Women are easily led astray: Nancy Leigh DeMoss Wolgemuth P/2

                                                       Read Part One HERE

 In this post I continue to focus on bible teacher and author Nancy Leigh DeMoss Wolgemuth, who is on the Board of Reference of The Council On Biblical Manhood and Womanhood as well as on the Board of Reference of Joyful Christian Ministries, a ministry set up by the wife and daughters of fundamental Baptist  pastor and evangelist John R. Rice, whose daughter Elizabeth Rice Handford wrote a book called "Me? Obey him?"

Elizabeth Rice Handford has written the following: "We've had the impression that women as a class are more spiritually minded than men, with sensibilities more refined, and purer thoughts. Scriptures says the opposite is true. Women are more often led into spiritual error than men. Perhaps it is caused by her intuitive, emotional thinking. (Intuitive thinking is God's gift, not to be despised, but it needs the balance of a man's reason.) I should add too, that a woman does not have to be led into error. That is the reason God commanded her not to usurp authority over the man, so she can be protected from false doctrine." (p.17)

My Comment

There is no passage in the Bible that says that women are more often led into spiritual error than men. Neither does the Bible declare that this is because of a woman's intuitive, emotional thinking that needs the balance of a man's reason. 

On the contrary the Apostle Paul recommends a number of women such as Deacon Phoebe (Romans 16:1-2), Co-Workers Mary (Romans 16:6) and Tryphena, Tryphosa, Persis (Romans 16:12), Teacher and Co-Pastor Priscilla (Acts 18:24-26; Romans 16:3-5),  Overseers Chloe (1 Corinthians 1:11) and Nympha (Colossians 4:15), Apostle Junia (Romans 16:7).

Scripture makes it clear that all believers, male and female alike, are to have a renewed mind according to Romans 12:2

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will.

The renewing of our minds will happen as we study and meditate on God's word.

All believers, male and female alike, are to be led by the Holy Spirit in their thinking, in their speaking, as well as in their actions as we know from Romans 8:14

Because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

As for a woman not usurping authority over the man, Elizabeth is most likely, referring to the King James Version of 1 Timothy 2:12

But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.

This verse refers to a false woman teacher or false women teachers who was or were not allowed to teach for the time being because she or they had to learn right doctrine first. Once she or they had received correct doctrine they could teach. 

Read Part Three HERE

 

Women are daughters of Eve: Michelle Lesley P/12

Read Part One HERE

In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will discuss a final statement by her on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 and beyond

 Let a woman learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man, she must remain quiet.

Michelle Lesley: "But even though we, daughters of Eve, bear the taint of her reproach in this small way all these years later, God has graciously provided us with many ways to redeem the name of womankind by serving Him if we "continue in faith love and holiness with self-control (1 Timothy 2:15b). One of those ways is the gospel influence mothers are able to have in their children's lives."

My Comment

Paul never called female believers "daughters of Eve" who bear the taint of her reproach in a small way, but he calls them "sons of God" (Romans 8:14, Galatians 3:26) for he sees them as "New Creations in Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:17) since Christ became a curse for male as well as female believers (Galatians 3:13).

As for 1 Timothy 2:15, it is as follows

"But women will be saved through childbearing....If they continue in faith, love and holiness with self-control." 

Now we know that Paul did not teach here on God's free gift of salvation that no woman can enhance by her own works, including childbearing. But this text is a correction on further false teaching that marriage and childbearing were not considered to be good things. In fact, Paul was saying that marriage and motherhood were part of God's plan for women as their Creator and were not obstacles to a close walk with God as these false teachers claimed.

P.S. This is my last post on Michelle Lesley

 

Women must not overstep their position: Michelle Lesley P/11

                                                     Read Part One HERE

In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will discuss another statement by her on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 and beyond

Let a woman learn in all quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather she is to remain quiet.

Michelle Lesley: "The second reason that God reserves the positions of teaching and authority over male and mixed groups to men can be found in 1 Timothy 2:14

And Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.

Here Paul reminds us that, when Eve listened to the serpent, she stepped out from under her husband's oversight, was deceived and sinned. Eve's sin reminds us that she not only was deceived into rebelling against God's command about eating the fruit but she also broke His design for male headship in marriage. In establishing male leadership in the church, God is recalling, reflecting and restoring His pattern for male headship that started in the Garden."

My Comment

As for the woman having stepped out from under her husband's oversight, she was never under her husband's oversight, so she could not have stepped out from under it. The truth is, she disobeyed God and so did the man by eating the fruit. She did not break God's design for male headship in marriage because there was no such design in place as we know from Genesis 1:26-28 where we read that God gave both the man and the woman the task of ruling over creation. Moreover, God is not recalling, reflecting and restoring His pattern of male headship that started in the Garden but certain male church leaders such as Professor Wayne A. Grudem, Pastor John Piper and others like them, have been bringing in unbiblical patriarchal/complementarian teaching through the Council of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood trying to establish the rule of men over women at home as well as in the church. Their teaching is very much in line with the teaching on the role of men and women of Roman Catholic Church Fathers as well as Protestant Reformers of the past who, in fact, were all influenced by Greek pagan Philosphers such as Plato etc.

