1st September 2026

Joanna is one of those remarkable women in Scripture whose story can easily be overlooked. We know very little about her, yet what Luke tells us is extraordinary. Joanna was the wife of Chuza, a manager in the household of Herod Antipas. She lived close to the centre of political power, yet she became a devoted follower of Jesus. Luke tells us that Joanna had experienced Jesus’s healing (Luke 8:2) and, together with other women, became one of those who travelled with Jesus and the disciples, supporting Jesus’s ministry from her own resources (v. 3). Later, Joanna was among the women who went to Jesus’s tomb and discovered that it was empty (Luke 24:1–10).

The inclusion of Joanna in Scripture shows us that following Jesus is not restricted to those who stand at the front; her ministry was largely unseen; she did not preach a recorded sermon, lead a congregation, or become one of the Twelve. Yet she participated faithfully in what Jesus was doing by offering what she had. This is an important perspective for Christian ministry. We sometimes measure significance by visibility – who preaches, who leads, or who has a title. Joanna points us toward a different measure: faithful participation in the life and ministry of Jesus.   

Her story also reminds us that women were not merely spectators in the ministry of Jesus: they travelled with him, supported his ministry, witnessed his death and resurrection, and became proclaimers of the resurrection. Joanna was among those entrusted with the astonishing news: ‘He is not here; he has risen!’ (Luke 24:6). Perhaps the most beautiful feature of Joanna’s story is that she appears in both the beginning and the climax of Jesus’s earthly ministry. She served him during his ministry and then became a witness to his resurrection. Her faithfulness connected ordinary acts of generosity with the extraordinary good news of the gospel.

Joanna’s story encourages us to ask, ‘What has God entrusted to me that I can place at Jesus’s disposal?’ It may be our resources, our time, our home, our skills, our encouragement, or simply our faithful presence; none of these things are necessarily extraordinary. In Christ, even quiet acts of faithfulness can participate in God’s extraordinary work. Joanna may have lived in the shadows of the Gospel story, but she was never insignificant in the purposes of God. Her story reminds us that extraordinary discipleship often looks remarkably ordinary.

Local congregation:
Grace Communion West Hampstead 
Sidings Community Centre
150 Brassey Road
West Hampstead
London
NW6 2BA

Meeting time:
Sunday 12.30 pm

Local congregational contact:
Gordon Brown
gordon.brown@gracecom.church

Word of Life contact:  
wordoflife@gracecom.church