Sermon Tone Analysis

The book of Acts is the second longest book in the NT.

Second to what book?

Luke.

Taken together, this means that Luke wrote 27% of the NT.

Only Moses and Ezra wrote more than Luke.

When you are studying the Bible, try to remember the human author.

Luke wrote Acts to Theophilus and he intended to do something: teach, encourage, reassure, inspire, etc. Always remember to think about why the author of a book would include something in his writing.

Why did Luke select the events he selected?

The Purpose for Acts

What does Luke mean by the first account?

What do we know about Theophilus?

This takes us back to the first account, the Gospel according to Luke:

Luke 1:1-

What can we infer from Luke’s remarks?

An account of Christ had already been collected, organized, and handed down.

The account involved eyewitnesses.

Luke investigated everything carefully.

Luke’s account was very organized, purposeful.

His purpose was so that Theophilus would know the “exact truth” about the things which he had been taught.

The Promises in Acts

Luke 24:4

Luke deliberately picks up where he left off with Theophilus.

The birth of the church in the New Covenant: The Holy Spirit is given, supernatural languages are dispersed, and Peter proclaims that this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel.

Luke reassures Theophilus concerning God’s sovereign plan:

Acts 2:22

What should we think about God’s predetermined plan and the evil that was the murder of Jesus Christ by these ungodly men?

Anther significant theme in Acts is Israel’s rejection of the Messiah:

records the arrest of Peter and John.

witnesses the stoning of Peter.

records the reception of the gospel by the Samaritans.

the conversion of Saul.

the gospel goes to the Gentiles.

we see Herod’s violent persecution against the church.

Martyrs James.

the Jerusalem Conference.

The rest of Acts is devoted to Paul’s ministry and the theme of the Jewish rejection of the gospel and their Messiah.

Paul’s Journey to Rome: The Beginning of the End

1. Cling to God’s promises when the mission seems threatened

Euraquilo: a Northeaster

The storm was significantly violent.

Have you ever experienced life-change in the blink of an eye?

How do you think about and respond to those changes?

How should Paul think about the storm that has overtaken the ship?

Can Women Teach in the Church?

Our elders have been working on a statement explaining the roles God has given to women in the ministries of our church.

(The short answer…

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Can Women Teach in the Church?

LEADERSHIPPASTOR J.D.MAY 25, 2015FacebookTwitterEmailMore683

Our elders have been working on a statement explaining the roles God has given to women in the ministries of our church.

(The short answer is, “Many!”)

That statement is still in the works, but our recent invitation to have Elyse Fitzpatrick share during weekend services has led some to ask whether we believe a woman can preach and teach in the mixed-gender gathering of the church.

While we are working on the more comprehensive statement, we thought it prudent to take a moment to address that particular question.

Introduction of the Issue

In 1 Timothy 2:12 the Apostle Paul commands that a woman is forbidden to “teach or to exercise authority over a man” in the church.

Some suggest that Paul only had one situation in one church in mind, where the women were unruly.

But the reasoning Paul uses—that man was created first, then Eve, and that she was deceived first while he overtly rebelled first—excludes such a possibility.

Paul bases his rule for Timothy’s church in the created order, which means it applies to all churches.

The grammar Paul uses indicates that he has in mind two things he wishes to forbid, teaching and authority (We find Andreas Köstenberger’s grammatical analysis compelling here).

In other words, Paul was not only saying that a woman could not rule as an elder, but that there is a certain kind of teaching she must not do in the assembled church.

But it is clear, however, that women are given the gift and responsibility to teach in God’s kingdom.

Certainly, as Paul commands in Titus, they are to teach other women (Titus 2:3–5).

Throughout the Bible, however, we see women instructing and exhorting mixed audiences also, both publicly and privately.

In the Old Testament, Deborah dispensed wisdom to Israel by her tree (Judges 4:4), and both Miriam’s and Deborah’s songs were given publicly to instruct and edify Israel (Exodus 15; Judges 5).

