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Male and Female: God's Gender-Specific Commands God requires Men and Women to play vastly different roles in society. By Ken Raggio
Our society wants to remove the distinctions between male and female in a number of ways: through role reversals, through aggressive, "in-your-face" homosexual agendas, through "same-sex" identifiers (unisex clothes, unisex hairstyles, role-reversed behavior, etc.), through feminist political agendas, equal rights agendas, rabidly perverted movies and television shows, and a multitude of other social changes.
At the heart of these attempts is the most flagrant disregard for Almighty God and HIS plan for male and female. It seems as though almost nobody cares whether God has an opinion on this matter. But He does! Much hostility can be seen coming from the quarters of atheists, agnostics, humanists, and even Satanists. They mortally hate ancient Judeo-Christian teachings about male/female identities and their respective roles. But this is not about Jewish culture or Christian culture. It is about God and what He says in His Word. If you seek to know His will, then I submit these key points from His Word for your thoughtful consideration. We cannot afford to ignore or neglect anything that God relegates great importance to in His Word. Hence, this study is presented here in defense of God's Word and His will. If the Bible is silent on these matters, then we would have nothing to be concerned with. But if the Bible makes clear pronouncements on gender issues, then we have a duty to search them out, learn them AND apply them as an act of obedience to the will of God (regardless of what our cultural and personal preferences may be). In this article, I will attempt to demonstrate that God has a keen interest in making distinctions between the male and the female, and I will show several of the ways in which He expects each of us to comply with His gender-specific commandments. There can be little argument that the creation of the human species is one of God's most impressive works. Of all the components of the universe, mankind occupies center-stage in God's economy. The human race is of greatest significance in the great plan of God. Mankind is the only species that God created in His image.
Mankind is often referred to simply as "man," even when referring to male and female alike.
Adam was the equivalent of a surname to both male and female in these verses. Nonetheless, Adam is also the specific name of the man, while Eve was the specific name of the woman. God made the man first, alone in the garden.
Then God declared that Adam should not be alone.
In Genesis 2:15, "the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it." Adam was the original husbandman over God's garden. Eve was given to him to HELP him. Eve was conceived in the mind of God to be the man's helper. We must not fail to recognize the man's role of duty and responsibility to God, and the woman's duty and responsibility to the man. Adam was made from the dust of the earth, and God breathed life into his nostrils. Eve was created from a rib out of Adam's side. Together, as husband and wife, they comprised ONE FLESH.
And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man and Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed." God has always required men to be faithful to their wives, and never to infringe upon another man's wife. ADULTERY is one of the first and primary sins that God ever named. God requires a husband to be faithful to his wife, a woman to be faithful to her husband, and that neither of them engages in a sexual relationship with anyone else.
Leviticus 20:10 - "And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death." Proverbs 6:32-33 - "But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul. A wound and dishonour shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away." Jesus expanded the definition of the sin of adultery to include the DESIRE TO COMMIT ADULTERY.
A man must not DESIRE to take a woman other than his wife. Men are instructed to give honor to their wives.
Men are instructed to make provisions for those of his own household - under penalty of damnation!
Before God gave commandments against polygamy, men commonly married a number of virgins, but it was always taboo to take another man's wife. In the earliest times, a man might marry a number of unclaimed virgins without condemnation, but he could NOT overstep the boundaries of another man's marriage. Every man exercised exclusive rights to his wives and concubines. That is typical of God's relationship to His own bride. God is married to the righteous of both the Old Testament and the righteous of the New Testament, but they cannot be married to ANY OTHER GOD! Polygamy, however, never worked in reverse. A woman could NEVER have more than one husband. There is typology in that fact. God has a wife from the LAW, and a wife from GRACE. Israel is His wife from the Old Testament, and the Church is His wife from the New Testament. Jesus' death at Calvary closed the door to salvation under the Old Testament plan. From that moment forward, God's bride was to be taken from the Church. (Important note: Technically, ALL the righteous from all the ages comprise the Bride of Christ. Read Revelation 21, about the New Jerusalem coming down from God out of Heaven adorned as a Bride - the Lamb's wife. That New Jerusalem was comprised of all the saints of all the ages. If you understand that Israel's blood sacrifices only atoned for one year at a time until Messiah appeared and paid the ultimate price for atonement, then you should understand that ALL people, from both the Old Testament and the New Testament are redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ. Therefore, both Old and New Testament saints are in the bride of Christ.) In this typology, we must also see the Church married to God and no other god - ONE HUSBAND. God's bride must never have any other gods before