Expounds on the threefold headship presented in 1 Corinthians 11:1-16, detailing the headship of God, the headship of Christ, and the headship of man. It begins by establishing God as the supreme head, followed by Christ's mediatorial headship over creation and the church, and then addresses man's headship within the home and the assembly. The message emphasizes that these relationships are not about superiority but about divine order and voluntary subjection, drawing parallels to creation and the example of Christ. The sermon concludes by applying these principles to Christian conduct, particularly concerning the roles of men and women in public worship and the importance of considering the impact of one's actions on others, especially weaker believers.
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First Corinthians chapter eleven, and I don't think I'll be going on to half past eleven. First Corinthians chapter eleven and verse one. Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances as I deliver them to you. But I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ. On the head of the woman is the man. On the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonours his head.
But every woman that prayeth or prophesies, with her head uncovered, dishonours her head. For that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if a woman be not covered, let her also be sure. but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, for as much as he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not off the woman, but the woman off the man. Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for the man. For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angel.
Nevertheless, neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man in the Lord. For if the woman is off the man, even so is the man also by the woman, but all things of God. Judging yourselves, is it commonly that a woman pray unto God uncovered? Don't not even nature itself teach you, that if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him. But if a woman of long hair, it is a glory to her, for her hair is given her for a covering. But if any man seemed to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God."
Now the subject we held this morning for consideration is the subject of headship. And I want to speak for a little while of the threefold headship that we get in this wonderful chapter. The headship of God, the headship of Christ, and the headship of the man. And that the implications connected with it. Now, I think it's always well at the commencement to pick up the threads of what we already have been speaking about and what we have in mind. Yesterday morning, we were looking at the subject of fellowship in the latter part of the previous chapter, chapter ten.
And this morning, we have the subject of hisship, and then God willing tomorrow we'll have the subject of worship. Actually, there are a hundred dozen subjects in this passage that I have in mind to speak about, and I think it would be as well just for a moment or two to pick up the thread of what we were speaking about yesterday in connection with fellowship. One of the main portions of the first epistle of the Corinthians is occupied with the subject, whether it was a legitimate thing for a person to go to that pagan, hidden temple on each meat that was offered in sacrifice to the idol. Now, that may not be a practical problem here in the United States. As a matter of fact, we know it isn't.
It is a practical problem in any pagan community. Certainly in the environment in which we live for many years it was. Anyone who went off hunting, if he happened to kill an animal, or at least before he went to hunt at all, he prayed to his idol. And then after he went hunting, and if he was successful, before the meat was even distributed, before it was cut up, a portion of the meat was taken and offered to the idol in thanksgiving for the fact that the idol, this pagan heathen idol, had helped the man in his hunt. Now the practical problem at Corinth was this. The believers there, they said, is it a legitimate thing for a Christian?
A person who's a member of the local church, is it a legitimate thing to go to that pagan, heathen temple and eat that meat that was offered and sacrificed to the idols? Now, the apostle, when he was among them, one of the great subjects of his teaching was, all things are law. One thing that the apostle Paul emphasized at Galatia, on the many other areas, was the fact that every believer today that knows and loves the Lord Jesus, that the yoke of law has been taken off his neck. In the Old Testament we find the Jews, the people of Israel, were subject to law. It was the principle of life. But the Apostle, in his early ministry, particularly in relation to the churches of Galatia, it was a practical problem there.
These Judaizing teachers had come in and they had insisted that anyone who wished to be a Christian, that wanted to be a member of a local church, he must conform to the right of circumcision and he must observe the law. These Judaizing teachers that dug the steps of the Apostle, particularly in the early years of his ministry. Now the Apostle Paul, to combat that teaching, he wrote the epistle to the Galatians. is the great epistle of emancipation of the believer in the present age. We are not subject to the law. We don't live according to the rule of law that we find in the Old Testament. But that doesn't mean that we should be lawless.
But the Apostle, he had to emphasize this fact because the very foundations of the gospel were being undermined by these Judaizing teachers. What they wanted to do with a Christian church was to make it a sect or a party of Judaism. and the entrance to it was conforming to the law and the right of circumcision. Now the very foundations of the gospel were being undermined by these Judaizing teachers and therefore the Apostle. In the early years of his ministry he had to combat it. And one great slogan that he had was, all things are lawful. Now the people at Corinth, they had very likely heard this teaching and it appealed to them very greatly.
