Is 2 Chronicles 7:14 God’s promise to American Christians today?
“if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
This verse is often quoted as a call to prayer and revival for American Christians, suggesting that if we pray, repent, and humble ourselves, God will turn America around and make it “one nation under God” again. Since the 4th of July is coming up, you’ll probably be seeing this verse all over social media, but is it really a promise to us today about America?
Not this particular verse, no. Here’s why:
1. This verse is only part of a sentence (you can tell by the way it starts with a lowercase letter). In order to rightly handle God’s word (2 Timothy 2:15), it’s imperative that we consider a verse’s immediate context as well as the way it fits in with the big picture of the entire Bible. Even adding just verses 13 and 15 shows us that this verse was written about Old Testament Israel, not America. Reading all of chapter 7 sheds even more light on this verse, and if we throw in chapter 6, especially 6:26-31, we can clearly see that 7:14 is part of God’s specific answer to Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the temple.
2. There are no supporting Scriptures in the New Testament (remember, Believers are in the church era under the new covenant of grace) that imply that if Christians humble themselves and repent that God will give them a nation governed by biblical laws and leaders and that we will have a society that behaves itself, morally. In fact, in the New Testament, in the early church, we see the exact opposite. The more the church prayed, humbled itself, and spread the gospel, the more Rome persecuted Christians. And yet, we never hear of them claiming 2 Chronicles 7:14 as God’s promise to them that He would turn things around if they would only humble themselves and seek His face more. The New Testament, even Jesus Himself, says that we will be persecuted for godly living (John 15:20, Matthew 10:22, 2 Timothy 3:12-13).
3. We can’t claim the promise without claiming the punishment. Look again at verse 13. It specifies that pestilence and the agricultural hardships of drought and locust infestation are the ones that God promises to heal. It is a promise of literal healing of the land so that crops will grow unharmed, game will be plentiful, and people will be healthy and able to eat, not a promise of a metaphorical “healing” of a nation’s immorality.
If we claim that this “healing of the land” applies to us today, then we also have to claim that God will punish our disobedience with those very things He promises to heal (drought, locusts, and pestilence), because that’s what these verses are talking about.
4. The reason this passage sounds like it applies to us is because there are some principles in this verse that do apply to us. How do we know? Because they are supported by other clear and direct Scriptures:
Are we God’s people who are called by His name”? Yes (Acts 11:26)
Should we turn from any wicked ways we practice? Yes (Acts 3:19)
Will God hear from Heaven if we do these things? Yes (1 John 5:14-15)
Does God promise to heal our land of bad morals or the agricultural problems He has punished our disobedience with if we do these things? No.
Asking God to fulfill His promises and thanking Him for those already fulfilled is a wonderful and worshipful way to pray. But, if we truly want to pray “in the name of Jesus” and pray rightly for God’s will to be done, we must use wisdom, discernment, and the tools God has given us to discover exactly what He has promised us.
Every year near Independence Day, I re-run this article, and every year professing Christians actually get angry at me for suggesting that the weekly worship service should be reserved strictly for the worship of God. The One Who sent His only Son to be brutally tortured and crucified for our sins – that God. There are 168 hours in a week. If you can’t commit 1-2 of them solely to worshiping the God who saved you, check your heart. You might be guilty of idolatry.
Originally published July 2, 2018
Every year on the Sunday closest to the 4th of July, our worship service turns very patriotic. All of the hymns and worship songs are replaced with patriotic songs like God Bless America, America the Beautiful, and the National Anthem. The choir and whoever is singing a solo that day sings a patriotic song. A color guard marches in with the American flag and we say the Pledge of Allegiance. Sometimes the sermon is even on a patriotic topic. It makes me uncomfortable because I think the worship service should focus on God, not America. What do you think?
Independence Day is one of my favorite holidays. I love the fireworks and picnics, the bands, and watching my favorite musical, Yankee Doodle Dandy.
I’m as red, white, and blue, rah rah America as the next guy, but there’s a time and a place for all that, and the Sunday morning worship hour isn’t it. You’re correct. The worship service is exactly that: worship and service. And who are Christians supposed to worship and serve when we go to church? God.
