Title: The Role of Women in the Church
1(No Transcript)
2The Role of Women in the Church
3The proper role of men and women in situations
that involve leadership.
- The contrast between "men" and "women" suggests
that Paul is assigning roles. - These passages concern situations where both
women and men are present together. - The exhortations are built upon the order of
headship and submissiveness that was enjoined
upon man and women from the creation itself.
4The men are to pray, v. 8.
- The men ("aner, males) are to lead in prayer!
- The expression in every place points
specifically to Christian gatherings such as the
assembly where disciples came together. - Lifting up holy hands (unpolluted) without wrath
(anger toward others) and dissension
(dialogismos), wrong thoughts.
5The women are to dress modestly, v. 9.
- This command sets forth the unobstrusive role
women should manifest in gatherings with men. - A woman's clothing should be well-arranged
(kosmios, kosmein), something like adorning
herself with adorning dress, arranging herself
with well-arranged clothing.
6- The kind of clothing Paul has in mind in mixed
gatherings involves display of wealth and the
undue attention to physical beauty. - Aidos means shamefastness, moral sensibility that
shrinks back from transgressing the limits of
propriety. - Sobriety--sophrosune (self-control).
7The women are to learn in quietness, v. 11.
- Men are to be the teachers in mixed gatherings.
- The woman is urged to manifest "entire
submissiveness" in her learning. Hupotage
means to arrange oneself under another,
respecting the divinely assigned roles of
leadership.
8- With quietness (hesuchia).
- Tranquility arising from within causing no
disturbance to others. - Not a prohibition to women to speak in mixed
gatherings for the purpose of learning. - Hesuchia means quietness and not absolute
silence (Cf. v. 2)
9The women are not to teach or exercise dominion
over men, but to remain quiet, v. 12.
- Does not forbid women teachers or Bible classes.
- The Greek word "oude" has this contextual sense
I suffer not a woman to teach (nor in any other
way) exercise dominion over the man. - Paul is talking about teaching that involves the
exercise of dominion over men.
10- Notice that the Greek word here is signao
meaning silence. - As a teacher (exercising dominion) a woman is
commanded to silent. - As a student (not exercising dominion) a woman
is commanded to be quiet.
11What kind of teaching arrangements demand silence?
12It is not ordinary personal conversation between
a man and a woman.
- If so, a woman could never discuss the Bible with
a man (Mt. 2820). - She could not encourage with Scripture any
Christian brother who has fallen from the faith
(Gal. 61).
13It is not group conversation or discussion
(whether assembly or class).
- If every time men and women got together and a
woman spoke in the group, she would be exercising
dominion, then a woman could never speak in any
group of people where the truth was being
discussed. - Yet Priscilla taught in a group of three (Ac.
1826).
14It is teaching where one has authority over all
others.
- It would certainly include exercising a
leadership role in the proclamation of the word
in the assembly. - Woman may not teach in any other teaching
arrangement other than the assembly where the
arrangement is of the same nature whether the
whole church is present or not.
15- A woman may not be the teacher in a mixed Bible
class because the teacher controls, leads, and
directs the class. - A woman may speak as a student in such an
arrangement, if her intention is to learn in
quietness.
16A woman may not exercise dominion over men in
other ways.
- A woman could not Scripturally occupy a
leadership role like an elder or someone who
leads in a mixed gathering to discuss church
work. - The woman may not lead a church meeting to
discuss church business, but she may certainly
respond to those leading concerning church work
in just the same way she might speak in a
teaching situation (with quietness and
submissiveness).
17- A woman could not Scripturally lead a mixed group
of men and women in worship, since leading in
worship is a male role. - A woman may not lead the church in prayer, but
she may respond to one leading by bringing before
the congregation prayer requests.
18Correct diagram of 1 Tim. 212
To teach
I
do allow
woman
man
To exercise authority over
or
not
a
a