Should Women be Quiet in Church? (1 Timothy 2:11)

"Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness." (1 Tim. 2:11, ESV).

Paul continues his directions on what is proper for women in the church setting with a somewhat startling statement to let a woman learn quietly with submission. What is Paul saying here? As with all controversial statements there are numerous explanations. Here are a few:

1) This was instruction only to Timothy's church in Ephesus - if this is the case and this instruction has no purpose today then why do have it in Scripture? I believe that this conclusion invariably leads to a slippery slope that eventually undermines the reliability of Scripture.

2) That women should not speak in church - I also don't feel that the inflection in the Greek should be translated this way. Some people use this as an excuse to demean women so that they have no say in church matters. This is just unloving and unbiblical. Let's look at the different ways that scholars have translated this passage:

NIV - Women should learn quietly and submissively.

NAS - A woman must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness.

NKJ - Let a woman learn in silence with all submission.

NLT - Women should learn quietly and submissively.

ESV - Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness.

The Message - They (the women) should study to be quiet and obedient along with everyone else.

So it seems that Paul urges that women should seek to learn quietly and in submission to the leadership of the church. Why did Paul have to teach this? Obviously there were women (and are women) who do not act this way. We will look more into this issue in the next post. But before we do, I'll state the third option for this passage that I ascribe to:

3) Women should learn quietly under the authority of the leaders in the church.

No Pearls?! (1 Tim. 2:9-10)

"...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, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness--with good works." (1 Tim. 2:9-10)

After urging that the men should pray and not quarrel, Paul turns his attention to women. I used to always wonder if this section of Scripture meant that women should not be wearing gold, pearls, or have braids in their hair. To say that today's women do not have to abide by this would make me guilty of selective literalism I used to think. However, my scholar of a wife wrote a research paper on these very verse. You can find the link to the first half of the paper here. The next half can be found here (scroll down to the end).

In short, Paul is saying that women need to not dress so outlandishly, instead when they are in church they should try to glorify God and not themselves. Furthermore, women who profess godliness should live the Christian life and not just flaunt their own external beauty.

Here is her main conclusion on this issue (which I agree with)

"Women in the worship service should not dress in extreme fashion with braided hair, gold, pearls or costly clothing. The reader can be aware of the fact that women, back in the time that Paul was writing, only had three dresses and often wore gold and pearls in their hair to draw attention to themselves (like many pagan women). However, the point Paul is making is in contrast to “moderation.” Paul says to dress in moderation or hidden truth, not in contrast to out of control fashion. If a woman comes to a worship service with jewelry to flaunt her wealth or draw attention to herself, then she is not honoring God. Women should be more concerned with her good works instead of her apparel."

On Prayer (1 Tim. 2:8)

"I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling;" (1 Tim. 2:8)

Again, Paul stresses the importance of prayer. An interesting side note is that Paul calls on the men to pray, not the women. How do I know he is not giving this command specifically to women? Because in the next verse, he states, "likewise also that women should...." and gives a specific command to women, which we will visit later. What am I getting at, you may ask? Good question. Of course God desires women to pray, but it seems here Paul is stressing the importance of the men in the church praying and not causing conflict.

When a conflict arises in your life, what do you do? Do you deal with the conflict head on? Do you shy away from the conflict? Do you pray about the conflict?

I submit to you that, biblically, prayer should be our first action. If we are praying the way we are supposed to (without ceasing) then prayer will always be our first response to anything that arises in our life, whether good or bad. An interesting thing about prayer is that we can never pray enough. It's kind of like my golf game. No matter how well (or how bad) I play one day, I know that there is always the possibility of playing better the next time I tee it up. Prayer is similar in this in respect that no matter how much I pray or how meaningful I think my prayers are, I know there is the possibility that I could still pray more, for more people, and for more situations.

