was an important Christian center in the first century AD, a time when the new faith was spreading from Jerusalem across the Mediterranean. Dorcas had great compassion for the widows and the fatherless. She began making clothing for the poor, rising early each day to sew.  

One day she was seized with illness . . . and death came suddenly. Saints in the Church and widows whom she had befriended came to her house to prepare her for burial. Some in the group knew that Peter and other apostles were performing miracles, and a few had faith that she could be raised from the dead. They sent two men over to Lydda where Peter had gone to preach, asking him to travel the ten miles to her home and raise Dorcas from the dead. Such faith!

Peter listened to them, left his preaching at Lydda, and hurried on foot to her house. He dismissed the people who stood around her body weeping, telling them he would pray. After a bit, he was heard to say, "Tabitha, arise" (Acts 9:40). Dorcas opened her eyes, saw Peter and sat up. Then Peter called the saints and widows and presented her to them, alive!  

Dorcas is an example of the care and concern that women missionaries extend toward the poor, homeless, orphans and widows. This compassion can be seen throughout history in the lives of women such as Mother Theresa, Amy Carmichael, Gladys Aylward, Elizabeth Elliot, and the list goes on. God has designed women to be especially compassionate...a mother’s heart. This equips them for the very important missionary role of being the hands and feet of Jesus to those who are suffering. This care and concern is often behind-the-scenes, as in the case of Dorcas, but it does not go unseen by the Lord, or by those whose lives have been impacted. Each of us, whether in America or overseas, can reach out to those in need with the love of the Lord, following in the footsteps of Dorcas. 

Lydia, Acts 16:14, 40, was a businesswoman in the city of Philippi. She provided purple-dyed textiles which were greatly sought after by the people in the markets. She was easily recognized on the streets of Philippi and would often dress in purple herself.  A native of Thyatira in western Asia Minor, she was a Gentile, among Gentiles. But she was set apart because she worshipped the one God of the Jews. In her desire to know better the wonders and powers of the one God, she joined with some other women to become a small group of worshipers. 

About this time, Paul and his companion Silas came over from Troas. And they came into the midst of her gathering, she and her companions listened to Paul as he related his story of the new Gospel proclaimed in Jerusalem by Jesus Christ and now spreading westward into Macedonia. As Lydia listened, “the Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message” (Acts 16:14). Believing in what he had to say, Lydia and her household were baptized. Then she said to Paul and Silas, "If you consider me a believer in the Lord, come and stay at my house,” (Acts 16:15). They accepted her hospitality, and in return, she had the opportunity to learn more from them about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  

Her prayers and friendship with Paul continued. It was to her house that Paul and Silas returned when they were released from prison. They had been cast into prison because of the complaint of some men who had been exploiting a demented girl as a soothsayer. Paul healed the child, and the men were angry about their financial loss. Even in prison though, Paul and Silas were fearless Christians. They sang and prayed, and a great earthquake opened the prison doors. The keeper of the prison was so moved at these wonders that he became a convert to the new faith before Paul and Silas departed (Acts 15:40). Arriving at Lydia’s home, they told of their experiences to her and others who gathered to rejoice with them.

Lydia personifies the spirit of hospitality which must be present in every female, and male, missionary. Just as the Lord Jesus throws open the gates of Heaven to welcome every wayward sinner who approaches His throne of grace, the missionary must be willing and eager to open their home, and their lives, to the people who they are trying to reach with the Gospel of Christ. Unlike in America, where much of the art of hospitality has been lost, in the East, hospitality is practiced by most and is one of the best ways for Christians to share the love of Jesus with those around them. It is often over a shared meal that the hearts and minds of those who are searching are enlightened by the Gospel. May we all, as Christians, be willing and ready to show hospitality to those who need to hear the Good News of Jesus.   

Priscilla, Acts 18:2, 18, 26 – Romans 16:3 – I Corinthians 16:19 – II Timothy 4:19, was a woman who had an impact for God in at least three different nations: Rome, Greece and Asia Minor. With her husband Aquila, they supported Paul, hosted him in their home, “led a house church, and were assigned by Paul to disciple the eloquent and committed Egyptian Jew, Apollos, ‘instructing him in the way of God more perfectly,’ (Acts 18:26)” (Kraft, 294). Her role in mission outreach did not seem out of the ordinary which leads one to believe that many women were involved in the Great Commission from the beginning. 

She and Aquila were tentmakers and teachers. They came out of Italy first to live at Corinth and then about a year and a half later they went to Ephesus. They left Rome at the time when Claudius expelled all Jews. Their home, in the weaving sections of Corinth and Ephesus, became a rendezvous for those wanting to know more about the new Christian faith.

At Corinth, Paul, the tent-making missionary, lived and worked with them. Then when Paul departed from Corinth and embarked for Syria, they went with him. When they reached Ephesus, Paul left them there. Upon taking leave of them, he said, "I will return to you, if God wills," (Acts 18:21). Then he set sail from Ephesus. It was a year or more before Paul returned to them at Ephesus, and he found that they had established a well-organized congregation. 

Not long after they arrived in Ephesus, Priscilla and Aquila had the opportunity to teach  the eloquent and learned Apollos.  He was well versed in the Old Testament Scriptures. He had been introduced to the Christian religion first by John the Baptist, but he had only a superficial knowledge of the new Christian faith, and so they “explained the way of God to him more adequately” (Acts 18:26).  He accepted Christ as his Savior and after traveling to Achaia, “he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ,” (Acts 18:28). It was the teaching of Priscilla and Aquila that helped him enter this very public role for Christ.   

Priscilla, working as a team with her husband, exemplifies the missionary role of witness, partnership and church planting. They were bold witnesses to Apollos, not being intimidated by his scholarly prowess but sharing the Gospel as people who had been lost to one who was currently lost. In addition, they were first of all partners with each other as all married couples should be on the mission field. Also, their partnership with Paul was evidenced a few times in Scripture. The Christian life is not meant to be walked alone. God grants other Christians as friends, encouragers and supporters, Priscilla, Aquila and Paul fulfilled this role for each other. Thirdly Priscilla, with her husband, also planted a church in Ephesus, building on the foundation that Paul had set while he was there. Church planting is so very important in today’s mission field...it is one of the pillars. This wife/husband team should be used as an example for any Christian couple who desires to follow God more closely, fulfilling His Great Commission in this world. In conclusion, one can see through the lives of Esther, Dorcas, Lydia and Priscilla, some of the key roles women of today are asked to take in their desire to fulfill the Great Commission: intercessory prayer, compassion and outreach to the poor, hospitality and witness, partnership and church planting. 

(some of these writing attributed to Beverly Whitaker, http://freepages.religions.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gentutor/Biblewomen.html)