Men, listen up!

Recovering the lost ground of worship (4)

As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission…
- 1 Corinthians 14:33, 34

Dear T. M…
Just about the time some of you may have been willing to make the observation that T. M. appears to be an enlightened thinker, he tells us that women should be quiet in the churches.

I’m already anticipating the emails: Dear T. M.: Love your stuff, but you really need to step into the modern world.

Dear T. M.: What have you got against women?

Dear T. M.: You’ll never reach this generation if you don’t let women have a leadership role.

And so forth. OK, let them come. But as you write to protest these words about the role of women in the services of worship, please remember this: These aren’t my views; they are Paul’s. And unless you can bring forth clear and convincing evidence that Paul’s views on this subject should no longer be considered valid, then you won’t make much headway in convincing me.

No place for women?
Now first of all let’s get a few things straight: Am I about to say that women can’t teach in the local church? Not at all. That they can’t serve as officers? No, I’m pretty sure there is a place for women in office, especially in diaconal ministries. Am I saying that women can’t teach men? Be seminary professors? Write theology books? Lead Bible studies? Conduct evangelistic campaigns?

No, no no – none of the above. All I want us to consider is the sheer brilliance of Paul’s insisting that, during the service of worship, when individuals were bringing their hymns (which all would have joined in singing), prayers (often from the psalms, so that others could pray aloud with them), lessons from life, interpretations of a text, tongues, and insights from the Lord – when all this was happening, women were instructed to sit quietly by without putting themselves forward, only joining in with all the others as was appropriate.

Paul said this is what he taught concerning worship in all his churches. Women should sit back and let men take the lead in offering to the Lord during worship.

This is the most effective leadership training program I’ve ever seen. Men were expected to come to the services of worship ready to lead, teach, sing, pray, interpret, exhort, admonish, and all the other things that go into the work of making disciples. Women could readily and heartily join in as the men led!

Show me one church today where anything like that happens. Men would have had to think and pray about how their offering would build up the whole body of believers. They would have learned to show deference, encouragement, and mutual edification, to give a clear and convincing witness, and to practice that awareness of God that transforms us from glory to glory into the image of Christ. The more men took the lead in worship, the more the men would grow in the Lord.

Did Paul suspect that women grow in the Lord more readily than men? He knew Timothy’s pedigree, for example, and had enjoyed the fellowship of Priscilla. Did he consider that women don’t need the bivouac of worship as much as men do? Let the men drill and march and inspect one another. If a woman wanted to learn something she should ask her husband at home. If he didn’t know the answer, he was honor bound to find it out so that he could build up his own wife like Christ is building the church.

Establishing male leadership
Thus male leadership in both the church and the home was established and strengthened by making men the only leading participants in worship. Take away this provision and you know, you just know, women will dominate every service, sometimes out of good motives, other times not so much. The men will be happy to sit on the sidelines while the women go through their exercises. And, as a result, the men will never grow, never become leaders, never fulfill their duties at home, and continue to regard their faith as a niche experience rather than an all-consuming passion.

Ladies, let the men speak in worship; insist that they do so, and watch how they grow under your knowing deference and patience.

For more insight to this topic, get the book, Men Under Construction, by Bob Barnes, from our online store.

Or read the article, “Whatever Happened to Office?” by D. G. Hart.