Bible Studies
Contributors (Luke 8:1-3)
Series: Additional StudiesIntroduction:
1. Sometimes women in the Lord’s church develop the feeling, “There is nothing for me to do.” 2. The feeling may stem from perceptions about the limitations placed on women in Scripture.a. They are not to exercise authority over a man.
b. Restricted from being overseers and preachers.
c. In the family they are to be submissive to their husbands.
3. All these are biblical injunctions, but seen from a modern feministic perspective they may be interpreted to be unfair and even disrespectful. 4. But if the Bible is a revelation from God and not man these are an equitable God’s injunctions and therefore a different perspective is called for. 5. With such tensions playing out all around us the objection may be, “There is no place for women in the kingdom of God.” 6. Nothing could be further from the truth. I would like to examine this considering three passages with you. And I intend to deliberately not look at passages on women teaching other women to love their husbands, and Prov. 31’s account of the worthy or excellent wife. You are already familiar with those. We will not be studying the Book of Ruth or the Book of Esther, nor “All the Women of the Bible.” 7. Let’s look at three less recognized passages.Discussion:
I. Lk. 8:1-4 specifically mentions some women who contributed financially to the support of the work of Jesus and the 12.A. These women had allied themselves with the purpose and objectives of the kingdom of God.
B. They were not among the 12, who were all men. The kingdom of God is not matriarchal.
1. Jesus was not female. None of the 12 were.
2. Does this mean the kingdom of God is depreciating of women?
3. These women would have had no motive to do what they did if they had so perceived it.
4. Had they so perceived it they might have been angry, opposing it, and working to correct what they perceived as injustice. Instead they are allied with it. They are part of the team, in a different role than Jesus, in a different role than the 12, but critical to the work and critical to the Holy Spirit and to Luke who include them in this text, mentioning some by name.
C. What work were they doing?
1. Teaching young women to love their husbands?
2. Teaching children?
3. Not to diminish the importance of these tasks, but to emphasize that a woman’s work in the kingdom is not so limited.
4. They are contributing to the support of the work out of their private means.
a. Objection—“Oh you want our money!”
b. No. You miss the point. The point is they were allied with the purpose of the kingdom and the preaching and teaching of Jesus and the 12 and they supported it.
c. When Melaine Chandler became aware of preachers in Colombia, SA needing financial support she contacted the women in the congregation where she grew up and made them aware. Their response was to “contribute to their support out of their private means.”
1) Many of these women had no jobs of their own.
2) They changed their meal plans for their households and took money from that they contributed. They considered their personal budgets and made sacrifices to accomplish the work they wanted to do.
3) This is the kind of thing people can do when they are allied with the purpose, when they believe that proclaiming and teaching the kingdom of God is critical.
II. In Acts 16:14-15 there is an account of a woman looked for what she could do.A. Lydia had just learned the truth.
1. She was not waiting for the more experienced to do something.
2. She had allied herself with the purpose.
3. He heart had been opened by the message of the Lord.
4. In her baptism she had given up self and given herself to the Lord.
B. Her loyalty was to the Lord.
C. She invited Paul and evidently his traveling companions, Timothy and Silas into her house.
1. “Well how long did they stay?”
2. “Did she feed them?”
3. We do not know the details of her work, nor the sacrifices of work, time, inconvenience, money that she may have made. But we are pretty sure she made some. Perhaps she was frightened by how the society might respond.
D. Sis. Quintero, like Lydia, is a business woman. She has a fruit canning and packaging company in Colombia, SA. Many congregations have begun as a result of her influence.
1. In Ipiales she invited the church to meet in the building from which she packages and ships fruit.
2. A little like Lydia . . .
3. But she is not a preacher. She is not an overseer, just a powerful force for the kingdom.
III. There are many things to be learned from 1 Tim. 5. Among those things are works that can be done by women.A. Sometimes we turn to this passage when talking about the church’s work as distinguished from the work of Christian individuals (note v. 16).
B. But there is much to be learned about women in this text too.
C. She should demonstrate a life that has her hope fixed on God (v. 5), not fixed on pleasure (6).
D. She should be a one man woman (9).
E. Have a reputation for good works (10).
F. Brought up children (10).
1. Not for her own benefit.
2. Benefit of the children and others.
G. Show hospitality to strangers (10).
H. Wash the saint’s feet (10).
I. Assist those in distress (10).
J. Devote herself to every good work (10).
K. Not to be idle, gossip, busybody (13).
L. Assist her widows (16).
Conclusion:
1. Women can be and are contributors to the kingdom of God. We are badly mistaken if we think because women are not to exercise authority over a man (therefore cannot serve as overseers or preachers), and in the family are to be in submission to their husbands that there is no work for them to do. 2. Their contributions are not limited to things financial, but certainly may include financial contribution. 3. Some contributed places for preachers and teachers to stay. 4. Some have provided places for Christians to meet. 5. Women, like men, need to fix their hope on God. 6. They need to serve the Lord in serving their families. 7. They need to show hospitality to strangers, wash the saint’s feet, assist those in distress, and be devoted to every good work.
