Headship

Hebrews chapter 13 and we'll read verse 13. Hebrews chapter 13 and verse 13. Let us go forth therefore on to him without the camp bearing his reproach.

First Corinthians chapter 11. First Corinthians chapter 11 and we'll read from verse 2. Now I praise you brethren that you remember me in all things and keep the ordinances or traditions as I have delivered them to you. But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ and the head of the woman is the man and the head of Christ is God.

Every man praying or prophesying having his head covered dishonors his head. But every woman that prayeth or prophesied with her head uncovered dishonors her head. For that is even all one as if she were shaven.

For if the woman be not covered let her also be shorn but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head for as much as he is the image and glory of God but the woman is the glory of the man. For the woman therefore the man is not of the woman.

And that statement is not true of any man here. It's only true of one person. Notice what it says again.

For the man is not of the woman and every one of us brethren have a mother so we were born of the woman. The only person that that is true of is Adam who was created by God. I'm going to touch a little for a few moments upon the truth of headship and it goes back to the commencement back to the Garden of Eden where God established his purpose in headship created Adam first.

So notice but the woman of the man and the only woman who was of the man was Eve back to the garden. Neither was a man created for the woman but the woman for the man. Again reference to the garden.

For this cause ought the woman to have power or a sign that she is under authority upon her head because of the angels. Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman neither the woman without the man in the Lord. For as the woman is of the man even so is the man also by the woman but all things of God.

Judge in yourselves. Is it commonly that a woman pray unto God uncovered? Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man have long hair it is a shame unto him but if a woman have long hair it is a glory to her for her hair is given her for a covering but if any man seem to be contentious we have no such custom neither the churches of God. That's all that we're going to read.

I would take it that there are seven tangible items or seven tangible things that are found in an assembly of God. One the Word of God must have the first place must be preeminent relative to the assembly and to the teaching that the assembly receives but secondly water for believers baptism bread for the Lord's supper a cup for the Lord's Supper and then the other three are found in the verses that I have just read and so there is the issue of a head and so the head is used here to teach the spiritual truth that is a physical head of the man and the physical head of the woman and then in what we have read there is the issue of the hair of the man and of the woman and then finally what we want to touch a little upon for a few moments is the issue of the head covering. If you come to chapter 1 in verse 2 of the Corinthian epistle you would read the Church of God which is at Corinth and so this epistle would tell us what characterized the Church of God always the assembly at Corinth.

I'm going to take you back a little journey for a few moments. This is a history teacher former history teacher speaking here and I would ask my students when I would explain or we would consider an event in history to go back and try to insert themselves into that event and then they were to write about it as someone who was standing observing what was taking place. I want to take you back for a few moments to the ancient city of Corinth that is we're going back to Corinth before the gospel reached the city of Corinth and if you would observe the activity and the people in Corinth at that time you would observe that there were two groups of people in that city.

There was a Jew and there was a Gentile later on in this very epistle chapter 10 Paul was going to remind them that there was a Jew the Gentile and the Church of God at Corinth. Thinking for a moment of the Jew and of the Gentile. If you were to watch the Jew at Corinth their life and the center of their life was the synagogue.

Where I live we have a number of synagogues not far from from the house and so we have seen the Jewish people making their way to the synagogue on Saturday on the Sabbath. That synagogue is a center of their life, of their culture, their family, their friends and their life centered and revolved around that synagogue. Might have been more than one synagogue in Corinth.

Notice the Gentile for a moment. In the city of Corinth there was a little rise of ground it was called the actual Corinth. It was one thousand eight hundred and eighty six feet above sea level.

Likely there are some hills around here that are higher than that. But that was a little rise of ground in the city of Corinth. And on the top of the rise of ground known as the actual Corinth you would find an idol's temple.

That was a temple of Epaphrothite. That would be a landmark in Corinth if the sun rising in the east and the shining off the temple on the actual Corinth would be a remarkable sight. It was an architectural wonder.

You would see the Gentile on any day of the week now making their way to the idol's temple. They're going to bow before a dumb idol. They're going to pray to that idol that can't answer them.

They're going to sacrifice to that idol. They're going to feast in that idol's presence. That was the center of their life, the idolatrous temple.

There would have been more than one idol's temple in Corinth. It was a city that was given to idolatry. But even more than that, particularly that particular temple, there are two things that always go together, idolatry and immorality.

And the historical record is that there were harlots that were linked with the temple on the actual Corinth, the temple of Epaphrothite. It was a place of wickedness, a place of evil. There is a word that comes into our dictionary, you'll likely find it if you look it up when you get home, Corinthianize is to practice immorality.

That was a temple on the actual Corinth. But now the gospel came to Corinth. And in the lives of some of those Jewish people and some of those Gentile people, there was a remarkable change that took place.

