In contrast to the seasonal chorus of people encouraging me not to be distracted by all the bright lights, colorful presents, advertisements, and other exciting things that can capture one's attention at Christmas -- which is about as effective as trying to lose weight by counting calories and thinking about food all day -- my goal is to focus on the heart of Christmas and develop a greater sense of awe during the Advent season.

A sense of awe follows from intentionally meditating on the person of God, but also follows from observing people who are made in the image of God.  Christmas is also a wonderful time for appreciating the character of God through observing his image in people.  We must remember that human beings do not reflect a completely original design. Other parts of creation, supernovas, lobsters, acorns, and amethysts, had their origins solely in the creativity of the mind of God.  In contrast, human beings have been formed after a pattern.  Humans are made in the image of God himself.  Male and female, we all bear the image of our Creator.

Of course sin and its effects have marred the image, but the imago dei has not been totally effaced.  It follows then, that observing, appreciating, and celebrating the complementary roles of the genders can direct our thoughts toward the Creator and cultivate a sense of awe and worship during Advent.

So, how can you appreciate manhood and womanhood around the holidays?  Try these suggestions to get started:

Men

On Christmas Day, turn down the volume on the game long enough to listen to the sound of women talking together in the kitchen.  Note how the sound is different than the conversation of grunts, nods, and cheers between you and your buddies during the game.

Imagine what you would be eating for the holiday meal.  Would you, on your own initiative, bake cookies or would you buy them?  If your strategy would be to mooch Christmas cookies, do you expect to find better cookies made by women or by your buddies?

Consider what your house or apartment would look like if it hadn't been decorated for Christmas with a woman's touch, not to mention if it had not been cleaned and organized in advance.  If you are a single man, imagine (if you can) what a clean, decorated dwelling might be like.  Avoid closely scrutinizing the clutter of your roommates lest you fall into temptation.

Finally, be grateful that your last name never changes.

Women

On Christmas Day, observe a present that has been wrapped by a man.  Avoid closely scrutinizing the sloppy corners and excessive scotch tape lest you fall into temptation.

While bustling and clucking with your girlfriends, slow the conversation long enough to peek out of the kitchen and observe the glazed men watching football.  Consider what it would be like to express fewer than ten words in an hour with your friends.

Be grateful to God that even though you could slice the turkey, set up the tree, tend the fire, and assemble intricate toys, you aren't required to do those things.

Finally, recognize that if there were only one gender you might never extract pickles from a jar.

Everyone

Christmas is a time for celebration at many levels.  Gender differences are accentuated around the holidays and that can either be a source of self-righteous annoyance or worshipful wonder at the genius of God's good design.  This holiday, enjoy being a man or enjoy being a woman made in the image of our great God.

But don't let even that good thing distract you from the miracle of the incarnation, that God was made flesh and dwelt among us. The eternal King of the universe invaded time and appeared in a stable before bearing the wrath of God to save us from sin.  May the anticipation of the angels, the joy of the shepherds, the reverence of the Magi and the terror of Herod all develop in us a sense of awe and worship this Christmas.

Thanks to Courtney Tarter and Laura Breeding for their insight and input into this post.

The state churches in Scandanavia continue to demonstrate the steep downgrade that results when a church or denomination compromises biblical fidelity, often beginning with gender issues.

Gender Blog earlier reported on the recent announcement by bishops in the state church of Denmark that ministers who oppose female ordination would now be required to extend a handshake of approval to female ministers following the ordination service.

The day before Danish bishops made their action public, the Swedish Lutheran Church weighed in publicly in favor of allowing homosexuals to wed in its churches, stipulating only that the word "marriage" be used only for heterosexual unions. The church made its declaration in the context of commenting on legislation which has been proposed by the Swedish government that would make laws governing marriage "gender neutral," and thus affirming of same-sex marriage. The church has offered blessings to same-sex unions since January.

The 7.2 million member church released to Agence France-Presse a sad, but telling statement in commenting on the bill: Marriage and (same-sex) partnerships are equivalent forms of unions. Therefore the Church of Sweden's central board says yes to the proposal to join the legislation for marriages and partnerships into a single law."

Archbishop Anders Wejryd said the response merely reflects "the different theological interpretations within the Church of Sweden."

Since 1995, civil unions for homosexual partnerships have possessed the same legal status as heterosexual marriages in Sweden. Homosexual activists have campaigned to have their union described as "marriage," thereby removing the last distinguishing mark between heterosexual and homosexual unions in the Scandanavian kingdom. Currently, Swedish law defines marriage as being between a man and woman only, however, the new bill would remove all gender distinctions from the legal definition of marriage.

Such a radical drift from a worldview regulated by the Reformation principle of Sola Scriptura in the direction of postmodernity (and post-Christianity) by no means occurred overnight.

The Swedish church began ordaining women to its clergy in 1960. While there is no certain causal link between female ordination and the embrace of homosexuality, Wayne Grudem, as pointed out in yesterday's post, makes a compelling case for a connection in his landmark book Evangelical Feminism: A New Path to Liberalism?

Cut loose from the authority of God's Word, men are free to invent their own truth and to follow the dictates of their sinful hearts (Rom. 1), and in this pursuit, there is never an upgrade, only a predictable and grim exchange of "the truth of God for a lie." 

Scandanavia continues to make news with regard to gender issues in the church.