Because of this our prayer life will never be complete. Therefore, I've devised a daily prayer plan. Now, there are many of these types of plans available. What I have tried to come up with is a system for busy people. Have you ever gone an entire day and realized, "I haven't prayed at all today...." I'll admit to doing that. Therefore, in order to ensure that I at least have some prayer daily, I've had to give myself a schedule. Because we are instructed to pray for all people (1 Tim. 2:1) I've categorized my prayer list as follows:

Monday:

Family: Emily, my wife
Church: My pastor
Nation: President Bush
Congregation: I pick someone every day

Tuesday:

Family: My son, Jackson
Church: Music minister
Nation: Governor Sanford
Congregation: ditto

Wednesday:

Family: My parents
Church: Youth minister
Nation: Speaker of the House
Congregation: ditto

Thursday:

Family: My sister and her family
Church: A good friend in the ministry
Nation: Senate Majority Leader
Congregation: ditto

Friday:

Family: My in-laws and sister-in-law
Church: A good friend in the ministry
Nation: Presidents of SBC seminaries
Congregation: ditto

Saturday:

Family: Any extended cousins, etc. that come to mind
Church: A good friend in the ministry
Nation: South Carolina's football program (jk) SBC Missionaries that I know and don't know
Congregation: ditto

On Sundays, I'm selfish and ask God to be with me in my teaching, preaching, etc.

Now this list is pretty pathetic if you think about it. But even doing this little amount is better then none at all. And as you pray through this list specifically, God will place other people and situations on your heart and gives at least a little accountability with your prayer life. One of the biggest reasons our spiritual lives are not as good as they can be, is because we do not make ourselves accountable to anyone. Therefore, making yourself accountable to yourself may help just a little.

Preacher, Apostle, Teacher (1 Tim. 2:7)

"For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth." (1 Tim. 2:7)

For this, the fact that that there is only one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus who gave himself a ransom for all...for this, Paul says is why he was selected for ministry. Paul states that he has been appointed to be three things:

1) A Preacher - literally a herald proclaiming the good news.

2) An Apostle - This term is debated in Christian circles as to if this position is still active today. In the Greek, apostolos literally means, "one sent forth." Some conclude that an apostle is one who starts new churches and oversees their progression. Paul definitely matched this definition. Clearly, Paul was sent forth to spread the Gospel to the nations and did so.

3) A Teacher - a teacher of the Truth that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Whether or not you agree that the biblical position of apostle is still active today, it would do a pastor well to heed to all three of these offices. To proclaim the Gospel as a preacher is a given. As far as being one who starts new churches, I've always been of the idea that once a church reaches a substantial amount of members (600-1000), 200 or so should break off and plant in a different part of town. We can reach more people for Christ by multiplying rather then just getting bigger. Finally, a pastor should also be a teacher who teaches the truth and instructs in sound doctrine. From my experience in ministry, teaching seems to be a major area of failure in churches. Hopefully, this trend is reversing.

One God, One Way (1 Tim. 2:5-6)

"For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time." (1 Tim. 2:5-6)

After urging Timothy to pray for all people because God desires all to be saved, Paul writes one of the most beautiful sections in all of Scripture that truly encapsulates the Gospel. He states:

1) There is one God - Make no mistake about it, there is only one God and that is the God of the Bible. Paul does not leave this up to debate.

2) There is one way to God - This one God, YHWH to the Jews, has provided one way to come to Him, and that is through His son, Jesus Christ. Why? Because Jesus Christ paid God the ransom, the fee, for mankind's sin, so that his Wrath (the penalty for sin) would not be poured out on us. Instead, it was poured out on His Son. This happened at the proper time, or the fullness of time - a time in which God, in his sovereignty and wisdom, chose.

The world oftentimes chides Christians for being closed-minded and bigoted because we claim that Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation. If we are really intellectually and reasonably honest with what we believe, we will stick by our claim that Jesus in the only way. This, indeed, was the purpose of Paul's letter to Timothy.

Saving Truth (1 Tim. 2:3-4)

"This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved, and to come to a knowledge of the truth." (v.3-4)

In the two verses preceding these, Paul urges Timothy to make supplications, intercessions, thanksgivings and prayers for all people, even the governing authorities. Why? Paul tells us the reason in verses three and four:

Because doing so is good and it is pleasing to God because He desires all his people to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth.

