Worship Issues, Part 1

“The easiest act of obedience for a Christian is gathering with the church for worship on Sunday. It only requires that you get up, get dressed, and get there. Yet, amazingly, many Christians today will not do the easiest thing—and wonder why they struggle with the difficult things.” - Hershael York

I realize I’m in a bit of a different situation than most; it’s not always easy to get out of bed, get dressed, and get to church for me either, but I do have the luxury of this being my job, so at least my job doesn’t interfere with my ability to get to church. And my family knows this and understands this, so it’s not much of a problem getting them to church. And we have a few rules in place to keep activities from infringing on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights.

And still it’s difficult; I realize this. I never fault anyone for missing worship. It’s not like a guilt trip has been ever successful motivation anyhow.

I believe the gathered assembly of God’s people who belong to Him by faith in Jesus Christ is the single most important and significant hour of the week. But it’s not without its issues.

I know what it’s like to get up, get dressed, get to church only to ask, “I got up for this? I got out of bed and dressed for that?” I’ve been there; I’ve heard some really terrible, boring sermons (heck, I’ve preached my share), and I’ve seen some truly unbiblical and horrible spectacles during what should be an hour focused on God.

There are worship issues present in every part of Christ’s Church and there will be until He returns and sets things at rights.

When we assemble for worship, there are all sorts of issues that creep up and complicate the gathering. There have been issues in worship, myriad and varied, for as long as the church has gathered.

The church here in Corinth has all kinds of issues (can I get an ‘amen’?). And Paul has addressed several of them; most recently the church’s relationship to unbelievers and all the issues that creep up in the life of the church as it relates to the world.

And now, Paul shifts his focus and addresses the life of the church in the church. In 1 Corinthians 11-14, Paul addresses a number of different issues in the life of the church: head coverings, the Lord’s Supper, spiritual gifts, prophecy and tongues, and orderly worship.

I hope you’re ready to think and read about issues in the church, because, well, here we are. We’ll be discussing worship issues from now until Easter when we get to 1 Corinthians 15: Paul’s teaching on the Resurrection of Christ!).

So, if you have your Bible (and I hope you do) please turn with me to 1 Corinthians 11. If you are able and willing, please stand for the reading of God’s Holy Word, out of reverence for Him:

1 Corinthians 11:2–16 NIV

2 I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head. 7 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 did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15 but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. 16 If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God.

May God add His blessing to the reading of His Holy Word!

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As you stood and listened/followed along as I read, it’s very likely you were a bit uncomfortable, squirmy even. You might have been wishing you stayed home and didn’t get out bed for this one. And I can’t blame you. This is some awkward stuff. It’s a little hard to understand and it’s a bit removed from our context.

There is significant cultural distance and difference between us and the Corinthian church.

Some things that were common to them seem strange to us. And, you can imagine, what seems normal to us would be completely foreign to them.

This is why we search for the principles at work here. The application of Biblical principles looks different in various cultures, but the principles stand.

Please understand, this text is not simply addressed to women. There is actually a balance between women and men in the passage, with only one verse (v. 10) that doesn’t have a parallel addressed to men.

The problem with passages like these is that some dismiss Paul’s words and intention altogether.

If you’ve interacted with anyone from different faith traditions or various denominations, you’ve probably heard them remark that the Bible (and Paul, in particular) is sexist. “Paul is a misogynist. He hates women. He’s a lousy sexist. We don’t pay any attention to what Paul says about women or their place in the church.” And you can see the difference their dismissal of Pauline theology makes in the operation of their assembly.

One option is dismissing what Paul says altogether, but it’s not a good option.

Another option is strict adherence to the letter of Paul’s words, missing the principle and the spirit of his words.

Can you think of any group of believers where women have their heads covered all the time? Sure you can! We see them all over Rich Hill—the Old Order Mennonites and the Bethany Mennonites, to name a few.

