Trust the Head.

Last week we looked at 1 Timothy 2:12 which says, “I do not let women teach men or have authority over them. Let them listen quietly.”

Continuing on from last week, I gave some examples of places where I have taught and had authority over men outside of the church. It is easy to say, “Well, in those settings it is ok, as long as you do not do it in a church setting.” Well, about that… I have been given the privilege to preach in my church. Not just to women, but to the whole church in a Sunday morning service.

Hold your gasp. I will also add in here, that we have two senior pastors at my church, the first being a female pastor and the second being a male pastor and they both preach, together. Now you can gasp! Haha. There are women pastors and preachers all over the world, who teach and preach the word of God, not just to women but to all kinds of people. So do we just have a mass of women choosing to ignore the word of God or what is the situation?

This week I want us to understand that we cannot approach the Bible like we do any other book, we need the wisdom and the revelation that comes from Holy Spirit. Because the same Bible that tells me that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me in Philippians 4:13 also tells me that the battle is not mine but God’s in 2 Chronicles 20:15. So do I do something or wait on God? Only Holy Spirit can answer that.

The same applies to this verse in 1 Timothy 2:12. As women, do we do nothing and sit back and be quiet as prescribed or do we consider that the first evangelist who ever preached of Jesus’ resurrection was a woman (Mary) after her encounter with Jesus at the tomb, see Mark 16:1-20? Jesus could have very well hidden Himself from her and only appeared to the men if His view was that women should sit back in silence.

Do we forget the story of the woman at the well who Jesus revealed Himself to as the Messiah? If we read that story carefully, Jesus went out of His way to meet with this woman. If the preaching and teaching of the gospel was reserved for men, why did He bother with her? Could it be that Jesus went to her because He trusted her to boldly and unashamedly represent Him to the people in her village?

John 4:28- 30 says, “All at once, the woman left her water jar and ran off to her village and told everyone, “Come and meet a man at the well who told me everything I’ve ever done!  He could be the One we’ve been waiting for.” Hearing this, the people came streaming out of the village to go see Jesus.”

Her sharing the good news of her encounter with Jesus brought a whole village to Jesus. It looks to me that Jesus knew what He was doing when He involved women in His ministry.

Ephesians 1:22-23 says, “And he [Jesus] alone is the leader and source of everything needed in the church. God has put everything beneath the authority of Jesus Christ and has given him the highest rank above all others. And now we, his church, are his body on the earth and that which fills him who is being filled by it!” Colossians 1:18 says, “He is the Head of his body, which is the church.”

If Jesus is the source of everything needed in the church, should we then not also trust Him to choose how He puts His body together? Why do we think we can tell God how to run His church?

We need to go back to a place where we have reverential fear of God and put Him back in His place as the Head of the Body. As we trust our own heads to tell our bodies to stand up or look there or not to touch that because it is hot, we need to trust Jesus as the Head of the Church. If He chooses to put women in ministry, that is entirely up to Him. We respect that and honor that.

We don’t choose where we serve God any more than our feet get a choice in how they serve us in our bodies. If my feet decided they wanted to be my mouth, I would have a problem. We serve wherever God puts us, and we trust Him with all the rest and we honor those God puts in authority over us, male or female. After all, it is His authority.

Love and blessings,

Melissa Tsingano.