Gender Blog last week reported on a Finnish pastor who was convicted by a court for refusing to participate with a female minister in a communion service. This week, the media is reporting that male clergy opposed to the ordination of women in the state church of Denmark must now honor clergywomen with a handshake following the ordination ceremony.

Formerly, bishops had allowed clergymen who dissented from the state Evangelical Lutheran Church's position on female ordination to avoid shaking hands with female clergy following the ordination service. Now, the church will no longer tolerate such sentiments of dissent per the order of Bishop Karsten Nissen.

Karsten told reporters that female priests should "be fully respected" and that he could no longer allow opponents of female ordination to avoid the handshake of affirmation. Membership in Denmark's state church includes some 80 percent of the Scandanavian kingdom's 5.4 million citizens. The ELC has allowed women to be ordained to its priesthood since 1948.

Not all ELC ministers are pleased with the order. Claus Olsen, a vicar who is opposed to female priests, says he will not attend future ordinations. He added that many laypeople are not supportive of the ordination of women.

"I get the odd barb, but accept that," Olsen told reporters. "But not only priests oppose female priests, but lay people do so as well." 

The lesson in this event for the local church may be summarized in an old adage: "never despise the day of small beginnings." Today, dissenters are forced to submit to female ordination with a mere handshake, but tomorrow, as the aforementioned pastor in Finland recently learned, disagreement on this issue may be deemed criminal behavior.

We are not surprised in the least at this development. The religio-political machinations of the state church in Scandanavia certainly undermine biblical truth on numerous levels, but also serve as a clear illustration of Wayne Grudem's slippery slope argument in Evangelical Feminism: A New Path to Liberalism?  

Grudem is certainly correct: female ordination seldom enhances the health of a church or denomination, as recent history has proven with the mass exodus from mainline churches in the United States. But then again, departure from biblical fidelity always leaves a broad swath of destruction in its wake. 

This is Part II of a two-part post on the resources written by New Testament scholar Andreas Köstenberger that are available for free on the CBMW website. Check out his website and blog at http://www.biblicalfoundations.org/ for more resources on a wider array of subjects.

On several occasions, Köstenberger has evaluated the writings of well-known, egalitarian scholars.  These responses are now available through CBMW: 

• The book Women in the Church: A Biblical Theology of Women in Ministry by Stanley Grenz and Denise Muir Kjesbo.
• The book Women Leaders in the Church: Three Crucial Questions by Linda Belleville.
• A review by Kevin Giles of the book Women in the Church: An Analysis and Application of 1 Timothy 2:9-15, edited by Köstenberger and Thomas Schreiner.
• A chapter by Linda Belleville on 1 Tim 2:11-15 in the collection of egalitarian essays, Discovering Biblical Equality.
• Chapters addressing hermeneutics and the gender debate by Roger Nicole and Gordon Fee in Discovering Biblical Equality.

This list goes on. Don't forget about these:

• On Ephesians 5: "The Mystery of Christ and the Church: Head and Body, 'One Flesh'"
• More on 1 Timothy 2: "Syntactical Background Studies to 1 Timothy 2:12 in the New Testament and Extra-Biblical Greek Literature"

CBMW is profoundly grateful to God for the gifted scholars he has given to the church, who graciously and boldly advocate a complementary view of men and women as truly reflecting the teaching of the Bible. One of these scholars is Andreas Köstenberger, who serves as Professor of New Testament and Director of Ph.D. Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is also the editor of the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society. His website http://www.biblicalfoundations.org/ includes his own blog and much of his published biblical scholarship.

Many complementarians are familiar with the book Women in the Church: An Analysis and Application of 1 Timothy 2:9-15 (2^nd ed.), which Köstenberger co-edited with Thomas R. Schreiner. It is the quintessential work on 1 Timothy 2:9-15.

However, many may not be aware of the numerous articles Köstenberger has published on gender issues, all of which are now available for free on the CBMW website. Here are two of my favorites (more to follow tomorrow):

• "Women in the Pauline Mission" - How did women actually function in the Pauline churches and mission? Köstenberger examines references to specific women mentioned by Paul in the New Testament. While many interpreters have made sweeping claims about women in ministry based on these references in Paul's letters, Köstenberger's analysis is careful and balanced.
• "Gender Passages in the New Testament: Hermeneutical Fallacies Critiqued" - When reading discussions of gender-related passages in the Bible-whether at the academic or popular level-one encounters frequently repeated arguments. However, upon careful examination, the arguments often fall into similar patterns of error in interpretation. Köstenberger considers several common interpretive fallacies that occur in discussions of gender passages. How many of these have you seen?

Köstenberger has also made his own contributions to the debate over 1 Timothy 2:

• "The Crux of the Matter: Paul's Pastoral Pronouncements Regarding Women's Roles in 1 Timothy 2:9-15" - Calling this text "the most difficult passage" for egalitarians and "the most important ground of appeal" for complementarians, Köstenberger offers his own interpretation. In the process, he considers the ancient background (Wasn't ancient Ephesus plagued by feminism?), the genre of the Pastorals (Paul was addressing a local problem, so his restrictions on women don't apply today, right?), and word meanings (Doesn't the word authenteo mean "to domineer" or "to usurp authority"?). Priceless.
• "Ascertaining Women's God-Ordained Roles: An Interpretation of 1 Timothy 2:15" - There is no shortage of suggestions for understanding Paul's statement in 1 Tim 2:15: "Women will be saved through childbearing." Köstenberger surveys the interpretations of ancient and modern interpreters and offers his own take on this puzzling verse.