Pages

Sunday, July 21, 2013

A Place for Women in the Church

I had waited my whole life for someone to tell me what were the true place and purpose of women in the church.  Some of you may have heard me tell about a lesson that one of the young men gave regarding Christian women at our recent Fourth of July meeting.  He agreed to allow me to reprint his sermon here on the condition of anonymity.  Even though it was originally presented to a crowd of around seven hundred people, I know of several friends who could not be present but who would appreciate hearing the lesson as much as I did.

Many times in meetings like this one, we hear preachers exhorting young men to step forward and preach the gospel, and the need for a new generation of leadership.  For a little while this morning, however, I'd like to take the other side of the coin, and focus on a topic that in my opinion doesn't get as much attention from the pulpit as it deserves: the dire need for godly women in the church.

Make no mistake--if the instruction and encouragement our ladies get is from society, the church will be gone within a generation.  Feminism has attempted to create a culture of "equality," but it's apparent that modern society has only made men and women equally unhappy.  Government-sanctioned sexism undermines women's worth and achievements, the media objectifies women and promotes an unhealthy preoccupation with looks and materialism, and society encourages people to be more and more promiscuous, which only serves to increase the number of children born out of wedlock and the number of people infected by STDs, and to destroy healthy relationship dynamics.  Many in the world would tell you that being a stay-at-home mom is degrading, and that a submissive wife is a relic of the Dark Ages.

But the Bible says otherwise.  Christianity has done more for women than feminism ever could, and true equality can be found only in Christ, Galatians 3:28:

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Or I Corinthians 11:11-12:  Nevertheless, neither is man independent of woman, nor woman independent of man, in the Lord.  For as woman came from man, even so man also comes through woman; but all things are from God.

For us to actually achieve equality means moving closer to the Bible, not farther from it.  But it is critical to point out that equal worth does not mean equal roles.  Women are told to be submissive to their husbands (I Peter 3:1), silent in the assembly (I cor. 14:34), discreet, chaste homemakers (Titus 2:5), modestly appareled (I Tim. 2:9), and with long, uncut hair (I Cor. 11:15).  I think we all know these things, but many times we tend to focus on what women can't do instead of what they can do.  Think of the strongest Christian you know.  If we were to take a poll, I think the majority of us would have godly women in mind.  Indeed, I think my fiancee's hair has started more conversations about the Bible with strangers than I have.  Look at all of the New Testament examples of godly women doing the Lord's work.  Timothy's mother and grandmother trained up godly children.  Dorcas is described as being full of good works and charitable deeds.  Priscilla, along with her husband Aquila, provided an assembly place for the church, helped Paul on his missionary journey, taught the way of God to Apollos (a mighty preacher of the Gospel) and worked with her husband as a tentmaker.  Indeed, the first appearance of the resurrected Christ was to that great woman of faith, Mary Magdalene.

The point here is to illustrate how important a godly woman is to her family the church, and to God.  Proverbs 31:10--Who can find a virtuous wife?  For her worth is far above rubies.  This phrase, virtuous wife, can also be translated a "wife of valor," and this entire section of the thirty-first Proverb, verses 10 to 31, is an acrostic in Hebrew, perhaps the most beautiful poem of this style ever written.  Indeed, it is quite fitting that this chapter concludes the book of Solomon's wisdom, as Solomon's many pagan wives helped turn his heart away from God.  How might his spiritual life have changed if he'd only pursued such a virtuous woman?

. . . Which brings me back to the men, specifically the young men.  Do you really value a godly woman?  When we seek after worldly women, when we judge our sisters based only on their looks and their fashion sense, we do them and the church a grave disservice.  Your number one goal in finding a mate should be to find the person who will help you the most in getting to heaven.  That person is a strong Christian, a gentle and quiet spirit, not a gossiper or busybody, but a humble servant of Jesus Christ.  In short, the polar opposite of the world's ideal woman.  Ladies, I encourage you to be the godly woman described in the Bible, to grow your talents of singing, prayer, personal evangelism, etc.  And men, when you see these traits in a sister, value her for the treasure she is.

I leave you with the words of King Lemuel in Proverbs 31:30, which were taught to him by his own godly mother.  Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

No comments:

Post a Comment