We are to sing to, and about, God. The pastor is to preach the Word of God. We pledge our allegiance in prayer, worship, and confession to God. Our thoughts are to be focused on God. Every element of the worship service – songs, symbols, readings, offerings, prayer, praise, everything – is to draw our attention to God. He is the only One worthy of our worship.
Patriotic songs, the Pledge, and all of those other things can take the focus off God and put it on something lesser. Sometimes God gets pushed aside in favor of what we want to focus on. That’s a very man-centered attitude in the very place and time when everything is supposed to be centered on God.
And really, if you think about the main reason America was founded – freedom of worship – what better way is there to honor our forefathers and celebrate the gift of freedom God has given us than to exercise our First Amendment right to worship God? Certainly, we could use the 4th of July as a reminder to take some time in corporate prayer to express gratitude to God for our country and our liberties and to pray for our country. Scripture tells us to present our requests to God with thanksgiving. We could also dedicate some time to praying for our governmental officials as 1 Timothy 2:1-4 instructs us to do. There’s a biblical, worshipful way to be thankful for the freedoms God has blessed us with and intercede for our country and our governing authorities. And it shouldn’t be limited to one Sunday a year.
But when it comes to patriotic hoopla, we can set aside another time for that and still celebrate with our brothers and sisters in Christ. If your church family wants to celebrate America’s birthday together, that’s great! Have a church-wide cookout on the 4th. Schedule an Independence Day patriotic sing-along or choir pageant. Meet up and head out to the county fireworks show together. Fellowship! Have fun!
But when it’s time to worship, let’s make sure we’re reserving that time for worship of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. It’s fine to love America, but let’s demonstrate that we love Christ more by not letting anything take His place in His church.
It’s fine to love America, but let’s demonstrate that we love Christ more by not letting anything take His place in His church.
If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.
In 2019, I published an article, The Mailbag: Counterarguments to Egalitarianism. Many of you have found it helpful over the years, so I recently freshened it up and added a few more egalitarian arguments – and the biblical counterarguments to refute them.
Below, you’ll find (only) the new arguments I’ve added to the original article. If you’d like to read or bookmark the whole article (original and new arguments) click here.
[Word] games people play…
Recently, a couple of “word game” arguments have started popping up in this ongoing tussle:
“The Bible never says that women can’t preach!”
No, there’s not a Bible verse that says, verbatim, “Women can’t preach.”. Somehow egalitarians think this is a “gotcha,” but this is really one of their weakest and most embarrassing arguments.
First Timothy 2:12 clearly says, “I do not allow a woman to teach…”. Their argument here is that the verse says “teach,” not “preach,” so they think they’ve found a loophole. But what is preaching? Think about what’s transpiring during preaching – it’s teaching! Whoever is preaching is imparting knowledge and explaining concepts to the hearers and encouraging them to understand, believe, and act on said knowledge and concepts. Preaching is teaching.
Furthermore, the passage that governs this issue isn’t just 1 Timothy 2:12. It’s 1 Timothy 2:11-3:7, Titus 1:5-9, and 2 Timothy 4:1-2. First Timothy 2:11-15 tell us who is not qualified to pastor, preach to and teach the congregation, and exercise authority in the gathering of the church body, and why. First Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9, and 2 Timothy 4:1-2 tell us who is qualified to do those things, and why and how.
First Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:1-9 are the qualifications for pastors, elders, and overseers. Not only do these passages exclude women from this office (“husband of one wife,” male referents {“he,” etc.} throughout), they also exclude all men who do not meet these qualifications.
Both of these passages require that a pastor/elder/overseer be “able to teach” the congregation. This is juxtaposed against the word “teach” (teach men, so, not teaching the congregation) in 1 Timothy 2:12. The primary function of a pastor/elder/overseer is to teach the congregation. Since God prohibits women from teaching the congregation in 2:12, women are disqualified from the office of pastor in 3:1-7, because they are not able to teach (according to God’s definition of teaching in this context {i.e. instructing the whole congregation}). Conversely, since God excludes women from being pastors/elders/overseers in 3:1-7 (“husband of one wife,” male referents {“he,” etc.} throughout), women are prohibited from the primary function of that office, teaching the congregation, in 2:12.
