1 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:10,360 This is ERC Sundays, the messages at Emmaus Rd. 2 00:00:10,360 --> 00:00:14,240 Church in DeWitt, Iowa. ERC is a Church of people 3 00:00:14,240 --> 00:00:17,320 striving to grow in Jesus and make him known to others through 4 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:21,520 our faith, words and actions. Find out more about our church 5 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:25,360 at emmausrdonline.org Here's this week's message if. 6 00:00:27,960 --> 00:00:33,560 You think that I am going to sing or even say the chorus of 7 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:35,480 that song? You have lost your mind. 8 00:00:40,800 --> 00:00:45,880 No, I don't feel like a woman. That's good for you. 9 00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:49,120 Otherwise this would be a very confusing talk. 10 00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:53,280 Wow. Well, recovering from That's 11 00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:58,360 fun. Well, if you're not sure about 12 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:01,360 what today is because maybe you haven't joined us before, first 13 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:03,720 of all, welcome. But second of all, know that you 14 00:01:03,720 --> 00:01:07,080 have walked into a talk on biblical womanhood. 15 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:11,480 Now I got to tell you, if I'm being perfectly honest, I have 16 00:01:12,320 --> 00:01:15,880 had some nerves about this for some time when Pastor Matt and I 17 00:01:15,880 --> 00:01:19,160 were talking about a sermon series made in his image and 18 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:27,760 he's like, I'll take the guys. Well, I guess that leaves me to 19 00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:33,160 talk about biblical womanhood. To be honest, it feels like 20 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:36,920 they're and I'm just a little confession, little inside peek. 21 00:01:37,200 --> 00:01:40,840 It honestly feels like there are 100,000 ways I could fall off 22 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:44,320 the Cliff here and fail. And there are maybe one or two 23 00:01:44,320 --> 00:01:47,920 along the way where if I track just right, I'll be OK. 24 00:01:49,440 --> 00:01:52,600 And that's that's all kind of built and baked into my head. 25 00:01:52,840 --> 00:01:56,360 However, something changed, something changed and I moved 26 00:01:56,600 --> 00:01:59,280 out of nervousness into confidence. 27 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:02,880 Now that has nothing to do with me and, and here's here's how 28 00:02:02,880 --> 00:02:07,280 this process kind of works. The thing is, I believe that we 29 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:11,840 we can take a step back and we can objectively look at our 30 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:14,920 background beliefs and where we get those things, all of a 31 00:02:14,920 --> 00:02:17,400 sudden there become there, there comes some clarity. 32 00:02:17,760 --> 00:02:24,120 So in other words, what I mean by that is we cannot escape the, 33 00:02:24,160 --> 00:02:26,280 the family and the culture that we are raised by. 34 00:02:26,280 --> 00:02:30,200 That is inescapable. We cannot escape the culture we 35 00:02:30,200 --> 00:02:32,880 live in now, especially with social media and everything 36 00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:34,280 happening and all that kind of stuff. 37 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:38,440 Those are those are things in parts of our background, in our, 38 00:02:38,440 --> 00:02:41,240 in our background beliefs that we obviously cannot escape. 39 00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:44,200 It is a part it, it builds itself into our heads. 40 00:02:44,200 --> 00:02:47,360 And so we end up with a lot of different background beliefs on 41 00:02:47,360 --> 00:02:50,160 a lot of different topics. And The thing is, like we 42 00:02:50,160 --> 00:02:53,240 certainly by our culture and by how we were raised or whatever 43 00:02:53,240 --> 00:02:57,000 that looks like, we have created background beliefs that are 44 00:02:57,000 --> 00:03:01,560 subtle, that are in our heads about what a man or a woman is 45 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:03,600 supposed to be and how they're supposed to act and what they're 46 00:03:03,600 --> 00:03:05,000 supposed to do, etcetera, etcetera. 47 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:10,320 Now all of that I think is it's helpful, a, to recognize those 48 00:03:10,320 --> 00:03:13,080 things, but B, it's more helpful to recognize something else. 49 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:17,000 And here's the thing that's helpful to recognize is that 50 00:03:17,280 --> 00:03:23,720 God's word is capital T truth. It is capital T truth. 51 00:03:23,720 --> 00:03:26,840 So regardless of what culture says, regardless of what kind of 52 00:03:26,840 --> 00:03:29,920 background beliefs we might come with about men or with women, 53 00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:33,680 God has an anchor. God is the cornerstone of 54 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:37,720 capital T truth. And as long as we lean into and 55 00:03:37,720 --> 00:03:42,120 participate in his Word, believing what he says, because 56 00:03:42,120 --> 00:03:44,960 he's the one who designed us, He's the one who built us. 57 00:03:45,160 --> 00:03:51,080 If we do that, man, I suspect we can't fail and that builds a 58 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:55,120 great amount of confidence. So therefore, I will tell you 59 00:03:55,120 --> 00:03:57,680 that if you did come today, because you were aware of what 60 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:00,600 today's talk and you were just kind of hoping to watch me fall 61 00:04:00,600 --> 00:04:01,760 on my face. Welcome. 62 00:04:03,000 --> 00:04:07,560 I am I am glad you're here. I suspect to the degree that I 63 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:11,360 can stick close to God's Word, that won't happen. 64 00:04:11,360 --> 00:04:13,280 So I'm sorry if that's disappointing to you. 65 00:04:13,880 --> 00:04:17,760 But anyway, on this, on this talk about biblical womanhood, 66 00:04:18,200 --> 00:04:20,000 Kristen mentioned it during announcements. 67 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:22,000 I would love to. Here's the thing. 