Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. Welcome, friends, to another
broadcast of Morsels for Zion's Poor. As men dishonor God, the
Lord removes His hand, and in His judgment they embrace all
manner of evil which is contrary to His order and commands. Wherefore
God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own
hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves. Thus
we understand that His judgment does not fall on men because
of their adulations of the lust of their flesh, but rather the
fact that He turns them over to their own reprobate mind is
evidence of His judgment, which is already begun. And even as
they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave
them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are
not convenient. God has ordained a certain order
in the earth which men ultimately despise and pervert. The abandonment
of this order and the commandments of God always bring with it the
destruction of the very flesh which men adore. The Lord created
man, Adam, from the dust of the ground, and then created the
woman, Eve, with a rib from his side. He fashioned them both
exactly as He determined that they should be. He illustrated
the headship of Christ over his church by making the man to be
the head of the woman. Each time that this principle
is disregarded, the glory of Christ is impugned. Yet there
is not a society on the face of the earth that does not in
many ways ignore this truth, either by demanding that gender
be abolished or trying to make the woman into a slave whose
only purpose is to satisfy the lusts of the man. Christ is exalted
when men are men and women are honored and loved by their husbands.
When we look at our society, we see it certain do, as men,
not liking to retain God in their knowledge, burn in lust towards
women who are not their wives. Women dishonor Christ as they
burn in lust towards men who are not their husbands. Men couple
themselves with other men, and women do the same with other
women. Those whom God fashions as men seek to be women and vice
versa. This is utter confusion, will
worship, and the fruit of unrestrained free will. Some suppose that
God winks at such foolishness, yet in these things he shows
his disdain for man's self-glory by giving him over to his own
desires. Effeminate men and masculine
women are outside of his order and commandments, as well as
disregarding marriage vows, fornication, and other forms of sexual impurity. Adam and Eve were both transgressors
of the holy law of God. Eve transgressed as she was deceived
by the serpent. Though she was deceived due to
her innate weakness, she was nonetheless guilty of disobeying
the commandment of God. Adam was not deceived. And he
did brazenly disobey the same commandment by listening to the
one whom the Lord gave him to be a helpmeet for his needs.
He disregarded the order of God as he failed to lead the woman
as her head and instead closed ranks with her in their own combined
wickedness. They did both fulfill the very
purpose for which God created them, but at the same time they
did both manifest their corruptible nature in their disobedience.
Paul writes that the woman shall be saved in childbearing. On
its surface, this is a difficult passage to comprehend, yet when
we take it in the context of Paul's teaching, I think the
meaning becomes somewhat clearer. I would not presume to speak
as an absolute authority on this matter, but it appears to me
that Paul is setting forth the role of men and women in the
church. In such matters, I believe that he would also reference
our interaction in the world. Women are not to be teachers
of men, nor to take places of authority over men in the church. This is certainly not a favorable
viewpoint in the society in which we live, but it seems quite plain
in those things which Paul taught the churches to which he wrote.
Christ is exalted as the head of his church when this pattern
is followed. I do not suppose for even a moment
that the salvation of which he speaks has anything at all to
do with either temporal or eternal salvation, both of which are
the work of Christ alone. Rather, it is through the woman
that the Messiah came, and she has been privileged to carry
on this important function which no man can attain to. Thus she
is not to be ashamed of the calling which the Lord has given her,
and she is therefore delivered from any consideration of being
of less importance in the kingdom of God, where there is neither
male nor female. Whereas the man exalts Christ
as he is the head of the woman, so too does the woman exalt Christ
in her role as his helpmate. And each time a child is born,
we are reminded that Christ, too, was born of a woman. For a free CD containing 15 of
these radio broadcasts, send an email to forthepoor at windstream.net.