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I will begin a series of posts sharing with you the view of influential men on the role of men and women throughout history starting with well-known Pastor and Author John MacArthur, Pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, USA.
He has stated the following:
Even though there is a spiritual equality, and even though there is an essential quality, that is in terms of essence of person hood, there is a difference in roles that God has divinely assigned to men and women. And God is careful to maintain this difference and this distinction both in the church and in the home, and in society in general.
And I believe that we need to abide by these principles. We do not conceive of women as anything less then men; quite the contrary. Women are, in every sense, equal to men. In every sense, there is equality there, EXCEPT in the area of assignment of a role or duty within the framework of society.
And I feel too, that when we put women in responsibilities, or when women usurp responsibilities meant for men, they thus misuse their divine design and forfeit the use of their highest capacity.
But what we must maintain in this is that there is equality but difference in the assignment which God has given to a man and a woman. Each is vitally important. Authority can't function without submission and submission can't function without authority. They are mutually dependent.
Now such a doctrine as this doctrine of authority and submission - men are in authority and women are in submission in general - is not a confining thing for women, but rather is designed by God to accommodate the makeup of women, which God Himself has created.
A man is the highest manifestation of God in the earth. Why? Because man has been given divine dominion. Man has been given divine dominion in the world. In Genesis 1:26 we read, "And God said,"Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, and let THEM rule over the fist of the sea, of the fowl of the air, the cattle, over all the earth, over every creepy thing that creeps upon the earth. So God man in His own image; in the image of God He created him. Male and female He created THEM.
Now God created man initially to rule over everything in this world. He gave him dominion. Man is king of the earth. Throughout the history of mankind, men have ruled the world. They have run the governments; they have run the businesses; they have run the economics; they have run the social aspects. Men have the been the ones in charge because God originally invested within them dominion. Man then becomes - And I don't mean generic man; I mean sexually male man, just the maleness of man - that man from the sexual viewpoint has been given the dominion of God. Man is sovereign in the world. He is the delegated authority and majesty of God.
I will begin a series of posts sharing with you the view of influential men on the role of men and women throughout history starting with well-known Pastor and Author John MacArthur, Pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, USA.
He has stated the following:
Even though there is a spiritual equality, and even though there is an essential quality, that is in terms of essence of person hood, there is a difference in roles that God has divinely assigned to men and women. And God is careful to maintain this difference and this distinction both in the church and in the home, and in society in general.
And I believe that we need to abide by these principles. We do not conceive of women as anything less then men; quite the contrary. Women are, in every sense, equal to men. In every sense, there is equality there, EXCEPT in the area of assignment of a role or duty within the framework of society.
And I feel too, that when we put women in responsibilities, or when women usurp responsibilities meant for men, they thus misuse their divine design and forfeit the use of their highest capacity.
But what we must maintain in this is that there is equality but difference in the assignment which God has given to a man and a woman. Each is vitally important. Authority can't function without submission and submission can't function without authority. They are mutually dependent.
Now such a doctrine as this doctrine of authority and submission - men are in authority and women are in submission in general - is not a confining thing for women, but rather is designed by God to accommodate the makeup of women, which God Himself has created.
A man is the highest manifestation of God in the earth. Why? Because man has been given divine dominion. Man has been given divine dominion in the world. In Genesis 1:26 we read, "And God said,"Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, and let THEM rule over the fist of the sea, of the fowl of the air, the cattle, over all the earth, over every creepy thing that creeps upon the earth. So God man in His own image; in the image of God He created him. Male and female He created THEM.
Now God created man initially to rule over everything in this world. He gave him dominion. Man is king of the earth. Throughout the history of mankind, men have ruled the world. They have run the governments; they have run the businesses; they have run the economics; they have run the social aspects. Men have the been the ones in charge because God originally invested within them dominion. Man then becomes - And I don't mean generic man; I mean sexually male man, just the maleness of man - that man from the sexual viewpoint has been given the dominion of God. Man is sovereign in the world. He is the delegated authority and majesty of God.
My comment on Pastor John MacArthur's words are as follows
ReplyDelete"Pastor John MacArthur claims that women are in every sense equal to men but denies that equality in his next statement. That is confusing to say the least...
Furthermore, according to him, only the MAN was given dominion in Genesis 1:26. But the text is very clear that God gave THEM (MALE AND FEMALE) dominion over creation....
Moreover, he does not seem to take into account the event of the Fall which caused men (and women) to become sinful. Consequently, when men have ruled the world they have done so in accordance with their sinful nature.
It is because of the event of the Fall that Christ came into the world and died to reverse the effects of the Fall. And Jesus taught in Matthew 20:25-28
"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave - just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and give His life as a ransom for many."
Believers, be they male or female, are, therefore, not called to rule but to serve. Pastor John MacArthur does not seem to understand the gospel since his words seem to be in complete contradiction to Jesus'words.
Whilst it is true that men have been running the world throughout history, that included pillaging, raping and attacking to acquire more land to rule over. Is Macarthur suggesting God approved of that?
ReplyDeleteI am quite sure if you asked Pastor John MacArthur does he believe God approved of the pillaging, raping etc of men then he would say that he does not believe that to be so. However, his view on man leaves the door open for such activities to take place, whether he agrees with them or not, because he does not consider the sinful nature of men after the Fall but sees the desire of men to rule as something placed within each man by God. Jesus warns us about such men in Matthew 20:25-28.John MacArthur seems to applaud such men. You decide who you want to follow...Jesus or John MacArthur...As for myself I choose to follow Jesus...
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