68 00:04:22,320 --> 00:04:25,920 I, I don't make any like I don't make any promises that I can 69 00:04:25,920 --> 00:04:29,360 cover all the topics or the questions that you might have 70 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:31,520 about this subject, biblical womanhood. 71 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:34,560 I, there's no way I can't do it even throughout the podcast 72 00:04:34,560 --> 00:04:36,680 tomorrow, Matt and I probably won't be able to do it right. 73 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:41,080 And so if I missed something that you wanted me to cover, 74 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:43,960 please stop by the connections desk and write a little note. 75 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:48,360 If I said something that was unclear to you, please stop by 76 00:04:48,360 --> 00:04:50,080 the connection center and write us a note. 77 00:04:50,760 --> 00:04:53,840 Keep the conversation going because this is an important 78 00:04:53,840 --> 00:04:57,480 topic and it's crucial to our understanding about and, and how 79 00:04:57,480 --> 00:04:59,520 we interact with with women in general. 80 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:02,080 So please keep that conversation going. 81 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:06,160 We covet your input and your questions and your comments and 82 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:08,200 all that kind of stuff. So please take advantage of 83 00:05:08,200 --> 00:05:10,800 that. And lastly, before I move into 84 00:05:10,800 --> 00:05:12,840 the particulars of what we're going to talk about today, 85 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:17,720 please know that if there was ever a topic where I am 86 00:05:18,520 --> 00:05:21,880 exercising an incredible amount of humility, it's this one. 87 00:05:22,560 --> 00:05:26,040 It really is. And I have been blessed, 88 00:05:26,440 --> 00:05:30,080 absolutely blessed out of my mind to have been raised by an 89 00:05:30,080 --> 00:05:35,280 incredibly strong woman who had to do pretty much everything on 90 00:05:35,280 --> 00:05:40,360 her own to raise her boys. So just know that I am grateful 91 00:05:40,560 --> 00:05:43,640 and regardless of age, singleness, not single, 92 00:05:43,640 --> 00:05:47,360 whatever. I am humbled and I am incredibly 93 00:05:47,360 --> 00:05:51,160 thankful to all the women in my life, in particular my mom, who, 94 00:05:51,600 --> 00:05:54,840 like I said, she had to fight hard to do what she did to 95 00:05:55,360 --> 00:05:59,120 create good for her boys. So just so you know, that's the 96 00:05:59,120 --> 00:06:02,360 background I come with, that's what I come with. 97 00:06:03,280 --> 00:06:05,760 That's, that's who, that's how I was raised. 98 00:06:06,400 --> 00:06:09,080 So anyway, let's get into the particulars. 99 00:06:09,360 --> 00:06:12,520 Let's see what this looks like. Again, I can't cover all the 100 00:06:12,520 --> 00:06:15,080 topics, but these are the ones I'm going to cover today. 101 00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:17,880 First of all, why women? That sounds like a mean 102 00:06:17,880 --> 00:06:19,400 question, but it's true. Why women? 103 00:06:20,160 --> 00:06:23,680 Good start. We need to define the word 104 00:06:23,680 --> 00:06:27,560 helper in Genesis because I think that word gets a bad Rep, 105 00:06:28,160 --> 00:06:29,920 husband and kids. Is that necessary? 106 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:31,840 That's an important question to figure out. 107 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:34,880 A biblical woman looks like we're going to look very briefly 108 00:06:34,880 --> 00:06:38,240 through Proverbs 31 to kind of see some of that stuff, and then 109 00:06:38,240 --> 00:06:40,200 we're going to see God's trusted witness. 110 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:42,920 So that's where we're going today. 111 00:06:43,440 --> 00:06:45,880 I don't have one particular text that I'm working with, of 112 00:06:45,880 --> 00:06:48,440 course. So normally if you know me, I 113 00:06:48,440 --> 00:06:51,760 would read at this point, but I would prefer to stop and 114 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:55,120 momentarily pray and have you pray with me if you don't mind. 115 00:06:56,080 --> 00:06:59,360 Our Father in Heaven, may it be the truth of Your word that is 116 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:02,520 taught. May it be Your wisdom that is 117 00:07:02,520 --> 00:07:06,160 gained. Teach us, rebuke us, correct us, 118 00:07:06,560 --> 00:07:11,160 but ultimately set us free in the truth of Your word and in 119 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:14,360 the knowledge of the death and resurrection of Your Son. 120 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:18,760 That we may be free, that we may be joyful, that we may be who 121 00:07:18,760 --> 00:07:23,440 you designed us to be, our Father, just by your power, by 122 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:26,640 your Holy Spirit, we pray that you will do this and we know you 123 00:07:26,640 --> 00:07:29,520 will sanctify my words. Lord, we pray all these things 124 00:07:29,520 --> 00:07:33,560 in Jesus name, Amen. So why don't we start in the 125 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:36,400 beginning because that's a good place to start as Pastor Matt 126 00:07:36,400 --> 00:07:39,080 did with the men. We're going to read from Genesis 127 00:07:39,080 --> 00:07:40,720 chapter 2. I'm going to read a few verses 128 00:07:40,720 --> 00:07:42,240 here and then we'll get into some stuff. 129 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:46,640 Genesis 218 we read this name in the name of the Lord. 130 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:51,280 Then the Lord God said it is not good that a man should be alone. 131 00:07:51,280 --> 00:07:54,640 I will make him a helper fit for him. 132 00:07:54,960 --> 00:07:59,000 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and 133 00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:02,880 while he slept one of his ribs, he took one of his ribs and 134 00:08:02,880 --> 00:08:07,640 closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God 135 00:08:07,640 --> 00:08:12,040 had made, taken from the man, he made into a woman and brought 136 00:08:12,040 --> 00:08:17,200 her to the man. Then the man said, This at last 137 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,720 is bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. 