1 COR. 11:3-16: “God-given
Roles For Men And Women”
By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study we looked
at the first two verses of chapter 11
where Paul tells the Corinthians that they are to be imitators of him as he
imitates Christ, and where Paul commends the Corinthians for holding firmly to
the traditions and teachings which he had passed on to them
1.1.1. We saw that we all ought to
live our life in such a way that we could tell people to simply do what we do
and they will be just where God wants them to be
1.1.2. We saw that the traditions
that had been handed down from Paul to all of the churches, and which we have
in the scriptures, dealt with such things as:
1.1.2.1.Sound doctrine
1.1.2.2.Godly living and conduct
1.1.2.3.Sound practice in the church
1.1.3. We saw that today in our world
that it is so important for us to hold fast to those same traditions that Paul
passed on to the Corinthians, for the mainstream church today appears to be
steadily moving in the opposite direction
1.2.
In our study today we are going to look at what Paul writes about
God-given roles designated for the church and home
2.
VS 11:3 - “3 But I want you to understand that
Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is
the head of Christ.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that Christ is
the head of every man and the man is head of a woman
2.1.
Having completed his diverse and many faceted discussion on the proper
use of liberty by Christians, Paul now begins his next topic which has to do
with God-given roles for men and women in the church and home.
2.2.
I want to say up front that this is a section of scripture that
churches and denominations have disagreed about. However, their disagreement does not involve
issues that are essential doctrines. No
one is going to go to hell over whether or not they agree about our
interpretation of these verses.
2.3.
Too many Christians have looked at this chapter only from the point of
view of whether or not women should wear hats in church, and whether or not men
should have long hair. In so doing they have
missed the essence of what Paul was trying to say. Paul is handing down to us a much broader set
of principles for us to live by.
2.4.
In this chapter Paul appears to be answering a question the Corinthians
had asked in their letter to him concerning what is the proper role of women to
be within the church.
2.5.
I’m also afraid that people of every culture have a tendency to
interpret scripture in light of our own preconceived cultural values and
institutions, and that it is difficult for all people to be objective about
some things found in the scripture.
Every culture has differences concerning acceptable dress and conduct
for both men and women, and I believe that as we are looking at this chapter we
must be sensitive to how different cultures view the roles of men and women,
and find application for our culture from this chapter without at the same time
violating the “spirit” of what Paul is writing about.
2.6.
I also want to say at the outset that this passage is known because of
it’s stand on the role of women submitting in the home and in the church,
however the Bible teaches us a much bigger concept of submission to authority
than that just of women to their husbands.
We are all to be in submission to authority in our lives. For instance, men are to submit to the
authority of Christ, and they are also to submit to the authority of the
government, to the authority of their bosses so that they can be good and
faithful employees, and also to the leadership of the church. Likewise, both men and women are to be
“subject to one another” in the church (Eph. 5:21).
2.7.
I must say also that we Christians must be careful not to approach this
chapter from a legalistic perspective, for then we would miss “the spirit” of
the chapter. We need to ask ourselves
what is “the spirit” of what Paul is exhorting the Corinthians in this
chapter. We will look at this.
2.8.
Some have disregarded Paul’s exhortations in this chapter because they
have said that Paul was a male chauvinist or that this reflects Paul’s beliefs,
not God’s. However God is inerrant, and
if we can’t trust all of it to be true, how can we trust any of it to be true?
2.9.
I also think that it is a mistake and a slippery slope to dismiss the
contents of this chapter as some do saying that everything in it has to do with
cultural things and intended for the Corinthians only.
2.9.1. Using this logic, we could
dismiss every verse we happened to disagree about saying that it was just a
cultural issue.
2.9.2. Plus, Paul writes in verse
16 that he taught the same things to all of the churches and that if anyone
refused to follow his teachings on this that he or she was a contentious
brother or sister.
2.10. In the sixties and seventies
in our country there was a huge movement which centered on the notion that
women were no different in their capacities than men. Daily in the news we would see women who were
finding jobs in construction, ran big equipment, suing the government so that
they could be allowed to go to combat, and performing any job requiring lots of
brawn, and which had previously been considered something that men worked. At the same time, men were doing things like
becoming Interior Decorators, nurses, etc., pursuing what had previously been
considered women’s professions. Men were
also realizing that they had a feminine side, and they were learning to get in
touch with their emotions, and how to cry, things which only women had done
previously. This trend has continued but
slowed down considerably.
