The apostle Paul, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, told Timothy that a New Testament church is the pillar and ground of the truth (1Ti 3:15). Is it any wonder that Satan openly attacks New Testament churches in both doctrine and practice? People everywhere are clamouring for "reform" and "change" from Biblical standards of faith and practice for New Testament churches. They claim "culture" and "historical facts" as reasons to abandon what the Scripture teaches.
The test of validity is not how loudly each side proclaims its rightness. The test of validity is whether or not a particular position lines up with what God has revealed in the Scripture. Isaiah said it best when he said, "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them (Isa 8:20)." If we surrender our thoughts to the Word of God, it is a simple matter to find and follow what the Bible teaches about faith and practice. If, on the other hand, we hold tightly to our opinions, we will never be able to gain a clear understanding of what God tells us in His Word, no matter how much we learn. "Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (2Ti 3:7)." One of the most obvious areas of contention between Bible-believers and progressive Christians is whether or not ladies should hold the ministry positions of pastor or deacon, preaching and teaching men and women the unsearchable riches of Christ. The culture of our day dictates that ladies must be allowed the same opportunities to teach and preach that men have. They claim that prohibiting ladies from the positions of pastor and deacon within the church is sexist, misogynistic, and patriarchal. When the world comes from this position, we are not surprised. When progressive Christians come from this position, we are often blindsided. When progressive Christians take a stand for women in ministry, a love for the world is being dragged into a New Testament church and paraded as spiritual and godly. This is because progressive Christians have propped up the philosophy of the world as the standard by which church truth must be practiced. The apostle John warns us against clinging to the philosophy of the world. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever (1Jn 2:15-17)." These verses should caution every honest student of Scripture before we even begin to study the topic. When is a Man a Man? One issue raised in favour of allowing ladies into the ministry is that the words "man" and "men" can be used in a generic sense. "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned (Rom 5:12):" This verse teaches sin to be a universal problem, not simply a problem for men. "And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent (Act 17:30):" This verse teaches the universal need for repentance. In both cases, the word "men" speaks of mankind. This is not at issue. The question is whether the qualifications for the ministry positions of the pastor (bishop) and deacon can be understood in that way. When investigating the qualifications for a bishop (elder, pastor) in 1 Timothy 3, Paul constantly uses the word "man" and the pronouns "he (5 times)" and "his (3 times)." The argument is made that the word man is used in a generic sense, meaning mankind. This interpretation would justify ladies who feel God's call to preach. However, we must investigate deeper than this. 1 Timothy 3:2 tells us that a bishop is to have one wife. We are told that this simply means "spouse" because it is in a generic sense, just like the word "man.". If that is the case, that is the first and only time that God uses the word wife to refer to either a man or woman. A study of the book of 1 Timothy shows that Paul knew how to make a generic point referring to both men and women. "If any man or woman that believeth have widows, let them relieve them, and let not the church be charged; that it may relieve them that are widows indeed (1Ti 5:16)." God would not have been vague about something as important as who is qualified to hold a ministry position within a New Testament church. 1 Timothy 3:4 tells us that a bishop must rule well his own house. If we follow the logical progression of the thought that the "man" is equivalent to "mankind," we have a real problem. If a woman "answers the call to preach," she must be able to rule her house well. Yet, if she rules her house, she is disobedient to other Scripture regarding the order of the home. "But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God (1Co 11:3)." "For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing (Eph 5:23-24)." There is no way around the fact that the Scripture disqualifies any lady from these positions of ministry within a New Testament church. The fact that progressive Christians allow and support female preachers is no proof that it is correct and honourable before a just and holy God. When is a Deacon a Deacon? When these qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 are considered objectively, there is nowhere for progressive Christians to continue to support women in ministry, right? WRONG! As soon as these simple Bible facts are identified, the argument runs to the book of Romans. Here the progressive Christian will argue that Paul recognizes Phebe as a Deaconess from the church at Cenchrea. "I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea (Romans 16:1):" The word "servant" comes from the same Greek word from which we get the word "deacon." The argument is made that sexist translators purposefully mistranslated this verse and stole Phebe's proper title. Let's see if this is true. The Greek word "diakonos" is used nine times in the Greek New Testament. Of those nine times, it is translated minister(s) five