Several years ago, I met a Mennonite family in Lyndon, Kansas and we became friends. Bruce and Mary Files owned a wonderful little bakery/sandwich shop. I was such a frequent customer I almost had a sandwich named after me. Paper-thin sliced turkey and smoked cheddar cheese with cranberry horseradish mayo on sourdough bread. Man, oh, man was it good!

Bruce and Mary and I would visit a lot about theology and beliefs, we’d discuss the Bible together over sandwiches, and pray with and for one another. Mary spoke about her head covering and how she wore it because 1 Corinthians 11 instructs woman to do so. She said if she woke up in the middle of the night and was compelled to pray, instead of getting out of bed to put her head covering on, she’d just pull the blankets over her head and then she could pray. That’s some strict adherence.

The two most common options with this text are: outright dismissal and strict adherence.

But I, with many others, believe there is a better way to understand and apply this passage.

>Let’s consider the background:

The issue at hand is attire in Christian worship.

1 Corinthians 11:4 NIV

4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head.

Some men were apparently wearing head covering and/or growing their hair out in a way that reflected the attire worn by pagans in idolatrous worship.

It was an attempt to fit into the idolatrous culture. This scandalized the church. Remember: if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s probably idol worship.

1 Corinthians 11:5 NIV

5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved.

Some women were ignoring the common cultural practice of wearing their hair up and/or wearing a covering of some sort on their head during worship. In the freedom of worship, they allowed their hair to hang down on their shoulders. This implied they were available. It was an attempt to move past cultural norms. This scandalized the culture.

>Understand: The Church was a progressive cultural institution

The freedom afforded to members of the congregation in worship was scandalous in that culture. Women—women!—were encouraged to pray and prophesy. Verse 5 assumes this.

This was much, much different than Jewish synagogue worship where women weren’t considered full members and were even required to sit behind a veil.

In the Christian church, women were to be full congregational participants in the worship service. This was unheard of.

In Judaism, women had a very minor place; they weren’t even counted in the number required for a synagogue (it took ten men to make a synagogue).

Christianity gave women a new and significant place, and their head-covering is a mark of their new authority. The differences arising from creation remain; Paul isn’t trying to get rid of them. But he is clear that Christian women have some authority.

Christianity recognizes the full equality and interdependence of the sexes. Both were made in the image of God:

Genesis 1:27 NIV

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

Likewise, Paul calls on the Corinthians to recognize this interdependence:

1 Corinthians 11:11–12 NIV

11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.

This understanding of interdependence and equality would have been scandalous in Paul’s day, virtually unheard of anywhere outside the Christian Church.

The Church was a challenge to a society in which women were understood to be less than. The Corinthians, as we’ve read, had incredible freedoms, including freedom in worship. Christians today enjoy the same freedom as they worship God in a diverse, unified community. Christians approach God together without regard to age, ethnicity, class, or gender. But Paul is still going to argue for an order of worship.

Trinitarian Order

1 Corinthians 11:3 NIV

3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.

Whatever Paul means by “the head of the woman is man” or “the head of a wife is her husband” it can’t be understood negatively.

It’s not meant to denigrate, downplay, or threaten the woman’s stance as equal because Christ also has a head.

The Son joyfully chooses to submit Himself to the Father.

The beauty of this passage is that Paul roots it all in the Trinitarian order.

He is saying that in the Trinity—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—are equal in being and essence, but they willingly choose to fulfill different functions and roles for the purpose of communicating communal love.

In other words, looking at Jesus and recognizing his willingness to subordinate Himself to the will of the Father in the Trinitarian relationship is a sign of humility and strength, not weakness.

If we look at the husband/wife, male/female relationship from that lens, it will free us to be able to see the beauty of it.

Created Order

God created human beings in His image—male and female—and the members of each gender have the privilege to uniquely display God’s image. Even though they are completely equal, there is an order to creation.

1 Corinthians 11:7–9 NIV

7 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 did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man.

