Tough Questions - "Jesus and a Restored Dignity"
Transforming Question: Are you allowing Jesus to define your identity and give you dignity as He does?
Paul was writing to the Corinthian church that was at the intersection of several worlds. There was the Greek population to which many attributed their ethnic heritage, the Roman society from which several derived their citizenship, and the newfound Christianity which defined their faith. Each of these were cultures that had within them manners in which the Corinthians were learning to identify themselves and interact. In this section, Paul begins to give the Corinthians, and us, anchors for the soul by helping to restore dignity to the sexes as we focus on the person of Jesus.
Much like the importance of counteracting the push towards an androgynous society today, Paul sees the need to address the Corinthians' fear of definition.
Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels. Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God. Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God. (1 Corinthians 11:1-16 NIV)
This is an important discussion, because what you think about God's attitude toward the dignity of the genders will ultimately affect your relationships in the home, in the workplace, your relationship with Jesus Himself, and ultimately your potential kingdom activity.
In some modern scholarship, Paul, Christianity, and Jesus are presented as misogynistic. However, when you understand the context of the Scripture, you see that nothing could be farther from the truth. The truth is that in Greek culture, Aristotelian viewpoints had a foothold that the gospel was coming to untie.
In her detailed book, The Concept of Woman: The Aristotelian Revolution 750 Bc-Ad 1250 (1997), Prudence Allen lays out for us some of the groundwork to explain the pendulum swings between chauvinism and extreme feminism within Western civilization.
1. The male is separated from the female, since it is something better and more divine in that it is the principle of movement for generated things, while the female serves as their matter. 2. A woman is as it were an infertile male. 3. The female is as it were a deformed male. 4. The male is by nature superior, and the female inferior; and the one rules, and the other is ruled.
In these statements the superior valuation of man over woman is explicitly stated. However, it is also present in the theory of contraries and in other aspects of Aristotle’s thought about sex identity. Aristotle stands out from his predecessors in that he gave a complete rationale for his theory of sex polarity. He developed reasons and arguments for the philosophically significant differentiation of the sexes and for the superiority of man over woman. Therefore, he is correctly identified as the founder of the sex polarity position. (page 121)
As opposed to male chauvinism and the understandable response of extreme feminism, the biblical model is a response that is properly identified as complimentarianism based on the ontological order of God and the two-sided example of Jesus Christ.
Paul is here answering questions posed by the Corinthian church, within their context, to which we are not privy. Regardless, by working with the totality of Scripture, we can extract certain principles from this text for which we should be thankful as we once again center on the person of Jesus.
Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. (1 Corinthians 11:1 NIV)
The whole point is, whether male or female, you are to follow the example of servant leadership and perfect submission found in Christ. The issue is how to wield and how to yield to authority.
But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. (1 Corinthians 11:3 NIV)
The word "man" can also be translated "husband," and the word "woman" can also be translated "wife."
It is important that we note this, because I have had to make some crazy clarifications. For example: In a dating relationship, a girlfriend is not obligated to submit to her boyfriend. This is also not saying that every man is to be the head of every woman in the workplace.
The point is for both men and women to be like Jesus in proper relationship to authority. Men are to lead their families according to the precepts of the Bible. Women are to be like Jesus following the biblical lead of their husbands. God the Father is the ultimate authority. Jesus, though co-equal, submits to His authority. As the man submits to Jesus, and, in a marriage, the woman submits to her husband. The Father never abuses His authority with the Son; nor is the husband to abuse it with his wife.
In a marriage, a husband is not an ultimate authority, but has responsibility in his home to lead. This is what Adam abdicated in the beginning (Genesis 3:6-12). What this means is that as Jesus was with the Father, the husband and wife are to be unified in their purpose toward gospel ends. This is a difficult case where in many scenarios, the women have been those who pursue Jesus while the husband is passive or pagan. In this manner, a wife is only to submit to the authority of her husband as the husband himself is submitted to Christ. This is where the protection comes from.
The man is under the authority of Christ and is to lead his family as a delegated authority in that place. As seen by other instruction (Ephesians 5:21-33), the husband is to provide his love, provision (I Timothy 5:7,8), protection, and covering as he lays down his life for his wife to lead like Jesus. The wife is in this context empowered to fulfill her role as a co-heir of the kingdom (I Peter 3:1-7) with her husband, in unity and submission, as Jesus is unified with and submitted to the Father. Jesus is the reference point for both- empowering, dignifying, and leading in each scenario.
Headship does not promote or sanction abuse, as Paul said:
Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. (Colossians 3:19-21 NIV)
Peter also made this abundantly clear when he exposed God's heart to men's delegated leadership:
Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. (1 Peter 3:7 NIV)
When we think that either men or women are not esteemed enough, it is because we lack proper esteem for Jesus Himself who is the model for both the sexes.
