Covered in Worship
Notes
Transcript
We are breaking away from our study through Matthew this week, and we will pick back up in Matthew when we return in January.
But today I promised a couple of our boys that we would dig deep into the text of 1 Corinthians 11
Paul in his first letter to the church at Corinth here in Chapter 11 addresses two things that the church is doing wrong. some things that are going on in the church, and wants to correct them. He ends Chapter 11 talking about people how they are observing the Lords Supper (Communion), but before that he talks about women covering their heads. And that is what we are going look into today.
So we are going dive right into the text. Open your Bibles to 1 Corinthians 11:2-16
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.
So this passage of Scripture opens up many questions in our minds.
Do women have to cover their heads when they worship or pray?
Should men cover or not cover their heads?
Does God see woman as lower than man?
Should a woman barb her hair?
We are going to find the answers to these questions this morning, but before we do I want to tell you two things. And these two things we need to keep in our minds as when uncover the truth here that Paulis speaking.
This was 2000 years ago. Not only that, it was 2000 years ago, in a middle eastern culture. A culture very different from any the culture in the world. So as we open this text remember this was different time, in a different culture. Paul is writing to them and as he is writing he has they’re ways in his mind. And ultimately, Paul wants there to be peace in the church. He doesn't want anything to distract the people from their worship of God. He even ends his words on this with 1 Corinthians 11:16
16 If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God.
2. As we get in the middle of the verses (8) some people would say that man is better than woman. But let me remind you of what Paul also wrote in Galatians 3:28
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.
Guys, as we move through these verses, and even in our everyday lives as a husband one day, you are no better than a woman, you are no better than your wife. God created both men and woman equal…we have different roles. But women are not below men. Thank God that he created women… because we need the help! That is what he created woman for, because he knew we couldn't do life by ourselves.
18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”
Guys, be careful to never let your mind think that you are better than a woman because you are a man. Every man has a role in the relationship, just like every woman has a role. but together these two roles become one. Working together.
So let’s get to our text
Covered in Worship
Covered in Worship
Paul begins to speak in 1 Cor 11:2
2 Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you.
There were problems in the Corinthian Church so they wrote to Paul to help them settle some issues and he is thankful that they have remembered the things that he had passed on to them before, but he then point to his area of head coverings, Look at verse 2. 1 Cor 11:3
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.
So he lays out a structure chart for authority. At the top is God. God is over Christ. Christ is over man, and Man is over woman.
Now this is very important to understand. Yes, men and women, husband and wife are equal. One is not better than the other. One is not higher than the other. But guys, listen. A Christian husband is responsible and answers to God. If you are a Christian and you are a man, you answer to God how you lead your family.
—Mom— (We don’t always agree)
So Paul first sets up the authority structure. Now, he begins to address the covering of the head, but I want to remind you of what I said earlier. The physical covering of the head that Paul is speaking about is a tradition that was going on in that time… in the city of Corinth.
Corinth is in Greece. And the Greek culture women were divided into two different categories: Matrons & Hetairai (huh-tie-ra)
Now matrons were those women who main concern was caring for their husbands and children, but Hetairai were women who were prostitutes.
Now Matrons, in that culture would wear a veil over their heads, but the That was the culture in which Paul was writing hetairai would not. They would put their hair in braids to make themselves look beautiful for the customers they wanted to have.
That’s why Paul wrote these words in 1 Tim 2:9
1 Timothy 2:9 (ESV)
9 likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire,
This statement about braided hair and pearls and making yourself look nice was for that time and that culture. Because that was their way. This is not a command or rule for all of time, that women should veil themselves when they pray, or not braid they’re hair, or wear make-up. But there is an principle that is still true today and will always be true. Women should “adorn themselves with respectable apparel.”
I know that there have been some Sunday morning where mom has come to church and told one of our girls she should go change. And not just in church.
The matrons were respected, the hetairai (huh-tie-ra) were not.
Back to our text, Paul uses the word head, showing a line of authority. ....the head of the wife is her husband, like the head of a man is Christ…and the head of Christ is God.
But if we look into verse 4 & 5, we see the question of the veil takes place in worship, in the church...
1 Cor 11:4-5
1 Corinthians 11:4–5 (ESV)
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.
