"Ten Theses on God's Arrangement of the Sexes"

Just believe the Word - it really is that simple - - and that hard.

I Timothy 3: 1-6 – The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

This appears straightforward enough – especially when considering 2 Timothy 3: 16-17 – 16All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Once again, straightforward. All Scripture surely includes 1 Timothy. I suspect many more letters were written by Paul to many of his churches. It is almost certain from the text of Corinthians that there were four letters to the Church at Corinth, yet we have only two. God – acting as editor in chief of His Word – keep all letters which were deficient in any way out of Holy Scripture.
But some say the description of requirements for “overseers” only reflects the culture of the day and needs to be re-examined in light of the culture of our day. In other words, letting culture define the church instead of the other way around.

But Paul did not want to leave any doubt in what he was saying, so he went all the way back to creation for his standard in 1 Timothy 2: 11-15:
12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve; 14 and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. 15 Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.

No wiggle room there. All that is left is to be obedient to God’s Word!

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