Men, How does Jesus’ value of women change you? The Bible uses strong language when discussing divorce. Dress yourself with strength and dignity. Discipline your children, and they will give you peace; they will bring you … From seemingly attributing humanity’s fall into temptation to Eve in the beginning of the Old Testament to barring women from certain leadership positions late in the New, the Bible is shaped through and through by the patriarchal culture from which is … Women are saved by childbearing = your greatest purpose in life is that of motherhood (and if you try to reach outside of this realm you need to sit down and shut up. A little controversial in this day and age. There are multiple Old Testament laws and narratives that, seem to exercise harshness toward women and promote misogyny and authoritarian abuse. Isaiah 3:1-3. Most of the issues people have with the Bible’s “teachings” on women can be understood and explained through greater knowledge of the history, context, and purpose of the writing. Don’t take one person’s opinion about it as fact. There are many stories in Scripture that are meant to point us to the absolute wrongness of the situation, and make us want to cry out, “Disgusting! They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing Him (John 8:6). — John 8:7. Unfortunately, many have listened more to what others have to say about the Bible and women than they have listened to the Bible itself. His mother, his Sunday School teacher, his grandmother, his wife, or his neighbor. But she had to be aware that there would be no erasing the damage now done to her reputation, that she would from this day forward be the subject of whispers and fodder for the town gossips. Both are made in His image (Genesis 1:27), both are separated from Him by sin and need a Savior (Romans 3:23), both may be redeemed through Christ and receive the Holy Spirit making them heirs of God (Galatians 3:27–29). They say that she was a house church leader according to 1 Corinthians 1:11, but the Scripture doesn’t say that; it says “from Chloe’s household.”Another woman referenced is Priscilla. In one court case, the accused was asked by the judge, “Why do you traffic women?”, The man shrugged. To wrap up, I want to leave on a personal note. Beyond the specific gift of teaching, all Christian women are called to step up and out to be a godly leader through utilizing her influence and intellect to shape those around her for the glory of God. If we were to list out all the biblical accounts as evidence for one or the other (with the proper interpretive context in mind): pro-women vs. anti-women, pro-women wins by a landslide. All Rights Reserved. God has used and continues to use the influence, teaching, love, dedication, leadership, and strength of women to shape every godly man. Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery,” they said. — John 8:5. There is no hint of hierarchy or gender roles until after the fall in Genesis 3, which comes as a result of the brokenness that enters the relationship between humanity and God, and between the woman and the man. For example, there are severe punishments for a woman caught in adultery, and none prohibiting polygamy, while accounts of rape, abuse, neglect, and even the murder of women by “men of God” that seem to go unpunished. This takes a lot of hard work and investment of our resources, but before you enter the next debate about what the Bible has to say about women, you need to personally do the work to understand the difference between the following: There are many verses in the Bible that—at first glance—are simply hard to swallow. Jesus Over Everything Week 4 — Remembering What’s True, Champions Find God’s Strength in Their Own Weakness, What Jesus Says About Women: You Are Not “Less Than”. Scripture lets us know to stay away from evil women. Trustworthy, Christian perspectives on life. It is with this as the backdrop that God shockingly (to those of that day), consistently, and purposefully invites women to be part of His redemptive plan to rescue the world from their sin. Instead, let us use the muscle of faith, stand firm on the promises of who God is, and cling to the reality of the Bible’s reliability. I am a minister of the gospel. This is not to say, however, that women are not to teach the Bible or have a voice and lead within the church. It has those elements within it, but its purpose is not to provide a detailed dissertation on those topics. God has already revealed bigger plans for my life as a strong woman than I could have ever dreamed of. Either way, they must have thought, we win. ” Says a beautiful, wrinkle-free woman, “I intend to fight it every step of the way!” But what does God say about it all? This challenge sites Corinthians as an example of a passage where you have men superior to women. Has no one condemned you? Apparently, only the woman — not her lover — was considered enough of an offender to be brought to the temple for immediate judgment. Instead of letting hard verses cast doubt on God’s character, we need to