Tag: boasting

1 Corinthians: That There Be No Divisions Among You (XVI)

Unity And Gender Roles (11:1-16)

Neal Pollard

A church prone to division will suffer symptoms in just about every way such can be measured. Corinth seemed to take pride in all the wrong things–who baptized them, how much knowledge they had, what spiritual gifts they possessed, how much money they had, and, apparently, who, by gender, was in charge or had responsibility for church leadership. So, Paul has to take the time to share God’s will on the matter.

THE OVERARCHING PRINCIPLE OF HEADSHIP

This section of Scripture has proven difficult for many Bible students. While we will address the “head covering” below, often we miss the point of the paragraph. Paul leads out with it: “But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God” (3). Everything that follows serves as an illustration of that truth. Paul will apply this truth to the assemblies in chapter 14. Paul gives some reasons why God has decided to order things as He has. Man was not made from woman, but woman from man (8). Man was not created for woman, but woman was made for man (9). One might not understand or like that principle, but that does not change the truth of it. By following this principle faithfully, a congregation can eliminate this as a divisive issue.

THE MUTUAL DEPENDENCE OF BOTH GENDERS

Before we get to the head covering, Paul clarifies an important point. Perhaps anticipating this as a reason for boasting or resentment, he reminds men and women in Christ of how equally they depend upon each other (11). He says, “for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God” (12). As other passages demonstrate, this is not a matter of superiority and inferiority. God assigns different roles and responsibilities within the body. An elder is not inherently smarter or more important because he is an elder. He just has a different role, one that carries oversight and superintendence. So it is with man’s role in home and church leadership. 

THE CULTURAL EXAMPLE OF SUBMISSION 

A couple of points should be made about Paul’s illustration of headship and submission. When Paul refers to a woman artificially covering her head, the word “cover” means ” To cover with a veil or something which hangs down” (Zodhiates, np). Arndt and the others, in the BDAG lexicon, appeals to contemporary secular writing for what this veil was like, saying, “The covering of the clothes on the head is of such a kind that the whole face seems to be covered as with a mask (517). So, this would more resemble a burka than a doily. Second, Paul makes clear that such a covering is not commanded nor should it be divisive. He summarizes the discussion, saying, “If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God” (16). We know this is true because the hair of the women in the congregation at Ephesus was visible (1 Tim. 2:9), as was the hair of the women of the congregations in the five regions Peter wrote to (1 Pet. 3:3). Significantly, the context of 1 Timothy 2 deals with a worship and assembly context, as does 1 Corinthians 11. 

My friend, Denny Petrillo, is a formidable Greek scholar and he helps clarify a lot of the confusion this has caused some in understanding this section of Scripture. In answering whether or not this passage requires women to wear head coverings in the assemblies today, he says “no” for the following reasons:

1) It is not commanded here or elsewhere in Scripture.
2) The practice of wearing veils was not found in other locations
3) Proponents of the veil have had difficulty explaining verse 15
4) The impact of the teaching is no longer relevant for today.
5) The practice was not universal in the New Testament
6) The practice was not found in the early church.
7) It might be successfully argued that the context of 1 Corinthians 11 is the misuse of spiritual gifts by these women.
8) Inconsistency in application (holy kiss, foot washing).
9) Is there any relevance for single women or widows?

(Each of these nine points is substantiated with lengthy, persuasive argument; Contact me if you would like his entire document on this)

The question is not whether it is acceptable for a woman to cover her head when she comes to worship today. It is a legitimate conviction and may be a matter of conscience for some today, and they should not be ostracized or judged for so doing. However, it is not something which should be made a test of fellowship, either, nor something which should divide God’s people today.

Paul is seeking to root out division wherever it reared its ugly head. When a congregation is prone to have strife, it can affect every area of life. We must maintain our view of Christ’s bigger picture and strive to be united by honoring our individual roles and responsibilities. 

From The Pollard Poetry Archives (III)

Two Prayers In The Temple
Neal Pollard

Up high and proud my boasts I declare
I brag and I crow with my head in the air
Til I look in the corner and see him down there
Why is that poor sinner locked up in despair?

I abstain from eating two days every week
I give money too freely, Thy thanks I now seek.
Why is that man crying, the tears stain his cheek
He’s beating his chest, must be some kind of trick.

Lord, I’m not like the swindler, the philanderer, the cheat,
Or even like that tax collector with whose prayer I compete,
I’m walking out now, Lord, my preening’s complete,
But I’ll see You here next time my boasts to repeat

While scarcely detected a man whispered his plea
His face to the floor, if not on one knee
All the sinner could say was, “Be merciful to me!”
And he left more justified than the proud Pharisee.
(Luke 18:9-14)

(prayJune 8, 1997)

THE GLORY-HOG

Neal Pollard

There are people who die some very gruesome deaths in Scripture–Eglon, Jezebel, the Levite’s concubine in Judges 19, Judas, and others, too.  But maybe none is more disturbing than the death of Herod the Great.  A wicked, godless ruler, Herod  Agrippa I had just overseen the execution of the apostle James and intended to do the same to Peter.  About this time, Tyre and Sidon sought to appease and flatter him, subjugated people in need of food from Galilee but who had somehow offended this Judean king.

What happens next is recorded in Acts 12:21-23, but is also found in The Works of Josephus.

Josephus writes that at a festival in honor of Caesar, Herod appeared before the people in “a garment made wholly of silver, and of a contexture truly wonderful” (344). The sunlight hit the garment making it shine “after a surprising manner” and caused the crowd to spontaneously shout that he was a god.  The people cried, “Be thou merciful to us; for although we have hitherto reverenced thee only as a man, yet shall we henceforth own thee as superior to mortal nature” (345).

Josephus says that after he had not rejected their praise, “A severe pain also arose in his belly, and began in a most violent manner” (346). His pain then became violent and severe, and he lingered five days before he died at the age of 45 in A.D. 44 (347).  The inspired Luke tells us the cause of death–“He was eaten with worms” (Acts 12:23).  Why?  Because he did not give God the glory!

When I understand God’s reaction to those who take for themselves glory that only belongs to God, it should humble me to the core!  If it is a sermon, a program, an idea, an act of kindness or benevolence, a rendered service, an article, a Bible class, a Bible study, an evangelistic success, or any spiritual triumph, I should go the second-mile to deflect and divert that praise! We who preach, teach, and otherwise serve the Lord in any way on any occasion must have a healthy sense of who we are.  Paul says that we have the glorious gospel treasure “in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves” (2 Cor. 4:7).

May we be deeply impressed with that, especially when faced with the flattery and praise of men.  The sports analogy, “Don’t believe your own press clippings,” holds true.  Paul was quick to deflect such praise, saying, “What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth” (1 Cor. 3:5-6).

The next time we are tempted to be a “Glory Hog,” may these biblical truths rush to the forefront of our minds.  After all, thanks to Herod’s demise, we know how God feels about it.  To God truly be the glory!