As for the woman having been deceived, she acknowledged before God that Satan had deceived her as we know from Genesis 3:13b. At that time the man sinned knowingly but did not acknowledge it. Instead, he blamed the woman and indirectly blamed God for his sin as we know from Genesis 3:12.

Read Part Twelve HERE

Women are "helpers": Michelle Lesley P/10

                                                                                                                                                                                               

                                                      Read Part One HERE

In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will discuss a further statement by her on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 and beyond

 Let a woman learn in quietness with all submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man, rather she is to remain quiet.

 Michelle Lesley: "Why would God reserve the positions of teaching and authority over male and mixed groups to men? He gives two reasons. The first one can be found  in 1 Timothy 2:13

For Adam was formed first then Eve.

Michelle Lesley: "Starting with Creation, God began laying out the pattern of the male headship in the foundational institutions of His kingdom: Creation, the family and the church. Man was created first, woman second. Man was given authority over Creation, woman was specifically created for him, to be his helper. We also see male headship in the family. God requires husbands to take the primary leadership role and wives to submit to and respect their husbands. Starting with the very first man and woman, before sin entered the world, God initiated a pattern of male leadership." 

My Comment

Some women in the church in Ephesus may have been behaving in a domineering way because of false teachings they had received and were now teaching. These false teachings included errors with regard the Creation Account. For instance, the first woman was supposedly created before the first man and Paul wants Timothy to bring correction to that false teaching. However, as far as the Creation Account is concerned, we read in Genesis 1:26-28 that God did indeed give the first man authority over Creation but that, likewise, God gave the first woman authority over Creation.  And their authority was specifically over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, over every livestock, over all the earth and over all the creatures that move along the ground. The man was not given authority (headship) over the woman, neither was the woman given authority (headship) over the man. As for the woman being the man's "helper", she was made his "ezer kenegdo" which means "equal partner " in Genesis 2:18 which fits in exactly with God's design for the man and the woman in Genesis 1:26-28.

Read Part Eleven HERE

 

Women must never instruct men: Michelle Lesley P/9

 Read Part One HERE

 In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will discuss a further statement by her on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 and beyond

1 Timothy 2:11-12

Let a woman learn in quietness with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather she is to remain quiet.

 Michelle Lesley; "Paul goes on to explain in verse 12 what he means by " in quietness with all submission." Women are not to teach men or to exercise authority over them. Teaching included any situation in the gathering of the body of Christ in which women would be given instruction to men in the Scriptures and/or in spiritual matters  whether in an official position of teacher, pastor, teaching elder, Sunday School/Bible Study teacher, or other leadership position, or any other situation requiring exhorting, teaching, or explaining of the Scriptures. Exercising authority includes any official position (pastor, pastoral positions, certain committee positions, elder, teacher, director, or other leadership position) or other situations which places a woman in charge of, over, or responsible for men or places men in a role subordinate to a woman."

My Comment

As I previously mentioned, in 1 Timothy 2:12 Timothy dealt with false female teachers.These false female teachers had to learn right doctrine quietly with all submission so they could absorb what they were taught. This meant that for the time being these women should not teach anyone, including men. As for the words that they were not to "exercise authority over men," Paul used the Greek term "authentein" which is not used anywhere else in the New Testament. However, we do know that it had a very negative meaning including "domineering." Paul was, therefore, not saying here that women should never be allowed to have rightful spiritual authority over men as teachers, pastors etc, but that women should not behave towards men in an inappropriate manner which was contrary to his teachings.

Read Part Ten HERE

Women's role is to listen: Michelle Lesley P/8

 Read Part One HERE

 

In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will discuss another statement by her on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 and beyond

 1 Timothy 2:11-12

Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; she is to remain quiet."

Michelle Lesley: "Timothy and the elders are to allow women to be taught the gospel so that they might be saved. See the word "let" here at the beginning of verse 11? Timothy and the elders have the responsibility to step up and make sure women are allowed to come into the church and be taught the gospel."

 Michelle Lesley; "The men had the responsibility to make sure women were taught God's word so they could be saved and grow spiritually, but the women had the responsibility to listen, learn and conduct themselves in a way that would not hinder others from learning and hearing the gospel."

My Comment                                                                                                                                                    All believers, male and female, had the responsibility to listen and learn for that was the way Rabbinical students learned. In verses 11-12 Timothy did not deal with all female believers, he dealt with false female teachers. In their case he did not expel these false female teachers from the church, as he had done with some false male teachers (1 Timothy 2:19b - 20), but he allowed them to stay so they could learn right doctrine to prepare them for the time that they could teach.