Second Timothy 4:1-2 then steps up to the plate and specifies the primary type of teaching a pastor/elder/overseer is to do: preaching. Remember, 1-2 Timothy and Titus are the pastoral epistles. They are God’s instructions to pastors/elders/overseers about how they’re to do their jobs and how God wants His church to be structured and to operate. These three epistles are God’s “policy and procedure” manual, if you will, for pastors and the church.
I do not permit a woman to teach… 1 Timothy 2:12 Therefore an overseer must be…able to teach, 1 Timothy 3:2 He must…be able to give instruction in sound doctrine Titus 1:9 I charge you [pastors]…preach the word 2 Timothy 4:1-2
And the second “word game” argument is like unto the first:
“The Bible never says women can’t be pastors!”
Again, the Bible does not say, verbatim, “Women cannot be pastors.”. That’s the first alleged “loophole”. The second alleged loophole* is that the Bible uses the terms “elder” and “overseer,” rather than “pastor,” in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9. So – follow this carefully – even if women can’t be elders and overseers, the argument goes, women can still be pastors.
*It bears noting here that if you’re looking for “loopholes,” “technicalities,” and ways to bypass or circumvent the plain teaching of Scripture so you can indulge your fleshly desires, you’re already sinning. You never have to step behind a pulpit or preach a single word. Your heart is in rebellion against God, and you need to repent.
This is another painfully cringe-worthy “argument”. Scripture uses the terms “elder,” “overseer,” and “pastor,” synonymously and interchangeably. That’s why you often see Christians use the phraseology “pastor/elder/overseer” – because these terms mean the same thing. For example, the Southern Baptist Convention’s statement of faith, the Baptist Faith and Message 2000:
This particular argument that “the Bible doesn’t prohibit women from being pastors” is tantamount to 1 Timothy 3:1-7 teaching that the church fellowship hall may not contain a couch, and Titus 1:5-9 teaching that church fellowship halls are not to have davenports, and egalitarians saying, “It’s perfectly fine for church fellowship halls to contain sofas. The Bible nowhere says that church fellowship halls can’t have sofas.”.
Sometimes egalitarians will try to argue that the terms “pastor” and “shepherd” indicate a different office and function from elder/overseer. They then argue that the Bible doesn’t say women can’t be “pastors” and “shepherds”. This is an attempt to bypass the passages which clearly address the issue of women leading and preaching to the church, 1 Timothy 2:11-3:7 and Titus 1:5-9, and instead, kidnaping and pressing into service passages which do not address this issue.
However the wheels immediately – almost comically – fall off this argument when you come to 1 Peter 5:1-2:
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder …shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight…
1 Peter 5:1-2
Shepherding is the way that elders and overseers exercise oversight over the church, or “flock”. Pastors, overseers, shepherds, and elders are all the same person, position, office, and function.
If you’d like to read more, I highly recommend thes articles:
Sometimes appended to the aforementioned “The Bible doesn’t say women can’t be pastors!” argument is the argument that pastoring and shepherding are a spiritual gift rather than an office. Even if that were true in the way egalitarians seem to mean it (it’s not – God doesn’t “gift” people to do what He has clearly forbidden.), God has every right to dictate how we may and may not use any gift He chooses to give us. What loving parent would give her child the gift of a bicycle and not tell her how she may and may not use that bicycle for her own good and safety, and the good and safety of others?
If God gives someone the gift of generous giving, that person may notembezzle money from his employer so that he will have more to give.
Whatever “shepherding” means to any woman who thinks she has that gift, God does not allow her to use the gift of “shepherding” to hold the office or perform the function of an elder or overseer, including preaching, teaching men the Bible, or holding authority over men in the gathering of the church.
Christians are never allowed to exercise any spiritual gift in any way that violates the clear commands of Scripture.
Bigger fish to fry?
And then, there’s the “bigger fish to fry” argument, otherwise known as pitching an emotional, immature hissy fit. It goes something like this:
I am so sick and tired of this argument over whether or not women can preach or be pastors! There are people starving in Africa! Christians are being killed all over the world! There are Christian wedding vendors who are being persecuted for refusing to service homosexual “weddings”! Islam is making dangerous inroads in the United States! And you people want to argue that women can’t be pastors and preach?
