Freedom to Worship God's Way

1 Corinthians 11:1–16 ESV

1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 2 Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. 3 But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, 5 but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven. 6 For if a wife will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head. 7 For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. 9 Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; 12 for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, 15 but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. 16 If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God.

Introduction: This passage is probably the most complex, controversial, and opaque of any text of comparable length in the New Testament.

Craig Blomberg, 1 Corinthians, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994), 214.

Tozer on Worship and Entertainment: Selected Excerpts (What is Not Acceptable?)

The stark, tragic fact is that the efforts of many people to worship are unacceptable to God.… This is serious. It is hard for me to rest peacefully at night knowing that millions of cultured, religious people are merely carrying on church traditions and religious customs and they are not actually reaching God at all.

The Bible does not teach freedom of worship.

As Christians we don’t have a licens to worship anyway.

Biblical worship is not just described it is also prescribed.

The bible clearly prescribes at least three things about worship. It prescribed the:

Who

Who is to be worshiped?

God alone - We worship Christ!

When

We see very early that the church gathered for worship on the first day of the week.

How

God is very paticular about worship. He is always saying. Do this and don’t do that.

The question for us to consider is not what is it to me but what is it to God?

Chapter 11-14 is all about worship

The Corinthians had real issues with worship. They were a mess. They sometimes struggled with the who of worship (flee Idolatry) but most significantly they struggled with the how of worship.

There was chaos at the lords table. They were speaking out during the worship gathering randomly in a way that no one understood. Issues in worship like what should happen and who should lead were causing all kids of issues.

They question is not:

What do I think about worship.

1 cor 11 2

1 Corinthians 11:2 (ESV)

2 Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you.

This is what Paul had taught - This is the faith that has been handed down.

God is the one who regulates worship!

The Bible is our source for proper worship.

Order and authority are byproducts of divine design.

1 Corinthians 11:3 ESV

3 But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.

Husbands and wives and equality of value and dignity.

We are both made in God’s image - Gen 1:27

Genesis 1:27 ESV

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Yet God’s design is to differentiate their roles.

God designed men and women differently.

Men and women are equal in essence but fulfill different roles.

When teaching

Authority and submission are biblical principles that describe order in the home and church.

In the ancient world a woman’s unbound hair often had a strong sexual connotation.

For Example in Greek Mythology Medusa’s hair -

Journal of Biblical Literature, Volume 124 (II. The Social Symbolism of Women’s Hair and Actions Involving Women’s Hair in Antiquity)

In antiquity, a woman’s unbound hair (and the act of unbinding the hair) often had sexual connotations. In one popular telling of the story of Medusa, Medusa’s beautiful hair attracts Poseidon, who rapes her, leaving her to be punished by her rival, Athena, who transforms Medusa’s hair into snakes . The wild, unbound hair of Medusa is beautiful, seductive, and dangerous (above all to her!)

Modesty matters in worship.

Am I being a distraction in worship with the way I dress?

Am I sending the wrong signals with my attire?

1 Corinthians 11:6 ESV

6 For if a wife will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head.

Marriage required a change of hairstyle for women (not for men). Married women did up their hair with headbands, symbolizing the sexual unavailability to any man but her husband.

Adrian Rogers Sermon Archive (C. Modesty)

Someone has said that humans are the only animals that blush, but they’re the only ones that need to. But did you know that we have forgotten how to blush?

What about the men? Can you preach to them a while?

God expects men to look like, dress like, and act like men.

1 Corinthians 11:14 ESV

14 Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him,

God never intends for men to look like, dress like, and act like women.

There should never be confusion within the local church congregation as to who is who.

Hair doesn’t necessarily have the same connotation in our culture.

Chaos in our culture shouldn’t introduce confusion into our church.

Conduct or mannerisms clothing hairstyles that suggest that a person is sexually unfaithful to his or her spouse, promiscuous or homosexual is inappropriate and has no place in Christian worship.

1 Corinthians Original Meaning

Roman priests pulling their togas up over their heads while offering sacrifice or performing religious rituals.7

1 Corinthians Original Meaning

Still another possibility is that long hair on men made their appearance resemble the elaborate hairdos of the sophists.8

1 Corinthians Original Meaning

Wives, however, should keep their heads covered (v. 5a). Again, the covering could refer to long hair. It could be that Paul wants them to keep it “done up,” as was the custom among married women, rather than loose and flowing—a sign in some circles of being unmarried or, worse still, of suspected adultery (among Jews) or pagan, prophetic frenzy (among Greeks). Or it could be that they are simply wearing their hair too short, perilously close to the shaven heads of a convicted adulteress in Jewish circles or of the more “masculine” partner in a lesbian relationship in the Greek world. Alternately, if an external head covering is meant, Paul probably wants married women to wear a shawl over their hair and shoulders, as many Greek women still did in public, and not to resemble those who discarded their hair coverings during pagan worship in order to demonstrate their temporary transcendence of human sexuality.9