Read Part Nine HERE

Women should know that 1 Timothy is not really for them: Michelle Lesley P/7

                                                      Read Part One HERE

In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will begin to discuss her teaching on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 and beyond

She has made the following statement with regard 1 Timothy 2:11-12

"Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather she is to remain quiet."

Michelle Lesley: "First Timothy is one of the pastoral epistles. It was written by Paul to young pastor Timothy as a sort of job description and operations manual for pastors, elders and the church. So right off the bat, an important point we often miss about 1 Timothy is that is was written to a man, Timothy, a pastor, who would use this letter to train his elders (also men) and, subsequently, his congregation. That doesn't mean that 1 Timothy does not apply to women, or shouldn't be studied by women, or that women aren't required to obey 1 Timothy. It just means that when we open the letter of 1 Timothy, we need to understand that we, as women, are reading somebody else's mail. Mail that pertains to us, yes, but that mail is addressed to Timothy, and by extension, to pastors and elders today. That will help us better understand the tone and perspective of the passage."

 

My Comment

Paul wrote this letter to Timothy because he wanted him to deal with the false teachers at the church in Ephesus as we know from I Timothy 1:3

 

As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer.

 

 Some of these false teachers were men (I Timothy 1:19b-20) but some of these false teachers were, in fact, women  (1 Timothy 2:11-15). Paul has Timothy deal with these male false teachers by removing them from the church but he has him deal with these false female teachers in a very different way as we will learn in future posts.

 

Rerad Part Eight HERE

Women should fulfill their roles in the church: Michelle Lesley P/6

Read Part One HERE
 

 

In this post I continue to focus on popular blogger Michelle Lesley when I will discuss her next example related to Galatians 3:38

Galatians 3:28

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is mo male and female, for you are all one in Christ.

Michelle Lesley: "Anyone can come to Christ in repentance and faith - Jew or Gentile. slave of free, male of female, all are welcome. The ground is level at the foot of the cross. No one is more important than anybody else. We are all equally saved, equally loved, equally forgiven of our sin, equally precious in God's eyes. But equality in salvation does not translate to equality in church roles."

Michelle Lesley: "Let me illustrate it this way. My husband and I have six children. Each and every one of us are all equally Lesleys even though I married into the family and the rest of them were all born into the family/ No family member is more loved or important than another. However, we all have different roles, which come with different blessings and responsibilities. My 12-year old might not be able to drive the car, but he doesn't have to work eight hours a day and pay bills either. I no longer have to do homework but I do have to do housework. Our family would not operate in a healthy way if I tried to take on my son's role or my husband tried to take on my role."

Michelle Lesley: "It is the same way in the church. God loves, forgives, and saves each one of us equally. But He also loves us each individually. And it's because of that individual love that He gives each of us unique roles to fill in the church so that it will operate in a healthy way. The role of women in the church is precious and vital to the well being of the body of Christ. So is the role of men. They are both equally important, yet God has specially gifted women to fulfill the roles He has designed for us just as He specifically gifted men to fulfill the roles He has designed for them."

My Comment

Michelle Lesley is correct when she states that anyone can come to Christ in repentance and faith for we are all equally precious in God's eyes. But her following statements are not correct as far as Scripture is concerned.

As for her example of her son and her husband not being able to take on her role, her son is still a child so he is obviously not yet ready to take on adult responsibilities at home and he will not yet be spiritually mature to take on spiritual responsibilities at church. Moreover, as far as her husband is concerned, she and her husband are to work together as a team according to Genesis 1:26-28 and in the church they are to function in accordance with their spiritual gifts.

Their spiritual gifts are given by the Holy Spirit as He determines as we know from

Romans 12:4-8

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are  many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then given generously; if it is to lead, then do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, then do it cheerfully.

P.S. Please note that no gender is mentioned in Romans 12:4-8 in the original text so it is best to use "you" when speaking of a particular gift.

And in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working but the same God works all of them in all people. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and He gives them to each one just as He determines.

And in Ephesians 4:11

It was He (Christ) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers....

 We learn from the above passages that the Holy Spirit does not have a special list of gifts for Jews, a special list of gifts for Greeks, a special list of gifts for slaves, a special list of gifts for free, a special list of gifts for males, or a special list of gifts for females. He, apparently, is "blind" as far as nationality, position in life, or gender is concerned. Therefore, believers are to function in the church in accordance with their spiritual gifts regardless what their nationality, status in life or gender may be. That may mean that a wife may be the pastor of a church and her husband may be serving as an usher. Or it may be that a wife is a deacon and her husband serves as a car park attendant.

Read Part Seven HERE