138 00:08:20,040 --> 00:08:22,440 She shall be called woman, because she was taken out of 139 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:24,960 man. Therefore a man shall leave his 140 00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:29,440 father and his mother, and hold fast to his wife, and they shall 141 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:32,840 become one flesh. And the man and his wife were 142 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:35,799 both naked, and they were not ashamed. 143 00:08:38,320 --> 00:08:45,320 So if Adam had God, why Eve? Seriously, why? 144 00:08:46,840 --> 00:08:50,600 I mean, we, we would probably in some way or another, we would 145 00:08:50,600 --> 00:08:53,360 preach or teach that all you need is the Lord. 146 00:08:54,160 --> 00:08:56,560 All you need is the Lord and Adam clearly had that. 147 00:08:56,560 --> 00:08:59,600 So why Eve? Well, let's start with this 148 00:08:59,600 --> 00:09:02,960 understanding because it's an important theological truth. 149 00:09:02,960 --> 00:09:07,760 When God created Adam, here's what he said and I quote, let us 150 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:12,120 make man in our image after our likeness. 151 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:16,280 Are you catching on right? We are talking plurals here. 152 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:20,040 So God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit have 153 00:09:20,040 --> 00:09:25,160 always been in a deep love intimate relationship. 154 00:09:25,160 --> 00:09:28,080 They have always had that. God has never been alone. 155 00:09:28,240 --> 00:09:33,040 He because he is deeply and irreducibly relational. 156 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:37,840 That's who he is at his core. He is deeply and irreducibly 157 00:09:37,840 --> 00:09:42,000 relational. Therefore, when God makes man 158 00:09:42,840 --> 00:09:45,080 and he says man, this, this isn't good. 159 00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:48,680 Why? Because God as the triune God 160 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:52,400 has always had companionship, has always had this love 161 00:09:52,400 --> 00:09:54,960 relationship. And for Adam to not have that 162 00:09:55,240 --> 00:09:59,000 means that Adam cannot fully reflect the glory of God on his 163 00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:02,600 own. He can't do it without Eve. 164 00:10:02,800 --> 00:10:06,720 He is not complete to reflect the glory of God. 165 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:14,600 And so we recognize then that Eve women absolutely necessary 166 00:10:14,880 --> 00:10:17,880 for the goodness and the completion of creation. 167 00:10:18,200 --> 00:10:23,680 She is the integral finishing piece of everything that then 168 00:10:23,680 --> 00:10:26,800 God looks at the world and he looks at his people and he says 169 00:10:26,800 --> 00:10:30,920 this is very good. It was good when there was Adam 170 00:10:31,160 --> 00:10:33,640 and then there was Eve and it was very good. 171 00:10:34,040 --> 00:10:38,280 I actually I love what Adam says when like he wakes up and he's 172 00:10:38,280 --> 00:10:42,840 like, I love that part like I really do because he probably 173 00:10:42,840 --> 00:10:45,400 woke up and went, Oh my gosh, are you kidding me? 174 00:10:45,400 --> 00:10:49,200 This is awesome. I named all these weird animals 175 00:10:49,200 --> 00:10:51,000 with horns and wings and feathers and stuff. 176 00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:54,480 But this is pretty great. Like well done, Lord, this is 177 00:10:54,480 --> 00:10:58,000 your best work yet, right? I believe that's how he felt. 178 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:01,080 I'm in fact, I'm positive that's how he felt. 179 00:11:01,520 --> 00:11:05,160 Now, understanding these relationships, men and women and 180 00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:09,240 understanding the the need for relationships that that is key. 181 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:11,600 It's important. It's a completion effect right 182 00:11:12,080 --> 00:11:15,320 now, what those relationships look like, man and woman, 183 00:11:15,320 --> 00:11:19,120 etcetera. That's that is a different topic 184 00:11:19,120 --> 00:11:20,960 that we'll get to in just a few moments. 185 00:11:21,760 --> 00:11:24,120 But for now, let's just check the box of the question. 186 00:11:24,120 --> 00:11:27,120 Why women? We know why women, because 187 00:11:27,120 --> 00:11:33,000 without Eve, Adam cannot reflect the glory and the goodness and 188 00:11:33,000 --> 00:11:35,240 the relational nature of God. He can't do it. 189 00:11:35,640 --> 00:11:38,920 She is essential to that. He can't do it alone. 190 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:43,040 So let's move in then to this word helper. 191 00:11:43,480 --> 00:11:45,680 I think this word gets a really bad Rep. 192 00:11:45,680 --> 00:11:48,480 It gets a bad kind of connotation put to it when we 193 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:51,520 bring it into English. Not that the translation of the 194 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:54,560 word helper is bad, but again, background beliefs, right? 195 00:11:55,200 --> 00:11:57,000 We've got loaded background beliefs. 196 00:11:57,000 --> 00:12:00,320 When we come to the Bible, we don't come as purely objective 197 00:12:00,320 --> 00:12:02,360 blank slates. That's not how that works at 198 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:05,880 all. And So what happens is when we 199 00:12:05,920 --> 00:12:09,560 sometimes, I suspect we hear the word helper and we think about 200 00:12:09,560 --> 00:12:14,480 somebody who's inferior. So like, OK, young child, I will 201 00:12:14,480 --> 00:12:18,240 let you help me do the dishes. You're going to do a terrible 202 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:20,520 job and I'm going to do everything because you're 203 00:12:20,520 --> 00:12:22,720 inferior at this, but I'll let you help. 204 00:12:23,120 --> 00:12:26,360 Lucky you, right? That's not this at all. 205 00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:30,400 The Hebrew word ezer shows up. It shows up 21 times in the Old 206 00:12:30,400 --> 00:12:32,560 Testament. I did a little digging, shows up 207 00:12:32,560 --> 00:12:35,520 21 times. And fun fact, sixteen of those 208 00:12:35,520 --> 00:12:39,240 times it is God as the helper to his people. 