Him. (First Commandment - Exodus 20). The male patterned himself after God. The female subjected herself to the man. God, the supreme male, has no peers. There are no other Gods. The male God is married to His bride, the righteous elect. If a man attempted to have a relationship with another man as with a woman, God called that an abomination. Today, some people argue that homosexuality is an inherent, genetic trait. With that argument, they hope to prove that homosexuality is inevitable and unavoidable. They argue that if homosexuality is an inborn trait, it cannot be resisted. I completely agree that ALL sin is inherent in the human nature. Yes, it is inborn. Homosexuality IS a natural work of the flesh. BUT - so is adultery, fornication, murder, lying, and every other abominable behavior. HOWEVER, that does NOT legitimize any such behavior. I believe that every deplorable behavior is inborn. The Bible says, "the works of the flesh are these..." Therefore, we MUST come to terms with the fact that RIGHTEOUS living and RIGHTEOUS behavior is comprised of MAKING THE CHOICE TO RESIST OUR EVIL TENDENCIES. The Bible calls it "mortifying the deeds of the flesh." (see Romans 8:13 and Colossian 3:5-6). We must KILL those tendencies by responsibly exercising our freedom of choice. I have to resist every evil temptation that I find deep within me. That is an on-going requirement of everyday living. Just because I may be tempted to lust, or tempted to commit fornication, or tempted to commit adultery, or tempted to commit homosexual acts DOES NOT JUSTIFY MY DOING SO. Paul admonished Timothy to "FLEE youthful lusts," 2 Timothy 2:22. He also said to "FLEE fornication [sexual intercourse outside of marriage]," 1 Corinthians 6:18. God requires us to REJECT every aberrance from the monogamous, heterosexual standard. We must FLEE fornication. FLEE homosexuality. FLEE lesbianism. FLEE every other variance, contradiction or perversion of the divinely-ordained heterosexual model. The premise is no different from the challenge that Adam and Eve faced in the Garden of Eden. God only made ONE RESTRICTION on Adam in the Garden: "do not eat of the tree in the midst of the garden." Predictably, that was the ONE THING that Satan wanted them to do, and that is the ONE THING Satan focused on when he tempted Adam and Eve. You and I will also be sorely tempted to disregard God's laws on virtually every point of law. Satan will make it his business to make sure you TOTALLY DISOBEY God's laws, including God's GENDER-SPECIFIC laws. However, breaking God's law will STILL bring about God's displeasure and God's punishment. In Adam and Eve's case, the punishment itself was gender- specific. When Adam and Eve sinned by partaking of the forbidden fruit, God made a distinction in the punishment of the man and the punishment of the woman.
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." The woman's punishment was applied to the agonies of childbirth. The man's punishment was applied to the hardships of his labors. Already, we can see that God addressed the woman's principal role as MOTHER, and the man's principal role as BREADWINNER. Modern society viciously revolts against these notions. Society rejects the divinely-ordained standard of GENDER-SPECIFIC ROLES. Take a walk through the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, and you will see an absolute and thorough confirmation of gender-specific roles. The Scripture unabashedly projects the ideal of a male-dominated society, where women are keepers at home and men labor outside, with occupations ranging from farmers and cattlemen to community leaders, ministers, even warriors. Occasionally, we may find what appears to be an exception to the rule. We will take a close look at it to see the dynamics at work in those situations. The Bible records the genealogies of the descendants of Abraham. Every genealogy in the Bible is patriarchal - that is, the male is shown as the blood line. This is different from most other societies throughout ancient history. Most ancient societies were matriarchal - the woman held the predominant role in the family. God's plan was based on His own male identity - and certainly NOT a "gay" identity. (God certainly holds no affection for any other gods.) Regardless of how the liberal theologians of our day scream and complain, Almighty God was NEVER portrayed as a female in the Bible. The male of the human species is to model himself after God the Father. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Samuel, and David provided the principal leadership through all the formative years of the nation of Israel. Many great women provided support roles, but the key roles were always male. Men were automatically considered to be the heads of their households, and men occupied the dominant roles in their societies: city elders, property owners, judges, rulers, priests, etc. God demands respect for the MALE Identity and Role
Titus 2:2 - "That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience." God demands respect for the FEMALE Identity and Role
Titus 2:3 - "The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the Word of God be not blasphemed." 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 - "Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church." 1 Timothy 2:9-10 - "In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works." 1 Timothy 2:11-15 - "Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression. Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety." 1 Peter 3:1-6 - "Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the Word, they also may without the Word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands: Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement." The evidence runs throughout the Bible. Men should be men, and women should be women. Men were forbidden to wear clothes like women's, and women were forbidden to wear clothes that were like men's. Six thousand years of human history confirms it.