And they said, well, now, all things are lawful. And for us, it's a perfectly legitimate thing to go up to that temple and eat that meat that's sanctified to the idol. After all, the idol is nothing at all. The meat is not contaminated, and it once hurt me one little bit. If I go up to that pagan temple and eat the meat, because, after all, the meat is intact, it's not contaminated at all, and we can eat it. All things are lawful. But at the same time, they had some doubts about it. And therefore, they incorporated it in their letter. When they wrote to the Apostle, they wanted some advice, some counsel, some apostolic counsel from the Apostle, what they should do in this particular instance.
Now, the Apostle occupied a large section of the Epistle. Chapters eight and nine and ten are occupied with this question of beating meat that's offered in sacrifice to the idol. Now, there's one thing I'd like you to notice, and I say, do you remember in the fifteenth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles? Do you remember the decree that was given to the Gentile churches at that time concerning particular items in their life? Among those items that were sent from the Council of Jerusalem and circulated among the Gentile churches was meat offered in sacrifice to the idol, and they were told that it was better to refrain. But what is the Apostle?
In First Corinthians he doesn't refer to the decree at all. He never mentioned it. And the whole idea is this. that any legalistic believer or anyone who wants to live under the rule of law, what he would like would be a little placard on a wall with half a dozen rules. Don't do this and don't do that and don't do the other thing. Now, a carnal Christian can live according to the regulation of law, but it takes a spiritual believer, a man that knows the Lord and the teaching of the Word of God to act according to spiritual principle. Now, when the Apostle, when he writes to the church, he doesn't mention the decree at all.
He's not putting them under law, but he acts in an entirely different way, and he shows us three great spiritual principles connected with our behavior, connected with our life here below. Now, these principles are very important. In chapter eight, he speaks about the behavior of the believer in relation to his brother. And he uses the term a weak brother. Anything that I do in my behavior, in my conduct, I not only have to consider myself, but one of the first considerations is, what effect this is going to have on my brother? Is it going to be a stumbling block to him or not?
I can say, I'll do what I like. You know, the world today, and particularly this modern world, the behavior and the action of people today, and the slug and the half of their mouth is this, I'll do what I like. I'll say what I like. I'll go where I like. I'll wear what I like, and it's nobody's business but my own. Now, this is the kind of language we find everywhere today, but it's certainly not the language of Holy Scripture. And the three great principles that the Apostle lived on here, connected with Christian behavior and conduct, they're infinitely important. And I think as a background of what I want to speak about this morning, it would be as well to get them clearly in our minds.
in any particular action we first of all have to consider what effect it's going to have on others and particularly a young Christian particularly a young believer or what we might call a weak brother what effect is it going to have on him now as far as law itself is concerned just let's make it plain that all the Old Testament ritual and law that law that was given by God to the people of Israel The Ten Commandments. That moral law. I would like you to notice that every one of these laws in the New Testament, they're inculcated and taught in the New Testament except, with one exception, and that is the Sabbath.
But those moral laws that God gave to his people in the Old Testament, they're timeless. For instance, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery. Now these are things that we understand that no true believer, even under the present dispensation, why we're not under the rule of law, we certainly never would break those laws. But we're not under the rule of law in the sense that it's a yoke upon our neck. But the motive power in our hearts is love. On these moral laws that were given to his people in the bygone days, we believe that every true evangelical believer today would carry them out. Because they are uninculcated and taught. in the New Testament, but on an entirely different basis.
On that basis is the law of love. Now, the believers at Corinth, they were acting independently. And the apostle, he has to take them to task about it. There's a great big word that theologians put on this procedure that we find at Corinth. And that might be as well just to mention. The word is antinomianism. Now, Antonomianism was one of the difficulties that the Apostle ran into at Corinth and in other areas, particularly in the middle part of his life of ministry. In the early part of his ministry, it was legalism. But in the middle part of his ministry, the great problem and difficulty among believers was antinomianism.
