Affirming the Divine Order: Gender Roles and 'the Covering' in 1 Corinthians 11

Hook

Outline:
‌It may seem like the church in Corinth had nothing but problems, but there were good things along with the bad. Paul had actually begun the letter with a recognition of what was right about them,

‌1 Corinthians 1:4–9 NKJV
I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
‌
Here again he has words of commendation.

The order: God -> Christ -> Man -> Woman -

1 Corinthians 11:2–3 NKJV
Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you. But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.

Christ is the head of every Man

‌John 1:3 NKJV
All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

Colossians 1:15–18 NKJV
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.

Matthew 28:18 NKJV
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

Philippians 2:9–11 NKJV
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

‌He is head of the church, which the part of creation that acknowledge and follows his headship.

Ephesians 1:19–23 NKJV
and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
As the church grows, his dominion is recognized to a greater extent. At the resurrection, all will submit to Jesus and then be
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He is the image and glory of God -1 Corinthians 11:7
‌

Man is the head of Woman

‌She is from man, not the other way around - 1 Corinthians 11:8
‌She was created for man, not the other way around - 1 Corinthians 11:9
She is the glory of man - 1 Corinthians 11:7
‌God’s intention is for male leadership in the home and the church

In the Home

‌Ephesians 5:22–26 NKJV
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,

In the Church

‌1 Timothy 3:1–2 NKJV
This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;
1 Timothy 2:11–14 NKJV
Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. And I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.

‌God is the head of Christ

 And so all these things that we've been saying about Christ is head of all men and Jesus saying, I have all authority in heaven and earth, that does not mean that he has dethroned his heavenly father and is now taking control of all the dominion that used to belong to Him.
No, he has received delegated authority from the heavenly father. And 1 Corinthians chapter 15 talks about the fact that when all things have been subject to Christ and all of his enemies have been made his footstool, then he will deliver up the kingdom to the Father. And that he said it's obvious that he who put things, all things under Jesus feet, which was the Heavenly Father, is excepted. He didn't put himself under the Son of God's feet.
And that's what Jesus had to say over and over again during his earthly ministry. He said, My doctrine is not mine, but him who sent me. I do not speak of my own authority, but of the Father who sent me. And he was not coming on his own initiative.
It was the Heavenly Father that sent him. God is, God the Heavenly Father is the head of Christ.
And all of that put together it presents this picture. God the Father at the top of this order, then Christ, who is over all mankind, and then male over female within the order of creation. But having laid out that order of creation, Paul goes on to say that there are things that could happen within the the body of Christ that could obscure that order, and that's what he, in part, what he is writing to prevent.

Obscuring the order: a man praying with covered head, or a woman praying with uncovered head -

1 Corinthians 11:4–7 NKJV
Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved. For if a woman is not covered, let her also be shorn. But if it is shameful for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man.

Genesis 1:26–27 NKJV
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

 Mankind, is the image of God and the glory of God because God placed him within the physical creation as an image of himself. We've talked in previous lessons that part of that is the fact that we have personalities like God does, and we communicate like God does. But for the purposes of our lesson this morning, a big part of the image and glory of God that mankind is displaying is his headship over all creation. As he says that he has placed human beings with dominion and authority. Over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

Now, just like God has ultimate authority over all things, but within the Godhead, there is an order in which one member of the Godhead submits to another member of the Godhead., God the Father is over God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit., The same language that Jesus talks about I do not come on my own authority, but him who sent me, he uses the same language when he's describing the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit won't speak on his own authority, but what he has received is what he will reveal.

And God has the ultimate authority in headship. But within the Godhead, there is an order of roles within the Godhead. And it is the same with human beings. . Within humankind, there is an order with God placing man over woman within the home and within the church, which is a reflection of the same type of order which we find present within the Godhead.

Returning then to our text in 1 Corinthians 11 he's saying if a man is praying or prophesying with his head covered that's a signal that he's not accepting, his role properly of spiritual leadership that God has given him and if a woman is uncovered, that would be a sign or signal that she was not accepting her role.And that would obscure the manifestation of this order that God has in creation, and he's encouraging them not to do that.

‌The order in creation : Woman came from man and was made for man -

1 Corinthians 11:8-10

1 Corinthians 11:8–10 NKJV
For man is not from woman, but woman from man. Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man. For this reason the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

‌Genesis 2:18 NKJV
And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”

‌Genesis 2:21–23 NKJV
And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to 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.”

‌The mutual dependence of the sexes shows the difference is one of role and position, rather than one of value or worth - 1 Corinthians 11:11-12

1 Corinthians 11:11–12 NKJV
Nevertheless, neither is man independent of woman, nor woman independent of man, in the Lord. For as woman came from man, even so man also comes through woman; but all things are from God.

Galatians 3:28 NKJV
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Proper submission is glorifying God by participating in the order he has given. Submission is NOT a position of lower value or worth.

Luke 2:51 NKJV
Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart.