Men's clothing should be cut, sewn and fit to look masculine, fit the male body, and accommodate the functions of a male. Women's clothing should be cut, sewn and fit to look feminine, fit the female body, and accommodate the functions of the female. We are responsible to God for CAREFULLY MAINTAINING a CLEAR DISTINCTION between MALE clothes and FEMALE clothes. Anytime our clothing appears to compromise or forfeit that distinction, we should be concerned. He WILL hold us accountable for our sexual appearance. God requires the man to maintain a clearly masculine appearance. God requires the woman to maintain a clearly feminine appearance. When a woman puts on a pair of men's slacks, the scripture says that is an abomination to God. If a man puts on a feminine blouse, God says that is abominable. We must acknowledge that God hates unisex clothing. He wants men to look one way and women to look another way. They should NOT look the same, and they should NOT look like the opposite sex. We should make every effort to avoid the unisex look. Only since the middle of the twentieth century have these been difficult rules to follow. For thousands of years, men's clothes were distinctly different from women's and vice versa. Only when World War 1 sent women into factories, and they began to wear their husbands' work clothes, did society and culture begin to make a radical departure from ancient norms. Wearing slacks became increasingly popular when Hollywood and TV stars like Katherine Hepburn (who was reportedly bisexual), Mary Tyler Moore, Lucille Ball, and others began to wear them in the movies and on television. It is time for God's people to reverse the trends and go back to the old ways.
Jeremiah 6:16 - "Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein." Men were instructed to wear short hair, and women were instructed to wear uncut hair.
But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering." Jesus Christ is the head over every man. Jesus is said to be the man's covering. Because Jesus is a man's covering, men are instructed not to have their own covering, and the man's short hair symbolizes that. A man is instructed not to pray with his head covered.
If he does NOT cut his hair short, his head is covered, and NOT compliant with God's Word in these verses. If he cuts his hair short, his head is not covered, and IS compliant. COVERING in this 11th chapter of I Corinthians is NOT speaking of hats, or veils, scarves, "burkas," or any other man-made covering. Paul specifically says that a woman's covering is her hair.
If her hair is cut short, she has no covering. There can be no denying that a woman who cuts off her hair is not complying with these scriptures.
So, he says that an UNCOVERED head (hair that is cut) is the same as a shaven head. According to that verse, if a woman's head is NOT COVERED, it is the same as being SHAVED. BALD!
Some have argued that Paul excuses a woman to cut her hair if she is contentious with this teaching, but that cannot be true. Contention is always depicted as a sin.
The CEV version gives clarity to this text: I Corinthians 11:16 - "This is how things are done in all of God's churches, and that's why none of you should argue about what I have said." (CEV)
The conclusion? Men - cut your hair short. Women - don't cut your hair. Again, six thousand years of human history show that this has been a near-universal practice. Hollywood has changed this more than any other single factor. Will you follow Hollywood or God's Word? One last question on the subject of hair… If these verses in 1 Corinthians 11 do NOT teach that a man should cut his hair, and the woman should NOT cut her hair, then WHAT DO THEY TEACH? And WHY are they in the Bible? Why did Paul raise the subject of hair-length if God does not care whether your hair is cut or uncut? There could be no other reason. God DOES care whether you cut your hair, and He gave these gender-specific commandments. It is OUR business to keep His commandments. How can anyone argue that a woman who wears a short, boyish, "pixie" haircut, OR a man who wears long, shoulder-length hair is not in clear and unnecessary defiance of Paul's teachings in 1 Corinthians 11? Yet, virtually NO "Christian" ministers ever speak out on this subject any more. The silence is deafening. That is a blight on the Church. (For a more extensive study on this subject, see this article:) "Bible Teachings About Hair Length On Men And Women" Above all, among all the gender-related issues, God's anger is kindled by homosexuality.
Paul was not ignorant of the presence of homosexuality in his day. He attacked the issue head-on.
1 Corinthians 6:9 - "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind." Throughout the scriptures, along with the sins of whoredoms, the sin of sodomy - homosexuality - is clearly condemned.
The great sin of the women was their whoredoms. The great sin of the men was their sodomy. God Himself was the first to punish the sins of the Sodomites, saying, “their sin is very grievous,” Genesis 18:20.