209 00:12:40,160 --> 00:12:42,360 It is God as the helper to his people. 210 00:12:42,560 --> 00:12:46,200 And God uses the same word to describe eve. 211 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:49,680 He uses the same word to describe woman. 212 00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:53,040 Now what does that tell us? That tells us, especially as God 213 00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:56,800 helps his people, is He inferior as He helps them? 214 00:12:57,440 --> 00:13:03,160 No, is is what is His role? His role is, is the completion. 215 00:13:03,160 --> 00:13:06,080 His role shows strength and it shows protection and it shows 216 00:13:06,320 --> 00:13:08,440 dignity and it shows partnership. 217 00:13:08,640 --> 00:13:11,800 It does not show inferiority in any way, shape or form. 218 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:15,120 And the fact that God uses that same word to describe woman, 219 00:13:15,320 --> 00:13:20,160 that He himself calls himself man, that ought to ring true in 220 00:13:20,160 --> 00:13:23,920 our heads and be powerful. That's that's that word helper, 221 00:13:23,920 --> 00:13:27,760 right? Otherwise, you know, when we go 222 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:29,840 back and we think about that question, why women? 223 00:13:30,640 --> 00:13:35,160 You see, here's the thing. There's a saving grace to women. 224 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:39,040 There's a saving grace to them. God has created them that way. 225 00:13:39,040 --> 00:13:42,400 Men, we literally cannot do this thing called life without them 226 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:45,640 impossible. And if I have to explain that to 227 00:13:45,640 --> 00:13:48,480 you, well, I'm not doing that from the stage, but we can talk 228 00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:53,560 later, I guess, or I don't know, maybe your parents missed 229 00:13:53,560 --> 00:13:54,920 something. They can tell you about it, but 230 00:13:55,560 --> 00:13:59,240 we can't do it. Women, gosh, you are absolutely 231 00:13:59,240 --> 00:14:01,360 necessary. And here's the thing, anything 232 00:14:01,360 --> 00:14:05,440 that is necessary is automatically imbued with 233 00:14:05,440 --> 00:14:09,200 importance and dignity and is not inferior. 234 00:14:09,640 --> 00:14:11,120 That's how that works in the Bible. 235 00:14:11,640 --> 00:14:13,080 Let me give you another word here. 236 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:17,960 A fit, a helper fit for him. Now this Hebrew word means 237 00:14:17,960 --> 00:14:24,160 corresponding and opposite of, corresponding and opposite of. 238 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:25,720 I want to make sure I get this right. 239 00:14:28,040 --> 00:14:32,200 See, I have to tell you, men or women alike, if you feel like 240 00:14:32,200 --> 00:14:36,920 the opposite sex is strange and weird and doesn't make sense, 241 00:14:37,600 --> 00:14:39,760 though, OK, you're right on track. 242 00:14:40,240 --> 00:14:44,720 Because God has built equal opposites, right? 243 00:14:45,080 --> 00:14:49,440 And so think about it this way. In nature there are always equal 244 00:14:49,440 --> 00:14:53,280 opposites and they don't negate each other, They don't harm each 245 00:14:53,280 --> 00:14:55,200 other. They actually create completion. 246 00:14:55,720 --> 00:15:02,680 So I don't know, sun and moon, right, Sea and shore, salty and 247 00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:06,480 sweet, right, Ying Yang, all that kind of stuff. 248 00:15:06,880 --> 00:15:09,920 These things are not negating each other, they're completing 249 00:15:09,920 --> 00:15:13,000 each other. And that's how God has made man 250 00:15:13,000 --> 00:15:16,840 and woman, particularly woman in the sense that Adam, you're not 251 00:15:16,840 --> 00:15:21,080 there yet. This is good, but it's not very 252 00:15:21,080 --> 00:15:24,200 good yet until Eve shows up. That's how that works. 253 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:27,000 It's a completionist mentality. It is not. 254 00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:30,800 And it's built to be different, and that's OK Different but 255 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:33,320 equal is how the Bible describes us. 256 00:15:33,720 --> 00:15:38,360 So anyway, I hope that gives you some sense of that word helper 257 00:15:38,360 --> 00:15:41,920 and that word fit. And because as Genesis in the 258 00:15:41,920 --> 00:15:45,440 entire Bible would tell us, there is not inferiority here. 259 00:15:45,440 --> 00:15:47,200 Instead, it's completion language. 260 00:15:47,520 --> 00:15:51,160 And that means that God did his best and he did the right thing 261 00:15:51,160 --> 00:15:53,480 in his design. Because without those equal 262 00:15:53,480 --> 00:15:55,440 opposites, we don't exist, right? 263 00:15:56,160 --> 00:16:00,040 All right, cool, let's move on. Talking about relationships and 264 00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:03,960 all that kind of stuff. I, I was asked and I think this 265 00:16:03,960 --> 00:16:08,680 is important. We see women throughout 266 00:16:08,680 --> 00:16:11,680 Scripture and I wouldn't call this prescriptive if it's more 267 00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:13,600 narrative, but we see women throughout the Scripture 268 00:16:13,880 --> 00:16:17,920 begging, just praying to God, on their knees, weeping for 269 00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:20,920 children, spouse, whatever. We see that happen. 270 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:23,680 OK. Is that necessary? 271 00:16:24,760 --> 00:16:28,640 Is it necessary that in order to be a biblical woman, in order to 272 00:16:28,640 --> 00:16:31,680 be a God honoring woman, is it necessary to have a spouse? 273 00:16:31,680 --> 00:16:34,920 Is it necessary to have kids? In a word, no. 274 00:16:36,520 --> 00:16:40,560 No. Can I read you a list of names? 275 00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:43,480 The first one is the slam dunk, and I could probably stop after 276 00:16:43,480 --> 00:16:45,840 that, but I'm going to keep going anyway just to prove the 277 00:16:45,840 --> 00:16:52,160 point. Jesus, Paul, Moses's sister 278 00:16:52,160 --> 00:16:55,200 Miriam, the five unmarried daughters in the book of Numbers 279 00:16:55,200 --> 00:16:58,520 who petition for their inheritance rights in the New 280 00:16:58,520 --> 00:17:01,640 Testament, Mary of Bethany, Martha of Bethany, Anna, the 281 00:17:01,640 --> 00:17:04,880 prophetess Phoebe and most likely scholars agree Mary 282 00:17:04,880 --> 00:17:12,160 Magdalene herself single single biblical singleness is God 283 00:17:12,160 --> 00:17:17,720 honoring it is now. So do women have to get married, 284 00:17:17,720 --> 00:17:20,520 have kids, etcetera to to be godly women? 