[soc.religion.christian] No Distinction != Equal under Christ Jesus

mtb@cbnews.att.com (mtb) (07/08/89)

In a previous article (443, I think), michael.l.siemon states:
* as "lords and masters."  This raises for them the 19th century cliche
* "He for God only; she for God in him" which is a statement that women
* are second class Christians.  Any such implication HAS to be rejected.
* In Christ there is NO distinction of gender.  The Church must proclaim,
* I think, that Christ is "in charge"; each of us must individually yield
* to the demands that Christ makes on us.

...


I absolutely agree that all believers, men and women, are first-class
Christians.  Paul makes this point unmistakably in Gal. 3:26 - 29
{New American Standard Version}:

        For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
        For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed
        yourselves with Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek,
        there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male
                                             ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
        nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  And if you
        ^^^^^^^^^^
        belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs
        according to promise.

So, as far as our SALVATION, and our POSITION in Christ there is no
distinction.

However, I do not agree with the above blanket statement:
"In Christ there is NO distinction."  In Ephesians 5, Paul clearly does draw
a distinction between the roles of men and women in a Christian marriage.
He clearly states in Eph. 5:22 - 24 {New American Standard Version}:

        Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
        For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also
        is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior
        of the body.  But as the church is subject to Christ, so
        also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

This *SEEMS* fairly clear, but as we all know, it is important to view any
verse or passage in its context.  The beginning of chapter 5 gives some
guidance of how the Christian should walk.  Verse 1 says that we should
"be imitators of God, as beloved children", and verses 15 and 16 state that
we are to "be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, making
the most of your time, because the days are evil."

In verse 21 Paul states "and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ."
The same Greek word (hupotasso) that is translated subject in verse 21
- referring to ALL Christian brethren - is used in verses 22 and 24 to refer
to wives.  So obviously it is not the oppressive "subjection" or absolute
obedience of dictatorship since that does not make any sense in the context of
verse 21 when referring to all believers.

A more reasonable understanding of what is being written in Eph. 5 and 6 is
that Paul has instructed the believers to be subject to one another and
since this is a difficult thing to apply, he has applied it to 3 separate
examples: (a) the Christian marriage (vs. 22 - 33), (b) the parent/child
relationship, and (c) the master/slave relationship.

In this context then, it is clear that we are all to be subject to one another
but different roles may be established within a relationship.  The husband
has the role to lead as Christ leads by initiating self-sacrificial love and
the wife has the role of following the husband's lead.  Obviously, since
we are fallen human beings, this doesn't always work as planned.  But this
seems to be Paul's intention.

*****************

Bottom Line:  There is a huge difference between saying that all Christians,
        both male and female are equal before God's eyes and saying that
        there is no distinction between them in Christ.  The former is
        true and the latter can be shown to be false.


My wife, who proofread this article for me, had this to say:  The Bible has
a lot to say about roles in family business, etc.  But in general, this isn't
the same thing as the equality issue since "... there is neither male nor
female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus."

mccandld@lafcol.uucp (Fortunato) (07/13/89)

In article <Jul.8.01.07.05.1989.2181@athos.rutgers.edu>, mtb@cbnews.att.com (mtb) writes:
> He clearly states in Eph. 5:22 - 24 {New American Standard Version}:
> 
>         Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
>         For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also
>         is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior
>         of the body.  But as the church is subject to Christ, so
>         also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
> 
> This *SEEMS* fairly clear, but as we all know, it is important to view any
> verse or passage in its context.

You are correct, though for a second I thought you had forgotten the
second half of the verse.  "Husbands, love your wife just as Christ
loves the church...etc"
 
> The husband 
> has the role to lead as Christ leads by initiating self-sacrificial love and
> the wife has the role of following the husband's lead. 

Good! Didn't mean to be picky, but so often we just hear the first part quoted
and tend to forget that we men have just as difficult a task as the
women. Neither sex has a free ride through marriage.

---David