Think for a moment of that Jewish man, perhaps, and his wife and little family. They would frequent that synagogue, but now they realize that the synagogue is past in their life. They would understand something of what took place in John chapter 9, when the man whose eyes were opened and knew Christ was put out of the synagogue.

They can't go back to that synagogue. And so where are they going to go? That's why I read Hebrews 13, let us go therefore on to him without the cap bearing his reproach. But there will be other changes that will take place in their life.

It is evident from the Corinthian epistle that we have read from that they were well taught. They were taught by the Apostle Paul. And so he taught them in chapter 1 and verse 14 the truth of believers baptism.

He taught them as well the truth of the Lord's Supper in chapters 10 and chapters 11. He taught them the truth of spiritual gift in chapter 12. Taught them the truth of love in chapter 13.

They were taught. And so the only alternative that they have is the Church of God which is a Corinth, is to go to him outside the camp bearing his reproach. But it's going to be a big difference for this Jewish man and for his wife.

I have seen the Jewish men making their way to the synagogue in the year 2012. And they go to the synagogue with their head covered. I think they call it a hamelot.

There might be a different name for that. But they have that little head covering up on their head. And now this man has been taught that he cannot wear that head covering in the Church of God which is at Corinth regardless of culture, regardless of past beliefs and past life.

It must change. You'll have no head covering in the Church of God. But think of the woman for a moment.

She has gone to the synagogue and we have seen them in 2012 making their way to the synagogue with no head covering. But now she must cover her head. There will be a change.

There will be an alteration in her life as she's making her way to the assembly at Corinth. But think what that would mean to them. It would be a reproach.

As this man is making his way to the Church of God to the assembly at Corinth, his fellow Jews who were at one time his friends would laugh, would mock. The head covering's gone. And they would make fun of the sister now because she has her head covered as she makes her way to the assembly gatherings.

That would be a reproach to them. They would lose their friends. Their culture has gone.

Their family has ostracized them. And everything that was part of their life before, that has all changed. They paid a price.

Most of us here, speaker included, paid very little for the assembly of God. I have known some that have paid a tremendous price. There might be some who would recognize the person that I referred to, but a young girl early one morning wrote a letter to her mother and father.

I met this young sister and in the letter she told her mother and father how much she loved them, but she said I love Jesus more. And she left home with what few belongings she had. To be met by some of the Christians at the gate of that that colony, to be baptized, paid a price.

Those at Corinth, the Jews, paid a price. But the Gentile paid a price. They can no longer go back to that idol's temple.

That's a place of wickedness. That's a place of idolatry. That's a place that disowned the Lord Jesus Christ.

Can't go back to that place. And so what we have read in Hebrews chapter 13 would be true of them. Let us go therefore on to him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

They would bear reproach, particularly for the woman now. The man probably had no head covering in the idol's temple, so he wouldn't have to put that aside. But now that dear woman has got to cover her head.

Never covered her head in the idol's temple. And so they would pay a price too. In fact they would pay a tremendous price just to practice the truth of headship as it would be taught by Paul found in 1st Corinthians chapter 11.

Now I'm just going to mention a few simple things about headship. Headship will always imply authority. And so to the one to whom God has given headship there is authority, but authority implies responsibility.

Interesting that yes Eve partook of the fruit of the tree in the garden first, but Adam was held responsible. But you remember what Paul wrote in Romans chapter 5 and verse 12? For as by one man sin entered into the world, it was Adam who was held responsible, even though Eve partook of the fruit of the tree first. Headship implies responsibility, but it also implies subjection and obedience to responsibility.

Now in 1st Corinthians chapter 11, the passage that I have read, there are three sections. I won't have time and I don't have the exercise just now to touch on all three sections, but verses 2 to 5 you have the principles of headship that's immediately before us for the next few moments. Then in verses 6 to 12 you have a creatorial order.

That's very important. And then in verses 13 to 15, very interesting, he says something about the teaching of nature. Nature has a lesson to teach relative to a headship.

But notice verse 3, the head of the woman is the man. And so to man God has given headship. What does that imply and why? Well someone might say the sovereignty of God.

Well you could accept that. But there is another reason. God has given headship to the man because he created the man first.

That's the teaching of 1st Corinthians chapter 11. Now let me add a few things here brethren. Headship does not imply inequality.

We are told in verse 3 that the head of Christ is God. And the Lord Jesus was never less than God. Headship does never imply that the sister in the assembly is less than the brother.

It does not imply inferiority. We are told that the Lord Jesus thought that not robbery to be equal with God. And so in the truth of headship and in its practice in the assembly, it never implies that a sister in the assembly is less than a brother.

And brother if you think that, to use a chiropractic expression, you need a big adjustment. The sister is not less than a man. But headship has been given to the man.