285 00:17:20,520 --> 00:17:23,680 No, no they don't. They really don't. 286 00:17:25,160 --> 00:17:29,400 Now I say all that and now that's true, but as we talked 287 00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:33,320 about earlier, we cannot negate the fact that we are irreducibly 288 00:17:33,320 --> 00:17:37,320 relational beings that in need of community. 289 00:17:37,320 --> 00:17:39,480 Therefore, I want you to consider something. 290 00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:43,040 Have you ever considered how Jesus addresses singleness and 291 00:17:43,040 --> 00:17:45,480 family and relationship? Have you thought about that? 292 00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:48,160 Because I'm going to give you something that hopefully will 293 00:17:48,360 --> 00:17:53,400 spark your imagination. In Matthew 1248 through 50, 294 00:17:53,800 --> 00:17:56,320 Jesus is inside of a house and he's teaching. 295 00:17:56,320 --> 00:17:58,200 And of course there's lots and lots of people around. 296 00:17:58,440 --> 00:18:01,440 Nobody else can get in. And somebody kind of cues him up 297 00:18:01,440 --> 00:18:04,600 and says, hey, Jesus, your mother and your brother are 298 00:18:04,600 --> 00:18:07,400 outside. And this is how he responds. 299 00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:10,920 But he replied to the man, and he told him, who is my mother 300 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:13,600 and who are my brothers? And stretching out his hands 301 00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:17,000 toward his disciples, he said, here are my mother and my 302 00:18:17,000 --> 00:18:19,520 brothers. For whoever does the will of my 303 00:18:19,520 --> 00:18:23,640 father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. 304 00:18:23,640 --> 00:18:26,160 Do you see what's happening there? 305 00:18:26,600 --> 00:18:30,160 Do you get it? If you don't, I'm going to 306 00:18:30,160 --> 00:18:32,720 explain it. You see, Jesus teaches us that 307 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:38,160 our first in our true family is that of the believing household 308 00:18:38,160 --> 00:18:40,840 of God. Let me say that again, because 309 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:44,400 you may not have caught it. Our first in our true family is 310 00:18:44,400 --> 00:18:48,400 the believing household of God. Now that is going to sound 311 00:18:48,680 --> 00:18:52,200 radical and you may not even like the fact that I said that 312 00:18:52,200 --> 00:18:55,240 or that God's Word says that because in the Midwest in 313 00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:58,760 particular in America, we are extremely family centric. 314 00:18:59,360 --> 00:19:02,440 We are extremely family centric and there's nothing wrong about 315 00:19:02,440 --> 00:19:03,760 that. There's nothing terrible about 316 00:19:03,760 --> 00:19:07,360 that. But if you don't have a spouse 317 00:19:07,880 --> 00:19:13,000 and you don't have children, what then do you do You may feel 318 00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:15,960 incomplete in some way, but Jesus teaches us quite 319 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:18,920 differently. That's not an incompleteness. 320 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:24,480 So what we learned then is that to the degree that singles move 321 00:19:24,480 --> 00:19:28,160 into and are intentional about creating late relationships with 322 00:19:28,160 --> 00:19:31,920 their family of God, family, which Jesus said is the most 323 00:19:31,920 --> 00:19:35,720 important one, then when you move into those and you lean 324 00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:38,400 into those, man, you don't lack anything. 325 00:19:39,080 --> 00:19:42,520 You don't lack anything. You have mothers, you have 326 00:19:42,520 --> 00:19:46,240 fathers, you have brothers, you have sisters, you have children. 327 00:19:46,240 --> 00:19:50,240 And if you don't think you have children, then you better get 328 00:19:50,240 --> 00:19:52,360 here on Wednesday nights because he got a lot of them. 329 00:19:53,120 --> 00:19:55,120 I know because they're hanging on me all the time. 330 00:19:56,280 --> 00:19:58,320 I got a lot of them. I got a lot of them. 331 00:19:59,280 --> 00:20:01,720 And that's great. That's awesome. 332 00:20:02,400 --> 00:20:04,320 I love that. It is. 333 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:06,520 It is. It is a village mentality. 334 00:20:06,520 --> 00:20:09,520 It is a family mentality that God creates. 335 00:20:09,520 --> 00:20:12,240 And Jesus shows us that in that passage. 336 00:20:12,440 --> 00:20:14,240 So single. Yeah. 337 00:20:14,880 --> 00:20:17,680 Yeah. And to the degree that you see 338 00:20:17,920 --> 00:20:20,760 your church as your family and you lean into that. 339 00:20:21,360 --> 00:20:30,360 You won't lack anything now. Some of you, some of you are 340 00:20:30,360 --> 00:20:32,360 opposing me in your heads right now. 341 00:20:32,360 --> 00:20:36,680 I know you are. I know you are because I did. 342 00:20:37,040 --> 00:20:39,920 When I was reading this. I was arguing with myself. 343 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:43,200 I do that frequently. And here's how you're going to 344 00:20:43,200 --> 00:20:46,160 oppose me. And you're going to be too 345 00:20:46,160 --> 00:20:48,040 embarrassed to ever say it out loud. 346 00:20:48,040 --> 00:20:50,840 And you probably won't even write it for a note for the 347 00:20:50,840 --> 00:20:52,840 podcast because what if they know my handwriting? 348 00:20:52,840 --> 00:20:54,520 That'd be too embarrassing to bring up. 349 00:20:55,840 --> 00:20:57,920 But here's what it is. Here's how you'll oppose me. 350 00:20:59,440 --> 00:21:04,120 What about my physical intimacy needs? 351 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:08,480 What about that? What am I supposed to do with 352 00:21:08,480 --> 00:21:14,520 that if I'm single? Well, in the case of those 353 00:21:14,520 --> 00:21:18,120 particular needs and desires, God's Word would tell you to 354 00:21:18,120 --> 00:21:22,840 find a spouse so that you would not fall into temptation and 355 00:21:22,840 --> 00:21:25,560 sin. That's how God would coach you 356 00:21:25,880 --> 00:21:27,840 to do that. And that's OK. 357 00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:30,840 It's OK if you have that. In fact, that's most people. 