{"id":2284,"date":"2012-09-09T00:05:06","date_gmt":"2012-09-09T07:05:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/?p=2284"},"modified":"2012-09-08T19:03:11","modified_gmt":"2012-09-09T02:03:11","slug":"leadership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/2012\/09\/09\/leadership\/","title":{"rendered":"Leadership"},"content":{"rendered":"

In facing the question of the place of women in the Church and the relationship of men and women, one text that has rarely been used in the issue perhaps would clarify and eliminate the problems fairly simply.<\/p>\n

\nJesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave\u2014just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28; cf. Mark 10:42-45 and Luke 22:25-27)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Submitting for Christians is simply another word for love. You do for someone else because you want what\u2019s best for them, not because you\u2019re looking for what\u2019s in it for you. <\/p>\n

\tThe nature of \u201cman, the head of the woman\u201d is perhaps explained by remembering the nature of leadership in Christianity: servanthood! The issue is not the woman submitting to the man, but rather, of the man submitting to the woman. The husband that would truly be the head of his household must be a servant. How rare that is! Yet this is precisely what the Bible demands, something that is completely alien and at odds with the American ideal as popularly imagined, even within Christianity.<\/p>\n

\tDoes this mean that the man does whatever his wife tells him to do? No more than it means the wife does everything the husband tells him to do. Being a servant does not mean being a door mat. It means being a lover!<\/p>\n

\tJesus did what was best for the human race as a whole, and his disciples in particular. But when the disciples suggested something stupid, he didn\u2019t follow it. Peter wanted to build booths for Jesus and Moses and Elijah. Peter \u2014 and all the disciples \u2014 tried to dissuade Jesus from the cross. But he did what was necessary anyhow.<\/p>\n

\tWe have seen men and women both taken out by their spouses. I have seen women use their husband as an excuse to leave the church or to lessen their involvement. It essentially boils down to, \u201cI can\u2019t do what\u2019s right and good because my husband won\u2019t let me.\u201d The opposite happens just as often \u2014 in fact, perhaps more often. We have had several men leave leadership positions in the church, and the church altogether, because, for whatever reason their wives \u201cjust weren\u2019t happy\u201d with the church, the pastor, or some perceived slight.<\/p>\n

\tEve\u2019s words, \u201cthis serpent…\u201d or Adam\u2019s words \u201cthis woman you gave me\u201d express the same attitude: seeking someone else to blame for his or her own stupidity. It is a lie to believe that someone or something else is responsible for our own failure to be righteous.<\/p>\n

There is no place in the church for the men to \u201clord it over\u201d the women<\/p>\n

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.<\/p>\n

\tWives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.<\/p>\n

\tHusbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church\u2014for we are members of his body. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery\u2014but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. (Ephesians 5:21-33)\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\tThis is illustrated by 1 Corinthians 7:4-5<\/p>\n

The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her hus\u00acband. The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\tAgain: submitting for Christians is simply another word for love. You do for someone else be-cause you want what\u2019s best for them, not because you\u2019re looking for what\u2019s in it for you. The wife submits to the husband just as the church submits to Christ and the husband loves his wife as Jesus loved the Church and gave himself for it. This is submission and this is love, no matter how you cut it. How did Jesus love the church? Philipians 2 describes how he humbled himself and became a servant, becoming nothing for the sake of the human race.<\/p>\n

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
\n\tWho, being in very nature God,
\n\tdid not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
\n\tbut made himself nothing,
\ntaking the very nature of a servant,
\nbeing made in human likeness.
\nAnd being found in appearance as a man,
\nhe humbled himself
\nand became obedient to death\u2014
\neven death on a cross! (Philipians 2:5-8)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\tHow does the church love Jesus? Look at Stephen or Paul or any other person of faith and godliness in the Bible.<\/p>\n

\tThere is no place in the church for the men to \u201clord it over\u201d the women, or for leaders to do the same over those whom they lead. Likewise, there is no room for meekly going along with whatever their whims might be because we must obey and who cares about what\u2019s right.<\/p>\n

\tBased on the scriptures quoted above, leadership in the Christian context means mutual love, respect, and submission \u2014 three words that to a large extent are synonymous. Being a doormat is not part of the equation, because submitting to evil is something that a Christian must not and cannot do.<\/p>\n

Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. <\/p>\n

\tSince, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.<\/p>\n

\tPut to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. (Colossians 2:20-3:6)\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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In facing the question of the place of women in the Church and the relationship of men and women, one text that has rarely been used in the issue perhaps would clarify and eliminate the problems fairly simply. Jesus called … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes"},"categories":[18,3,17,16],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2284"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2286,"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2284\/revisions\/2286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettelhorst.com\/blog1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}