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LONG HAIR AND
SUBMISSION #1
BIBLE TRUTH FOR THE BEATLES
Back in the early 1960s, a Bible verse in First Corinthians
chapter 11 was suddenly THE key text used by moms and dads and preachers
and Christian boarding school dormitory deans around the world. Four moptops
from Liverpool, England had just taken the rock-and-roll world by storm,
and frankly, it was the MOPS on the TOP of the heads of John, Paul, George,
and Ringo that had the older generation in an uproar. Even more than all
the "She loves you, yeah yeah yeah's" of Beatlemania, people
were upset that here was long hair . . . on GUYS.
And very quickly, verse 14 of this book from the Apostle Paul was brought
center stage. Here it is more than three decades later:
"Does not the very NATURE of things teach
you that if a MAN has long hair, it is a disgrace to him?"
Of course, it took a very few years for the innocent
bit of hair down over the forehead on "I Want to Hold Your Hand"
to grow into the shoulder-length manes on the front of the "Abbey
Road" album . . . and then parents REALLY had something to preach
about.
Now, depending on which side of the flower-child sixties you grew up in,
this is a fascinating Bible verse. Is it a message from HEAVEN that long
hair on a MALE human being is a sin? "What about Jesus?" some
of us protested when the principal tried to send us off to the barber
shop. "He had long hair, didn't He?" And it seemed rather unsatisfactory
when someone in authority would reply, "Well, two wrongs don't make
a right."
We kind of smile here 30+ years later, but the issue of hard Bible verses
— out-of-left-field Bible verses, so to speak — is just as troubling here
in 1999. There are many, many passages of Scripture where, if you study
a good Bible commentary, the explanation seems to begin with the same
seven words every time: "BIBLE SCHOLARS DISAGREE ON WHAT THIS MEANS."
There's another verse here in this controversial chapter 11 that is absolutely
perplexing to many sincere readers. Back up in verse three we get into
REAL political difficulty with THIS one. Listen to what Paul says HERE:
"Now I want you to realize that the head
of every MAN is CHRIST, and the head of the WOMAN . . . is MAN."
Wow! There it is in black and white. "The head
of the woman is man." It doesn't say "most of the time,"
or "under these prescribed circumstances," or even "This
condition expires in the year 1992." No, "the head of the woman
IS man."
Friend, what do we do with hard verses like these? This is about as un-PC
as we can get . . . if we take the writings of Paul at face value.
Back in mid-October when our Voice of Prophecy team was beginning to put
this series together, the question popped up during a lively lunch discussion.
"What should we do with Chapter 11?" And someone just finishing
off their sandwich asked, "What's that one say again?" And David
gave them the gist of it: "The head of every woman is man."
And almost unanimously, they all shook their heads. "SKIP that chapter!
Don't even get into it."
But you know, I don't believe God would have us go, "Chapter nine
. . . chapter ten . . . uh . . . chapter TWELVE! On we go to chapter 12!"
And hope that no one notices. No, these hard verses and controversial
issues are here for us to grapple with. And here at the Voice of Prophecy,
we believe that the Word of God contains sixty-SIX books, and that First
Corinthians has sixteen chapters, and that chapter 11 has 34 verses. We
can't skip anything; we're not GOING to skip anything. Here in 1999, times
are too perilous for us to use scissors or sleight-of-hand or laptop computer
delete buttons. I think we find some bedrock Christian truth over a few
pages in the book of Second Timothy chapter three, where we find this
statement:
"ALL Scripture is given by inspiration of
God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for
instruction in righteousness."
Having said that, we have to recognize the spiritual truth that not all
wisdom resides at Box 55, Los Angeles, 90053. When reputable commentaries
begin with, "Bible scholars disagree," Ken and David and I can't
snap our collective fingers and resolve all disputes. Many Bible verses
ARE hard; there isn't a consensus on what some passages are saying, OR
on what they should dictate for our lives here in these 1990s.
In our own Adventist denomination, the role and function of women in the
church is a point of endless debate. Bible study and prayer, yes. Conferences
and discussions, yes. At our two most recent world gatherings, our "General
Conferences," the issue of ordaining women to the gospel ministry
has been earnestly explored and voted upon. And a verse like First Corinthians
12:3 has been dissected almost to DEATH . . . without a clear resolution
of the matter.
