As we examine the eleventh chapter of 1 Corinthians, we will find ourselves tackling a tough and controversial subject. I have titled this message "The Way It Is," and it may cause some of you to show your age when I explain.
How many of you remember Walter Cronkite? There was a time when Walter Cronkite was the plumb-line by which every news broadcaster measured himself. He was the giant in the news broadcasting industry. He was far and away the most watched television reporter in his day, and one of the reasons why is that he became associated with a trademark. At the end of every broadcast, he always closed by saying, "That's the way it is June 25, 19??. This is Walter Cronkite, CBS reporting. Goodnight."
Recently the SBC passed a revision to its confession of faith, called the Baptist Faith and Message. (If you don't know about that, you have probably just come out of a coma.) Now to me, the most significant part of that document was the statement made against racism. We, for the first time, put in our confession of faith, "We abhor Racism in every shape form or fashion." Interestingly though, you didn't hear that in the news. What you probably did hear from the media was, "What about this issue of only men being pastors of the church?" Well, I want to suggest to you that according to the Scriptures, that's the way it is.
Now the question is not "what," but "why?" Why is it that God, in his sovereign will, said that only the male should fill the role of pastor in the church? It is because of God's umbrella of authority. God has an umbrella of authority. In fact, we see it in 1 Corinthians 11 beginning in verse two. Paul said, "I praise you because you remember me in everything and hold firmly to the traditions, just as I delivered them to you." In the simplest terms, Paul said to these Corinthian Christians, "I want to brag on you, because when I brought God's traditions to you, you didn't gripe and complain. You simply said, "That's what we are going to do."
Now the reason why Paul could wield authority, was because he knew how to yield authority. Notice verse 1: "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ." He said, in essence, "I know how to be over because I have learned how to be under." We are bound to be tossed to and fro by the winds of the world if we are not linked to God's golden chain of command. We will drown in the storms of life if we are not under God's umbrella of authority.
Now Chuck Colson, has stated (I think rightly) that there is a politically correct feminist assault that is doing everything possible to erase any distinction between the genders at all. There is a movement that says that there is not one whit of difference between a man and a woman. Let me be honest with you. That is a direct attack on biblical authority, but beyond that it is an attack on common sense and empirical fact. Men and women are equal before God, but they are gifted, called, and equipped in different ways.
Paul is talking about authority, and he defines the principle of authority. Look in verse 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." Now, nobody seems to think too much about the first statement. They don't totally understand that last statement. But the statement that really causes people to bristle is the statement "the man is the head of a woman." Paul plainly says that there is a Heavenly hierarchy. The word head there is a word that means authority; it means leader.
Some may say, "Now there goes the chauvinist Paul putting women in their place." But that is not what Paul is doing. Paul is not putting women in their place. Rather, Paul is putting God in his place. See, when you put God where God ought to be, then you put men and women where they need to be. This verse, ladies, does not teach inferiority. Submission here, has nothing to do with equality. Notice the last part of the statement. It says, "God is the head of Christ."
Let me ask you a question. Is Jesus Christ inferior to God the Father? No, Jesus is not inferior to God the Father. Yet the Bible says that "God is the head of Christ." In John 10:30, Jesus said, "I and the Father are One." So we see that Jesus is equal with God and that he and God are one.
Then, in John 14:28, Jesus said, ". . . the Father is greater than I." Now wait a minute Lord. You said that you and the father are one. You said that you are equal with God. Then you turn right around and say, "the Father is greater than I." Now what does this mean? When he said they are equal, he was referring to his person. His point was that in his essence and being, he is equal to the Father. But in his position, he had submitted to the Father's authority. One refers to person, the other to position.
The reason why some men have no authority in their home and no authority over their children is because their wives show no respect for them. When a child sees his mom not respecting his father, it registers with him that he doesn't have to respect him either. Let me share with you what I have learned. When you show disrespect for people who are over you, then people who are under you start showing you disrespect. Did you know that?
Mona Charen, one of my favorite columnists, gave this assessment of the women's movement: "In dispensing its foils, women's lib has given my generation high incomes, our own cigarettes, the option of single parenthood, rape crisis centers, and free love. In return, it has effectively robbed us of one thing upon which the happiness of most women rest . . . men."