2.10.1.We Christians though need to
realize that God has created differences between a man and a woman, and we
should learn to appreciate these differences between the sexes.
2.10.2.We also need to accept the
fact that if we look at the scriptures objectively, and not with our own
preconceptions, we will find that God has clearly laid out roles for men and
women, both in the church and in the home.
2.10.3.The roles for men and women
given in the scriptures have nothing to do with equality, for the scripture is
clear that men and women are equal heirs of all that God has, as Paul explained
for us in Gal. 3:26-29, “26 For you are all sons of God through faith in
Christ Jesus. 27
For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves
with Christ. 28
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man,
there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you
belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise”.
2.10.4.These God-given roles for
men and women also do not reflect the ‘capacity’ of a man or a woman to
function in the church or the home. They
merely reflect the order that God has created and established for men and
women.
2.11. As I mention often, every
New Testament concept or doctrine has an Old Testament picture or type which
explains it. In the book of Genesis, we
read of the fall of men and how that the snake tempted Eve, Eve ate of the
forbidden fruit, and then she gave it to her husband and he ate it. Each of the parties to that event had a
curse pronounced against them as a result of their disobedience: the snake (the Devil), Eve, and Adam. Eve’s curse is found in Gen. 3:16, and
there we find that the Lord told her that as a result of her sin she would both
have pain in childbirth and also that her husband would rule over her, yet she
would desire him, which most commentators I have read believe was meant to say
that women would desire to have headship over their husbands, “16 To the
woman He said, “I will greatly multiply Your pain in childbirth, In pain you
shall bring forth children; Yet your
desire shall be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.””
2.11.1.Women, if you are truly
honest you’ll admit that submission is not easy to swallow or accept at times,
right? Without faith in Christ’s ability
to change men through prayer I don’t see how women could ever accept the idea.
2.12. The “spirit” of what Paul is
saying in this chapter is basically that God has created specific roles for men
and women which are important to observe, and that women have been created by
God specifically for a role of subjection to men, both in their homes as well
as the church.
2.13. Someone must lead. To understand how headship works in the home,
it is insightful to observe how corporations operate today. Every public corporation has one majority
stock holder. This is because if someone
were not able to break a tie in the voting, then corporations could and would
at times become grid-locked and not able to make any decision. In the same way, if either the husband or the
wife in a marriage were not designated as the head then when those situations
which occur when both disagree might cause a battle that could never be
resolved.
2.14. In Paul’s day and in much of
the middle east today, men as well as women wore robes. There was little that differentiated a
women’s dress from a man’s. In the
culture of our day, it would be un-manlike for a man to wear a robe out of the
house.
2.15.
In the secular world during Paul’s day, women were viewed merely as an
object to be possessed, and in many cases merely for prostitution. Even the Jews considered women as second
class citizens who were mere possessions of their husbands.
2.15.1. Jesus shocked His disciples
when He treated women as being equal to men, and allowed them to follow Him,
support Him financially, and, He personally ministered to them in their hour of
need.
2.15.2. Likewise, after Christ’s
resurrection when churches were planted in various communities, and as a result
of Christ’s working in peoples’ hearts, women within those churches were viewed
in a different light. They were viewed
as people, and people who were equal with men.
The Christian church was the first institution to begin liberating women
from being mere possessions of men on the level of slaves. The church began to view and treat women as
being just as valuable and essential for the building of God’s kingdom as
men.
2.16. What had happened in the
church in
2.16.1.God gives spiritual gifts to
women, just as He does for men, and these gifts are to be used for the
edification of the body of Christ. God
had promised in Joel 2 that both the sons and daughters of
2.16.2.We see the gifts of the
Spirit working in the lives of several women in the church in the book of Acts,
with the best example perhaps in chapter 21.
In Acts chapter 21, we see that Philip the Evangelist in
2.17. The women in
2.18. Paul’s point in this whole
section of scripture dealing with the role of women is that though women are
equal in worth in God’s sight, and they have received gifts of the Spirit, as
have men, for the building up of the body of Christ, they must still function
within their proper God-given role in subjection under men.
2.18.1.Men are called to be the
heads of households, as well as the heads of rule over the church.
2.18.2.Contrary to what some
churches believe, from the scriptures we in the Calvary Chapel movement believe
that it is very straight forward that there is a God-given role of women for
the church and that they are not to be in church government nor in a role to
function as a regular teacher over men or the body as a whole, just as Paul
wrote to pastor Timothy in 1 Tim. 2:12, “12 But I do not allow a
woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.”
