Good News & A Talking Donkey

We have been looking at Adam and Eve and what it means to be a beloved daughter of God. One of my favorite scriptures in the New Testament is Galatians 3:26-28 which says, “‘Faith immersed you into Christ, and now you are covered and clothed with his life. And we no longer see each other in our former state —Jew or non-Jew, rich or poor, male or female—because we’re all one through our union with Jesus Christ. You have all become true children of God by faith in Jesus Christ!”

When we are in Christ our differences do not matter. It does not matter whether you are young or old, we see that with Jeremiah. It does not matter if you are Jew or Gentile, we see this all over the New Testament and in our own lives. It does not matter if you are black, white, Asian, Hispanic, see through or blue. It does not matter if you are male or female.

We still struggle with some of these realities but 1 Samuel 16:6-7 says, “When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord ’s anointed!” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

God is not fussed by the things we are fussed about. God was very clear in Genesis 1:26-28 which says, “’Then God said, “Let us make a man and a woman in our image to be like us.  Let them reign over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the livestock, over the creatures that creep along the ground, and over the wild animals.” So God created man and woman and shaped them with his image inside them. In his own beautiful image, he created his masterpiece. Yes, male and female he created them. And God blessed them in his love, saying, “Reproduce and be fruitful! Populate the earth and subdue it!  Reign over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and every creature that lives on earth.”

God created men and women in His image and loved them the same. So if:

1. women are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27);
2. women are saved by faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:8-10);
3. women can be filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4);
4. women can hear from God and receive revelation from God (Judges 4; Luke 1:41-45; Luke 1:46-55; John 4); and
5. women were given authority (Genesis 1:28 and Luke 10:1,2,17-20; Matthew 28:16-20; Romans 16:3-4); and
6. the Bible says we no longer see each other in our former state of being male or female when we are in Christ (Galatians 3:26-28),

then why do people think women cannot preach and teach the word of God?

In case you have not realised, God is not an “exclusive” God. If God can use a donkey to communicate a message (Numbers 22:28), I am pretty sure He can use anyone who is surrendered in servitude to Him to share the good news of the gospel! It is too good to keep a secret!

I’ll leave you with this, Acts 10:34-35 says, “Peter said, “Now I know for certain that God doesn’t show favoritism with people but treats everyone on the same basis.  It makes no difference what race of people one belongs to. If they show deep reverence for God, and are committed to doing what’s right, they are acceptable before him.”

We’ll continue next week, but hope you have a wonderful week ahead.

Love and blessings,

Melissa Tsingano.