Obscuring the order: A man with long hair, or a woman with short hair -

1 Corinthians 11:13-16

1 Corinthians 11:13–16 NKJV
Judge among yourselves. Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him? But if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her; for her hair is given to her for a covering. But if anyone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God.

Hairstyles are always changing, and there may be cultures where men and women’s hairstyles are nearly identical. But those have typically been authoritarian and repressive dictatorships like China during the cultural revolution and the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.

What Covering Was Paul Discussing?

There are three possibilities

• An artificial covering (veil) which would be the only proper way of acknowledging God’s order while worshipping.
• Long hair
• An artificial covering (veil) which in the culture of their day signified how it was fitting and and proper for women or wives to appear in public.

Major Views of How to Apply this Passage

‌Depending on what view you take of the covering Paul was referring to the application for our day follows

• Women should wear an artificial head covering (veil) when involved in prayer or worship. Men should not.
• Women should wear their hair long in worship because it is the covering God gave them. Men should not.
• Christians should notice which customs are present in their culture that reflect the truth of God’s order, and embrace and practice them, rather than rejecting them.

Other ways of obscuring the order

‌For several generations very influential voices in our society have been actively seeking to hide, demean, erase, reverse or overturn the order of male and female in human life. The first step is to remove society as much as possible from the headship of Jesus Christ.

Men dressing as women or vice versa

Deuteronomy 22:5 NKJV
“A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God.
We have almost completely normalized this in our society.

‌Sterilizing adults against their will to prevent them from reproducing

Matthew 19:12 NKJV
For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother’s womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He who is able to accept it, let him accept it.”
For centuries, conquerors would typically make eunuchs of the males of the royal family to ensure they would not bear children who would seek to avenge them, or lay claim to the throne. This probably happened to Daniel.
Early 20th century United States: From 1907 to the 1970s, 33 states had eugenics boards authorizing forced sterilizations. Approximately 60,000 people were sterilized under these laws
‌SOURCE: https://www.perplexity.ai/search/obscuring-god-s-order-for-huma-ClhamtBtT469zAhsRreXcw#9

‌Surgically altering or injecting hormones to change or prevent the natural sexual development of a child

The castrati SOURCE: https://www.perplexity.ai/search/obscuring-god-s-order-for-huma-ClhamtBtT469zAhsRreXcw#2
The practice of castrating boys to preserve their high singing voices for musical purposes began in the 16th century and continued for several centuries, reaching its peak in the 17th and 18th centuries.
In 1589, Pope Sixtus V issued a decree allowing castrati to replace young boys in the Roman choir of St. Peter's[6].

This papal decree effectively sanctioned the practice, leading to its widespread adoption[6].The popularity of castrati singers reached its zenith in the 17th and 18th centuries:
‌- By the dawn of the 18th century, an estimated 4,000 Italian boys were being castrated annually for musical purposes[3].
‌- The fame of castrati reached its peak in the 1720s and 1730s, when these singers became superstars in the opera world[2].
‌The practice began to decline in the 19th century:
The last known castrato, Alessandro Moreschi, died in 1922 at the age of 64[7].
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in our day
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 3 million girls are at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation (FGM) every year[1]. The majority of these girls are cut before they reach 15 years of age[1].
SOURCE: https://www.perplexity.ai/search/obscuring-god-s-order-for-huma-ClhamtBtT469zAhsRreXcw#8
Transgender hormone therapy in our day - tens of thousands begin this treatment every year

Surgically altering the human body to make it superficially appear more like a different gender

Nero’s “wife” Sporus
Yes, Nero had a male courtier named Sporus who was surgically altered to appear more feminine. In 66 CE, after the death of his wife Poppaea Sabina, Nero had Sporus castrated and married him as his empress[1][4]. Sporus reportedly bore a striking resemblance to Poppaea Sabina, which may have motivated Nero's actions[2][4].
After the castration, Nero renamed Sporus to Sabina and treated him as his wife[2]. Sporus was made to dress and behave as a woman, wearing the regalia and jewels customary for Roman empresses[1][4]. He wore his hair parted in a feminine style and was attended by young women when going for walks[2].
Interestingly, Nero reportedly offered riches and honors to anyone who could fully transform Sporus into a woman, though this was considered impossible at the time[2]. While the castration was certainly a form of surgical alteration, it's important to note that more extensive procedures were not performed, as they would likely have been fatal given the medical knowledge of the time[3].
SOURCE: https://www.perplexity.ai/search/obscuring-god-s-order-for-huma-ClhamtBtT469zAhsRreXcw#1
Gender affirming surgery today :By 2019, this number had nearly tripled to 13,011 surgeries
SOURCE: https://www.perplexity.ai/search/obscuring-god-s-order-for-huma-ClhamtBtT469zAhsRreXcw#23

‌How do we respond to these attacks on God’s order?

‌
By living out God’s order in our own lives.
By speaking out against these disorders with clarity about the truth and love and compassion by those affect by the error