We were introduced to a couple of difficult passages regarding women in the church.
1. THE DIFFICULT PASSAGES (1 Timothy 2:8–12; 1 Corinthians 13:33-35)
Then, we looked at Paul’s own description of who he was before he met Jesus.
2. PAUL’S VIEW OF WOMEN BEFORE HE MET JESUS
Philippians 3:5–6 (ESV)
5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;
6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.
Yesterday, we saw the social implications regarding the way that he lived his life.
From the culture he grew up in and lived in, Paul had a very low view of women.
But, as I said yesterday, something happened. Something drastic. Paul met Jesus!
Through Christ, all that Jewish pride and male dominance way of living was wiped away.
Let’s look at…
3. PAUL’S NEW VIEW OF HIMSELF
Philippians 3:7–8 (ESV)
7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.
8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ
Now, to Paul all that mattered was a deep personal relationship with Jesus. He is now willing to set aside all of his Jewish pride for the sake of knowing Christ Jesus as his Lord and Savior. He doesn’t just set it aside, he views his past pride as nothing more the manure. That is the actual meaning of “rubbish.”
Let’s look at…
4. Paul’s view of others
This view was drastically changed as well.
Galatians 3:26–29 (ESV)
26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Imagine this proud Jewish man coming to the point of saying that in Christ, Jews and non-Jews are equal at the foot of the cross. That slaves and slave-masters are equal as well. And the shock of all shocks that females and males are equal at the foot of the cross. We are all one in Christ Jesus!
In this Scripture, we see also
5. the overarching principle for understanding God’s plan for the role of women in the Church.
“there is no male and female”
We must ask…
6. What changed Paul’s view?
The apostle Paul met the greatest liberator of women the world has ever known: Jesus Christ.
When God got a hold of Paul, He didn’t send him to Jerusalem. He sent him to the desert for a three-year schooling in which He taught him everything he needed to learn.
Paul went to Jerusalem. And the apostles sent him off to Tarsus.
Paul has a vision of what the Church is supposed to be, but he has no church.
In Acts Chapter 11, Barnabas goes to a Gentile town called Antioch. He sees that the people there are ripe for the gospel. So, he goes to Tarsus to find Paul and bring him back to minister with him.
Acts 11:26 (ESV)
“… For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
Paul does the unthinkable. Women are invited to church. This was not happening in Jerusalem, but it was happening among the Gentile churches.
We will examine this amazing transformation tomorrow.
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