THE ROLE OF WOMEN ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE
Both men and women are made in the image of God.
Gen 1:27 (NIV) So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
THE ROLE OF WOMEN ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE
They are jointly commissioned to fill the earth and
rule over creation. Aside from the obvious fact that women will bear the children and feed them in the initial phase, there is no evidence of role differentiation in this. We are commissioned to rule together over creation. *
Gen 1:28 (NIV) God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in
number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over …
every living creature that moves on the ground.”
* https:// nzchristiannetwork.org.nz/ should-women-lead-churches-and-preach
What of the instruction in Ephesians 5:22 “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord”?
A wife willingly submits to her husband because she loves Christ. Note the context:
Eph 5:21-22 (NIV) Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.
SUBMISSION
A HELPER
A wife submits to one man (her husband), not to every man.
Genesis 2:18–25 Some expositors have taught that all women should be subordinate to adult men because Eve was created after Adam to be his “helper” (NIV; “help meet”, KJV). Yet the word ezer (“helper”) is never used in the Hebrew Bible with a subordinate meaning. Seventeen out of the twenty times it is used, it refers to God as the helper. Eve was created to be a help (kenegdo) “suitable” or “corresponding to” Adam, not a subordinate.*
* https:// ag.org/ Beliefs/ Position-Papers/ The-Role-of-Women-in-Ministry
The fact that she submits to her own husband does not suggest that she is inferior in any way.
Trinitarian doctrine holds that Christ is equally God, yet he constantly submitted himself to the will of the Father (John 5:30; Luke 22:42).
God also requires submission of citizens to government, congregation to church leaders, and children to parents. None of these imply the inferiority of those who submit.
SUBMISSION = INFERIORITY?
Submission does not equate to authoritarian domination.
Matthew Henry (1662-1714) was a nonconformist Puritan minister in England best known for the six-volume biblical commentary. He wrote “The woman was made out of Adam’s side. She was not made out of his head to rule over him, nor out of his feet to be trampled upon by him, but out of his side to be equal with him, under his arm to be protected, and near his heart to be loved.”
WOMEN IN THE OT
People who were normally marginalised (women,
foreigners, menial labourers and servants) were included by God in the Old Covenant:
Deut 29:10-12 (ESV) “You are standing today, all of you, before the LORD your God: the heads of your tribes, your elders, and your officers, all the men of Israel, your little ones, your wives, and the sojourner who is in your camp, from the one who chops your wood to the one who draws your water, so that you may enter into the sworn covenant of the LORD your God, which the LORD your God is making with you today…”
Women were instructed to be present for the public reading of the Scriptures on the Feast of Tabernacles.
Deut 31:12 (NIV) Assemble the people--men, women and children, and the foreigners residing in your towns--so they can listen and learn to fear the LORD your God and follow carefully all the words of this law.
THE DIGNITY OF WOMEN
The fifth commandment in the Law (to honour parents) does not make any distinction in the honour to be shown between one parent and another.
In the New Testament, Paul explicitly instructs children to “Honour your father and mother” (Ephesians 6:2). Solomon instructs his son, “do not forsake your mother’s teaching” (Prov 1:8, 6:20).
God’s love for us is compared to a mother’s love (Isaiah 49:15). Likewise Paul compares their concern for the Thessalonian believers to a mother’s love.
1 Thess 2:7 (ESV) But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.
Many women in ancient cultures (including children and adolescents) were forced into prostitution. Most codes of law allowed prostitution, with the Hebrew scriptures being the only one that condemned the practice.
According to Herodotus, “The most shameful
custom among the Babylonians is this, that every
native woman must once in her life prostitute
herself to a stranger in the temple of Venus”. *
In India the initiation rituals of devdasi of pre-pubescent girls included a deflowering ceremony which gave priests the right to have intercourse with every girl in the temple. **
In Greece slaves were required to work as
prostitutes and had no right to decline. **
* Book I, ch. 187 ** https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Women_in_the_Bible
THE DIGNITY OF WOMEN
Prostitutes had a role in several ancient Roman religious observances, mainly in the month of April. On April 1, women honoured Fortuna Virilis, “Masculine Luck”, on the day of the Veneralia, a festival of Venus. On April 23, prostitutes made offerings at the Temple of Venus Erycina, a
goddess associated with prostitutes. *
Eusebius noted that the first Christian
Roman emperor Constantine closed
down a number of temples to Venus
or similar deities in the 4th century AD.