You’re the one arguing, my egalitarian friend. Those of us on the biblical side of things are simply stating what Scripture has always said. There wouldn’t be an argument without you egalitarians arguing against what God has plainly decreed. And by the way, what are you doing to stop the starvation in Africa, the martyrdom, the persecution, Islam, and all the other “more important” issues in the world? Why don’t you simply stop arguing that women can be pastors, preach, etc., submit to and obey Scripture, and instead devote your time to getting to work on all those other problems?
Additionally, God never presents spewing emotional vomit everywhere as any sort of spiritually mature, godly, logical way to present an argument. Nor does the fact that “There are bigger problems in the world!” ever excuse sin or ever cause God to instruct us to deal with all the “big problems” in the world first before we can ever confront, address, and correct “little” sins. Even Jesus said, “The poor, you will always have with you.”.
“There are bigger problems in the world!” is never a reason to refrain from doing the right thing. And not only that, but there are Christians all over the place addressing all of these “more important problems”. It’s not like God gave us only enough bandwidth or personnel to address one problem at a time. We’re made in His image. We can multi-task.
But let’s try to apply this “argument” to some other scenarios in order to demonstrate how silly it is:
“What, God? You’re telling them to stone me for picking up sticks on the Sabbath? Don’t You know there are about a dozen pagan nations out here just waiting to attack us any day? And this is what You want to spend Your time on?”
“Are you kidding me, God? All I did was tell a little white lie about the selling price of my land and You’re going to strike me dead for that? Don’t You know the Romans are out here crucifying Christians -even Jesus!- and feeding Christians to the lions? Why aren’t You doing something about that?”
Yeah. You really don’t want to be arguing against God and His commands.
There’s an empty chair at the table
Where my child once used to sit
When we all broke bread together
A family whole and fit
There’s an empty place in the photo
As his siblings celebrate
Without him again, missing him in
The memories they create
There’s an empty stocking at Christmas
Another year far from home
Joy with tarnished edges
As the wayward one still roams
There’s an empty place in my heart
That longs to be peaceful, content
Praying my child heeds the call of Christ
But fearing he’ll never repent
And so goes the song - it goes on and on -
Of a godly mother’s heart
Life’s full of empty moments
Her prodigal’s sin imparts
Until our knees and hearts are raw
We pray and pray again
A thousand tears we offer up
“How long, O Lord?” and “When?”
And the Father who once welcomed us home
- For we were His prodigals too -
Says, “Come and rest, and stand the test,
My grace is sufficient for you.”
Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.
Proverbs 26:5
There’s a lot of foolishness masquerading as Christianity these days. Occasionally, I get e-mails and messages showcasing this type of foolishness. It needs to be biblically corrected so these folks can stop “being wise in their own eyes,” repent, and believe and practice the truth of Scripture. From time to time, I share those e-mails in The Mailbag with a biblical corrective, not only so the e-mail writer can be admonished by Scripture, but to provide you with Scriptures and reasoning you can use if you’re ever confronted with this kind of foolishness.
To answer a fool according to his folly (or in the case of most of the foolishness addressed to me – a professing Christian acting the fool by spouting unbiblical folly) is to stand toe to toe with him and firmly and biblically address his unbiblical foolishness without backing down or letting him run roughshod over you – sometimes even mirroring his own words back to him to help him see his hypocrisy.
Some Christians think holding your ground, refusing to compromise on biblical truth, and offering correction in this way is unkind or unloving. It is not. Not if you’re going by the Bible’s definition of love rather than the world’s definition (“be nice” “accept everything” “don’t confront”), and not when you’re dealing with a pridefully stubborn person. One of the most unloving things a Christian can do is to see a professing brother or sister in biblical error and ignore it rather than trying to help that person see the truth of God’s Word. Jesus, Paul, Peter, Jude, John, Jeremiah, Isaiah, and many others, did this plenty of times in Scripture, and, often, much more stringently than I and other 21st century Christians do. Sometimes love – real, biblical love – has to be tough in order to reach someone’s heart.
