Divorce and remarriage AND women's ministry

1. There is no Scripture that strictly forbids remarriage until the original spouse has died. Scripturally, Paul said to those who who were not just widowed, but unmarried as weel to marry if they could not contain. Paul spoke of letting an unbelieving spouse depart, so I cannot see why some remarriages are not ok.

Matthew 5:32 (KJV) But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.

There are the guidelines Jesus gave... Jesus was speaking there of marrying one who had been divorced because of fornication commits adultery. He was not strictly forbidding remarriage if one had divorced one who had committed fornication.

2. Women speaking in the church was also only a personal preferrence of Paul. Throughout Scripture, we see God using women to proclaim the Gospel beginning with Deborah. One can say Eve, but she added to the Gospel that which God didnot say.

Anna the Prophetess was the one who blessed Jesus when Mary and Joseph brought Him to the synagogue after His birth.

Four women prophesied in Acts 20 and were not reprimanded. One may argue that the women prophesied in the home of their father and not in Church, but we must remember in that day, there were home churches.

Women preaching are not usurping authority over a man if the Word they are preaching lines up with the Word of God.

Women can preach, but they are not allowed to pastor, as the pastor must be the husband of one wife, not the wife of one husband.

Hope that helps some...
Ward

 

I'm not going to weigh in on these topics, but, noticing that you are in Huddersfield, I wanted to ask if you by any chance know the New North Road Baptist Church thgere? My late father-in-law (Eric C. Rust) served as its pastor way back in the 1940's.

 

I'm sorry the title says women's ministry and I don't see anything in the op about that.

 

Was that the Eric Rust who was a philosopher prof?

 

Yes -- served several pastorates in Britain, emigrated to the US in the early 1950's to teach at SBTS in Louisville. Wrote 14 books on philosophy of religion and related subjects, died in 1991. My wife is the oldest of his three children.

 

In I Corinthians 11, Paul continues his discourse on how to behave in a church context. Here, particularly how to behave when it assembles. He gives this advice:
In v. 4, men should not pray or prophesy (preach) with their head covered.
In v. 5, women should not pray or prophesy with the heads uncovered.

I take this to mean that woman can pray aloud, even lead in prayer in a worship service. Call it verbal participation.

Does your church have a choir, where most of the singers are women? Verbal participation.

Do women sing in small groups, or sing solos during the service? Verbal participation.

Has a woman ever given a testimony in the worship service to the glory of God? Verbal participation.

Carried to the extreme, would you forbid women from participation in congregational singing? Nah, didn't think so.

The only proviso for women praying or prophesying in a worship service is that their heads be covered.

Now, is that covering her hair, or must it be something else? Have at it.

 

ohh, I thought you meant actual women's ministry.
Verbal participation when? Sunday school? Or the actual service?

 

Good points, Tom...

And might I add this thought concerning women speaking in Church.

Women must have been allowed to pray in Church. Else Eli would not have thought Hannah drunk when her lips moved but he heard no voice.

Audible praying was expected.