Eusebius also records that the
Phoenician cities of Aphaca and
Heliopolis (Baalbek) continued to
practice temple prostitution until
Constantine put an end to the rite. **
* Life of Constantine, 3.55 and 3.58
** https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Prostitution_in_ancient_Rome
WOMEN IN THE OT
There are many notable godly women in OT times, including:
Eve, “the mother of all living”, who despite being deceived by Satan, would later always express gratitude to God for her children (Gen 4:1-2,25).
Hagar, whose cries for help in the desert were heard by God, who delivered her and her son Ishmael.
The wives of the patriarchs like Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel and Leah are all strong, prominent women.
On one occasion God instructs Abraham to listen to his wife (Gen 32:23).
The righteous Egyptian midwives risked Pharaoh’s anger by defying his instruction to kill the Hebrew baby boys.
Yocheved (Jochebed) hid her son Moses so that he could escape death.
Miriam cared for her brother Moses.
She cleverly arranged for his own mother to become his nursemaid.
Pharaoh’s daughter (called Thermuthis by Josephus), who “took pity on” Moses and adopted him, saving him from execution by her father.
Rahab assists the Israelites in the conquest of Jericho and saves her family from destruction.
Thermuthis
Rahab
Job, who was a contemporary of Moses, granted his 3 daughters an “inheritance along with their brothers.” (Job 42:15) The five daughters of Zelophehad fought and won the right for Israelite daughters to inherit property (Num 27).
Deborah ruled Israel and Jael helped deliver the Israelites from the Canaanites.
Hannah interceded to God for a child and then dedicated the boy Samuel to God’s work.
Hannah
Jael
The barren wife of Manoah who had an angel appear to her and foretell that she would bear a child (Samson) who would deliver Israel from the Philistines.
The widow of the prophet who was assisted by Elisha to pay her creditors with the miracle of the oil that multiplied (2 Kings 3).
The Widow at Zarephath offered hospitality to Elijah despite being destitute (1 Ki 11). Her son was later raised from the dead (1 Ki 17).
The well-to-do Shunammite woman kept a guest room for Elisha (1 Kings 11).
At the prophet’s prayer, God gave her a son who was later raised from the dead by Elisha (2 Kings 3).
Ruth remained loyal to her widowed mother-in-law, even though it meant leaving her people and country.
The courageous Queen Esther risked her own life and favoured position to deliver Israel from genocide.
Michal, who thwarts an attempt on David’s life by Saul.
Abigail, the wife of the wicked and stingy Nabal, who assists David’s men with provisions and persuades David not to seek revenge.
It was the wise woman of Tekoa who persuades David to lift the ban on his son Absalom (2 Sam 14).
The courageous Jehosheba saved her nephew (and future king) Jehoash from being murdered (2 Kings 11).
In the Book of Proverbs, Solomon personifies the divine attribute of Wisdom as a female:
“Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square” (Prov 1:20).
The Queen of Sheba visits Solomon to learn from his wisdom (1 Kings 10).
The Queen of Sheba
WOMEN IN THE NT
WOMEN IN THE NT
Likewise, the NT has many examples of prominent or influential women.
Elizabeth, the godly mother of John the Baptist.
Mary, who “found favour with God” and became the mother of our Lord.
Elizabeth
Mary
JESUS AND WOMEN
Besides the many females healed or delivered by Jesus (like Mary Magdalene, Peter’s mother-in-law, the woman with the issue of blood, the woman crippled for 18 years, Jairus’s daughter, the daughter of the Syro-Phoenician woman), women feature prominently in the
ministry of Jesus.
The poor widow
His first miracle is prompted by his mother Mary.
In the Temple he publicly commends the sacrificial giving of the poor widow in contrast to the offerings of the wealthy (Luke 21).
Mary
IN JESUS’ DAY:
1) A woman’s place was in the home.
2) Women were not to be taught the Torah.
3) Men were not supposed to speak with women in public.