2.18.3.The role of women is to
support their husbands, and to use their gifts primarily in other areas of
ministry, and especially in the lives of other women. Again, the reason for this does not have
anything to do with giftedness or capacity, but only with God-given roles.
2.18.4. Someone must be leader,
otherwise their would be mass confusion and strife, and God has ordained that
women are to be in subjection to men in their homes and in the church.
2.19.
We in the church must not go along with the fads and philosophies of
this world that is in rebellion against God, when scripture has spoken clearly
about a subject. The God-given role of
women in the home and in the church is no exception. We must not follow the many churches who have
in disregard of scripture ordained women ministers and elders, and taught that
in the home that women should demand their rights to make the decisions.
2.20. While we are on this subject
of headship in this chapter I want to pass on to you something that one of my
pastors taught me early in my Christian walk.
He said that when a man or a woman places himself or herself under the
authority of another as the Bible teaches it, then that person is “allowing
the love of another to meet his or her needs.”
2.20.1.I believe that this is the
attitude that each of us needs to have when we consider our unique roles of
submission to others.
2.21. Christian women must learn
to pray and trust God to lead through their husbands in the home, and through
the godly leaders within the church.
They must learn to believe that God is big enough to deal with their
husbands and church leaders and cause them to listen to His voice. It is a very godly and praise-worthy quality
in a women to humbly accept her God-given role under her husband in the home,
and under the men in leadership within the church.
3.
VS 11:4-5 - “4 Every man who has something on his head while praying or prophesying,
disgraces his head. 5 But every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or
prophesying, disgraces her head; for she is one and the same with her whose
head is shaved.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that a man
disgraces his head when praying while it is covered, while a woman disgraces
her head when praying (in public) while it is uncovered
3.1.
Paul speaks to the Corinthian Christians in this section of scripture
about something peculiar to their culture.
In their culture, a woman who was a temple prostitute or who adopted a
feminist position concerning her roles relative to men, would cut her hair so
that it was either shaved (as the temple prostitutes tended to do), or so that
she was made to look like a man.
3.1.1. In so doing a woman was
demanding to have all of the privileges of men, and to be treated in every
respect just as if she were a man.
3.1.2. The women who had
significant ministries within the church in
3.2.
Paul tells the women in
3.3.
Likewise, Paul tells us that if a man were to stand up in the church
and pray or prophesy with his head covered, which was the way Greek women who
lived in subjection to their husbands and civic leaders would dress, then to
him it would be a disgrace. Men are
ordained by God to be leaders in the church, and not to be in subjection to
women.
3.4.
However if a woman were to stand up in the church and pray or prophesy
with her head uncovered, looking as the temple prostitutes and feminists would
look, then that woman would at least appear to be adopting the same unruly and
improper position as the temple prostitutes who shaved their heads.
3.5.
In the New Testament, prayer is talking to God, and prophesy is speaking
forth to men God’s word. There is much
more emphasis in the Old Testament of prophesy as being fore-telling what God
is going to do, and in the New Testament there is more emphasis upon prophesy
as forth-telling the word of God.
3.6.
Paul tells the women that their hair should not be cut short, but
rather that God has given women hair that should be nicely groomed and grown
long. Hair is a woman’s God-given crown.
4.
VS 11:6-7 - “6 For if a woman does not cover her
head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful for a woman
to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head. 7 For a man
ought not to have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God; but
the woman is the glory of man.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that if a woman
does not have long hair as a covering for her head that she ought to cover her
head
4.1.
In the Greek culture of
4.2.
Paul tells the Corinthians that a woman might just as well shave her
head as the temple prostitutes did as to not wear a veil while praying and
prophesying within the church. It is not
that veils were holy, but rather that it was a symbol of a woman’s subjection
to her husband and to the men in leadership within the church.
4.3.
However, Paul says that men who are called to be heads over their
families and leaders over the church are ‘the image and glory of God’, and
therefore they should not cover their head.
Women in their God-given role of subjection are to be the glory of men,
but men in their God-given role are to be in subjection to the Lord alone. By wearing a veil a wife is showing that she
is her husband’s glory, reflecting well upon him. By being in subjection to Christ, a man is
his Lord’s glory, reflecting well upon Him.
4.4.
Paul is saying I believe that women should keep their hair long or wear
a veil when in church.
5.
