Sermon Tone Analysis

This morning we are continuing a series on the role of women in the church.

Specifically, my aim is to teach what the NT has to say about women reading Scripture publically in the church and women praying publically in the church.

Historically, in our circles, this is not something that we have practiced.

We have understood the command for women to keep silent in the church as prohibiting ladies both reading Scripture and praying publically in church.

And let me say this- I appreciate the concern of people on this topic.

It is an indication to me that people in our circles are deeply committed to obeying God’s Word.

Your concern for careful obedience to the text is most appreciated!

My question is what does the Bible teach?

Are there clear passages in the NT that would help us understand the role of women in the church in regards to public Scripture reading and public prayer?

Part 1- The importance of submission in the local church

Part 2- What God’s Word prohibits women from doing in a local church

Part 3- What God’s Word allows for women in the local church- namely praying and prophesying as long as they are dressed appropriately.

Part 4- What is appropriate dress for women who desire to pray or read Scripture in Church?

Does that mean that ladies should be wearing head coverings in church?

How can Paul allow woman to pray and prophesy in church and then command them to be silent only three chapters later in I Corinthians 14:34?

Two Resources:

Should Women Wear Headcoverings? by Kenneth T. Wilson

Did Paul Require Veils or the Silence of Women? by James B. Hurley

Paul commended them because they were obedient to many of his instructions relating to the church as he delivered them, but he still had some issues to clear up.

He is primarily addressing the importance of maintaing the functional roles of believers in the public worship of the church.

He is concerned that the Corinthians remember the idea of headship.

The head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.

Theses functional roles should not be abolished, especially in the public worship of the church.

One of the ways the Corinthians were disregarding the God intended functional roles of male and female in the church was in the area of head coverings.

Apparently, the women of the church felt that their freedom in Christ allowed them to remove their head coverings- even to remove them in the public worship service.

Paul’s point was to show why that was not the case.

In v. 4 he makes the point that is would be shameful for men to wear head coverings in church when they pray or prophesy because it would dishonor his head.

His argument rests of what the head covering symbolized in the Corinthian culture.

In Paul’s day a head covering both clearly distinguished men from women.

Ladies wore head coverings, men did not.

So for a man to wear a head covering he would blur the lines of male and female.

This would bring him personal shame and dishonor.

Head coverings also showed visible submission to an authority.

It was a way for wives to show as a visible sign, the proper-ness of their husband’s headship in the marriage relationship.

If a man wore a head covering he would be visibly putting himself under the authority of man.

But the head of the man is Christ.

Thus he would dishonor his head who is Christ.

So too would a woman dishonor herself by blurring the distinctions of male and female, and by claiming that she is free from the functional differences of male and female that God instituted at creation.

It would be a public dishonor to her husband to claim she was no longer under his headship.

And God wants Christians to maintain the functional differences between male and female.

These differences were not done away with in Christ.

As to our question we said that as long as ladies are dressed appropriately they are free to pray and prophesy (that is to speak a message from God, in our context it is akin to public Scripture reading).

What What is appropriate dress for women who desire to pray or read Scripture in Church?

Does that mean that ladies should be wearing head coverings in church?

Paul’s point- it is disgraceful for a woman not to cover her head.

If the women in Corinth didn’t think it was that big of a deal- Paul said, “well then shave off your hair.”

How many ladies this morning would willingly shave off their hair?

When my kids ask for a hair cut, I always volunteer to cut it for them.

They always choose mom to cut their hair though.

Why?

Because dad would just use the clippers and give them all a buzz cut.

They don’t want that!

Why not?

They think it would look really strange.

If my young boys think it would looks strange for them to get their hair buzzed, how much more would it look strange for my wife to get her hair buzzed off?

The same kind of shame that goes along with a woman having her hair shaved is the same kind of shame that is associated with a woman in the Corinthian church not wearing a head covering.

Since you would never endure the shame of a shave, neither should you endure the shame of refusing to wear a head covering.

Beginning in v. 7 Paul argues for why it is shameful for woman to refuse to wear a head covering.

In vv.

7-12 Paul gives an argument from creation.

V. 7- Man is image and glory of God

Man was created in the image and likeness of God.

So too was women, both men and women are created equally in the image of God.

God’s Word is clear about the idea that male and female are equal in terms of their essence.

Yet God created man and woman different in terms of their function.

That is the point of I Corinthians 11:7

Man, in terms of his functional role, was created to be the image and glory of God.

The idea of image in v. 7 indicates the idea of a reflection.

Man in his functional role in the church is a reflection of God.

So for man to wear a head covering would be to destroy the reflection of God in a service where he is praying to God or delivering a prophetic word from God.

Glory- that which makes impressive or weighty the person or thing that is glorious.

When man obeys God and functions as the head of the church and the head of the marriage he brings glory to God.

So man should not wear a head covering because that kind of dress does not reflect God’s intent in the headship of Christ over man.

On the other hand, woman, in terms of her functional role, was created to be the glory of man.

Note, Paul does not say image of man- both men and women are created in the image of God.

But, God intended the function of women to be the glory of man.

In what way?

Woman is the glory of man in that she was made from man.

A clear reference to Eve being made from Adam’s rib.

How else is woman the glory of man?

This is pre-fall.

God’s original design was that the woman would be a helper fit for man.

The idea is that the woman would be man’s companion- she would complement man.

So the original idea in God’s creation is when man fulfill his created function (headship) and woman fulfills her created role (complement), then they can bring glory to God exactly as God intended.

There is a wonderful companionship that is expressed together by bringing God worship and praise!

Always remember, this idea is a difficult one to grasp because of the curse of sin.

They experienced a change in their relationship with each other (Gen 3:16).

Apparently, the natural headship that Adam had over Eve gave way to tension between them, resulting from (a) the woman’s new tendency toward independence and freedom from her husband’s headship and (b) the man’s new tendency toward authoritarian leadership.

A man should not have his head covered when praying or prophesying in church because he is the image and glory of God.

But a woman is the glory of man- in what way?

In that she was made from man and for man- for his reason she out to have a symbol of authority on her head.

Literally, the text says- she ought to have authority on her head.

Debated verse:

It is significant that Paul does not use “head covering” here in v. 10.

He uses the word “authority.”

The fact that Paul did not specifically refer to the head covering in v. 10 indicates that the issue is not the exact use of the head covering but the larger issue of the disregard of distinctions.

I think this clearly shows that head covering were appropriate due to the cultural conditions in Paul’s day.

Paul wanted the ladies to wear head coverings because in their culture the head covering was a visible sign of that they were embracing the headship of their husbands and their own created roles given them by God.

Issue: Authority- whose authority?

Is it a symbol of her husbands authority on her head?