358 00:21:31,120 --> 00:21:34,000 But I would tell you, don't put the cart before the horse. 359 00:21:35,200 --> 00:21:37,440 Do you smell what I'm cooking? When I say that? 360 00:21:38,520 --> 00:21:40,760 Seriously, don't put the cart before the horse. 361 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:44,960 What I mean is that find someone who is equally yoked to you. 362 00:21:45,920 --> 00:21:49,720 Find someone who shares your faith and have a relationship 363 00:21:49,720 --> 00:21:53,040 with that kind of person because otherwise you are in fact 364 00:21:53,040 --> 00:21:57,280 putting your sexual desires in front of a God honoring 365 00:21:57,280 --> 00:21:59,920 relationship. And I can tell you, because I've 366 00:21:59,920 --> 00:22:03,560 seen it a million times, that will never ever work out. 367 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:06,480 Well, it doesn't. It just doesn't work. 368 00:22:06,760 --> 00:22:09,200 It's the one thing because, yeah, that's the thing. 369 00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:14,520 It is one thing to be able to go out with somebody that you have 370 00:22:15,000 --> 00:22:17,360 some things in common with and and you can have a pretty good 371 00:22:17,360 --> 00:22:21,440 time and you can have a few laughs, but that's average. 372 00:22:21,440 --> 00:22:23,200 That's normal. That's common. 373 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:26,520 That's it. There's nothing deeper than all 374 00:22:26,520 --> 00:22:29,200 right, we got these few things in common and we don't hate each 375 00:22:29,200 --> 00:22:31,480 other. We're OK spending time together. 376 00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:34,440 That's not good enough. That is not good enough. 377 00:22:34,720 --> 00:22:37,120 It is completely different thing to seek out someone in your 378 00:22:37,120 --> 00:22:42,320 faith who you can pray with, who you can share God's word with, 379 00:22:42,720 --> 00:22:46,480 who you can worship with, that God can make holy together. 380 00:22:46,680 --> 00:22:49,920 And that means, quite frankly, when you have sex, it's a real 381 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:52,080 union. It's a real union. 382 00:22:52,320 --> 00:22:55,400 It's just, it's not just scratching some physical itch. 383 00:22:55,920 --> 00:23:00,240 It's a real union. And here's the thing, you know 384 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:03,920 that level of intimacy when you, when you can bind all of those 385 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:07,080 things together, My goodness, we are talking about something 386 00:23:07,080 --> 00:23:09,400 worthwhile. We are talking about something 387 00:23:09,400 --> 00:23:13,240 that can really last, right? We can do that. 388 00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:18,000 And I'll, I'll be honest with you, I would rather have no 389 00:23:18,000 --> 00:23:19,640 relationship than an average one. 390 00:23:20,880 --> 00:23:25,760 Really, truly, just call me single then, because if the 391 00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:29,120 person who I've committed my life to, I can't pray with them, 392 00:23:29,120 --> 00:23:30,400 I can't share my heart with them. 393 00:23:30,400 --> 00:23:32,760 I can't confess to them. I can't worship with them. 394 00:23:32,760 --> 00:23:34,240 I can't talk about God's word with them. 395 00:23:34,440 --> 00:23:37,120 I can't do anything of these things with them, man, I'll, 396 00:23:37,320 --> 00:23:38,680 I'll just be single. Forget it. 397 00:23:38,880 --> 00:23:41,800 It's not worth it. It's not worth it. 398 00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:44,480 So women, here's what I'll kind of like. 399 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:47,360 Put an exclamation point on this little idea for you. 400 00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:51,720 Do not settle. Do not settle. 401 00:23:54,560 --> 00:23:59,480 I have watched with great pain and agony. 402 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:04,240 I have watched women settle for inferior men who don't lead them 403 00:24:04,400 --> 00:24:07,080 into the gospel, who don't lead them to Christ. 404 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:12,400 And that is not OK. That is never OK. 405 00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:19,760 Men, I know you think I just threw a spear at you, and I'm 406 00:24:19,760 --> 00:24:23,400 sorry, but I'm not. I'm not. 407 00:24:25,480 --> 00:24:28,120 If you are going to be who you are going to be, then you need 408 00:24:28,120 --> 00:24:31,560 to be that with and for her. Women, do not settle. 409 00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:36,680 I have to move on. Otherwise I'm going to get on a 410 00:24:36,680 --> 00:24:42,800 soapbox talking about what a biblical woman looks like. 411 00:24:42,920 --> 00:24:45,360 All right, so let's change gears here a little bit. 412 00:24:46,720 --> 00:24:50,280 OK? Again, I Proverbs 31 starting in 413 00:24:50,280 --> 00:24:53,520 verse 10 through 31. It is fantastic. 414 00:24:53,560 --> 00:24:55,720 It is amazing. If you have not spent time in 415 00:24:55,720 --> 00:24:58,240 that either a man or a woman, go read it. 416 00:24:58,520 --> 00:25:01,520 The whole thing is wonderful. It's this beautiful description 417 00:25:01,760 --> 00:25:03,720 of what biblical womanhood looks like. 418 00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:06,760 It's fantastic. Now I will say, if you go read 419 00:25:06,760 --> 00:25:10,240 that thing, I was warned on Thursday and this is true, if 420 00:25:10,240 --> 00:25:12,880 you go read that as a woman, please don't see that as a 421 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:15,480 checklist that you have to do all the time in every season of 422 00:25:15,480 --> 00:25:16,960 your life. That's not possible. 423 00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:19,560 OK? There are different things in 424 00:25:19,560 --> 00:25:22,680 different seasons of your life that God causes you or calls you 425 00:25:22,680 --> 00:25:25,040 to strive towards. So I just want to hit a few 426 00:25:25,040 --> 00:25:27,440 highlights here and then and then we'll kind of keep going. 