Paul’s not stating anything new. Poor guy can’t be considered a sexist or misogynist, or at least he can’t be labeled that alone. He’s just the messenger.

Genesis tells us Eve was created in light of Adam’s lack of suitable mate. Eve was created for Adam. This is the created order, not the post-fall order. This is what God intended.

When God looks at man, He sees His own image. When man looks at woman, he sees his image (and the image of God).

When Christians display the created order in worship, in marriage, in life, God is pleased. “Gender distinctions are not a curse to be covered, but a blessing to be celebrated.” - Stephen T. Um

Creation dictates that everyone submits to something. Men and women are meant to conduct themselves in a way that wouldn’t dishonor the one to whom they’re submitting.

“Men, don’t dishonor God by dressing like an idol worshipper.”

“Women, don’t dishonor God and your husband by dressing in a way that someone would question your marital status.”

So it was the cultural expectation of the time for women to wear a shawl or something to cover their heads in worship.

This is strange in our modern culture. In fact, it would seem odd for a woman to wear a shawl, veil, or some sort of head covering during our time of worship.

But in that particular culture, not to wear a shawl was essentially saying, “I’m not too concerned with the relationship with my husband.”

David Prior comments: “The only women who did not wear head coverings were the ‘high-class’ mistresses of influential Corinthians. Also, slaves had their heads shaved, and the same practice was enacted as punishment for convicted adulteresses.”

Apparently some women, in the excitement of worship, were tempted to throw back their hair, and Paul is saying, “That’s probably what you shouldn’t do, though you are free to worship.”

There’s one verse in this puzzling section that’s a little more puzzling than others:

1 Corinthians 11:10 NIV

10 It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels.

What in the world does Paul mean by this?

It’s assumed when God’s people meet for worship, the angels are there too. The Psalms and various places in the New Testament (1 Tim 5.21, Heb 13.2, 1 Pet 1.12) speak about the angels watching, and how that’s motivation for obeying God’s commands.

The angels, being holy, must not be offended by any appearance of unholiness among the congregation. Therefore, the woman should have a sign of authority on her head, reflecting the created order.

Cultural Order

Paul’s instruction seems to make it clear that he doesn’t want the Corinthians to do anything that will unnecessarily affect the cultural order:

1 Corinthians 11:13–15 NIV

13 Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15 but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering.

The very nature of things… by this, Paul means “the way things are.”

He obviously knows men can have long hair, i.e. those who take the Nazirite vow, but he appeals to common practice to strengthen his case.

Our cultural context makes this much less self-evident. Many men have longer hair. Many women today have short hair.

One has to get the principle and determine how that applies in the present cultural order.

Obedience to this section of God’s Word in our day means, more than likely, not wearing head coverings because we would be seen by the culture as strict legalists, adhering to an ancient practice and overemphasizing what is a minor point.

God desires His people to reflect the Trinitarian and creational orders in such a way that we don’t negatively affect the cultural order.

Lean too far in one direction, and we can just start to dismiss one part of the Bible after the other:

“If this about head coverings isn’t important, than this about church leadership and elders and deacons isn’t important. And if that’s not important, the whole Bible is called into question.”

Lean too far in the other direction, and we will become strict adherents of ancient practices and miss the principles:

“Women, you better start wearing head coverings to worship, and all of us better skip the bacon and pork chops, and we all need to go through our closets and get rid of anything made with more than one type of fabric.”

We need to work hard to get to the principle of the matter: The underlying point seems to be that in worship it is important for both men and women to be their truly created selves, to honor the Triune God by being what they are, what they were created to be, and not blurring the lines pretending to be something else—for the glory of God and the good of those around us.

We need to work out what this means for us, but we know that all of this is from God the Father (who is the head of Christ) and from Christ (who is the head of His Church).

We must ask the Triune God for grace to help us live lives that reflect God’s good created order in a way that compels the culture.

The relationship of Christian men and women—how we relate to one other—becomes the mystery that displays the gospel to a watching world.