In explaining why he had
instructions for women in the church, Paul the apostle wrote to
Timothy that “Adam was first formed, then Eve”, and “Adam
was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the
transgression.” We have
understood that Adam knew what he was doing when he transgressed in
the garden of Eden, Eve was tricked or fooled into it. In chapter two
and verse fifteen, Paul shared a blessing “in
childbearing” if a woman
continues “in faith”,
“charity”, and
“holiness with sobriety”
where we read:
Notwithstanding she
shall be saved in childbearing,
if they continue in
faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.
The
verse begins, “Notwithstanding she shall be saved in
childbearing,...” As it
pertains to women Paul wrote, “Notwithstanding”
which means “but, moreover and now” “she shall be
saved” or “kept safe
and sound and rescued from danger or destruction” “in
childbearing” which refers to “maternity or childbirth”.
The woman who keep the directives laid down by Paul would have an
additional blessing of being “kept safe” in childbearing.
The verse continues, “...if
they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.”
Being “saved in
childbearing” was conditional
according to Paul as he wrote “if”
which means “in case or provided that” “they
continue” or “remain, abide
and tarry” in three different spiritual qualities. The first listed
is“in faith” which
is “conviction of the truth of anything and belief”. The
second is “and charity” which is the Greek word “agape”
and means “affection, good will, benevolence, brotherly and
unconditional love”. The final spiritual quality listed by Paul is
“and holiness with sobriety” or “consecration,
purification and the sanctification of heart and life with soundness
of mind and self-control”. If a woman continued in “faith,
charity and holiness with sobriety” she was promised to be kept
during “childbearing”.
As we think through Paul's
words, we cannot help but think of the terrible pain that is
associated with childbirth. It was the Lord God who told the woman in
the book of Genesis in chapter three and verse sixteen:
...I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in sorrow
you shall bring forth children; and your desire shall be
to your husband, and he shall rule over you.
According
to Paul the apostle, there is a way for women to be “saved in
childbearing”, and it is associated with their ability to live
“in faith, charity and holiness with sobriety”. Though
these traits are directed toward women, all of us are benefitted by
having them in our lives. Let us ask the Lord to help us to live “in
faith”, “in charity” and in “holiness with
sobriety”, and may the women who fulfill these qualities in
their lives capitalize upon the promise of God for keeping them.
Next
time we begin a new chapter where Paul instructs Timothy concerning
“bishops”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
http://www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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