Notice that Paul did not say that God desired all people to come to a knowledge of a truth. Rather, He is claiming that Christianity is the only truth. This kind of language is what gets a lot of Christians labeled as "intolerant" in today's postmodern culture. Critics say that, instead of claiming to have a monopoly on the only way to salvation, Christians should just accept other peoples' views as being "true to them." Unfortunately, while this idea smells like roses, it tastes like poison. This kind of logic is fallacious and evil. It's fallacious because it is not logical and it is evil because it does not care about the eternity of its fellow man.

The law of non-contradiction, a first principle of logic, states that x cannot equal y.

For instance a Muslim says that Jesus is a prophet who is not God...the Qu'ran says this. A Christian states that Jesus is God...the Bible says this. So, who is right? Well, we may deduce that either (a) Muslims may be right and Christians may be wrong, (b) Christians may be right and Muslims may be wrong, or (c) Muslims and Christians may both be wrong. However, the option that they both could be right is impossible because both religions make exclusive claims.

So the next time someone tells you that you are being intolerant, tell them in response that you are just trying to be logical and find the truth - of which there can only be one...and pray for them after that. Because doing so is pleasing to God who desires all to be saved and come to a knowledge of Him.

Pray For Our Leaders (1 Tim. 2:2)

"...for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way." (2:2, ESV)

In verse 1 of chapter 2, Paul urges that Timothy should pray for all men and in the next verse expands on this idea of praying for all men by specifically stating that we should pray for those in high positions.

Christians are often very active in politics. There is merit in being active in the law-making affairs of our country. However, when Christians start to place politics as equal or higher then God, they are committing idolatry in the name of religious freedom. It bothers me when I see African-American churches invite members of the Democratic party to come speak inside the church and to take over the sacred pulpit in order to rally the members to vote for them. It also equally bothers me to see Anglo-American churches invite members of the Republican party to come speak inside their churches and to take over the sacred pulpit in order to rally the members to vote for them.

We must never blur the lines of politics and God...remember, politicians want to help their country but they also need votes in order to keep their jobs.

So what can we do to maintain that we live in a safe and just country? Pray for our leaders. I think most Christians (including myself) believe that prayer works but actively live as if prayer cannot move mountains. We are called to pray with faith and so many times we fail to do so.

Let's pray for President Bush and his advisers that they will make right and just decisions. Let's pray for the Supreme Court in that they will also make wise decisions. Let's also pray for Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate majority leader Harry Reid that they will make careful and wise decisions and protect the sanctity of human life.

Let's thank God for the privilege it is to live in this country and let's pray for its leaders. Prayer is the one action that we can make in politics that will have the highest impact.

Pray For All Men (1 Tim. 2:1)

"Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men," (2:1)

The beginning of the second chapter in Paul's first letter to Timothy is also the beginning of his official pastoral advice. If we could give advice to a younger brother in the faith, I wonder where we would start? Paul starts with prayer. But Paul does not instruct Timothy to pray for himself, he instructs Timothy to pray for others - not just for believers either, but for ALL men.

Paul urges Timothy to do four things;

1) To make supplications for all men - Making a supplication means to ask God to do something in particular in one's life. Paul tells Timothy to make supplications for other people, thus perhaps asking God to bless other people. What, loving, pastoral advice to ask God to help other people.

2) To make prayers for all men - To pray for all men. Even though Timothy has no idea what other people's problems and issues are he is still instructed to pray for them.

3) To make intercessions for all men - Here is a tricky one. Paul is telling Timothy to intercede for other people on their behalf. God knows that most people (including ministers) do not pray enough. Therefore, it is Timothy's duty, as a minster of the gospel, to see to it that other people are prayed for.

4) To give thanks for all men - When was the last time you thanked God for putting someone who is good to you in your life? Now, when was the last time you (and I) thanked God for putting someone who is evil to you in our life? I have found that when people have criticized me or have been a general thorn in the flesh, it has drawn me closer to God and it has been a wonderful time of spiritual growth. God says to thank Him for putting these people in your life because God wants you to have His strength be made perfect in your weakness.

Let's take Paul's God-breathed advice and pray for all men.