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Is the Church Sexist?

votes-women

61% of all church goers in the US are women.  

Women don’t just fill a majority of the pews on Sunday morning, we fill seats everywhere from the secretary’s office to the Sunday school room. We clean the buildings, make communion magically appear on tables across America and assure that no guest in the assembly goes unnoticed. We keep the shut-ins on the prayer list and the social calendar up to date.

We are the majority. And quite often we are the silent, neglected majority.

We sit passively week after week at the feet of men who, by and large, don’t really get the issues we face.

So here it is. Ten issues facing women in the church.

Defining their ministry

Sisters, we are floundering. We are desperate to find our gifts. We are hungry to use our talents. We know we have a heart to serve but we just don’t know when, where or how.

We have to overcome the influence of male-centered, “church” obsessed theology. There is a whole lot more to doing church the biblical way than what happens an hour a week in a building we call church.

Each of us plays a part. Romans 12

Lack of biblical knowledge concerning women’s role in the church

Maybe our ministries would be more easily defined if the church spent less time pounding the “no woman preachers” pulpit and started cheerleading the biblical examples of women who were in the thick of it. Women in the New Testament church played an essential part in the birth and growth of the Lord’s body.

  • Financial supporters Luke 8:1-3
  • Partners in prayer Acts 1:14
  • Servants Rom 16:1-2
  • Coworkers Rom 16:3
  • Church mothers Acts 12:12; 1 Cor 1:11 Col 4:15
  • Church protectors 2 John

 

Misunderstood motives

Not all women who want to be involved are trying to take over the church. From the time I took my first missionary trip to the Philippines, I have heard, “What’s next the pulpit?”

I have no desire to preach on Sunday mornings. I do have deep desire to share the message of Jesus to whoever will give me an ear. And I’m not the only woman who’s ever felt that way. Phil 4:2-3

Not valued

There are some pretty amazing, godly, right-motived women out there who are marginalized by the powers that be. There is a minimally tapped wellspring of wisdom and faith. There is a pool of talent and gifts that could impact the kingdom for good that is still warming the pew.

Girls, if no one else values you, know this. God does. Matt 10:31

Shortage of strong men

Confident, well-studied men aren’t intimidated by women who want to contribute. We need more of you. We need you to believe in us. We need you to champion us. We need you to rise up to your place as shepherds and protectors of the church. We need you to feed all his sheep.

We need you to value the God-ordained role of women. We need you to value our place. We need you make us feel like true fellow-heirs of the grace of life. 1 Pet 3:7

Good girl image

When I first became a Christian, as a teenage girl who had seen and done a lot of sin, I was shamed into silence. No one ever told me to keep secrets or hide my past, but I knew that was door that needed to remain shut.

Here’s the thing, it’s OK to perpetuate your pristine church girl image if that’s what you are. But if you are like me and locked a few too many skeletons in the closet, I want you to know that Jesus girls comes in all shapes, sizes and backgrounds.

Jesus uses:

  • Prostitutes Luke 7:36-39
  • Adulteresses John 8:3-11
  • Racial outcasts Mark 7:24-30
  • Crippled Luke 13:10-13
  • Divorced John 4:17-18

 

Lack of teaching on women’s issues

Women are facing a new era of ethical and moral dilemmas. They need biblical teaching to guide them through uncharted waters. Women need the bible to answer their questions about:

  • Birth control
  • Infertility treatments
  • Divorce
  • Blended families
  • Career choices
  • Mental health
  • Sexuality

 

Women need safe places and Christ-centered teaching on life issues. The church should be that place.

Domestic Violence

The church, generally speaking, is dreadfully ill-prepared to deal with the abused and the abuser. We lack teaching on identifying psychological and emotional abuse in marriage. We often leave women feeling like adultery is the only way out, so they have to just deal with getting shoved into the wall or slapped across the face now and then. We fail to create a safe place for battered wives to whisper their secrets let alone a place to run to.

Jesus says, “Come to me and I will give you rest.” His church should provide the same.