first question our own knowledge and understanding of His Word. However, many of these “facts” have been distorted, misunderstood, and even misused by men and women alike. As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. And it shows up in many other ways as well, from jokes — have you ever heard a blonde joke about a dumb blond man? Go now and leave your life of sin. I try to imagine myself in the woman’s place, dragged from the warmth of a bed with perhaps just time enough to snatch a garment or a blanket before being hauled through the streets to stand before Jesus and a hostile, glaring, condemning crowd, already hefting their stones. Jesus didn’t stand until the crowd had dispersed. The history of our world — all periods of history, all continents, all cultural traditions — is rampant with damage, oppression, diminishment, contempt, and hostility aimed at women. Read the Bible for yourself. There are many stories in Scripture that are meant to point us to the absolute wrongness of the situation and make us want to cry out, “Disgusting! Then, from this foundation, we can dive into the depths of what the Bible has to say about women. And the men who perpetrate these horrendous acts are excused with religious theology. But between the Garden of Eden and Garden of Gethsemane, a lot changed. Some of the “oddball,” troubling, traditions we see in the Bible are primarily of cultural, , not spiritual, influence. It is not a history, science, economics, or morality book. These statements are not contradictory. Maybe the bigger issue is our lack of knowledge and effort to understand when it comes to these sticky topics? Woman is not fully like God. Know what it says. I support my husband in his work as a pastor. Excerpted with permission from Unashamed: Drop The Baggage, Pick Up Your Freedom, Fulfill Your Destiny by Christine Caine, copyright Christine Caine. Quite the opposite, in fact. But will we become people who move forward to do something about it? Yet, especially at face value and without this understanding of our uniqueness in God’s eyes, there are many verses that are difficult to reconcile with the reality of a God who loves and values men and women equally. Throughout the tapestry of the Old and New Testaments, we see a steady thread of God’s intentional choice and good plan to include and honor women. and that the office of pastor/elder is designed by God and delegated to qualified men, and that, pulpit teaching to a local congregation is reserved for those men, . “The penalty is not as harsh, and you can kick them like an animal, and they will do what you want them to do.”. Yet, together, we paint a glorious picture of God’s likeness. Have you ever wondered how God reacts when you fall into sin? ), I am not going to get into the specifics of each, as many (who are much smarter than me) have already done so. Male and female are equally loved and valued by Him. Unfortunately, many interpret these male/female distinctions as a hierarchical difference in our worth. Misconception #3. When we put women down, we tarnish the image of God. I humbly ask that you consider the following: Read the Bible for yourself. The Pharisees probably looked at each other, confused, and remained silent for a few moments to see whether He would speak. One could argue that the woman was brought for judgment because of her sin, but that would be only partly true. For a woman, adultery was not just a cause of deep shame but also potentially a capital offense. God loves women. Alongside all of these issues is the fact that many of the “problems” people have with the treatment of women are treatments which are also applied to men (ie. Nearly two million children are forced into the worldwide sex trade every year.1 And 80 percent of all trafficking victims are women and girls.2 According to the United Nations, there are one hundred million women missing worldwide 3 — and five thousand girls are murdered around the world every year by their parents for acting in ways that shame their family.4. We know nothing of what may have driven her to this. You ignored the Rock who gave you birth; you forgot the God who gave birth to you (Deuteronomy 32:18). But, Jesus stayed in women’s homes (Mary and Martha), accepted their financial support (Joanna, Susanna; and many other women in Luke 8:3), treated them as valuable and equal, befriended them, and He accepted women as His followers unlike any known Rabbi of the day. God's own son remained single, and so did Jeremiah and Paul and many others who were servants of God. Do your own intelligent research. If that sounds like an exaggeration, it wasn’t one by much in first-century Israel. My husband does all of the cooking. The Word of God proclaims, “A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. Many of the New Testament letters address specific abuses that occurred in the early Christian communities, and that may be the case here. It is primarily a theological book, intended to reveal who God is and what His plan is for mankind. Nowhere in my experience has the denigration of women been clearer as in our work through A21 to rescue sex-trafficked women. Instead, I want to turn our hearts to application and transformation, because anyone can get their feathers ruffled. — Genesis 1:26–27, emphasis added. The Bible is notoriously hard on women. Injustice! Caught in the act, yanked from under the covers, dragged through the streets under the stares of her neighbors. — John 8:10, Don’t you imagine it was with equal parts relief and amazement that she said, “No one, sir.”