August 7
________________________________________
IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING GOD’S ORDER
10 Therefore the woman should have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. 11 However, in the Lord, neither is woman independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as the woman originated from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does even nature itself not teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him, 15 but if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her as a covering. 16 But if anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor have the churches of God. – 1 Corinthians 11:10-16
________________________________________
In these following passages of Paul’s letter to the Corinthian believers, he expounds further on the symbol of authority on the woman’s head. Previous to these verses, Paul declares the importance of wearing a head covering for women as a symbol of her submission to the man who is the authority in her life in accordance to God’s order of creation. Paul mentions the importance of inter-dependence between man and woman in verse 11. What he is saying here is that a woman cannot be independent from man and a man cannot be independent of woman. The woman was created to be the man’s helper, but it doesn’t mean that he is higher than her. They are created equal according to Genesis 1, but they were both created for a certain role different from each other. The man is the head and the woman is the one who needs to submit to the head. No one is supposed to change the order that God has made and the specific roles they each one plays. This detailed explanation of Paul regarding these interdependence gives us a glimpse of the God of order whom we serve.
In verses 13-16, he presents to them the question whether it is right for a woman to be without head covering and what happens if they exchanged roles in their relationships If the man wears the long hair, it would be dishonoring to him, but if it is a woman who wears the long hair, it is to the man’s glory. It says in verse 15, that it was given to the woman to have the long hair and not the man. What Paul is pointing out here is the focus on the order and differences of roles that God has assigned to the man and the woman. Paul further explains that if someone wants to raise a controversy about this order, they must keep it to themselves or they will bring about conflicts.
________________________________________
REFLECTION
• Why is God’s order something that a believer ought to follow?