In that culture, it would be a sign of disrespect to her husband for the woman not be covered. That was the culture. And as a Christian living in that Greek culture, the last thing you would want to do is draw attention to a situation that may push others away from Christ. It would show that their lifestyle was immoral, not a matron but a Huh-tie-ra… a prostitute.
And Paul says in verse 6, if you are not going to cover,
1 Cor 11:6
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.
Again, that culture. That time. Paul writes to that situation. He says that if you are going to disgrace yourself by note following the culture of that time, you might as well cut it off.
One of the things we have to do when we read and study the Bible is ask ourselves… what did it mean to the hearers of that day. And to understand you have to s\take time to study, read, and look to reliable church history.
This head covering is pointed to a specific audience at a specific time.
Lets move on and talk about the man of Corinth.
1 Cor 11:7-9
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.
Now guys, before you puff up your chest and memorize these verses and use them as a weapon…”yeah! girl you are the glory of man. Yeah! you were made for man. yeah1 you were created for man!
Lets remember Gal 3:28
Galatians 3:28 (ESV)
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.
Paul is not putting women down. I am thankful that God made Eve. I am thankful that God made Mom. Next time you think you are better than a woman, remember it is a woman that brought you into this world.
Look at verse 11
1 Cor 11:11-12
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.
So then Paul sets out to give two reasons a woman should cover here head in that culture. Look at verse 10...
1 Cor 11:10
10 That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.
I wish I could tell you I have definite understanding of what this means....”because of the angels” But I don’t. So there are times that I have a few trusted people that I look to for their interpretation of the Scripture.
A pastor in California who has been at his church for over 50 years and is a wonderful interpreter of the Bible says this;
“Women are to be submissive by wearing a symbol of authority so as not to offend these most holy and submissive creatures (angels) who watch the church and who were present at creation when God designed the order of authority for men and women.” -Pastor John MacArthur
Another person talking about this session says that the angels are really concerned about people coming to Jesus. And when someone is saved there is rejoicing in heaven (Luke 15:7) So the angels do not want anything to turn people away from salvation, including a woman, in that culture not covering her head during worship.
Now as Paul begins to close his writing on head coverings we go to verse 13
1 Cor 11:13-16
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.
Verse 13 and verse 16 brings two important things. Very important for us today. But before we look at that, lets look at what Pauls says in the middle of those two verses..
1 Cor 11:14-15
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.
Paul appeals to them to think, in their culture, what is expected. In tha culture it would be unthinkable for a man to have long hair..it was a disgrace.. but for a woman, it was her glory.
Again, in that culture. But now lets look at those two verses.
1 Cor 11:13
1 Corinthians 11:13 (ESV)
13 Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered?
Paul is an outsider. He is not a Greek man, he is an Hebrew Man. And he says judge for yourselves! You know the culture, you what is expected. Live the way hat is traditional for you, but also follow God and do nothing to turn an unbeliever away.
That’s how he wraps it up in verse 16...
16 If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God.
He is saying, if anyone is going against what is expected in that culture and because of their wearing a veil or not wearing a veil someone does not want to worship or even listen to the gospel, thats not right. It has to stop. There is no room for that in the church.
So let me close here with a couple of things.
1. The title of the message was Covered in Worship. Yes or No? Is it a must No. And you might say, Dad, it is a must when we are told to do it. And I understand. The Catholic Church says it is and our school say it is, but the Bible doesn’t say that it is. And that is the important thing. (Ababy head covering)
I understand that you live in a culture that says you should. They even point to the Bible and see, it says it here. But what is interesting is that the culture will say that women should cover their head in worship, but they don’t keep reading where it says that they should grow their hair long.
2. So what do you do? First of all, you need to recognize the authority of the Bible as the authority in every culture. If culture goes against the Bible…the way fo the Bible wins.vain.
Just like I talked in yoru school this week how acceptable it is to use the name of Jesus carelessly. But the Bible clearly say do not use the name of the Lord your God in in. The bible, and its standards wins over any culture.
But I like what Pauls says here..
20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.
Paul is saying I wont let any culture get in the way of presenting the gospel to someone in that they might be saved. That’s the goal… salvation for the unbeliever… either by wearing a head-covering or not. That is the goal.