[This question is in response to “Feminine Ways”]

How do you view Deborah in the Bible?  How do you explain why God mentions her at all?  She judged both men and women in Israel.  I'm not convinced that God will be boxed in to whom He can use at any given time.  God Bless.

Sincerely,
Thinking Outside the Box

Dear Thinking Outside the Box,

The only rules God is “boxed in” by are His own.  The Bible is full of women that taught and shared God’s wisdom… Deborah is just one example of them.  Miriam, Moses and Aaron’s sister, was a prophetess (Ex 15:20), and so were Philip’s four daughters (Acts 21:8-9).  The problem is not with women teaching; it is the venue in which they do it.

We didn’t make 1 Cor 14:34 and 1 Tim 2:12 – those are God’s laws, not ours.  We also didn’t make the qualifications that an elder be a man – the Lord authored Tit 1:5-9 and 1 Tim 3:1-7.  The qualifications for an elder restrict women from being pastors, but it also forbids young men, unmarried men, and those without children.  It isn’t a matter of the value of people; it is a matter of what God’s law says.

Is communion to be offered weekly or monthly?

Sincerely,
Day Runner

Dear Day Runner,

Christ told us that whenever we take the Lord’s Supper, we should do it in remembrance of Him (Lk 22:19). In the book of Acts, we see how often the church observed the Lord’s Supper. In Acts 20:7, we see that christians ‘broke the bread’ in remembrance of Christ on Sundays. That is when they did it, so that is when we do it.

Paul says that we are to take the Lord’s Supper when the church is gathered together (1 Cor 11:20). Taking the Lord’s Supper is an act of worship done by every congregation of the Lord each Sunday. When we take a look at all the teaching on the Lord’s Supper, we get the truth (Ps 119:160). Christ commands that we do it in remembrance of Him (1 Cor 11:23-28), the church gives us the example of doing it on the first day of the week, and Paul teaches that we should do it when we are assembled as a church.

     My question is this: if my husband is the sole moneymaker in our household but is not yet reborn of Christ, how do I know what I am to give to my church?  Say he brings home $2,500.00 gross per month.  He is not agreeing with me to tithe 10%.

Sincerely,
Money Matters

Dear Money Matters,

You aren’t accountable for giving what you don’t have control over.   In 2 Cor 8:12, the apostle Paul explains that we are only held accountable for what we have power over.  Your husband is the head of your household (Eph 5:23), and since he is an unbeliever, he isn’t going to have the same priorities as you.  Do your best to talk through this issue with him, but take comfort that the Lord isn’t upset if you end up giving less than you wish you could.

     Does God get sad if you don't pray some nights and just go to sleep because you’re tired?

Sincerely,
Sleepy

Dear Sleepy,

That is a tricky question because the Bible never tells us exactly when we must pray.  For example, the Bible never says, “You must pray at bedtime.”  We have examples of people praying at all sorts of different times.  The principle is that we should have a habit of praying (1 Thess 5:17).  Dan 6:10 talks about Daniel having the custom of praying to God three times a day.  It isn’t about one prayer missed or made; it is about building a lifestyle of prayer.

      1 Corinthians 14:34-35: I do not understand what this means.

Sincerely,
Confused

Dear Confused,

Paul says that women are to keep silent in the church assembly … it is the public teaching done in the church assembly that is being dealt with in 1 Cor 14:34-35.  Women are not supposed to serve as public teachers in the worship service because men have the responsibility to lead the church in public teaching.  Elders (Tit 1:5-6), deacons (1 Tim 3:12), and preachers (2 Tim 2:2) are all required to be men.  1 Tim 2:12 specifically prohibits Christian women from teaching Christian men in a congregational forum.

However, just because women don’t lead in the public assembly, that doesn’t mean they just take up pew space!  The Bible is chock-full of examples of active and vibrant godly women.  Lydia was a Christian who took Paul and gave him lodging, food, and financial support (Acts 16:14-15).  Priscilla and Aquila were a married couple that taught the gospel to Apollos (Acts 18:24-26).  That same Apollos went on to become a mighty preacher… something that would have never happened without Priscilla.  John Mark’s mother opened her home for a prayer meeting that saved Peter’s life (Acts 12:11-12).
  Older women are supposed to be teachers and train the younger women to be faithful wives and mothers (Tit 2:3-5).  Younger women have the immensely important task of raising godly children… the next generation of Christians (Tit 2:4).  Women have children’s classes to teach, women’s classes to teach, hospitality to provide, others to encourage, and evangelism to do.
  On top of all those very important and pivotal duties within the church, during the worship services, women have the task of singing and praising God (just like the men – Col 3:16) and joining in the public prayer… just because one man leads the prayer doesn’t mean we aren’t all praying together.  When the church assembles, we all are worshipping God, edifying each other, and studying His Word (Heb 10:24-25).