True Gender Neutrality

Daily Reading:  1 Corinthians 11

Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God.  (1 Corinthians 11.11-12)

Devotional Thought: Some hot topics in today's politically-correct culture: Is there a difference between men and women?  Is gender something determined or decided?  Can men become women and women become men?  Is there true equality between the sexes?

I have a Quest Study Bible that I love to read.  In it there is an excellent article from 1 Corinthians 11 entitled, “Should women wear head coverings in church?”  While the issue of head coverings is no longer a relevant concern in today’s North American culture, there is a deeper question that is brought up in this chapter: Did Paul view women as inferior to men?  For that matter, does the Bible teach that women are inferior to men?

The short answer is "no."  The longer answer is that God created Adam and Eve equal but different.  Since that time, every husband and wife are to be equal but different.  Given the variety of experiences, personalities and strengths that people possess, it would seem ludicrous to me to say that men should always be the decision makers and rule over their households.  The Garden of Eden is pictured as a partnership, not a dictatorship.  The same is true today for the marriage that is founded upon the Word of God.  Saying that, however, we should also say that Paul recognized the differences between the sexes and the culturally accepted roles of the sexes.

Christian marriage, however, is not dictated by the culture.  Rather it is inspired by the Word of God and the Spirit that joins husband and wife.  That is why Paul wrote: “In the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman” (1 Corinthians 11.11, emphasis mine).

Prayer: Lord God, in today's culture many voices speak forceful and contradictory "truths" about gender.  Help me to maintain a biblical understanding of the sexes so that I can live in health and wisdom.  Amen.

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 110:5-7

5 The Lord is at your right hand ; he will crush kings on the day of his wrath.

6 He will judge the nations, heaping up the dead and crushing the rulers of the whole earth.

7 He will drink from a brook along the way,and so he will lift his head high.