A Woman of Chayil: Far Above Rubies by Jane Carole Anderson

[Cal]

Originally Posted by Evangelical

Because of what the bible says about female teachers, I would discount any notion of their ministries being blessed by God, on the same basis that I would discount any LGBT, muslim, or buddhist ministry as being "blessed by God". Our assessments of "God's blessing" is flawed when it is based upon external matters such as frequency of answered prayers, outward blessings, church growth, or financial blessing. These same metrics may be used by any ministry even non-Christian one, to conclude it is "under God's blessing". I am sure the hundreds of Muslims that attend the Mosque every week feel blessed by God. If we think like that then we are being like Job's friends.

Well, the fact of the matter is Jesus said "by their fruit you will know them." And I have no doubt of the good fruit of many of these ministries. There is also the witness in my spirit of the anointing of the Spirit on many of these ministries.

Paul also said women should keep silent in churches. But even Nee and Lee realized an extreme interpretation of this did not add up and allowed female speaking. As for teaching and having authority over a man, I believe Paul was talking about the kind of teaching he knew, pre-written-NT, where he and the other apostles taught with the equivalent authority we now reserve only to the Bible. Women did not take part in that. But interpreting the Bible and teaching from it is not the same thing. Just because a women teaches doesn't mean she holds authority in the way Paul meant. We are free to listen as the Spirit leads. The Spirit and the Bible are our final authority now. In Paul's day it was the Spirit and the Apostles. They had a kind of authority that is now reserved to the Bible. (And, no, Lee didn't have it.)