4) Women were regarded as inherently sinful.
5) Women were not allowed to bear witness in court.
1) PLACE IN THE HOME
Miriam was a prophetess and a worship leader. During the gathering of the Israelites:
Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing. Miriam sang to them: “Sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted …” (Ex 15:20-21, NIV)
There were “women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting” (Ex 38:8). They also prayed (cf. Hannah in 1 Sam 1:12), played music and sang there (Psalm 68:24-25, 1 Chron 25:5-6).
Hannah
But things had changed by Jesus’ day. Women were separated from men in private, public and religious life.
In synagogues women were separated from the men and were not permitted to read aloud. They could go to the Temple in Jerusalem, but were restricted to the Women’s Court. There was no such court mentioned in the Biblical descriptions of Solomon’s Temple.
Yet it’s clear that Jesus had female disciples.
Matt 12:49-50 (NIV) Pointing to his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”
By including women in his response, Jesus indicates that there were disciples in the room who were women.
These female disciples played a vital role in the ministry team of Jesus, forming a regular part of his entourage.
Matt 27:55-56 (NIV) Many women … followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.
Luke indicates that these female disciples were rendering financial support to the ministry of Jesus and the Twelve.
Luke 8:1-3 (NIV) After this, Jesus travelled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.
Note that some of these were women of high standing in society, while others were women of ill repute.
2) NOT TO BE TAUGHT
Jewish culture in the first century was decidedly patriarchal. The daily prayers of Jewish men included this prayer of thanksgiving: “Praised be God that he has not created me a woman.” *
The women with whom Jesus spoke were very likely illiterate, since the rabbis did not consider it incumbent upon women to learn to read in order to study the Scriptures… the Talmud says, “It is foolishness to teach Torah to your daughter” (Sotah 20a). **
Rabbi Eliezer, a first-century teacher, is noted for saying, “Rather should the word of the Torah be burned than entrusted to a woman.” *
* https:// www.franciscanmedia.org/ jesus-extraordinary-treatment-of-women ** https:// jewsforjesus.org/ publications/ newsletter/ newsletter-jun-1988/ jesus-and-the-role-of-women
Not only did Jesus have women disciples, they were the recipients of several prominent cases of Jesus’ self-revelation.
In the midst of her confusion and grief over her brother’s death, on the way to the tomb Martha has Jesus reveal to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. ” (John 11:25-26).
He tells the Samaritan woman that he is the Messiah
and the giver of Living Water that will quench our
spiritual thirst (John 4).
He tells Mary Magdalene that he is ascending to
the Father after his Resurrection (John 20:17).
While often rebuking the disciples for a lack of faith, Jesus praises the faith of woman with the issue of blood who touched the hem of his garment (Luke 8:48).
The disciples say to Jesus of the Syro-Phoenician woman, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” But he speaks to her and - impressed at her answer - commends her great faith (Matt 15).
And her sister, Mary would anoint his feet with an expensive perfume and wipe his feet with her hair in the face of criticism from Judas Iscariot that it was a waste of money. Jesus would defend her by saying, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me.” (Mark 14:6)
In Bethany “a woman named Martha opened her home to him” (Luke 10:38).
Jesus counts these
sisters as close friends.
John 11:5 (NIV) Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
Martha makes a confession of faith
similar to that made by Peter.
Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world. (John 11:27, NIV)
Jesus not only allowed Mary of Bethany to learn at his feet, he commended her devotion (Lk 10:41-42).
Paul says that he was “educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers” (Acts 22:3).
When Luke says Mary sat “at Jesus feet” he uses terminology associated with rabbinic study, suggesting that she was his student.
3) NO SPEAKING IN PUBLIC
In 1st-century Israel, if a woman was in public, she was prohibited from conversing with men. But we see Jesus publicly associating with women and talking to them on numerous occasions. This included women with a poor reputation. He speaks to a Samaritan woman who has had multiple husbands and is currently living in adultery. The disciples “were surprised to find him talking with a woman” (John 4:27).