You can read more in the “Answering a Fool” series here.
The following comment was left in response to last week’s Mailbag article, The Mailbag: I Have to Preach Because No Man Will Step Up. I’ve posted the comment in its entirety below, then broken down into manageable parts with my responses. Buckle up.😀
As a believer who has witnessed woman step up in communities all over the world, where no man would to share the Gospel, and lead their community towards Christ (even when their life was at risk), I would argue that she ought to continue preaching. It is one thing to flaunt a leadership position as if women are better than men (and the same would be wrong if a man claimed he was better than a woman). Because at the end of the day, the role is for the called, man or woman. If you research on missionaries of the past, hundreds of people have been saved by women. Are you claiming none of those women should have followed the great commission commanded to ALL believers in Matthew 28 and that all those lives they pointed to Christ weren’t worth it? Paul even asks in Romans 10:14-15, how people are to be saved if no one goes to share the Gospel with them.
Arguments like these are the reason we have prideful men in the Church who take roles they’re not called for and we have obedient women trying to ignore the calling God gave them in fear of judgement from their own community. I am not a feminist in any sense, but when it comes to silencing ANY believer from sharing the love and truth of Christ (man or woman) I cannot sit back and watch the Church divide itself on things that have nothing to do with salvation.
You want to discuss sin? What about the leaders that are liars, jealous, prideful, lustful, and gossipers? What about the pastors that preach love and compassion and go home to abuse their family? Because I’ve seen men and women do that in those roles. It’s not a discussion of whether it be man or woman. It should be a decision based a spirit-led calling.
More so, what is the significant of a claim like this? To bring down Christ followers from living how Jesus called us to? Because that’s all you’re doing when you rather have a community have no one leading them to Jesus over someone who isn’t afraid to obey just because they’re a woman.
As a believer who has witnessed woman (sic) step up in communities all over the world, where no man would to share the Gospel, and lead their community towards Christ (even when their life was at risk), I would argue that she ought to continue preaching.
You can argue that, but it’s an ungodly, unbiblical, worldly argument based solely on your fleshly human desires. It is not based on Scripture, which explains God’s desires to us. If you’re a Christian, God’s Word is your authority for life and doctrine, not your opinions. If you’re a Christian, you’re a slave of Christ, and you’re not entitled to any thought, opinion, belief, position, or worldview other than your Master’s. And if you think you are, I’d be very interested to hear you argue that.
at the end of the day, the role is for the called, man or woman.
You’re half right, here. The role of pastor, and the function of pastor (preaching) is for the called. God does the calling, and He only calls biblically qualified men through the qualifications He has enumerated in His Word. He has already told us this in Scripture, and Scripture is our authority, not some subjective, extra-biblical feeling that God is “calling” you. And again, this is your ungodly, unbiblical, worldly argument based solely on your fleshly human desires. It is not a biblical argument.
If you research on missionaries of the past
“MIssionaries of the past” (or present or future) are not our authority, or any sort of basis for making decisions or formulating doctrine. Scripture is. Directing someone to look to “missionaries of the past” is to say, “Hey, you need to look to broken, sinful human beings to figure out how to do Christianity instead of looking to Christ and His Word.”.
hundreds of people have been saved by women
Nope. Not one single, solitary person has ever been saved by a woman. Or a man. And if you think anyone ever has, you do not know the gospel. God alone is the only One who has ever saved anyone.
And honestly, using this phraseology really decreases your credibility to address this or any other biblical topic. This is not how mature Christians who know their Bibles and are equipped to engage on these topics frame things.
But if what you actually mean by “saved by women” is that people have gotten saved (by Christ) because a woman shared the gospel with them, of course that’s true, and I daresay that it’s been way more than “hundreds” of people over the last 2000 years.
But, so what? That has nothing to do with the topic at hand.
If you’re talking about women sharing the gospel with the lost, that’s called evangelism.
You’re conflating evangelism with pastoring and preaching. Evangelism is sharing the gospel with lost people outside the church, which all Christians are commanded to do. Pastoring and preaching is biblical instruction to saved people inside the church, which God has restricted to biblically qualified men. Evangelism and pastoring/preaching are two completely different, separate things. We have to keep our biblical categories straight.