427 00:25:27,960 --> 00:25:32,520 Verse 10, an excellent wife who can find she is far more 428 00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:35,520 precious than jewels. Oh, do you hear that? 429 00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:41,640 Do you hear that? Do you hear women, that as you 430 00:25:41,640 --> 00:25:45,320 lean into your relationship with the Lord, as you honor God, as 431 00:25:45,320 --> 00:25:49,240 you fear Him, do you realize that there is nothing on this 432 00:25:49,240 --> 00:25:53,600 earth more precious than you besides Jesus Christ himself? 433 00:25:53,840 --> 00:25:59,680 That's it, that's it. If a man can find a woman who is 434 00:25:59,920 --> 00:26:04,400 fearing the Lord, who is with the Lord, My goodness, you have 435 00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:07,720 won the lottery, guys, you have won the lottery. 436 00:26:08,640 --> 00:26:11,640 And man, what, what a gift, what a gift. 437 00:26:12,680 --> 00:26:20,880 So women, I, I, I spur you on, be precious, be amazing, not 438 00:26:20,880 --> 00:26:24,840 just for a man in particular, but because God has formed you 439 00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:29,560 to be that amazing person that loves and fears him above all 440 00:26:29,560 --> 00:26:33,120 things. And then when you decide that 441 00:26:33,120 --> 00:26:36,200 you want to be in a relationship with somebody, you have set the 442 00:26:36,200 --> 00:26:41,560 bar because your first husband, your father, is God and man, 443 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:42,920 that guy better be ready for that. 444 00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:45,680 You've set the bar. You won't settle. 445 00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:52,040 Let's look at verse 15 in Proverbs 31. 446 00:26:52,040 --> 00:26:55,440 She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her 447 00:26:55,440 --> 00:26:57,640 household and portions for her maiden. 448 00:26:57,800 --> 00:27:00,800 You know what a biblical woman is not lazy. 449 00:27:01,840 --> 00:27:03,920 She's not lazy. She's not apathetic. 450 00:27:05,320 --> 00:27:09,040 She is somebody who cares deeply about the people in her life, 451 00:27:09,040 --> 00:27:12,480 and so she is going to get after it to provide for them. 452 00:27:13,240 --> 00:27:16,400 Now, that's going to look different in each circumstance. 453 00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:19,240 Whether you're at home or whether you're out in the 454 00:27:19,240 --> 00:27:21,080 workforce, that is going to look different. 455 00:27:21,240 --> 00:27:25,240 But there is no apathy in the woman who honors God. 456 00:27:25,920 --> 00:27:28,240 There's no listlessness or laziness. 457 00:27:29,000 --> 00:27:31,440 She cares deeply, and that's her motivation. 458 00:27:31,640 --> 00:27:34,960 She cares deeply about the people that are entrusted to her 459 00:27:34,960 --> 00:27:38,120 in one way or another. And maybe that's just herself if 460 00:27:38,120 --> 00:27:41,280 she's single, but she cares deeply enough about God's 461 00:27:41,280 --> 00:27:44,200 creation to want to honor that and work hard for that. 462 00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:46,800 Right. That's what the biblical woman 463 00:27:46,800 --> 00:27:48,080 does. Let's keep going. 464 00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:51,560 Verse 16 in Proverbs 31. She rises while it is yet night. 465 00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:53,240 Oh, I've read that one, didn't I? 466 00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:59,240 Yeah. Oh, I did it twice, huh? 467 00:27:59,880 --> 00:28:05,640 You don't say. Well, color me surprised. 468 00:28:08,040 --> 00:28:09,920 OK, well, that's fine. That's fine. 469 00:28:13,120 --> 00:28:19,080 Well, the one that my mistake here it is verse 16, I believe. 470 00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:22,320 If I'm not mistaken, it talks about her buying a field. 471 00:28:22,480 --> 00:28:25,080 Should I read it? You circled it. 472 00:28:25,440 --> 00:28:27,040 Oh, my gosh. How do you read this? 473 00:28:27,880 --> 00:28:37,840 Oh, God bless you. I can't get far enough away from 474 00:28:37,840 --> 00:28:41,120 it. I'm so old. 475 00:28:42,880 --> 00:28:45,360 She can. She considers a field and buys 476 00:28:45,360 --> 00:28:48,840 it with the fruit of her hand. She plants a vineyard. 477 00:28:49,560 --> 00:28:51,680 She considers a field and buys it. 478 00:28:52,080 --> 00:28:57,520 That's remarkable. You know I I was curious about 479 00:28:57,520 --> 00:28:59,760 saying this but I'm going to anyway because why not? 480 00:29:03,440 --> 00:29:07,040 I have heard this stupid thing over and over again and it's 481 00:29:07,040 --> 00:29:10,960 always said whimsically, but I think some men are just stupid 482 00:29:10,960 --> 00:29:15,480 enough to want it to be truth. Keep her barefoot and in the 483 00:29:15,480 --> 00:29:19,440 kitchen. Good gravy, friends, that is 484 00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:24,200 awful. In Proverbs 31, she considers a 485 00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:26,760 field and she buys it. Do you see the entrepreneurial 486 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:31,960 spirit that God gives to women? Do you see the wisdom that He 487 00:29:31,960 --> 00:29:34,120 gives to women? Do you see how He gives them 488 00:29:34,120 --> 00:29:37,560 freedom to make big decisions, financially and otherwise? 489 00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:40,920 This is really important. This is incredibly important, 490 00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:44,720 and this is powerful. Women are called into making 491 00:29:44,720 --> 00:29:49,680 these big time decisions and they're trusted with it by God. 492 00:29:49,720 --> 00:29:53,000 And if they have a godly husband by their husbands, they are 493 00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:55,360 trusted with that. Now I have to move on to this 494 00:29:55,360 --> 00:29:59,000 last one because I yeah, there we are. 495 00:30:00,560 --> 00:30:04,040 I move on to this last one. You know what? 496 00:30:04,040 --> 00:30:06,960 And that's wrong too. That is not verse 30. 497 00:30:07,400 --> 00:30:09,720 It's 30. Good gravy. 498 00:30:12,160 --> 00:30:14,360 You know, had a woman made this PowerPoint, it probably would 499 00:30:14,360 --> 00:30:18,240 have been right. Just going to be honest. 