Jesus not only speaks with her but also enters into a prolonged dialogue, a dialogue which recognizes and honours her thirst for religious truth. Ultimately, he reveals his identity as the Messiah. When his disciples return, they are clearly uneasy with Jesus’ behaviour. John includes the questions they are afraid to verbalize: “What are you looking for? Why are you talking with her?” (John 4:27). *
*https:// www.franciscanmedia.org/ jesus-extraordinary-treatment-of-women
Other women Jesus spoke
to directly in public include:
the bereaved widow of
Nain (Luke 7:12–13)
the woman taken in
adultery (John 8:10–11)
a woman bent over for
18 years (Luke 13:12)
the woman with the bleeding disorder (Luke 8:48)
a woman who called to him from a crowd (Luke 11:27–28)
a group of women en route to the cross (Luke 23:27-31)
The widow of Nain
In all these cases, Jesus spoke in a thoughtful, caring manner.
Barbara Leonhard (PhD in Christian spirituality) writes that “Jesus refuses to treat women as inferior. Given the decidedly negative cultural view of women in Jesus’ time, the Gospel writers each testify to Jesus’ treating women with respect, frequently responding in ways that reject cultural norms.” *
* https:// www.franciscanmedia.org/ jesus-extraordinary-treatment-of-women
Jesus tenderly addresses the woman with the bleeding disorder as “daughter” (Luke 8:48) and he refers to the woman crippled for 18 years as a “daughter of Abraham” (Luke 13:16).
While the expression “son of Abraham” was often used to indicate that a male Jew was recognized as bound by covenant to God, women had never been called “daughters of Abraham.” With this title, Jesus recognizes this woman as having equal worth. *
* Ibid.
4) INHERENTLY SINFUL
Jesus often assisted and defended the helpless, downcast women including those of poor reputation. He defends the sinful woman who anoints his feet at a Pharisee’s house (Luke 7:36ff).
Jesus defends women and even treats them with dignity in situations that seem to demand judgment by the Law. E.g. the sinful woman who anointed him and the woman caught in adultery.
In both cases he sees the person as someone deserving compassion. In Luke’s narrative … after Jesus is touched and anointed by a woman who is a recognized sinner, we hear the expected reaction from Simon, his host. *
This religious leader, a Pharisee, is dismayed and says to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.” (Luke 7:39).
* Ibid.
Not only does Jesus tell the woman that her sins are forgiven, but he also uses her actions and the love which prompted them to teach his offended host! *
Jesus tells Simon a parable about two people, one who was forgiven a small debt and the other a great debt. The latter showed greater love to their benefactor.
* Ibid.
The parable appeals to Simon to look beyond the way he has always stereotyped people and to rather see the woman as a sincere penitent - a woman capable of great love.
Her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love.
The fact that the Samaritan woman came to the well on her own suggests that she was an outcast because of her sinful lifestyle. But Jesus engages her in conversation and sees her worth despite the fact that she is a woman of ill-repute and a despised
foreigner.
The treatment of the adulterous woman by her accusers (John 8) clearly reflects the attitude towards women in that day. Adultery is one sin which is impossible to commit on your own, yet the man is not brought to Jesus. The woman is somehow deemed
to be solely
responsible
for the sin.
But Jesus protects
her from the
would-be
executioners
and refrains from
condemning her.
By instructing her accusers “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7) he is reminding them that it is not only women who are sinners. Men and women alike, themselves included, are sinful. Jesus would later tell the chief priests and elders that “the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you”. (Matt 21:31)
But neither does Jesus just gloss
over her sin. He treats her as
someone who is capable of being
held accountable and exhorts her
to renounce her life of sin.