In the New Testament, Priscilla, together with her husband, tutored Apollos (Acts 18:26).

Women prophesied publicly in the New Testament church (Acts 2:11, 17; 1 Corinthians 11:5; 14:26), and the whole congregation, men included, learned from those prophecies (1 Cor 14:31; Romans 15:14).

Furthermore, Paul commands the congregation to admonish and teach one another, and these “one another” commands are given without gender distinction (Col 3:16; Eph 5:19–20;[1] 1 Cor 14:28).

Thus, almost all complementarians concede that women can and should “teach” in the church in some way—that is, if “teach” is defined as the explanation of gospel content or exhortations to believe and obey it.

It is only a certain kind of teaching that is forbidden to women.

For example, John Piper, who is among the most conservative of complementarians, says, “In context, I think [1 Tim 2:12] means that women shouldn’t be the authoritative teachers of the church, i.e. they shouldn’t be elders.”

Piper goes on to say, however, that women like Beth Moore and Elisabeth Elliot should be free to write, speak and teach publicly, and that men can and should learn from them—he himself has.

About the ministry of Elisabeth Elliot, whom he calls the “Beth Moore” of his generation, he says, “I love it!

Sock it to them Elisabeth!

She was so in your face about laying your life down and being radically obedient and totally committed.”

Other conservative complementarians permit a woman to give a testimony in church, even during the Sunday service, and even if her address is filled with the explanation of gospel content and exhortations to obey to that content.

However, as one pastor told me recently, she should not do so “in or as the sermon.”

Women can, and should, however, he says, admonish others in church–even other men–to obey (Romans 15:14).

What Kind of Teaching is Reserved Only for Men in the Church?

What kind of teaching, then, is forbidden to women?

Here are three possible answers:

Answer 1: Any Public Teaching in the Church

In this view, women can teach informally, as Priscilla did with Apollos, or in the context of group discussion (as might occur in a small group).

Her “teaching” must never, however, happen in the formal setting of the church assembled or in the public ministry of the church.

The problem with this answer is that Scripture presents us with so many women publicly explaining, exhorting, and edifying God’s people.

The substance of what they shared can only be called “teaching.”

Their public addresses were filled with explanations of content and exhortations to repent and believe.

For example, both Miriam and Deborah instructed and exhorted through prophetic lyric.

The women in the Corinthian church gave prophecies, hymns, lessons, or revelations in worship services from which men could learn (1 Cor 11:4–5; 14:26–32).

Some complementarians (like Wayne Grudem) insist that the public prophecies Paul permits to women in 1 Cor 11 and 14 consist only of spontaneous revelations.

Paul’s allowance would not, he contends, include her preparing in advance remarks on a passage of Scripture.

While we respect Grudem’s interpretation and find his exegesis illuminating, we believe that this perspective on prophecy fails to adequately account for the fullness of its occurrence in the New Testament.

Evangelicals have long recognized that “prophecy” includes both “foretelling” (Agabus’ prediction of Paul’s looming troubles, Acts 21:10) and “forthtelling” (declaring the mighty works of God, as clearly practiced in Acts 2:11, 16).

The latter includes proclaiming what God has done, explaining its significance, and admonishing the hearers to live differently in light of it.

Furthermore, not every prophetic utterance in the Corinthian church appears to be spontaneous.

Paul expects believers to come to the worship service with a “hymn, lesson or revelation,” indicating that God may have put it on their heart throughout the week (1 Cor 14:26).

In each sermon I prepare I ask God to help me speak “prophetically,” which includes trusting him both to bring ideas to mind spontaneously while I preach the sermon, and also to guide me during my study to specific and timely words of testimony and application for our congregation.

Thus, we believe 1 Corinthians 11 means that women can be given “words” of instruction and exhortation for the church at large in their personal study as well.

And they must be given space to share those words with the body of Christ.

A blanket prohibition on women teaching publicly would also, we believe, have to extend to a small group or Sunday School class.

These may not be an assembly of the entire church, but they are official, instructive assemblies of the church.