1 Timothy 2:8-15
I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing. I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God. A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety.
Never has it been such a challenge for me to write a devotional as it is today. The reason is the message in today’s chapter which is certainly very controversial and I pray you receive it as a word from God. I have no physical father here on earth anymore but I am blessed with 2 mothers, a grandmother, a beautiful wife, a precious daughter and my loving sister and so women have a very special place in my life. When I read the word today of the role of a woman, I was shaken not because I did not read this passage before but because God laid it on my heart and wants us to understand the purpose of it. Paul was not a male chauvinist and therefore wrote these words but as in everything penned in the Bible, he was inspired by the Holy Spirit. What is God saying to us today and is it relevant to our day and age?
The Lord created woman after he created man to be a support and companion to man (Gen. 2:22). It was Eve who was deceived by the serpent and not Adam but she did not deceive Adam, rather she persuaded him (Gen. 3:17). God punished women with severe birth pains, a desire for their husbands and that they would be under the husband in their relationships (Gen. 3:16). Therefore women are not expected to teach or command authority over men in churches. However, women have a key role in the spiritual upbringing of their children and are encouraged to teach and take charge of their children and direct them to God. Men are expected to lead the home and the church, are expected to be in prayer at all times and in all places and are called to love their wives and children the way God loves us. In God’s eyes all mankind is His special creation and He did not send His son Jesus to die only for men but for all mankind. I know this is a difficult passage to digest but I pray that you would approach it with prayer and submission.
In His Loving Service,
ServantBoy
1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time.
Add to: Facebook | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumbleupon | Reddit | Blinklist | Twitter | Technorati | Yahoo Buzz | Newsvine
Daily Christian Journal 
Thank you, Vineet, for delivering a message that wasn’t easy for you to do! God is faithful to help us receive it in the manner it was sent, with love and understanding! God bless you and all the women in your life! deb
Deb,
Thanks for always being so gracious in your responses. I am not sure how I would’ve responded if I was a woman and I pray that every woman who reads it will read it as led by the Holy Spirit.
Blessings,
Vineet
Vineet,
Wow, I could never have delivered the message you judt did in such a manner. As a man with a wife and four daughters, I know how easy it is to stumble around something like this. You are right though, when called by the Spirit to teach, he always gives us the words needed to get the point across in the manner he wishes. God Bless
Jim
Jim,
I cannot tell you what a real challenge this book of the Bible has been to me and I now really feel for those in authority in Churches everywhere who have to preach God’s word as led by the spirit and not affected by the world. For us it is a matter of reading, believing and applying as fit but for pastors, elders and deacons, it is about standing up for what’s God’s will versus what is pleasing to the Church. I am now reminded to pray for those in authority that they will humbly follow God and not this world.
Blessings,
Vineet