And you know, it seems clear that there are areas of Christian living
where God permits the rough-and-tumble of debate to go on. If that weren't
the case, there'd be one world church — not hundreds of denominations.
And so here we are in a very hard passage of Scripture, and with five
days to fill. But you know, as long as there's a Holy Spirit to collectively
guide us, I think that's absolutely fine.
One of the great challenges to be dealt with when we look at hard verses
is to determine the CONTEXT and the CULTURE of the times. What were things
like when Paul wrote these words? What conditions existed? Did he intend
for his words to carry weight clear down here to May 24, 1999 . . . or
was he simply telling the men and women of the church in Corinth what
THEY should do?
Traveling clear back in time to the Old Testament book of Exodus, we find
a spiritual lesson of sorts around a certain unusual bush that keeps burning
but never burns up. Chapter three, and a man named Moses looks at this
strange phenomenon of an inextinguishable burning bush. All at once he
hears the voice of God:
"Do not come any closer," God said. "TAKE OFF YOUR SANDALS,
for the place where you are standing is holy ground."
And I'm sure you know that there are many countries
around the world where, TO THIS DAY, if you enter a church, you leave
your shoes out in the foyer. I've seen it — a hundred Christian worshipers
inside, and two hundred shoes and sandals and thongs and tattered Nikes
in a heap out front. But friend, does this command from God to Moses in
the ancient country of Palestine in the year 1455 B.C. apply TODAY in
Southern California on a Sunday morning in the lobby of the Crystal Cathedral?
No, Pastor Robert Schuller doesn't think so and neither do I. Here in
the West we keep our shoes on even when worshiping God in His holy temple
. . . and the consensus is that CULTURALLY, taking off our shoes doesn't
have the same meaning that it did in Palestine.
But how do we come along these many centuries later and decide which Bible
statements have eternal lasting value, and which ones don't? Let's pick
an example that comes even closer to home as it finds its way right into
this First Corinthians chapter 11. Almost all Christian denominations
today celebrate what's called the Lord's Supper, or communion, or the
Eucharist. This is something Jesus did with His 12 disciples — it's recorded
in all four gospels — and it's mentioned right here by Paul in chapter
11 as well. And in verse 24, we find these very famous words:
"Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken
for you: this do in remembrance of Me" — quoting directly from Luke.
And nearly 2000 years later, we're applying those words
as a command to the Christian Church of today. However, if you read in
the book of John — chapter 13 is where this story is described — there's
that beautiful little ceremony where Jesus Christ humbles Himself as a
servant and goes around the room washing the dirty feet of all 12 of His
disciples. And at the conclusion of this breathtaking moment, He says
this to them:
"Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have
washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set
you an example that YOU SHOULD DO as I have done for you."
And maybe you know that in SOME denominations, including
my Adventist church family, this practice is included together with the
Lord's Supper. We call it the Ordinance of Humility in my Adventist faith,
and there are other Christian groups that celebrate it as well. BUT NOT
ALL OF THEM! Different people, Bible students and theologians, and very
sincere followers have read the same Scriptures and decided that the bread
and wine WERE an eternal symbol but that the washing of the disciples'
feet and Christ's instructions about it were meant just for those 12 men.
So friend, what do we do? I would say — three things. First of all, we
pray. Pray HARD that God won't permit you to DISMISS anything — NOT ONE
THING — that He wants you to keep. Ask Him to protect you in the essentials
of the Christian faith.
Secondly, keep on studying. I believe that sincere Christians who keep
on walking in the light and keep on studying in the Word can know that
God accepts them in His kingdom AND protects them from dangerous error.
And here's the third thing. Let's not look to "get out of" something
that it says in the Bible. That's a very common practice today — and probably
your mind does like mine does . . . it leaps right across the hall and
thinks of some OTHER person or some OTHER denomination or some OTHER demographic
group that maybe you think is ducking the applicability of some Bible
verse. Friend, let's try not to do that this week. Instead of saying over
and over as we hit these hard verses, "Oh, THIS doesn't apply and
THAT doesn't apply," let's ask ourselves instead: "Jesus, I
want You to rule in my life. How DOES this apply to ME . . . right NOW?"
First thing tomorrow, we'll step up to the plate and face some of these
fastballs.
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