God said in his word that there are two institutions in which the man is to be the leader. One is the home, and the other is the church. Friend that is not chauvinism, that is not sexism, that is not fundamentalism, that is Bible. Now having said that ladies, let me reiterate a previous statement. This does not mean and it does not imply that women are inferior to men. I don't know where we get this idea.
I heard of a man that walked into the library one time looking for a book. It seemed like he couldn't find it. So the librarian walked over and said, "May I help you?" He replied, "Yes ma'am, I am looking for a book. Can you tell me what section it's in?" She said, "What's the title?" He said, "The title is Man, the Superior Sex." She said, "That's in the fiction section."
I can tell you right now that women are not inferior to men and men are not superior to women. But the feminists out there just hate the statement that the man is the head of the woman.
Let me share an insight with you. The real problem that the feminist has, is not with men. That is not her problem. Her real problem is not with the "white, chauvinist male." The feminist's real problem is with God. Here's why. Feminists have it figured out. If they don't have to submit to men in God's specified areas, according to his word, then neither do men or women have to submit to God. So, if they get rid of this idea of submitting to men, then they can get rid of this idea of submitting to God, because this was God's idea from the beginning.
It is not coincidental then, that Gloria Steinem, who is the glorified head of the women's liberation movement, made this statement about twenty years ago: "By the year 2000 we will, I hope, rear our children to believe in human potential, not God." Their problem is not with me. Their problem is not with a male. Their problem is not with sexism. Their problem is not with chauvinism. Their problem is with the authority of God.
Now the key to understanding this passage in 1 Corinthians 11 is verses eight and nine, where Paul said, "For man does not originate from woman, but woman from man; for indeed man was not created for the woman's sake, but woman for the man's sake." Now, Paul does something very interesting here, and this is the real crux of the message. Paul roots everything he says about men and women here in the fact of creation. He goes all the way back to Genesis. In effect he says, "Let's just see how God intended it from the very beginning."
So Paul goes all the way back to the Genesis account, and he points out a very simple truth. We already know this, but it bears repeating. Paul is here reminding his readers that God created Adam first. God did not create Eve first; God created Adam first. Now, some of you may be asking why that is such a big deal. To emphasize the point Paul is making, we ought to consider briefly 1 Timothy 2 as well. This is another one of those controversial gender passages.
Let's look at why Paul says what he says. In 1 Tim. 2:13, Paul gives us the reason for not allowing women to teach or exercise authority over men. Notice that he does not offer his own opinion. Rather, he supports his assertion by an appeal to the order of the creation of Adam and Eve. Now what is the point? He said, in effect, "In creating Adam first, God was making a statement loud and clear. He was ordaining that the man be the head of this relationship."
Prior order says that the man was created first. That is not cultural; that is not sinful; it is biblical. Now, let me defend Adam for just a moment. Adam did not apply for the job. Adam did not go to an interview. Adam did not turn in a resume. It was not the luck of the draw. It was simply a case of divine design, and that's the way it is.
Elisabeth Elliot gives a wonderful explanation and illustration of what God did back in the Garden of Eden. She points out several key items about the man and woman in creation. First, woman was made for the man. Man wasn't made for the woman. God made the woman the helpmate of the man. Second, the woman was made from the man. The first woman originated from the first man. He was her occasion for coming into the world. Third, she was brought to the man. God did not make a present of Adam to Eve. Rather, God made Eve a present to Adam. Fourth, she was named by the man. Now, some of you may be wondering why that is. After all, God named Adam. So why is it that Adam named Eve? It is because in the Old Testament, whenever someone named something, it signified the responsibility and authority of the one naming for the one named. In giving Adam that responsibility, God was illustrating an important truth: Adam was not to serve the animal, but the animals were to serve him. Animals do not share the same ontological status as mankind. By comparison, men and women do share an ontological status as God's image bearers, but the man's naming of the woman indicates his authority nevertheless.
Returning to 1 Corinthians 11, we see that Paul not only defines the principle of authority, but he describes the picture of authority. Notice 1 Cor. 11:4-5: "Every man who has something on his head while praying or prophesying disgraces his head. But every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying disgraces her head, for she is one and the same as the woman whose head is shaved."