And that headship is illustrated in a very remarkable way. And so he goes to the head of a woman. That is her physical head.

That is the head upon her shoulders. And he is going to use that physical head to speak of her spiritual head in the assembly. And her spiritual head is the man.

But brother let's face this. What is there about any man that has any place in God's assembly relative to his accomplishments? Relative to anything that he has done as far as this life is concerned? Whatever degree that he might have. I have a degree.

I have never put it after my name. Because when it comes to God's assembly, that is to be veiled. That is to be hid.

There is no place for man's accomplishments. No place to boast about anything that man has done in the assembly of God. And I think the expression has already been used.

We simply be brethren. I learned a lot from a man who never graduated from grade 8 so I'm told. Mr. Hector Alves.

Sometimes brethren, those who do not have much education have more spirituality than those who have much education. And so when it comes to the assembly, all of man's accomplishments are to be hid. They are to be veiled.

And when the sister sits with a covered head, she is indicating that man's accomplishments are nothing. That Christ must have the preeminent place. And so she sits in the assembly with her head covered.

Now let me add something here. Every sister here with her head covered and in silence is acknowledging the truth of headship in a Christ-like way. Because we have read that the head of Christ is God.

The Lord Jesus willingly acknowledged that God was his head, even though that did not imply inferiority, that did not imply inequality. And so every sister with her head covered is revealing a Christ- likeness. That is, she is manifesting what the Lord Jesus himself manifested when he was here upon earth, a Christ-likeness.

But then the head of every man is Christ. And so he's using the physical head of a man to emphasize his spiritual head in the assembly, and his spiritual head is Christ. What is the purpose of the assembly? To declare the glories of Christ.

To declare the unveiled glories of Christ. He must have that place. He must have that place of absolute preeminence.

And so while man's glories are veiled, Christ's glories are not. And the uncovered head of a man is an indication that the glories of his spiritual head are to be manifested, are to be known in the assembly. He gives us a reason for that.

Another reason, he tells us in verse 10 that there are silent watchers. It says because of the angels. And in this present gathering, there are angels watching.

That's what 1 Corinthians 11 is saying. And God is teaching the angels something. He's teaching them something about a truth that angels had failed in.

For angels had failed in acknowledging God as head. And for that very reason, they will find themselves in hell. They rebelled against God.

And now God is teaching other angels from a gathering like this, the truth of headship by the covered head of the woman and by the uncovered head of the man. And so he says here, because of the angels. Now I'm sure that everyone here has thought a little about the nature of the head covering.

You would honestly have to do that. You will not hear me criticize a sister's hat. Thank God for every sister here who has a hat that covers her head.

I'm quite satisfied with that. But I would take that there's a significance to the covering that the covering conceals. I heard an announcement made.

I didn't hear the announcement, but I heard the announcement was made in one assembly up our way that it was all right to wear a little, I don't know what you call them, a manti or whatever on your head, because that's what they wore in the New Testament days. Now I'm not criticizing that particular head covering, but that's not what they wore in the New Testament days. And so I did a little research on my own, and I'm very interested as a former history teacher and anything that has to do with history, and I'm interested in the catacombs in Rome.

If I ever made my way to Rome, I would like to, I would like to visit the catacombs, place where the early Christians fled when they were being persecuted by Roman emperors and the ambassadors of the Roman Empire, and they were facing terrible suffering and persecution, they fled to the catacombs. And some of them must have been artists. We're told that they painted pictures on the walls of the catacombs.

I have seen reproductions of those pictures. They're very interesting, because they picture women with their head cover. But what they have on their head is an interesting head covering.

I was impressed not long ago in the city of Toronto, there is an Italian assembly. They speak Italian at the breaking of bread, but some will speak English when I have the privilege of being with them. I can give a word of ministry in English, but the gospel meeting is half in Italian.

I was sitting there one Sunday morning, and I saw a sister and her two daughters come in for the breaking of bread. And as I watched them, I thought to myself, now that is really something. Because what they had over their head was more like I had seen the pictures in the catacombs.

They had a shawl, and it was very neatly done in the front, covered their heads. Now I have seen some younger sisters using that later, after that. That may be what they use in the New Testament, but here's the emphasis.

The emphasis is the head to be covered. Now I know what someone is saying, you read 1st Corinthians chapter 11, so what about the hair? Well I think it's clear for the brethren, get a haircut, get a good haircut. But for the sister, and I have said to some of my sisters back our way, there's only two people who can decide the length of your hair, you or the Lord.

If you decide, then you can decide how long you want it to be. But if the Lord decides, then you would leave that decision up to the Lord. So it would be the Lordship of Christ that would decide the length of the hair, so that would be as long as the Lord wants it to grow.