CROSSROADS                 Male and Female (2)                    13/10/02

(Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood; Piper and Grudem; Crossway Books 1991)
Last week in the first of our studies on this subject I tried to lay out some fundamental principles. From our passage in Genesis 1.26-27 I highlighted the following: [when referring to human and Divine simultaneously I have used a "/ "]
§ The purpose of all Creation is that the glory of God may be revealed
§ Man(kind) is the pinnacle of God's created works
§ Mankind was made in the image of God that it might reveal something of the nature of God

From the Creation of Man (both male and female) we see the following similarities with God:
§ Unity: the male and the female are one even as the Persons of the Trinity are One.
§ Plurality: the oneness of Man includes two persons; the Oneness of God includes three
§ Equality: in terms of their personhood they are equal, as are the Persons within the Godhead
§ Distinction: being fully equal does not mean uniformity but there is real distinction between the p/Persons
§ Harmony: the distinction in the p/Persons is not at the expense of the harmony between t/Them
To these five similarities I would now like to add another:
§ Subordination: the p/Persons in the union are fully equal but this does not prevent them from performing different roles, where they may willingly assume a lower rank, choosing to serve rather than to lead.

Last week I referred to the fact that there is initiative and leadership within the Godhead and these roles are always attributed to the Father. It is an eternal role that He performs with the full agreement of the Eternal Son and the Holy Spirit even as they delight in the performance of their own eternal roles. It has been said concerning salvation:
The Father thought it, the Son wrought it, the Spirit brought it and we've got it!
When God made Man (both male and female) in His image He gave the male authority and appointed him to this permanent leadership role in order that the leadership role within the Godhead might be reflected in Man. This did not change the basic equality of the personhood and value and dignity of the male and the female.
In the Kingdom of God greater authority means greater opportunity to serve, not to be served (Mk.10.42-45)
In God's sight each individual, whether male or female, is of greater personal value than the role that they perform

The first two chapters of Genesis, which precede the Fall, clearly indicate the role appointed to the male:
God used the term "man" to describe both sexes (Gen.1.26-27), not some neuter name such as "persons" or "humanity".
The man was created first, then the woman (2.7; 22); not the woman first; neither were both made simultaneously.
The woman was made from the man (2.27), not the man from the woman; neither was she made from something else.
The woman was made as a helper to the man (2.18).
The man named the woman, implying authority (2.23; 3.20).
The instructions were given to the man (2.15-16) before the woman had even been created. His task was to instruct her.
Until Satan came to tempt her, the woman's role was not an issue to either of them. She was happy and fulfilled.

In Genesis chapter three Satan, in the guise of a serpent, attacks God through Man, the pinnacle of His creation.
Satan attacks God's authority: he questions God's right to have His creatures obey His rules
Satan attacks God's Word: he casts doubt on the truthfulness and accuracy of what God has said
Satan attacks God's motivation: he implies that God is protecting Himself by keeping Man down

The serpent approached the woman, not because she was less intelligent, less spiritual or more gullible. He attacked her because she was more vulnerable. He challenged her to make a decision that was outside the area of her authority. God had given her joint authority over all of Creation (1.26-30); only her husband was excluded. When she sinned it was a personal failure but when Adam sinned it was a federal failure, a failure of the whole human race (Rom.5.12). God demanded an explanation for their sin from Adam, even though it was Eve who had initiated the event. Because the man held the position of authority, he was ultimately responsible for the decision to sin. Sex role-reversal was a prominent factor in the Fall. When it came to apportioning blame, God rightly spoke first to the serpent. Then He dealt with the woman who was the instigator and lastly He dealt with the man. It was especially the man's fault (3.17).

The Fall had profound effects on the relationship between the male and the female. Prior to the Fall I believe that the leadership of the man and the companionship of the woman were instinctive by creation, they were the natural order. Their roles were exercised in an attitude of love and service after the pattern of the Trinity. The punishment inflicted upon them by God (3.16-19) was also a natural consequence of their actions (3.12-13). God's word to Eve " your desire shall be for your husband…" (3.16) is virtually identical to His words to Cain "Its (sins') desire is for you" (4.7). Eve's willing and loving submission before the Fall would now be replaced with a competitive spirit that resented Adam's authority. Also, Adam's loving leadership that sought to bless and advance and enhance his wife (after the pattern of Trinity relationships) would become a form of domination that would seek to enslave her (3.16).

Salvation under the New Covenant seeks to reverse sins' harmful effects and to restore the creation order of sacrificial leadership by the man and willing subordination by the woman. The fact that society in general and the church in particular has so often failed to even understand God's original purposes for the sexes does not mean that we should ignore the possibility of authentic, spiritual, male leadership and female co-operation in the Kingdom of God.
(Read Eph.5.22-33).