Legalism would go to one extreme, but antinomianism would go to the other extreme. I'll do what I please. I'll do what I like. I'm not under law. And therefore, I can do just as I please. Now the apostle, he has to take this situation in hand here in the first epistle of the Corinthians. And first of all, he's speaking about the effect that it would have upon my weak brother. Now, as far as moral law is concerned, we know what's right and what's wrong, but there are many, many things in the Christian life today. And sometimes young people particularly, they say, is it right or is it not? Now, you might say, well, just exactly what do you mean? Give us an example. Very frequently, in recent days, young people would come to me and they would say, is it right for a Christian to smoke?
What do you think about smoking cigarettes? Is it right to do that? And again and again recently young believers have come to me and say, is it right to go to a movie? What about going to the theatre? And to bring up the argument, well, today in television, these movies that are shown in these theatres, people can bring them right into the hall. And therefore, Well, what should we do? If you have it in your home, why can't you go to a theater and see a movie there? And these are things that are troubling young people. And they come to us and they say, is it right or is it not? We want a yes or a no answer. Is it right or is it not? You know, I run into this problem many years ago when I first of all left home.
I was brought up in a sheltered environment, a Christian home. My parents were believers before I was born. And I'm awe-awfully thankful and grateful for that sheltered atmosphere in which I was brought up. There were certain rules of conduct in our home that we had to observe, and I'm thankful for that. But when I left home the first time, twenty-one years of age, I went to Portugal. And the first time I sat under the table in Portugal, they put a glass of wine beside my plate. Now that happened twice a day. In the middle of the day, at lunchtime, there was a glass of wine placed beside my plate. Under the evening, dinner time, exactly the same thing happened.
The glass of wine was put there. Now I had never tasted intoxicating liquors in my life up until that point. And I looked at it and I said to myself, what shall I do? Now the home in which I was staying was a Christian home. Those people were evangelical believers. And yet it was the common custom in that home twice a day to have a glass of wine beside their plate. They thought no more of it than what we would think here in this country of drinking a cup of coffee or a cup of tea. It was the custom of the people in that area to do that. Now, anyone who has moved around in Europe a little bit, they know what I'm talking about. in Spain, in Portugal, in France, and these Mediterranean countries, this is a common thing.
And beside your plate you'll have this glass of wine. Now I had a look at it, and I didn't want to make myself conspicuous. I didn't want to make myself difficult in that home by refusing it. And I had been taught whatsoever is placed before you. Eat it, asking no questions for conscience sake. And I looked at the glass of wine. And I sipped it. And I tried to drink it. But, you know, I didn't care for it. And after a little while, I told my host, I said, if you don't mind, please excuse me. I would rather not take the wine. It's simply not our custom. Now, I wasn't going to criticize them. It's the custom of that country.
And the year that I was in Portugal at that time, I never saw a single person intoxicated. They don't over over and indulge in it. It's the ordinary common custom of the country. But you know, as far as my conscience was concerned, as time went on, I began to feel that it would be better for me to refrain. And I tell you why. When I went over to Africa, I found that about fifty percent of the cases of discipline that we had in Africa was for drunkenness and for people becoming intoxicating and finally turning into alcoholics. Now, you suppose that one day in Africa, I'm invited out for a meal. And as a Portuguese official of the administration, very often these men invite us for a meal and sitting at the table.
If they want to be extra polite, they'll put a glass of champagne or maybe a glass of wine beside your plate if they are in common custom. But supposing I'm sitting at an official's table and I'm drinking the champagne or drinking the wine. And one of my African brethren is maybe serving at the table. That happens quite often. These officials quite often in their homes, they have servants that wait on tables that are believers, evangelical believers, even in fellowship. And supposing my African brother was to see me sitting at that table drinking that glass of champagne or that glass of wine. And then the next Sunday. A case comes up in the assembly where an African comes to be disciplined for drunkenness.
What is it? Where's the consistency? Here's the man who's here teaching me, and yet at the same time he's sitting drinking, and yet the next Sunday is discipling a man for overindulging in drink. Now it taught me this, that in any particular instance of any conduct or any behavior, it may not hurt my conscience, I wouldn't become over intoxicated, I think. But on the other hand, I have to consider what effect it's going to have on my brother. And if it's going to have an effect of stumbling him, putting him in a position where he would be stumbled by seeing me do something, it's far, far better to refrain. Now that covers a wide, a very, very wide field.