. There are multiple Old Testament laws and narratives that seem to exercise harshness toward women and promote misogyny and authoritarian abuse. There is so much more that could be said and I have intentionally stayed as big-picture as possible. God created the woman as a "helper" for the man: However, being a "helper" does not imply that the woman was inferior or subservient to the man; the same Hebrew word, `ezer, translated as "helper," is used to describe God, Himself, in Psalms 33:20, 70:5, 115:9-11. Many Bible scholars believe some women in the church had carried their \"liberation\" too far and adopted offensive styles of dress. Here are three common misinterpretations, misconceptions, and misteachings when it comes to the Bible and women: Before we dive into what the Bible does not say about women, I think we need to start this conversation with a few important foundations about God and His Word. We don’t know whether any other women were present in the temple courts to witness this exchange, but even if not, surely there were women who witnessed the woman being dragged through the streets by the Pharisees. God loves women. My husband does all of the cooking. God has called, calls, and will continue to call gifted women to teach the Word of God to others and this teaching ministry is vital to both the church body and the pastor. A former Cru college minister, and mother to three, she and pastor-husband, Chris, serve together in the local church. . After all, God Himself made women in His own image — Male and female He created them. Bad wives and evil women in the Bible have done great damage such as lead Solomon astray, betray Samson, and order the killing of John the Baptist. It has those elements within it, but its purpose is not to provide a detailed dissertation on those topics. Do your own intelligent research. However, both man and woman are made in the image of God. It is primarily a theological book, intended to reveal who God is and what His plan is for mankind. Two children are sold into the human sex trade every minute. It would be fascinating to find out, but that’s not what impresses me most about these verses. They are greedy, rebellious, unsubmissive, wicked, adulterous, gossiping, slandering, and sexually immoral women. (Genesis 1: 27, 28; Leviticus 18:22; Proverbs 5: 18, 19) The Bible condemns sexual activity that is not between a husband and wife, whether it is homosexual or heterosexual conduct. Furthermore, if we take out all the work and influence of the women in the Bible, whom God has chosen to use to bring His sovereign, perfect Kingdom plan to earth, well…we are left with a very inadequate and incomplete story. He created men and women equal in value, yet unique in form and function, . What does the Bible say about men and women and husbands and wives and their value and their roles? The Bible makes it clear, right from the beginning, that God sees men and women as spiritually equal. Paul wrote to the Galatians stating this very point: There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. I am not going to get into the specifics of each, as many (who are much smarter than me) have already done so here, here, and here (among many others) by using the proper biblical hermeneutical (interpretive) rules they are trained to use. Being a godly woman involves living in “purity and reverence” (1 Peter 3:2). Published by Zondervan. The people gathered round, ready to be taught — but the Pharisees rushed up, bringing a woman with them. I am a minister of the gospel. He is immutable—He does not change. Additionally, a lack of the reader’s familiarity with the original languages (Greek and Hebrew) as well as many interpretive nuances of each lead to difficulties in capturing the true meaning of the original text (ex: Deuteronomy 22:28-29). Women cannot speak in church = sit down and shut up. I do my best to submit to his leadership. Katie Orr is the creator of the FOCUSed15 Bible studies and Bible teacher. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. In the Greek family I was raised in, I felt that because I was neither the firstborn nor a son, I was somehow “less than.” “You’re only a woman,” I was told in so many ways — and it was crystal clear that this was not a good thing. How grateful and appreciative they must have felt toward this man who actually protected her and showed compassion, as no other men—including, apparently, the man who’d been sleeping with her — were doing. He will say, “I have long been silent; yes, I have restrained myself. God has a particular, wonderful, extraordinary role for each female soul who would trust in His best plan for their lives, and for many, that includes leading and teaching in the public spaces. Let’s not let our lack of understanding of the Bible corrode our trust in the Bible. Injustice! She had violated the law. First-century Palestine — the world into which Jesus was born — was clearly a male-dominated society, but it certainly hasn’t been the only one. Women had few rights inside the home and practically none outside of it. And He knelt and wrote on the ground again. I am a complementarian. This is not to say, however, that women are not to teach the Bible or have a voice and lead within the church. I have all 5-star reviews and Etsy rated my store as a … A list of the sins of those who stood in judgment? What a profound thought: God’s image is only fully reflected in both man and woman. The crowd of people began to drift away—“the older ones first,” the Bible tells us (John 8:9). To me that means that Mosses believed in (and says he was command by God) and supported forced rape of young girls from the spoils of war. It is with this as the backdrop that God shockingly (to those of that day), consistently, and purposefully invites women to be part of His redemptive plan to rescue the world from their sin. . But what does the Bible say? Most likely, if you ask any pastor today to list out the most influential people in his spiritual life, the list will include women. Know what it says and know what it means. Women in that culture were second-class citizens at best, akin to slaves. At dawn one morning, Jesus went to the temple to teach. God has a particular, wonderful, extraordinary role for each female soul who would trust in His best plan for their lives, and for many, that includes leading and teaching in the public spaces. We want to hear from you! The Bible doesn’t say. It is not a history, science, economics, or morality book. It is His revelation to us. In each and every historical period represented within the biblical world, it was normal for women to be oppressed, neglected, and objectified as property. We cannot help but notice that only the woman was brought before Jesus. ~ Laurie McClure, editor at FaithGateway. I am a strong, capable, confident woman. Was she a repeat offender? In every case, in every century, women have been targets. If we listen to the One Who created us, we will hear all about grace and goodness; not fear and resistance. Jesus had defied the standards of first-century male-dominated society by treating women as equals. I can point out another one from personal experience: Greek culture. But now, like a woman in labor, I will cry and groan and pant (Isaiah 42:14). No wonder women flocked to Jesus! God’s words are life, and they give us encouragement and comfort. As He would one day soon on the cross, He has taken all her shame and humiliation on Himself and given her a respite. You knit me together in my mother’s womb. Isn’t someone conspicuously missing from the scene? Perhaps our problem is not what the Bible has to say about women. Man is not fully like God. Rather, she focuses on her “inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. It wasn’t until I was in my 40’s that I realized how powerful Jesus’ behavior towards women is. Then, from this foundation, we can dive into the depths of what the Bible has to say about women. Men had complete authority over their wives and daughters and made all decisions regarding relationships and activities. We’d like to think that it’s something that happens elsewhere, far away, or a long time ago. Would Jesus give a nod to stoning her, or disregard the law? Privacy Policy | Term and Conditions. Did she give in, in a moment of weakness, to something that she thought might bring her some relief in a loveless marriage? But no other word describes so precisely the attitude of the trafficker on trial that day, nor of the industry he represents. The godly woman knows that her beauty does not come “from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes” (verse 3). Many a “believer” has walked away from the faith because they just couldn’t reconcile what they read in the Bible with what they felt to be true. There are no contradictions. We should not expect the Bible to speak in 21st century terms to every 21st-century eventuality. We need to understand this: just because abuse and inequities are recorded in the Bible, doesn’t mean it gets God’s stamp of moral approval. Divorce is the death of a marriage, and it produces both loss and grief. Yet many of us who have grown up in the church have received mixed messages when it comes to what the Bible has to say about women. Everything we know to be true of God in the Old Testament is still true of Him in the New, and vice versa. Various passages seem to suggest many (frankly) surprising rules, especially to the modern woman. Be a preacher. ” no he did not and scripture clearly proves!... Shut up preacher. ” no he did every male child away from women! 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