VS 11:8-9 - “8 For man does not originate from
woman, but woman from man; 9 for indeed man was not created for the woman's
sake, but woman for the man's sake.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that women
originated from man and were created for man’s sake
5.1.
In this section of scripture, Paul tells the Corinthians that in God’s
design as recorded in the book of Genesis, the woman originated from man,
literally from his rib. He was not created for her, but she was created for
him, in order to be a helper to him, or a “help-meet”.
5.2.
Christian wife, do you view yourself as being called to be a ‘helper’
to your husband, to assist and help him to do everything and be everything he
is meant to be in the Lord? You should
view yourself this way...
5.3.
You women who are workers in the church, do you have to be the boss in
charge of making the decisions themselves?
Is it not enough for you just to be a servant in Christ’s church?
5.4.
Christian husbands should realize that their wives were given to them
to help them fulfill God’s calling in their lives, not to help them live out
their self-centered and selfish desires.
6.
VS 11:10 - “10 Therefore the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head,
because of the angels.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that a woman ought
to wear a head covering because of the angels
6.1.
A veil on the head of a woman is a ‘symbol’ of her being under the
authority of her husband, therefore Paul tells the Corinthian women that they
should have this symbol on their heads.
6.2.
Paul tells the women that they should have this symbol on their head
because of the angels. Angels here
literally means God’s messengers who are called and dispensed under his
authority to render service to His saints.
If creatures as mighty and magnificent as angels can be obedient under
God’s authority, women should likewise be in subjection to their husbands and
the men who are leaders in the church.
7.
VS 11:11-12 - “11 However, in the Lord, neither is
woman independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as the
woman originates from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God.” - Paul tells
the Corinthians that women and men are interdependent upon one another
7.1.
Men are exhorted by Paul in this section to realize that they are to
work in partnership with their women, both in the home and in the church. They are not to act completely independently,
but in cooperation and partnership.
7.1.1. God’s plan for husbands and
wives for instance is that the two become one, and rather than act
independently of one another, they act and function as one entity.
7.1.2. In Eph. 5:21, Paul
wrote to the Ephesians that we are all also to be subject to one another, and
therefore the man who demands that his wife be in submission to him and yet he
is likewise also not keenly aware of the importance of listening to his wife
and hearing her concerns and council is not being the spiritual leader he
should be or following Christ, “21 and be subject to one another in the
fear of Christ.”
7.1.3. Women always play a vital
role in churches, and I believe probably more women probably serve in churches
than men, and, their input needs to be sought in decisions that are made in the
church.
7.2.
In verse 12, Paul tells the Corinthian men that they should not act
independently of the women that God has placed in their lives, because men
actually ‘originate’ from women: the
mothers who gave them birth.
7.2.1. Godly mothers can have such
a strong influence upon the children they raise, that boys are often influenced
more by their mothers than their fathers.
7.3.
Christian men need to take seriously the role of leadership in the home
as well as the church, which God has placed in their hands.
7.3.1. Women have often assumed the
role of leadership in the home as well as the church because the men have
abdicated their God-given responsibilities.
7.3.2. Just as women must learn to
be in subjection to men in their homes and the church, so also men must learn to
be in subjection to Christ in all things in their lives, and not just give lip
service to their God-given role.
7.3.3. Men need to learn to pray
about every decision, seeking Christ’s will, and not just doing whatever they
want to do.
7.3.4. Men are commanded to love
their wives as Christ loved the church, with that same depth and commitment,
and if men loved their wives more then their wives would learn to submit to
their headship.
7.3.4.1.It’s much easier to submit
to someone whom you are sure genuinely loves you.
7.3.5. Men must learn to lead as
Christ lead, by example, and not just slam down their fist of authority
demanding that their wives submit to them.
God doesn’t say that it the husband’s responsibility to make his wife
submit, this is something that she must do of her own choice.
7.3.6. If men would learn to lead
better, then women would learn to submit better.
7.4.
Paul tells the Corinthians that God, creator of all, is the originator
of all things.
7.5.
Christian husband, here are some questions for you:
7.5.1. Do you treat your wife as
though she is a partner together with you in the Lord?
7.5.2. Do you solicit not only her
help, but also her opinion in decisions?
Or, do you expect her merely to carry out your commands without
questioning you concerning why you are doing the things that you are
doing?
7.5.2.1.You need to learn to treat
your wife as a partner, and you should even allow yourself to be accountable to
your wife with your walk in the Lord.
