//Many Christian churches shy away from being confrontational at the risk of sacrificing the search for truth! We are directed to "be ready to give an account of...faith." Question everything you were ever told about the Bible and look in the Bible itself for the answers with one basic principle in mind: God is provident.
God said we should study His word to show ourselves approved. When Jesus/disciples taught in the synagogue the hearers hurried straightway home to read if it was so in their book.
Paul rebuked Peter in Gal. 2:11 for not walking uprightly. The Bible says that when we find a brother who does wrong that we should correct him with love lest we should also slip and need their mercy.
I have come to the point of where I seek God's guidance as there are so many interpretations that have gone awry esp. since there are so many translations of the KJV that have omitted key words or translated them so that they no longer hold the essence of the meaning as was intended.
Jesus said I have not come to condemn the world but to save. When the disciples asked Jesus if they should stop the man who was healing in His name but he was not one of them Jesus said no.
Seek to bring the lost to God and God will do the rest. It is not for us to judge nor cleanse them of perceived evils.
I disagree with much of the newly translated versions of the Bible today because of their omissions esp. for new ones seeking to know God. How will they know if the don't have all that the word has to offer except they pray for God's guidance who will then lead them to the right Word. All my Bibles are the KJV original editions by choice although when I first started studying and then was told by an atheist that the KJV wasn't hard just so long as I remember that ye, thou, thy are old english to our you/your etc. It is the very same Bible I used when I asked God to take me deeper and the love I found along with the wisdom and knowledge brought me such great peace and joy.
I was looking through certain family forums today and came across the question of men being superior to women because of the order of creation... a very interesting question that is commonly skirted. More commonly in the church is the supposition that "be submissive to your husband" implies subservience in every aspect of life. If God created us in his likeness, both male and female, it is supposed we are all mentally capable of the same depth of love and mercy. Therefore I submit to you that a woman is also able to give constructive criticism, fill in the gaps left by neglect, and even excel when their husband is spiritually weak. Just because the mainmast of a ship falls off doesn't mean the ship will sink or fail to move forward in the seas of life.
I attended this Pentecostal church at one time and I recall the minister saying quite frequently that this was what God led Him to. He was a very good minister to begin with but then his wife was the teacher and she would openly admonish him for preaching against what she was teaching so that eventually he became a poor preacher of God's word because he didn't want to be at bad terms with his wife. This is just an example of what can happen when a woman supersedes her husband.
In the OT they were proportioning the land to the tribes according to the sons. This one family had no sons so the daughters asked for their father's sake if they could claim his inheritance and God allowed it but NOTE** it is because the father was without a son.
In the NT God says that a woman who has become widowed at a certain age and for the allotted time is to be given the same rights as a man providing that she stay a widow.
I recall this question came up in the Pentecostal church as being Native people following the tribal system which is matriarchal meaning the children follow the man and they basically rule. The man provides by hunting, fishing, lodging (you know, manly things
) so they had a problem coming to grips with this.
ma·tri·arch (m
tr
-ärk
)
n.1. A woman who rules a family, clan, or tribe.
2. A woman who dominates a group or an activity.
3. A highly respected woman who is a mother.
The Bible says that a woman does not over rule a man because man is made in God's image. A woman was to wear a head covering but her hair is her covering. I know I've been to sites that say that God is a woman and that is clear blasphemy.
When we are willing to compromise God's Word how much more will it be compromised is my question.
When a man and woman love each other they share the responsibilities according to who has time and is capable. I know homes where the man does most of the cooking because he is the better cook. He does most of the cleaning because he is very particular about how clean it must be. In a lot of cases today the woman also holds a job or is the main bread winner. This isn't sinful, it is love working out what is best but the man still has God's Word. I also know of households where the man confers with the wife over God's teaching because she is most capable but the woman does not speak above her husband in the congregation. At times the man lets the woman speak because she is more capable for explaining.
There are also times when the man does not know God may attend church for the sake of his family but the woman is the spiritual leader in their home. God says Is there no one here with wisdom?
I am sorry but I know nothing about communion but I did attend a St. Michael's church in another community as it was the church closest to where I stayed and I guess that is what they did at the end of the service. To me it was a ritual and they were most gracious with me about it.
When I have questions on the teachings from God I ask God to get a precise answer as mankind is fallible, prone to error, and some are on different levels of learning/understanding from others. A good relationship with God clears many questions.