Jesus held women personally
responsible for their own behaviour as seen in his dealings with the woman at the well (John 4:16–18), the woman taken in adultery (John 8:10–11), and the sinful woman
who anointed his feet (Luke 7:44–50 and the other 3 gospels). Jesus dealt with each as having the personal freedom and enough self-determination to deal
with their own repentance and forgiveness. *
* https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Women_in_the_Bible
Barbara Leonhard notes:
Jesus refuses to view women as unclean or especially deserving of punishment. Women who were menstruating or persons who had any flow of blood were considered ritually unclean. In this condition, women were not allowed to participate in most religious rituals. Anything or anyone she touched was deemed unclean. The most dramatic story concerning a woman in this state is the account of the woman who had a flow of blood for 12 years (Luke 8:43-48). Luke emphasizes Jesus’ compassion for the
woman by the way he situates the story. *
* https:// www.franciscanmedia.org/ jesus-extraordinary-treatment-of-women
Chapter 8 features Jairus, an official of the synagogue, coming to Jesus to beg him to cure his daughter. While they are on the way, this frightened, suffering woman, who has been ill and consequently isolated for years, touches his cloak. *
Jesus turns his attention from the synagogue official to the woman. He wants to know who touched his garment. By religious norms, the woman’s touch—even of his cloak—rendered Jesus unclean. *
It seems that the woman was aware of this because she was hoping to go “unnoticed”. But when Jesus insists on knowing who touched him she “came trembling and fell at his feet” (v. 47), probably expecting to be reprimanded.
If the woman expects him to be angry with her for approaching, she is greatly surprised. He says nothing of her ritual impurity, but instead addresses her as “Daughter,” says that her faith has saved her and tells her to go in peace (8:48). *
5) BEARING WITNESS
According to “Jews for Jesus”, in the time of Christ:
Women were not allowed to testify in court. In effect, this categorized them with Gentiles, minors, deaf-mutes and “undesirables” such as gamblers, the insane, usurers, and pigeon-racers, who were also denied that privilege. *
Yet Luke appears to have relied heavily on the testimony of women as he wrote both Luke and Acts (including Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna and Mary the mother of James.)
* https:// jewsforjesus.org/ publications/ newsletter/ newsletter-jun-1988/ jesus-and-the-role-of-women
Although in Jewish thought a woman’s testimony was not trustworthy, the excited words of the Samaritan woman from
Sychar are heard and acted upon.
John 4:39 (ESV) Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.”
Jesus’ women disciples generally surpassed their brother disciples in terms of dependability, particularly in events surrounding Jesus’ crucifixion. While the men hid, with the exception of John, it was only the women who stayed at the cross.
John 19:25 (NIV) Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
Mark 15:40-41 (NIV) Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome... Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.
When Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus put Jesus in the tomb “Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb” (Matt 27:61) and they “saw where he was laid” (Mark 15:47). This is why the women were the first witnesses to the Resurrection. They knew where Jesus had been buried.
Just as they had ministered to Jesus during his ministry, so Mary Magdalene and her companions intended to minister to him after his death.
Mark 16:1 (NIV) When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body.
Later on, when Peter and John have left the empty tomb, Mary Magdalene becomes the first to see the resurrected Christ. She recognizes Jesus when she hears him speak her name (John 20:11-18), testifying to the close relationship they had.
Mark 16:9 (NIV) When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene …
And then she “went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping” (Mark 16:10).
Mary Magdalene is mentioned by name 12 times in the gospels, more than most of the apostles. She always appears first, whenever she is listed in the Synoptic Gospels as a member of a group of women.
As such, Mary Magdalene is called “the Apostle to the Apostles”, a title first bestowed on her by Hippolytus about 200 AD.
In his second appearance, Jesus reveals himself to Mary’s companions. These women are also appointed as emissaries (apostles) of Jesus to testify to the Resurrection.
Matt 28:9-10 (NIV) Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
That the message of Jesus’ Resurrection was first entrusted to women is regarded by many as strong evidence for the historicity of the Resurrection accounts. Had the accounts of the Resurrection been fabricated, women would never have been chosen as witnesses, since their testimony was inadmissible under Jewish law.
Celsus, a 2nd-century pagan philosopher and opponent of early Christianity, taunted that the church attracted “only foolish and low individuals, and persons devoid of perception, and slaves, and women, and children”. *
He argues that Mary Magdalene’s role in the resurrection story reduces its credibility. Origen writes that “discrediting the narrative of Mary Magdalene, who is related to have seen Him, he replies, A half-frantic woman, as you state.” *
From this unlikely source, Celsus unwittingly offers us confirmation of the importance of women in the early church and of Mary Magdalene herself.
The fact that God entrusted the first proclamation
of the Resurrection to women indicates that while
humans might discriminate, God does not.
* Origen against Celsus 344, Ch 49
In Jesus’ day:
1) A women’s place was in the home.