You can apply it to the theater. You can apply it to the movie. You can apply it to smoking. You can apply it to drinking or what have you. Many, many areas of life. These are plain, simple things. And the first thing I have to consider in all my conduct, what effect it's going to have upon my weak brother. Many years ago in England, when I was very much younger than I am now, I had a friend who was a very distinguished, outstanding servant of God. His name is possibly known to quite a few here this morning. His name is George Goodman. Now Mr. Goodman in his early years was a lawyer and a very good lawyer too.
And he decided at a certain period of his life to give up his law practice and give all his time to the ministry of the word. Very fine, outstanding, distinguished brother. He spoke both French and German. And certain times of the year he used to go over to Europe and countries that today are behind the Iron Curtain. He used to go over there on either speaking in French or in German. He used to go over there ministering the word. Now, I heard Mr. Goodman tell one time he was in Warsaw in Poland and he was ministering. And he couldn't help but feel that there was something wrong. Every time he got up to minister, he could feel a feeling of hostility.
He felt his message wasn't going over. And you know, any man who has had any experience in preaching, they can tell that. It's a wonderful thing to have a sympathetic audience. And you know, it helps you to preach. But if there's a feeling of hostility and you feel that there's something wrong, it's awfully hard. And Mr. Goodman had that feeling. And finally, after a few nights ministering the word, he called up the leading brother and he said, Brother, I feel that there's something wrong. He said, I have been ministering the word here night after night and I feel my message is not going over. He said, maybe you'll tell me just what's wrong. And the brother, he said, well, Mr. Goodman, he said, I hate to tell you. Well, he said, I want you to tell me just what is wrong.
He said, it's that gold chain that you have across your waistcoat. And there was a look of astonishment come over his face. He said, what? He said, it's that gold Albert, that gold chain that you have across your tummy when you're up ministering. And Mr. Goodman, he put his hand in his pocket and he pulled out a gold watch. He said, my dear brother, I would like to tell you the history of this watch and chain. He said, in my law practice, he said, when I was leaving, my colleagues in the office, they wanted to give me something to remember them by. And they brought this gold watch and chain and they presented it to me. He said, I treasured very, very highly of the place where I got it.
And he said, I never, never thought it would be a hindrance to anybody. Well, the man replied, he said, you know, the people here are poor. And he said, most of them live in a very, very humble circumstances. And he said, when you're not preaching the word each night, he said, to see that gold chain across your tummy, he said, it upsets some of the people in the meeting. He said, to be perfectly frank, that's what's wrong. Well, Mr. Goodman said, I'll remedy that pretty quick. And the next night, when he came to the meeting, he had a shoelace tied on the gold watch across his tummy, and everything was all right. He got his message over. By somebody might say, I'll do what I please. It's nobody's business what I wear.
Well, actually it is. And if I were to go into any assembly or any body of people across the country, on anything about me, either in my personal appearance, or in the way I minister the word, or possibly something about my life that would be a stumbling block to those that are there, it's far, far better. far better to refrain from doing it. Well, somebody might say, I'll just do what I like, it's nobody's business. But that is the language of the world. The teaching of the Apostle Paul in First Corinthians chapter eight is, what effect is it going to have upon my weak brother? It's not the case at all of having a little code of laws and rules. Any kind of believer could observe that, but it takes a spiritual believer, it takes a spiritual Christian to act according to spiritual principle.
And the first principle is the principle of consideration on the principle of love. I come from Ireland on some things that I do in this country. I wouldn't think of doing over there. You say, just what do you mean? Well, you know, in Portugal, any married man, he wears a wedding ring. It's the ordinary common thing over there. In Portugal. As a matter of fact, both in Portugal and in Angola, a man who's married and doesn't wear a wedding ring, he comes onto suspicion possibly he's not behaving himself. Now, it's the common custom. And when I'm in Portugal, and when I'm in Angola, I wear a wedding ring.