Sexual abuse

The amount of sexual abuse happening in America today is horrific. Click for Statistics.

The American church is no different. Women in the church are coming to Christ with their wounds bleeding, hearts damaged and walls of distrust firmly erected.

We need more talk. We need more action. We need more protection. We need more prevention. We need to create an environment where victims feel less shame about telling and more confident that someone is going to do something that helps.

Sexism

Women aren’t church spectators. Women don’t need the church. Women don’t support the church. Women are the church.

Now, in Christ, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Greek, a slave or free, male or female. You are all the same in Christ Jesus. You belong to Christ, so you are Abraham’s descendants. You get all of God’s blessings because of the promise that God made to Abraham. 

Gal. 3:28-29

Oct 3, 2014Serena
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Comments: 6
  1. Becky Peters
    9 years ago

    Beautiful article, Serena! And 100% scripurally sound! You are right, spiritually confident and mature men will not take offense to this….they will applaud it. God never intended men alone to shoulder all of the ministry work that God commands us to do. Many women today refuse to acknowledge that they will stand ALONE before God on judgement day, not behind their husbands. It is at that time that they will be forced to answer what THEY did as a child of God to convert and bring the lost ones to Christ.

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  2. Joan
    9 years ago

    Another pair of church mothers occurred to me, Lois and Eunice. 1 Timothy 1:5 “I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.”
    Many Godly women have been shamed into silence by the fears of those who lead or lord it over a church. Satan wins. We need not fight, but pray with fasting for all who lead. Christ is the head of all and our confidence comes from His victory not our own accomplishments. We are most blessed when we are most satisfied in God alone, this gives us the confidence to shine for Him. Love your heart Serena.

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    • Serena
      9 years ago

      I almost included Lois and Eunice. They are some of my favorites. They raised a young gospel preacher!

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  3. ELDV
    9 years ago

    Re: Lack of teaching on women’s issues

    I get the concern, but realistically, how is the church *as the church* supposed to address such matters? From the pulpit or the lectern? How well is that going to go over since those in the pulpit and the lecterns aren’t going to be women? In my experience any attempt to discuss family choices, particularly birth control and careers, are nothing but landmines for anyone who would dare tread anywhere near the issue.

    Would this not be a realm better suited for empowering the older woman a la Titus 2?

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    • Serena
      9 years ago

      Oh definitely! That’s where I think the scope the problem gets larger. We aren’t treating the church like the household of God as we should. Older women tend to abdicate their teaching roles.

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  4. Paul Thrower
    8 years ago

    As ELDV mentioned, Titus 2:3-5 is SORELY lacking in many (most?) congregations. Possibly a lack of humility/willingness to listen from the young and/or older women who neglect this desperately needed task. I used to scratch my head reading those verses thinking, “what woman doesn’t love her husband and children?” But, even as God instructs husbands “dwell with [wives] according to knowledge” – He is telling both spouses that those qualities don’t just come naturally (I think few men would argue that they walked into marriage only to realize they had NO idea how long and how hard that “according to knowledge” is to achieve – I’m sure most of us will die before we have our wives all figured out! But the beauty of Yahweh’s design shows in the elderly couple – he has become more complete emotionally because of his wife’s influence, and she usually has learned a great deal of logic and wisdom (we men would certainly like to think that we’ve contributed something positive to our wives through the years!). As for physical abuse in a marriage, it should be sternly impressed on our young single girls (as I told my daughters) – “if he hits you ONCE, RUN, don’t walk away and NEVER give him a second chance!!! Proverbs 22:24, 25 should be taught to boys and girls early on, “Make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go – Lest you learn his ways and set a snare for your soul.” Thankfully, now if spousal abuse is reported to police, they must respond and charge the abuser (at least our laws here in Canada are so), even if the spouse has reported it and changes her mind. Which brings out another point – that we greatly need qualified elders who have and take the authority to convict and rebuke such a spouse.

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Serena
9 years ago 6 Comments American Church, Christ-followers & Culture, The Church, Uncategorized, Women's Ministrywomen in church, women's issues856
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