times; servant(s) three times; deacons one time. When referring to deacons in 1 Timothy 3, a variation of the word is used (diakoneo) which is also translated as minister or servant (in their varying forms) in other passages of Scripture. It is interesting to see how this word is used. For example, Jesus used diakonos to describe how believers are to act toward one another. "But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant (Mat 23:11)." Jesus was not telling His disciples that they all had to hold the office of a deacon but that they were to serve one another. In the same way, Phebe is not described as a deaconess of the Cenchrea church, but as a believer who faithfully served the Lord through her church. There is no mistranslation or hidden agenda here. The Holy Spirit graciously guided the translators to provide us with His pure Word, and it would be wrong for us to throw a fit because God's Word does not align itself without preconceptions. The conclusion is that ladies have no place in the position of pastor or deacon. Where Do Ladies Fit? We do not want to give the impression that ladies have no place in a New Testament church or that their assistance is worthless. That is far from true. Most New Testament churches would have a very limited ministry were it not for the contribution that ladies bring to the table. Casual Conversation There is a temptation to point to Aquila and Priscilla as a justification for female preachers and a joint pastorate. Careful study of the Scripture passages relating to this godly couple shows that neither was the pastor of any church nor did Priscilla preach or teach in a church setting. When Aquila and Priscilla took Apollos under their wing, they were able to help Apollos iron out a few wrinkles in his theology. This was not accomplished by Priscilla taking the pulpit to declare God's truth. This was accomplished through casual conversation of both Aquila and Priscilla with Apollos. In these conversations, Aquila would have taken the lead role in directing the discussion, while Priscilla would contribute her "two cents worth." This "tag-team" approach can be a great tool in discipleship. My wife and I are on the same doctrinal page, but we look at things differently. I have my way of explaining Bible truth and she has her way of explaining Bible truth. When both of us share our thoughts regarding Bible doctrine in a casual conversation, it helps the listener to grasp the truth quicker. Using the example of Aquila and Priscilla, we learn that Priscilla did not try to go alone to teach anyone. She was on a team with her husband. Second, she was still under the leadership of her husband, allowing him to direct the course of the conversation rather than taking over the conversation. Third, we learn that this was not a teaching/preaching service at church but a doctrinal conversation among friends. Terrific Testimony Titus 2:3 says, "The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;" This teaches us that godly women must have a testimony within the church. This testimony does not begin when a woman becomes "aged" but must be nurtured and developed from the time of salvation. We will not take the time to investigate each of the traits of this testimony, but they are worth spending time looking into during our personal Bible study. These traits offer a challenge to every believer, not just to the ladies. Tremendous Teachers Progressive Christians may look at the end of Titus 2:3 and point to the phrase "teachers of good things" as a justification for ladies who take the pulpit to preach God's Word in a church service. This is a hollow claim, though, when the context of the passage is considered. For example, Titus 2:3 does not end with a period, meaning the thought carries forward into the next verses. Titus 2:4-5 says, "That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed." These verses clear up any confusion about the students that these women are to teach. These older ladies are to teach other women. I believe that our churches would find great benefit in encouraging older ladies who are mature in the faith to teach the younger ladies what it is to live for the Lord Jesus practically. This teaching does not always need to come in a formal classroom setting, but it is needful to edify our churches. The Holy Spirit lays out the teaching plan for ladies teaching ladies. This is not the teaching plan that is adopted by lady preachers in these Last Days but it is God's will that these things be taught to the ladies of our churches. When ladies embrace this teaching plan, younger ladies will be encouraged to obey the Scripture, marriages and families will be strengthened, churches will be edified, and the world will be confused by the joy and contentment expressed by these ladies. God has given men and ladies unique roles to fulfill in the home and the church. These differences have nothing to do with suppression. Instead, these different roles have to do with how God created men and women and how He knows their abilities will work best together to accomplish His plan and purpose in this world. Rather than strain against the structure God created, every man and woman must submit to God's order so that we may glorify God in our lives, our homes, and our churches.
0 Comments
|
About Jerry JacksonJerry has been writing for many years now. He has written tracts for several churches, as well as his ministries in Papua New Guinea and in Canada. He has had the opportunity to have many of his articles published in several Independent Baptist periodicals over the years. His main goals are to teach truth and lift up the Saviour. Archives
April 2024
Categories
All
|