Different!

Men and women are different

Someone has illustrated the difference between men and women this way. “A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband. A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.” Probably an over generalization, but it does imply a difference between men and women that is often denied.

In this age of equality, we must not lose sight of our differences

They reach beyond the obvious physical dissimilarities. There are clear distinctions between men and women, but these differences have nothing to do with our worth. At a time when women were viewed, first as the property of their fathers, and then of their husbands, the apostle Paul asserted: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for all are one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). God doesn’t determine our value on the basis of externals. He accepts us all into His church on the basis of our baptism (Galatians 3:27).

In the home it was the intent of the Creator to place man in the leadership role

He is to be head over his wife even as Christ is head of His church (Ephesians 5:23). That does not imply his superiority or her inferiority. It does indicate a difference in roles. Some men have abdicated their headship, and some women have usurped the leadership role in the home.

Neither negates the fact that God has ordained how the home should function

Whether we like it or not, that’s what the Bible teaches.

In the church we have a similar dichotomy

Men are given the leadership role in the church. The apostles were all men. Elders or bishops were always men (1 Timothy 3:2). Male leadership permeates the Biblical narrative. And, the role of women in the assembly was specifically limited (1 Corinthians 14:34-35; 1 Timothy 2:11-12). Again, these distinctions in roles do not suggest inferior worth.

We have different roles

It has become common place in this enlightened age to disregard the clear gender distinctions made in Scripture. The fact is that we are not all physically, intellectually, or emotionally equal, but we are all equally loved by the Savior. We have different roles. Each of us must acknowledge our role and live up to His expectations for us.