Evangelism is a completely separate topic from what we’re talking about here, which is women “pastoring,” preaching, teaching men the Bible, and exercising authority over men in the gathering of the Body. Let’s stay on topic.
(For more information on the false conflation of evangelism and pastoring/preaching: Women Preaching the Gospel? at A Word Fitly Spoken)
Are you claiming none of those women should have followed the great commission commanded to ALL believers in Matthew 28
Not at all. All Believers are to carry out the Great Commission. Christian women have been obeying that command -without pretending to be “pastors” or preaching- for the past 2000 years. You don’t have to be a pastor or preach to share the gospel.
One of the primary ways women have historically fulfilled the Great Commission is by pouring the gospel into their children and grandchildren. (Lois and Eunice are a wonderful biblical example to us of this.) This is also why I said earlier that far more than “hundreds” have come to Christ because a woman -their mother- shared the gospel with them. It’s certainly not the only way women can share the gospel, but I feel confident that it’s the primary way.
In fact, women can share the gospel in any way except being a pastor or preaching (or violating any other Scriptures). They can even be missionaries and share the gospel with the lost – men and women – one on one or in any other way that doesn’t violate 1 Timothy 2:11-3:7, Titus 1:5-9, or any other Scripture. I have personal friends who are women who have done just that. I, myself, went on a short term mission trip many years ago and did just that.
Again, you need to learn the difference between evangelism and pastoring/preaching and stop conflating the two.
and that all those lives they pointed to Christ weren’t worth it?
Are you saying it’s only “worth it” or only fulfills the Great Commission if a woman is a “pastor” or preaches to men? Is it not “worth it” if a woman pours the gospel into her children? Shares the gospel with a girlfriend over coffee? Hands a tract to the man ahead of her in the check out line?
And again, the Christian’s measuring stick is rightly handled, in context Scripture, not a sinful human being’s subjective evaluation of whether or not something is “worth it”. You are not qualified to make a Christian argument on this or any other biblical topic until you learn and submit to the doctrine of the authority of Scripture. Right now, you’re trying to remove what you think is a speck in my eye, while the log of biblical illiteracy is protruding far out of your own.
Paul even asks in Romans 10:14-15, how people are to be saved if no one goes to share the Gospel with them.
How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? And how will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who proclaim good news of good things!”
Romans 10:14-15
He says, “How will they hear without a preacher, and how will they preach unless they are sent?”.
You do know that God is the author of Scripture, right? And that God doesn’t contradict Himself, so His written Word doesn’t contradict itself, because God is not a liar?
God cannot (not just “does not,” but “cannot,” because He cannot lie) say something in Romans that contradicts what He says in 1 Timothy. (And not only that, Paul is the human writer of both Romans and 1 Timothy, and he’s not contradicting himself in these passages either.)
In 1 Timothy, God forbids women from pastoring, preaching, teaching the Bible to men, and holding authority over men in the gathering of the Body. So we don’t even have to read the Romans passage to know – beyond any doubt – that the Romans passage does not allow women to do those things.
Any time the Bible talks about preachers and preaching, it is talking about men. God doesn’t call or send women to preach. Women can share the gospel without preaching or being pastors.
Arguments like these are the reason we have prideful men in the Church who take roles they’re not called for
No, ignorance of and rebellion against Scripture -which you’ve amply demonstrated in your comment- are why we have those things.
Pride is a sin for both men and women. Anyone who commits the sin of pride needs to repent.
Men “who take roles they’re not called for”. I can only assume that by this you mean “men serving as pastors who shouldn’t be pastors”. Your (or anyone else’s) worldly, fleshly feelings and opinions are not the standard by which a man is determined to be fit for (“called” to) the pastorate (that’s unbiblical judgment, and a violation of Matthew 7:1), Scripture is, primarily 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9.
and we have obedient women trying to ignore the calling God gave them in fear of judgement from their own community.
I’m sorry, but do you actually hear yourself saying this?
Women who defy God’s commands in His written Word are not obedient And they should be fearful of God’s judgment.
