The Consequences of Satan’s Attack
The Consequences of Satan’s Attack!
Genesis 3:7-16.. Adam and Eve, the very first humans, were incredibly blessed, living in a perfect environment, and all they had to do was trust and obey their Creator.But they didn’t, instead they believed the lies of the devil coming out of the mouth of a serpent, resulting in their disobedience toward the God Who had made them.
This act of disobedience [original sin] broke their relationship with God, bringing strife into their marriage relationship; from that day forward, men would attempt to rule women through dominance, and women would seek to subvert and/or usurp the headship of men.
The Hebrew word translated “rule” (v. 16), means “to reign,” “to elevate to an official position.” Adam and Eve, the first man and woman, were meant to work together as stewards over creation; Adam was the head and Eve was the suitable helper made for him, they were meant to be harmonious, but this was fatally fractured by sin..
The root word translated “desire” (v. 16), means “to compel,” or “to seek control over.” The same word is used in 4:7 where God warns Cain to do what is right, because sin “desires” to have him; Cain then went out and killed his brother Abel, whose offering had been accepted by God, Cain’s had not, for he had disobeyed.
The major consequence to original sin was the broken relationship between humans and God, leading to damaged relationships between all humans, but most significantly, it defiled God’s role for women as willing helpmates and men as loving servant leaders.
The battle of the sexes that began in Genesis 3:16, led women to seek to throw off man’s headship, while men sought to dominate women.
Feminism, chauvinism, and every other kind of rebellion against God’s desire for human with human, and human with God relationships, were birthed on the day the serpent led Adam & Eve into sin.
The only way to restore those fractured relationships, is to know and obey the Word of God; for only then can our relationships with God and with one another be healed and redeemed from the corruption caused by sin.
Prior to the birth of the Church, in most cultures of the ancient world, women were treated as second class citizens, even as servants.
Marcuis Cato, a Roman statesman in the 2nd century B.C., wrote, “If you catch your wife in an act of infidelity, you can kill her without a trial. But if she were to catch you, she would not venture to [even point at you with
her finger], [for] she has no rights.”
That quote reflects how sin’s curse had perverted the roles and relationships that God had intended, between husbands and wives, and between men and women.
Barbara Walters did a story on gender roles in Kuwait, several years before the Gulf War; she noted that women customarily walked several yards behind their husbands. Returning to Kuwait a few years later she observed that men now walked several yards behind their wives. Asking one of the women why this was so, she remarked, it was because of ”land mines.” Sad, but true!
Reading through the book of Genesis you find many examples of behaviors that destroy marriage, family, and all human relationships: fratricide, polygamy, adultery, fornication, rape, incest, prostitution, and homosexuality.
The Devil knows that when the marriage is weakened, the home is weakened, and when the home is weakened all society is weakened, for the family is the heart and foundation of all human relationships and societies.
Do you see now why the serpent did an end run around Adam’s headship in Genesis 3. The serpent spoke directly to Eve, who had been designed to follow, calling her over, he confused and deceived her, ultimately attacking God’s plan for Adam as leader, Eve as helper.
Paul writes about headship more than any biblical author, and he is greatly attacked by liberals, as being a male chauvinist, a dominator of women.
The section of Scripture that receives a majority of these attacks is 1Corinthians 11:3-16, which we began last week, let’s go there. Most of the attacks tend to single out the Greek word kephale [kef-al-ay’] (v. 3), which is translated “head,” and defined as, “the one in authority over,” or “the one to whom others align under.”
The church in Corinth had some major issue of confusion about biblical teachings, one of which had to do with male and female roles and responsibilities.
There were feminist and chauvinist movements going on in the Roman Empire during the first century A.D.; in Corinth, some women were demanding to be treated as men, saying marriage and raising children was a form of discrimination against their rights as “free agents.”
Many women in Corinth resented the bearing of children as it would “ruin their figures” and “spoil their looks.” Some women left their husbands and abandoned their children, demanding total equality, even wearing men’s clothing, cutting off their hair, and discarding all outward signs of femininity.
Why the rise of feminism? Prior to the birth of the Church, many women were treated as slaves, with no rights of their own. A man could divorce his wife for any reason and send her on her way.
Some Jewish men held such disdain for women that they prayed - thanking God that they were not a slave, a Gentile, or a woman, evidently they were chauvinists,
Paul was tasked with explaining to the church that a woman’s submission to man is but a reflection of God’s principle of headship authority; (1Corinthians 11:3) Christ willfully submitted to the Father, woman is to submit to man, and we all are to submit to Christ.
See Ephesians 5:21-33. “Submit to” (v. 21), is better said, “be subject to” [the Greek word translated here means “to arrange” or “to align in rank under,” i.e., to relinquish our rights out of reverence for Christ.
The same is stated in verse 22 and 24, i.e., wives are to be subject to their husbands; just as all believers (the church) are subject to Christ. Notice verse 23 states the reason for this alignment, “the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church. And verse 25 basically says the husband will give up his own rights, even to the point of laying down his life for his wife.
The Greek word [kephale] translated head in both 1Corinthians 11:3 and Ephesians 5:23 means the ruling part of the body, that which has authority/responsibility over the other parts or members, i.e., persons: God over Christ, Christ over man, man over woman.
Think about that for a minute, Christ was never inferior to God the Father, He willingly subordinated Himself during the time that He was in the flesh (John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38-40; 10:30; 14:6-7).
The principle of submission and headship authority is clearly taught; in order to reject a woman’s submission to man we must also reject Christ’s submission to the Father, and all Christians’ submission to Christ.
Godly authority, submission, and alignment is based on love, not tyranny. The Father sent His Son out of love, not control or domination. Jesus loved the church so much that He freely offered up His own life for us, and we are to respond to His love, by obeying His commands.
Men are to exercise their God-given authority in love, not as tyrannical leaders who use fear and brutality to subdue. A man’s authority, especially that of a husband, is to be expressed via love, as a servant leader; and a wife is to willingly follow and be subject to her husband.
Men are not superior to women, nor are they of any greater worth just because they are men; but, in Christ, God intended for men to lovingly lead by serving and women to willingly follow, aligning themselves under.
The devil did an end run around God’s intended plan for headship; going straight to the woman, the devil deceived her, and the outcome of that act of subversion resulted in husbands becoming tyrants over their wives, and men becoming brutes over women in general; women fought back, determined to usurp men’s authority in every area of life, creating a fragmented society.
Our only hope for loving relationships in marriages, families, homes, and churches, is to know, honor and obey the Word of God, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ, showing one another respect, and treating one another the way we ourselves want to be treated. We all need to work harder at serving Christ by serving one another, rather than being served ourselves.