In other words, Paul was saying, "When a man prays (i.e., speaking to God) or prophesies (i.e., speaking for God), and he does so with his head covered, he dishonors his head." Indeed, Paul tells us that such a posture dishonors Christ, for the man's head is Christ. The woman, however, who prays or prophesies without her head covered dishonors her head, namely her husband or the man in the leadership position.
In the culture of the Bible, a covering was a symbol that the person understood they were under authority and that they recognized that authority. Now, Bible scholars are very divided as to what that covering was. Some say it was a shawl, or a scarf, while others say it was just the woman's hair itself. To me, it doesn't make that much difference because the kind of head covering does not affect Paul's main point here. His main point, of course, was that creation dictates that we ought to use culturally appropriate expressions of masculinity and femininity, which in that setting happened to be a covering for the head of a woman.
Now if you understand that, then you can begin to make sense of verse thirteen. Have you ever wondered why the Bible talks about hair? Look in verse thirteen. "Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered?" He didn't say that it was wrong for a woman to pray. He said it was wrong for a woman to pray with her head uncovered. Now, verse fourteen and fifteen: "Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him, but if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her for a covering."
Paul said, in effect, "If you don't think there is a difference between men and women, just look at their head. Nature itself teaches you that men ought to be ashamed to look like women and women ought to be ashamed to look like men." Custom dictates what that look ought to be. In Paul's day, it meant that men had their head uncovered and women had their head covered. In today's society it might run: "Does not nature itself teach you that a man shouldn't wear a dress?" There is masculinity that a man should be proud of and femininity that a woman should be proud of.
Paul is not trying to get into a debate about when a man's hair is too long. His point is simply that hair is an outward expression of an inward submission. And so he was pointing out that the length of a woman's hair is God's way of reminding us that men and women have a specific relationship in his plan of authority. Has it ever occurred to you that long hair came into vogue in the 1960's? Why? That was the decade of rebellion: the Beetles, Hard Rock, Free Love, Woodstock, Vietnam Protest.
Paul not only gives the picture of authority, he defends the practice of authority. He reminds us of two facts. First, men and women are different. Notice verse seven. "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 does not say that women are not created in the image of God. But he does say that men and women are different. The man came from dust; the woman came from man. They were obviously created, not to compete with one another, but to complete one another. But the reason they can do that is because they are different.
Have you ever noticed this? A man will pay $2.00 for a $1.00 item that he really needs. A woman will pay $1.00 for a $2.00 item that she really doesn't need. Why is that? Men look for results. Women look for bargains. God made us different so that we might complete one another.
Second, men and women are also dependent. Notice verses eleven and twelve. "However, in the Lord, neither is woman independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as the woman originates from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God." He's saying that without the first man, you would have never had the first woman. But without the first woman, there would have never been another man. Here's my point. There are two things God absolutely hates. God hates feminism, and God hates chauvinism. God does not want the woman to be a liberal feminist, and God does not want the man to be a radical chauvinist.
Lastly, Paul denounces the perversion of authority. Paul knew that there would be a lot of people mad over this. So, he hung his hat on three principles. First, the world of nature. Recall verses fourteen and fifteen. Remember the outward appearance is a sign of inward submission. It is a tragedy, Paul tells us, for a woman to do what she can to deny her femininity. The world of nature teaches that. Second, the Word of God teaches the same thing. Look at verse sixteen. "But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no other practice, nor have the churches of God." In other words, if someone wants to argue this, we must make it clear that we don't make the rules; we just report them. Third, the witness of the Church. Look again at verse sixteen. ". . . nor, have the churches of God." He said, that's just the appropriate response of God's people. That's the way it always has been, and that's the way it always will be. That's just the way it is.
Let me close with this thought. I wish we could get this world to understand that whether we are talking about leadership in the home or leadership in the church, it is not an issue of gender superiority or inferiority. It is an issue of the Word of God, and an issue of the God-ordained authority in the home and in the church. Think about this. Only Jesus Christ has the authority to take you to heaven. Only Jesus Christ has the authority to change your life. Only Jesus Christ has the authority to give you eternal life. Only Jesus Christ has the authority to make you what you ought to be. Whether you are a man or a woman, you will never be all you ought to be, need to be, or can be, until you get under the authority of Jesus Christ. It is a matter of submission. It is a matter of authority. And that's just the way it is.