For their homosexual pursuits, “The LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven,” Genesis 19:24. Several kings of Israel punished or executed sodomites to purge the nation of their abominations (i.e., King Asa, 1 Kings 15:12; King Jehoshaphat, 1 Kings 22:46; King Josiah, 2 Kings 23:7). Paul called them "abusers of themselves with mankind." Homosexuality is a totally unnatural act that is repulsive to God, Who has always opposed it. It is not difficult to understand that the human anatomy is created for the pairing of a male with a female. Anything contrary to that is against nature and against the divine design. These unnatural affections are repeatedly condemned. They are based entirely on the desire for pleasure and in defiance of principle. Women who abandon the natural use of their bodies are also accused of having vile affections:
It is impossible to articulate the long-term blessings and benefits of simply obeying God’s plan, or the long-term curses and detriments of rejecting God’s plan. Because of rampant sexual promiscuity, our society is now cursed with out-of-control epidemics of every kind of sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs) and their complications, including cancers, AIDS, neurological and psychological disorders, birth defects and more. And that does not take into account all the social costs: dysfunctional families, broken parent-child relations, separations, divorces, drug abuse, crime, incarcerations, ad infinitum. The damage is inestimable. In the name of sexual pleasure, the entire human race is being steered away from the sacred and divine institutions of marriage and family that could have given us the happiest, most stable social order.
He added, "FROM SUCH, TURN AWAY." It is one of the greatest human follies to allow the lust for pleasure to overrule the willingness to do the will of God at any cost. If society fully converted to the homosexual agenda, the human race would be extinct in one generation. That is only one example of how wrong it is. The fact is that homosexuality is ALREADY a factor in the rapid decline of populations and collapse of certain cultures in parts of the world. A male simply cannot provide the necessary role of a mother, nor can a female possibly provide the role of a father. A plethora of ancient, historical facts and sacred texts support this premise. Every society that attempted to break that mold has ultimately failed. Remember the fall of the Roman Empire. No matter how viciously some attempt to defend homosexual lifestyles, God has never negotiated His model of one male husband living with one female wife, as father and mother of children who should be raised to follow the same model. Any government that attempts to legitimize and institutionalize homosexuality is destined to fail because of the inevitable judgment of God. The Bible plan for human sexuality is very plainly defined: Monogamous heterosexuality. Anything contrary to that is sinful. Fornication (sex outside of marriage, including homosexuality and all other perversions) is still a sin against God. And chastity (virginity) before marriage is still a virtue in the eyes of God. In the final analysis, we are not truly free to do as we please. It does not matter what excuses you give for what you say turns you on or turns you off. It does not matter that you may feel attracted to the same sex, or to any other kind of sexual "perversion." That can and must change, if necessary, to please GOD. Otherwise, your eternal salvation will be forfeited to your evil pleasures. To be separated from God for all eternity is a high price to pay for a moment of sexual pleasure. It simply is NOT WORTH IT! It is better to remain single than to enter into a forbidden relationship. God's vocabulary has only one synonym for a vast lexicon of perversions (gay, lesbian, queer, butch, dyke, etc.). "Abominations," He calls them. It is a grave mistake for any man or woman to allow the desire for sexual pleasure to override and overrule the desire to please his or her Creator and Savior. If you are willing to turn your back on God's written plan and design for your life to pursue forbidden pleasures, you are gambling against God for your eternal soul. It is a gamble you cannot win. I suggest that you re-assess the value of playing your life role by God's script and not your own. Men who feel that they have natural feminine traits and women who feel that they have natural masculine traits should nevertheless realize that God makes no exceptions in His gender laws for those traits. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 - "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God." Want to know the "bottom line"? God accepts no excuses on these issues. He wants what He wants. He demands the necessary changes. If you want to see God in His glory, and hear Him say, "Well done," you have to do things His way. God's perfect plan cannot be improved on. Since the so-called "Sexual Revolution" of the 1960s, a generation of young people have either through ignorance or rebellion, attempted to prove that God's ancient precepts were wrong. But in the final analysis, the sexual revolution has done NOTHING to improve society. We are witnessing an absolute meltdown of marriages, families, and the entire moral fabric of society. If all of civilization continues on the path that Hollywood, MTV, VH1, HBO, and countless other evil media venues are leading, we will soon see the absolute collapse of society as God gives it completely over to its evil, reprobate mind that says right is wrong, and wrong is right. It is doomed to a tragic end. It is prophesied (Romans 1:28). We should not ignore the fact that the present state of society might never have reached this level of moral decadence if men and women of God, and especially preachers of the Gospel, had been more conscientious and diligent to maintain the standard that God gave to us in the beginning. We have no one to blame but ourselves. NOTHING on the horizon can be demonstrated to be better than the old ways of Almighty God. Marriage is the divine apex of both male and female relationships. Nothing modern society is offering can begin to compare. Nothing in this life nor in the next can offer us anything better than what God has already offered. A godly Christian life cannot be improved upon. There is not ONE PERSON ON EARTH, male or female, who will ever fulfill your life as magnificently as God can and will if you will follow His commands and live in compliance to His will. Sir! Be a MAN! Ma'am! Be a LADY! Seek to please GOD - not yourself!
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