In our culture, the discussion of sex speaks of biology, while gender speaks of roles based on that biology. The culture wars that exist are a product of sin. We do not need to go back to societal structures but God's design in creation to get our right bearings.
This is a discussion of ontological order.
As in Corinth, there are attacks on both masculinity and femininity in our culture today, but both must be esteemed as good and beautiful. Men are told that they need to act more like women in the church, and women are pressured to feel like they need to act more like men to get ahead in the marketplace or society. These things are not God's design. Both were made in the image of God and have unique expressions that are to be complementary rather than contentious, competing, or at odds with one another.
Jesus is the perfect example of submission while being co-equal with and empowered by the Father.
Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. (1 Corinthians 11:4 NIV)
In Corinthian culture, those who wore headdresses were the elite of society who participated in their cult worship and used it as a means to communicate their place in society. The focus was on their status rather than Jesus, and, thus, they were dishonoring their head.
Men have crazy qualifications for the things that are to make them men today, as parodied in our advertising:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=A4zmG0hhl0Q
A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. (1 Corinthians 11:7 NIV)
Men are not idiots as modern media portrays, but are to assume their roles as the glory of God. It is the fear of God, taking responsibility and living in a holy manner, that is pleasing to Jesus that makes you a man.
But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. (1 Corinthians 11:5, 6 NIV)
In antiquity, women's hair was a common object of lust, and in much of the Mediterranean, women were expected to cover their hair. Failing to do so was thought to provoke male lust as bathing suits are thought to in some cultures today. There was a clash of cultures as Jewish women covered their heads striving for propriety, and upper-class women of the Roman social elite were eager to set trends and show off their fashion. The point is propriety within the culture, and this does not transcend to every culture. In Corinthian society, women who were married wore head coverings. Those who did not were considered unchaste.
Paul uses an ancient rhetorical skill, reductio ad absurdum, reducing their insistance on bald heads to the absurd, saying why not shave a woman's head if that is the greatest shame for a woman within that culture. In essence, Paul says don't reject authority, and don't be unchaste.
The issue of authority will always be an important one. All relationships and civilization are built on a measure of it. For positive forward movement and unity to exist simultaneously, there must be headship in family relationships, between spouses, between parents and children, bosses and employees, in the church, and within the Trinity itself.
Women are esteemed by Paul in being given roles of both public prayers and prophecy within the church, which were strides forward in the cultural context. Appealing in verse 7 to the creation account makes it obvious that God's design was that both men and women were made in the image of God, and were to be respected as such.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UFpe3Up9T_g
We have had to work with one of our daughters toward a reorientation of what actually is a princess. In Genesis 2:18, the phrase translated "helper suitable" was one praising the women's strength. It was an esteeming, rather than a demeaning nomenclature to induce subservience. The word helper was used more often of God the Holy Spirit than anyone else in the Old Testament, as God was helping the Israelites win wars, etc. "Suitable" means "corresponding" or "appropriate to" as an equal, as opposed to the animals who were being ruled over. Women were given as a complementing gift for their strength, not their subjected service.
Everything is to be a reflection of the Trinitarian relationship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They are one God, three persons, equal in value, different in function. The Holy Spirit is called the Helper of Israel, though He is equal in essence to God the Father. The ecumenical councils sought to establish this point.
Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God. (1 Corinthians 11:11, 12 NIV)
The issue was the respect for God-given identity, women acting as women and men acting as men. The answer was to avoid one extreme or the other - either the unchaste rebellion toward authority or the subservient mentality that Christ came to liberate the cultures from (Galatians 3:26-29).
We are to be thankful that there is interdependence in Jesus. There is no room for violence, dominance, or abuse, but love, honor and respect from both sides with eyes focused on honoring our ultimate head, God the Father, through the Son Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. (1 Corinthians 11:14, 15 NIV)
Finally, Paul uses the modus operadi of the Stoic philosophers making appeals to nature. Paul is well aware of the fact that barbarians, philosophers, the heroes of the epic past, as well as the Jewish Nazirites maintained long hair, even as a means to honor God. Here he is simply using the argument that men should not try to appear as women, nor be effeminate as men. Instead, men should take responsibility, be full of strength, and ready to lead. Paul is saying that we should be thankful that though culture would attempt to reduce men to blundering idiots, God has a place of dignity and esteem that he returns to them through Jesus.
The answer to abuse is not revisionism, but repentance. This repentance takes place regularly as we enter into ongoing fellowship with Jesus through communion, which we will cover in further detail next week.
Second City Church- Tough Questions Sermon Series 2013