7.5.2.2.Give your wife the freedom to
challenge you in any area of your life if she feels that perhaps you are not
doing what the Lord wants you to do. If
you do so, the rewards you will reap in your marriage will be more and greater
than you ever imagined.
7.6.
Christian men need to realize that their wife is the best asset God has
placed in their lives for fulfilling His plan.
Your wife can sometimes see your blind spots, see your rough spots, and
see much more clearly how your actions affect others.
7.7.
Though it is a sinful habit, men tend to have a hard time listening to
and learning from women. If this is the
case, they need to repent and ask Christ to change that characteristic in their
lives.
8.
VS 11:13 - “13 Judge for yourselves: is it proper
for a woman to pray to God with head uncovered?” - Paul asks
the Corinthians to judge for themselves whether or not it is a good idea for a
woman to pray with her head covered
8.1.
Paul tells the Corinthians that they should use their own God-given
discretionary abilities to judge whether or not what he has been saying is
true, that it is proper for a woman to pray with her head uncovered.
8.2.
Now the question arises as to whether or not today women in the church
should wear a hat or veil?
8.2.1. Paul appears to be saying to
the Corinthians that if a woman had long hair that this was a sufficient
covering for her head and that she didn’t need to wear a hat.
8.2.2. We know that in our culture
that loose women and prostitutes don’t necessarily wear short hair, so for a
woman to wear short hair does not have the same stigma in our culture as it did
in
8.2.3. Women do need to try to
maintain their distinctiveness as women, I believe, and most of all they need
to be sure to remain in the God-given roles set out for women within the home
and in the church.
8.2.4. So, if a woman does believe
that she must as a result of this chapter wear a hat or veil to church, then I
would not discourage this nor have a problem with it. Women this is a decision that you and your
husbands need to jointly make however.
9.
VS 11:14-15 - “14 Does not even nature itself teach
you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him, 15 but if a
woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her for a
covering.” - Paul tells the Corinthians that nature
teaches that it is a dishonor for a man to have long hair, but a glory for a
woman to have long hair
9.1.
Paul asks the Corinthians whether or not ‘nature itself’ teaches them
that if a man has long hair that it is a dishonor to him. The assumed answer to this question is,
‘Yes!’ However, it is not easy for us to
ascertain by the word ‘nature’, what he is referring to. If he means their own ‘natural
understanding’, then we could ask the question,
‘Why do others did not see these things in the same light as they
do?’ However, the word probably refers
to an innate sense of what is right and wrong that is based in a person’s
conscience.
9.2.
A woman’s hair is given to her as a symbol of her femininity, and as
such it is to be a ‘glory to her’, and a thing of beauty. Thus, a woman’s hair should not be bobbed or
shaved so that she might look masculine, and be confused by others as being a
man.
9.2.1. Paul did not say that it was
a sin for a woman to have short hair, only that her hair was meant to be a
covering for her.
9.3.
Paul does not say that it is a sin for a man to have long hair, only
that nature reveals that it is a shame for him to have long hair. Paul believed that men just did not look
right with long hair.
9.3.1. Sometimes I see kids with
some strange haircuts, and I think to myself similarly as Paul did here, about
how their hair looks. It is not a matter
of right or wrong though, only of that which appears to look more appropriate
for a person.
9.4.
Paul did not tell us how long “long hair” is however, so we must not be
legalistic about this teaching.
9.5.
Paul says that that same natural instinct of right and wrong in men’s
consciences should reveal to them that they should not try to keep their hair
long and neat, so as to look as a woman in appearance.
9.6.
I think that the “spirit” of what Paul is saying in these verses is
that it is a good thing that we maintain differences between the sexes.
10.
VS 11:16 - “16 But if one is inclined to be
contentious, we have no other practice, nor have the churches of God.” - Paul says
for the sake of those who are contentious and would buck the system that these
things were practiced by all of the churches
10.1. Paul tells the Corinthians
in this verse that if anyone disagrees with this teaching of his that they are
therefore contentious, for these principles are what the apostles taught
everywhere in every church.
10.1.1.If we Christians do not
submit to the teaching of the word of God, then we too are considered to be a
‘contentious’ brother or sister. We
should submit to every word of God.
10.2. We must be careful to
remember that we are to look at the ‘spirit’ not the letter of what Paul is
writing in this verse as well. Paul is
saying that in all the churches the God-given role of women being in subjection
to men is taught. There may be cultural
differences as to how this teaching is to be applied, but the principles and
“spirit” remain unchanged.