Christians who who rightly judge things according to properly handled Scripture are obeying Scripture. Professing Christians who argue for the defiance of Scripture and then denigrate Christians who are obeying Scripture are the ones who are unbiblically judging in violation of Matthew 7:1.
I am not a feminist in any sense,
Yes, you are. You may not realize it, but the unbiblical position you’ve taken on this issue wouldn’t exist if it werent for feminism. So, at the very least, you are feminist in that sense. You’re holding a feminist position while claiming not to be a feminist, just like you’re claiming to be a Christian while standing in defiance of Christ and His Word.
but when it comes to silencing ANY believer from sharing the love and truth of Christ (man or woman) I cannot sit back
I’m a woman and I’m sharing the love and truth of Christ, and you’re trying to silence me. More Matthew 7:1-5 hypocrisy. How about not “sitting back” against yourself?
If you think that women not being allowed to pastor and preach is “silencing women,” then you’re accusing God of silencing women. He is the One who issued the command, not me or any other Christian. All we’re doing is repeating what His Word has said for the last 2000 years. Your argument is with Him, not us.
and watch the Church divide itself on things that have nothing to do with salvation.
So you’d say it’s OK for homosexuals and “trans” people and rapists and child abusers to be pastors, right? To your way of thinking, those things “have nothing to do with salvation” either.
I promise, I am saying this as gently and kindly as I possibly can, but you need to hear this, and I would not be loving you biblically if I didn’t say it:
You do not know your Bible. You don’t know what you’re talking about. And as someone who doesn’t know her Bible you are not qualified to weigh in on this issue or assume the lofty position of, “I have to proclaim this ‘truth’ for the good of the church at large.”. Talk about “pridefully taking a role you’re not called for”!
You want to discuss sin?
We are discussing sin. Women defying Scripture by pretending to be pastors, preaching, teaching the Bible to men, and exercising authority over men in the gathering of the Body is sin.
I’m standing on God’s Word and arguing against that sin, You’re standing against God’s Word and arguing for that sin.
What about the leaders that are liars, jealous, prideful, lustful, and gossipers? What about the pastors that preach love and compassion and go home to abuse their family? Because I’ve seen men and women do that in those roles.
What about it? This is a deflection and a red herring, not a biblical argument.
This “argument” is like saying, “You want to discuss the sin of rape? What about bank robbers? What about murderers? What about kidnaping? What about lying?”. The Bible never teaches us we should ignore one sin simply because a thousand other sins exist.
All of the sins you’ve listed should be dealt with biblically and so should the sin of women defying God’s command against women “pastoring” and preaching. It’s not like we’re limited in the number of sins we can biblically address.
It’s not a discussion of whether it be man or woman.
Correct. God said it’s to be a biblically qualified man. End of discussion.
It should be a decision based a spirit-led calling.
More so, what is the significant (sic) of a claim like this? To bring down Christ followers from living how Jesus called us to?
No, to bring Christ followers up to living as Jesus called us to. You’re the one pushing Christ followers away from living as Jesus called us to because you’re encouraging them to defy God’s Word.
Because that’s all you’re doing when you rather have a community have no one leading them to Jesus
I nowhere suggested in that article that the “community” that woman is pretending to “pastor” should have no one leading them to Jesus. I even explained how she and the other women could lead people to Jesus without disobeying Scripture.
over someone who isn’t afraid to obey just because they’re a woman.
One more time: A woman who defies Scripture by pretending to be a “pastor” IS NOT OBEYING GOD. She is sinning.
I’ve got one more thing to add, and if you’ve made it this far, I really hope you’ll stick with me and seriously consider this. People who are genuinely born again Believers – new creatures in Christ – are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and understand, embrace, submit to, love, and obey God’s written Word. But one of the fruits of false converts – people who think they’re saved, but have never truly repented and believed the gospel – is that they reject, hate, fight against, disobey, and do not understand God’s written Word.
Because you have amply demonstrated that you do not know God’s Word and because every comment you’ve made above has been a defiance of God’s Word, I fear for your eternity. I would urge and encourage you to do what 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, and examine yourself against Scripture to discover whether or not you are truly a Believer.
Repent, believe the gospel, and be set free of these unbiblical beliefs today.
If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.
