Let’s Talk: Men, Women and Church

On Thursday October 13 from 7pm we are holding the next of our Let’s Talk events. These nights are designed to give us the opportunity to talk together as a church about significant theological issues. But it is not theology for theology’s sake - our goal with all of these nights is to make them practical, thought-provoking and challenging. 

Our topic this time is Men, Women and Church. We are going to be tackling head on the questions raised by 1 Timothy 2 where Paul says “I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.” 

Now you may not have known this verse was even in the Bible or maybe you did know and have wondered what you do with it. Well on October 13 we are going to unpack 1 Timothy 2 in the context of the teaching of the whole Bible on men and women and seek to see how this rather culturally disjunctive passage is actually a beautiful blessing from God to us. We are also hoping to explore and clarify the way we at Christ Church are seeking to provide ministry opportunities for both men and women each week. 

By way of introduction and to help you get started with your thinking in preparation for the evening, let me suggest you spend some time reading Genesis 1-3. With each of the wedding couples that Nicky and I help prepare for marriage, we read these chapters and what we discover every time is that our loving God created men and women to be equal but different. 

There is absolutely no doubt that in the eyes of God men and women are equal. Equal as those created by God. Equal as those who are bearers of his image. Equal in value as creatures sustained by his hand. Equal as those worthy of God’s love. But we are also different - and I am talking about realities deeper than physiology - I am speaking about our purpose and function in God’s very good world. In Genesis 2, man is created first and when God sees that he can’t do alone all that is required for image bearing in the world and fulfilling his purpose, he creates an equal but different and complementary being he calls woman. In Genesis 2:21-25, as God unpacks his thoughts about Eve, this treasure he made for Adam, we see clearly the equal but different picture.

This creation reality then drives much of what the Bible teaches about marriage, church and our life together. It’s beautifully fascinating, complex and exciting to think through and I am looking forward to doing that with you.

On the night there will be two talks, a panel discussion and Q&A. I don’t expect that we will get through every single question that could be asked on one night and I am currently thinking that we would have a night like this every year to help tune our minds to the beauty of God’s word and its application for life in God’s world. 

So join us on Thursday October 13 from 7pm and Let’s Talk: Men, Women and Church. See you there.