500 00:30:19,160 --> 00:30:22,520 To be honest, her attention to detail would have caught these 501 00:30:22,520 --> 00:30:26,640 things that I clearly did not. Lord help me. 502 00:30:28,960 --> 00:30:33,600 Well, that's humiliating. Anyway, it's verse 30, not 31. 503 00:30:33,840 --> 00:30:36,680 It says this charm is deceitful and beauty is in vain, but a 504 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:38,560 woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. 505 00:30:38,560 --> 00:30:42,080 Do you see it? I hope you see it. 506 00:30:47,840 --> 00:30:55,400 I believe that women have been sold a terrible lie their entire 507 00:30:55,400 --> 00:30:59,400 lives, and it is heartbreaking to me. 508 00:31:00,880 --> 00:31:05,000 I believe, either subtly or not so subtly, women have been told 509 00:31:05,000 --> 00:31:08,800 throughout their lives that your value is based on your physical 510 00:31:08,800 --> 00:31:15,320 attraction or beauty. I absolutely believe that's 511 00:31:15,320 --> 00:31:18,200 true. Everything in my culture tells 512 00:31:18,200 --> 00:31:27,040 me that that's true. I think what beauty means by our 513 00:31:27,040 --> 00:31:32,720 culture standard is obnoxious because it is an ever moving 514 00:31:32,920 --> 00:31:35,840 goal post that women cannot attain to. 515 00:31:36,200 --> 00:31:39,760 And the worst part about all of this is the glory of the Lord 516 00:31:39,760 --> 00:31:43,680 which He bestows on women. It cannot possibly be held in a 517 00:31:43,720 --> 00:31:46,560 physical body alone. That is not enough. 518 00:31:47,360 --> 00:31:54,480 That is not enough. There is no way, you see, it is 519 00:31:54,480 --> 00:31:57,360 the woman who fears the Lord, whose beauty and value transcend 520 00:31:57,360 --> 00:32:00,760 all notions and transcend all cultures. 521 00:32:00,760 --> 00:32:03,880 The body is not fit to carry that kind of weight of glory. 522 00:32:04,160 --> 00:32:10,560 So therefore, my dear sisters in Christ, don't you dare to ride 523 00:32:11,000 --> 00:32:16,760 or make small the thing that God so passionately and personally 524 00:32:16,760 --> 00:32:19,440 knit you together to be. Don't do that. 525 00:32:22,000 --> 00:32:25,080 God has made you the way you are for a purpose. 526 00:32:26,040 --> 00:32:28,520 And guess what? That purpose is far greater than 527 00:32:28,520 --> 00:32:30,440 just being attractive to some man. 528 00:32:33,880 --> 00:32:38,800 Good Lord, help me, I have to move on again. 529 00:32:40,160 --> 00:32:45,920 Let's get to this last idea. God's trusted witnesses. 530 00:32:46,680 --> 00:32:51,960 If you didn't know this, it is Mary Magdalene, a single woman 531 00:32:52,720 --> 00:32:54,960 who was the first witness to the resurrection. 532 00:32:55,680 --> 00:32:57,360 Do you think that's by coincidence? 533 00:32:57,800 --> 00:32:59,520 Do you think that was an accident? 534 00:33:00,040 --> 00:33:03,040 God had that programmed and planned the entire time. 535 00:33:03,200 --> 00:33:05,560 Why? Why would he do that? 536 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:08,520 Because if you know anything about New Testament history, in 537 00:33:08,520 --> 00:33:13,960 that age, women could not be witnesses in legal cases. 538 00:33:13,960 --> 00:33:15,600 They did not have the voice to do that. 539 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:21,120 And yet here God is and He is planning and he is pursuing a 540 00:33:21,120 --> 00:33:25,840 single woman with a spotted past to be the first witness to the 541 00:33:25,840 --> 00:33:30,520 good news of the resurrection. My God, that is powerful because 542 00:33:30,520 --> 00:33:34,680 what God does is radical. He takes those who don't have a 543 00:33:34,680 --> 00:33:36,960 voice. He takes those who are too often 544 00:33:36,960 --> 00:33:39,080 unseen. He takes those who are looked 545 00:33:39,080 --> 00:33:43,520 with low esteem and He builds them up and He makes them 546 00:33:43,720 --> 00:33:51,560 witnesses, friends, women, you, as you look at your magnificent 547 00:33:51,600 --> 00:33:58,480 ancestor in the Spirit, you will know that it is your right, nay, 548 00:33:58,720 --> 00:34:03,160 your responsibility to be witnesses to the resurrected 549 00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:06,400 Christ. Therefore, women, you are called 550 00:34:06,400 --> 00:34:11,040 to teach, you are called to disciple, you are called to make 551 00:34:11,239 --> 00:34:14,920 people into the image of God through the faith that He has 552 00:34:14,920 --> 00:34:18,880 given you. That's a responsibility, that's 553 00:34:18,880 --> 00:34:22,520 a call, That's an important job, and He's called you to it. 554 00:34:24,040 --> 00:34:27,120 Is there a responsibility greater than that? 555 00:34:27,719 --> 00:34:33,239 No, there is not. Not being married, not being a 556 00:34:33,239 --> 00:34:36,320 mom. There is no greater gift and 557 00:34:36,320 --> 00:34:39,960 responsibility than being a witness to the risen Christ. 558 00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:45,360 He has shed His blood for us. He has been resurrected, that we 559 00:34:45,360 --> 00:34:48,719 might be resurrected and be brought to life again. 560 00:34:48,960 --> 00:34:51,280 This is the call for you to be a witness. 561 00:34:52,560 --> 00:34:56,199 Lean into that. Watch how your life changes. 562 00:34:56,199 --> 00:35:00,400 Watch how you feel fulfilled. I'll give you one more thing and 563 00:35:00,400 --> 00:35:02,280 then we have to wrap this up because I'm way over. 564 00:35:04,920 --> 00:35:09,320 In Galatians 323 it says this. There is neither Jew nor Greek, 565 00:35:09,440 --> 00:35:12,920 there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor 566 00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:15,480 female, for you are all one in Christ. 567 00:35:16,680 --> 00:35:18,840 Christ. Jesus, through his sacrifice for 568 00:35:18,840 --> 00:35:22,560 our sins and resurrection for our bodies, has called all of us 569 00:35:22,800 --> 00:35:31,280 to proclaim the captives free. Therefore, I entrust you, and 570 00:35:31,280 --> 00:35:35,800 with what other authority God has given me, I command you go 571 00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:37,720 and proclaim the good news of the gospel. 572 00:35:38,200 --> 00:35:39,840 This is what God has designed you for. 573 00:35:39,840 --> 00:35:44,360 Let's pray. Thanks for listening to ERC 574 00:35:44,360 --> 00:35:46,800 Sundays. To support the work God is doing 575 00:35:46,840 --> 00:35:48,400 and Amazed Rd. Church, visit 576 00:35:48,480 --> 00:35:51,400 amazedrdonline.org/giving.