S: Genesis 19:4-8 Before they could lie down to sleep, all the men—both young and old, from every part of the city of Sodom—surrounded the house. They shouted to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so we can have sex with them!”
Lot went outside to them, shutting the door behind him. He said, “No, my brothers! Don’t act so wickedly! Look, I have two daughters who have never had sexual relations with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do to them whatever you please. Only don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”
O: Lot was considered a good man. This is illustrated by his desire to protect the visitors. Yet, he was willing to sacrifice his virgin daughters to be gang-raped! This illustrates the low view of women in ancient times.
Jesus overturned all that. He encouraged women to learn, as illustrated by the incident with Mary and Martha. Many leaders in the early church were women, e.g. Lydia, Priscilla, and Junia.
In the New Testament, the status of wives was elevated from being property to being someone that you must love sacrificially -- even to the point of death.
The old attitude of women having to be silent in synagogue was carried into the church by early converts. Some people in Corinth were forbidding women to speak in church as a result, saying, "the women should be silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak. Rather, let them be in submission, as in fact the law says. If they want to find out about something, they should ask their husbands at home, because it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in church." (1 Corinthians 14:34-35)
But Paul rebutted these arrogant men, "Did the word of God begin with you, or did it come to you alone?" (1 Corinthians 14:36)
He went on to put the nail in the coffin, "If anyone considers himself a prophet or spiritual person, he should acknowledge that what I write to you is the Lord’s command. If someone does not recognize this, he is not recognized. So then, brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and do not forbid anyone from speaking in tongues. And do everything in a decent and orderly manner." (1 Corinthians 14:37-40)
Indeed, these men had no right to forbid women from prophesying and speaking in tongues, let alone speaking normally in church!
A: Christ elevated the status of women from the ancient subjugated view to co-heirs with men -- "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female—for all of you are one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:28)
Let us value and honour both men and women as co-heirs of God's Kingdom and created male and female in the Image of God.
Over the centuries as the influence of the Gospel of Christ spread, the rape of women from being something "normal" ("sack, rape and pillage" was normal practice in wars) is now something almost all countries officially condemn (though still tacitly approved in some places.)
Let us speak out against it whenever we see it, e.g. in the recent case in India.
P: Father, thank You for my wonderful wife. In Jesus' name, amen.
Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)
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