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| Q: | I am in a 4 year relationship with a man I've known for 7 years who's 25 and was raised Methodist (he didn't go to church after high school). He has been going to church with me for the past year and believes a lot of what I do as a WELS member. Although our beliefs are similar, there are things we differ on and things he is unaware of, or was never taught, etc. I am trying to help him understand the Bible and the meaning of Scripture. I feel I can do this best at this point since I know him very well and know his beliefs and his lifestyle and his background, and I know how to get him to understand things and when to push a subject and when not to, etc. I believe it is more comforting for him to have me teach him then to expect him to go to one on one Bible classes with my pastor. However, I do not know if I am doing good by taking this upon myself as I am a women and am not to be placed in a position where I am teaching a man. Is that correct in this case, or because I have a greater knowledge does that make me able to teach him? On the same subject...It is said that the husband/father should have the religious authority of his family. What if that is not the case? Is it all right for the wife/mother to attend church and take their children. Which is better? To obey your husband or God? Obviously God, so why is it said that "man" should have any say over "women? " Shouldn't God have say over everyone and everyone should begin equal in life. Why did God give men the authority? Lastly, is a women not to have authority over any man in any situation, or just religion. I am not trying to condemn this belief with my questions. It's just confusing. Thank you for your time and doing God's will to help others understand. | ||||||
| A: | Questions such as those that concern you cannot be addressed adequately in the limitations of this question and answer site. They call for and deserve careful, systematic study of the whole issue from Scripture. To aid in such study we offer the Bible class Man and Woman in God's World and other similar studies. In addition to the brief answers we can give you here, it is important that you follow up with more detailed study of the whole issue from beginning to end from Scripture. A study of the general principles in Scripture is a necessary prerequisite to addressing specific questions such as those that concern you. Every Christian man, woman, or child can and should share spiritual knowledge which they have with anyone who needs it. You can and should share your knowledge with your friend. When we share spiritual knowledge with someone who lacks it, this is a step toward a further goal. We want that person to be instructed in and become a member of an orthodox congregation. This means that in due time we will want to encourage any uninstructed person with whom we are sharing the truth to receive instruction from the pastor. The principle that we are to obey God rather than man applies to all areas of life including the family. We should not obey anyone who tells us to do wrong or to believe what is false. God has not told us why he created two sexes or gave them the roles which he did, other than to tell us that this relationship is in many ways a picture of the relationship of Christ and the church. It is true that God has say over everyone, but that is what he tells us in passages like 1 Corinthians 11 and Ephesians 5. To know how he wants us to relate to each other we need to study what he says in these passages. The husband should be a spiritual head to his family, but if he is unwilling or unable to do this in a God-pleasing way, his wife may have to provide what he fails to provide. The way in which a wife should act if her husband is an unbeliever is discussed in 1 Peter 3 and 1 Corinthians 7 and chapter nine of the Bible class cited above. The way in which the scriptural principles apply to life in society is discussed in chapter 10 of the Bible class. It is important to study the basic principles discussed in chapters 1-8 before studying this chapter. We pray that God will bless your study of his Word as you seek his will. You may find it beneficial to undertake this study with your pastor or with some Christian friends. | ||||||
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