2) Women were not to be taught the Torah.
3) Men were not supposed to speak with women in public.
4) Women were regarded as inherently sinful.
5) Women were not allowed to bear witness in court.
But Jesus defies these social norms:
1) Jesus accepts women leaving their households to join his ministry team.
2) He teaches women.
3) He engages and speaks with women in public.
4) Jesus defends the women of ill-repute.
5) He uses them as his initial witnesses to his resurrection.
PAUL AND WOMEN
The Bible teaches equality of worth for male and female. The apostle Paul was not a woman-hating misogynist as some have portrayed him. He writes to the Galatians:
Gal 3:28 (NIV) There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Paul refers to some of his closest associates (e.g. Timothy, Titus, Luke, Mark) as “co-workers” but also applies this same term to several women. He refers to Euodia and Syntyche in the Philippian church as “my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life” who “have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel” (Phil 4:2-3, NIV).
At least 18 women are mentioned in Paul’s letters, which indicates that he valued women’s participation in church life. Paul’s casual greetings to acquaintances offers solid evidence of many Jewish and Gentile women who were prominent in the early Christian movement.
Many of these women were not mentioned alongside husbands or fathers! They were women esteemed by Paul, not because of who they were married to or because of their father.
One third (10) of those he greets in Romans 16 are women, e.g.:
Priscilla: Paul not only mentions before her
husband – he places her at the top of his list.
Phoebe: a deacon, the courier for his letter and called by
Paul “the benefactor of many people, including me” (v.2).
Mary: a woman he considers to a hard worker (v.6)
Tryphena & Tryphosa: “women who
work hard in the Lord” (v.12)
Persis: his “dear friend … another woman
who has worked very hard in the Lord” (v.12).
Junia: “outstanding among the apostles” (v.7).
The mother of Rufus: whom Paul
says, “has been a mother to me, too.” (v13).
Eunice and Lois were the righteous mother and grandmother of Timothy, who raised him in the ways of God and were commended by Paul for this (2 Tim 1:5, 3:14-15).
In Philippi, Paul preaches to a group of women he meets at the river. Lydia – a businesswoman – believes and is baptised along with her household.
Paul and his companions
then accept the hospitality
extended by Lydia who
persuades them to
stay at her house.
When most had deserted
him in Rome at the trial before his execution, Paul sends greetings from four named people, one of whom is Claudia. All of this is strange behaviour for someone who supposedly disliked women.
Women often hosted house churches and were actively involved in the work of the early church.
THE LAST DAYS
On the Day of Pentecost,
Peter saw in the event the
fulfilment of the prophecy
of Joel 2:28.
Pentecostals believe that
while this outpouring of
the Spirit on both men and
women applied in the
Apostolic Age, it has a
special and more complete fulfilment in the Pentecostal movement spawned in the early 20th century.
In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy… Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. (Acts 2:16-18 NIV)
CONCLUSION
In closing off, here is an excerpt from the A/G US Position Paper on “The Role of Women in Ministry”:
The Assemblies of God has been blessed and must continue to be blessed by the ministry of God’s gifted and commissioned daughters. The Bible repeatedly affirms that God pours out His Spirit upon both men and women and thereby gifts both sexes for ministry in His Church. Therefore, we must continue to affirm the gifts of women in ministry and spiritual leadership. Surely, the enormous challenge of the Great Commission to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) requires the full deployment of all God’s Spirit-gifted ministers, both men and women. *
*https:// ag.org/ Beliefs/ Position-Papers/ The-Role-of-Women-in-Ministry
COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Biblical illustrations by Jim Padgett, courtesy of http:// sweetpublishing.com & http:// freebibleimages.org
Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are taken from the NIV: THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB: New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation; Used by permission. (http:// Lockman.org)
Scripture quotations are taken from the ESV: Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
AUTHOR: Gavin Paynter
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COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Biblical illustrations by Jim Padgett, courtesy of http:// sweetpublishing.com & http:// www.freebibleimages.org
Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are taken from the NIV:
THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB:
New American Standard Bible®,
Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation; Used by permission. (http:// www.Lockman.org)
Scripture quotations are taken from the ESV:
Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.