But you know, when I go home to where I was born, and in the assembly in which I was brought up, If I were to get up on the platform there flashing a gold ring or a wedding ring, some of my old brethren over there would look up and say, well, you know, he's changed. There's something wrong with him. Look at that ring. It's not the custom over there. Oh, somebody says, you're afraid of the brethren? I don't think so. I've been a Christian now for nearly fifty years. And one thing that life has taught me in moving around in different parts of the world, I don't think I'm afraid of the brethren. But you know, I'll be awfully careful about hurting them. On anything at all, it may be some little insignificant thing, something that is perfectly all right here in the United States.
I wouldn't criticize a brother for wearing a wedding ring. As a matter of fact, I like it. And under certain circumstances, I think it's absolutely right and proper. but another circumstance, or in another environment, it may not be right and proper at all. And therefore I have to consider those with whom I'm ministering. It's not that we want to please man or anything of that kind, but we try to act according to this great principle that the Apostle is done in First Corinthians chapter eight, whatever is a stumbling block to my weak brother is better to refrain from it. Now in chapter nine he uses in connection with himself. In chapter eight, the principle is consideration for my weak brother.
In chapter nine, it's self-discipline and self-control on myself. The apostle here, he turns it around on himself. Now, it's one thing for a preacher to get up, a minister on a platform, and tell other people what to do. But, you know, he has to be very, very careful about himself. The Apostle at the end of that chapter, he said, I beat my body black and blue. That was a very vivid term that he uses. He speaks of a person, a boxer, and he takes his clenched fist, and he beats himself onto the eye. He gives himself a black eye. I beat my body black and blue. It's not Shantabach's boxing here, but it's his body that he keeps on there.
He keeps it in self-control, less after I. have preached to others, I myself might be disapproved. Oh, the great lesson here of self-control. In chapter eight is the weak brother, but in chapter nine is the preacher himself, keeping himself under control. Self-discipline. Self-control is the principle we find there. But the final one that we were speaking about yesterday morning, the apostle in bringing the argument of what is right and what is wrong and how to behave, Christian conduct, His final great argument is fellowship at the Lord's table. Anything that's not consistent with the bread and with the cup, on that fellowship connected with it, it's better to refrain from it.
These are the three great principles that the Apostle brings before us in connection with fellowship. Fellowship with the Lord, fellowship with the bread, fellowship with the cup, on fellowship with God's dear people. Now, these are principles I believe that should be emphasized again and again today. And again, I want to emphasize the fact that it can't. The difficulty there was, all things are lawful. I'll do just whatever I like. But Paul says, that has to be qualifying. On the one hand, legalism is one swing of the pendulum. But on the other hand, license is the other swing of the pendulum just doing whatever we like. Now I think that this brings us into the context of what we want to speak about for a moment or two this morning, and that is the subject of headship.
Here is a threefold headship, and before the Apostle mentions it at all, he's speaking to the believers at Corinth, and he says this, Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. You know, one criticism that our young people have today about elderly folk is this. You tell us what to do, and yet you don't show us the example. I asked a young person the other day, and I said, just what do you mean by that? Well, he says, my father tells me that I'm not allowed to have the car at certain times. And yet he says, when I'm riding with him, very, very often he says, my father, he breaks the speed limit. And he does seventy, maybe in a sixty zone.
He's taking the law himself. And yet at the same time, he's telling me what to do. or the tremendous power of example. If we lay down in the law or tell other people how they should behave or what they should do, we have to be very careful that we should be examples ourselves. This is one of the great failures and the weaknesses of modern life today. But before the Apostle speaks of this tremendous principle, be this three-fold headship of power and authority in a three-fold sphere. He first of all holds up himself and I says, you be followers of me. even as I am of Christ. Oh, what a tremendous example we get here in the life and testimony of God's dear servant.
And then verse two, I praise your brethren that you remember me in all things and keep the ordinances. Now that word ordinances, if you look at the margin, you'll find that the word is tradition. Now there are certain things connected with the word of God that is as thus saith the Lord. And we find examples and precepts in the Word of God, but there are at a certain time, at the same time, there are traditions. Now, I know that the Roman Catholic Church has pushed this far, far, too much in the extreme, and they give this word tradition as their authority for certain procedures that they have.
But at the same time, the Word of God makes it perfectly clear what the mind of God is along certain lines. But yet on the other hand, there is such a thing as tradition. That is, certain procedures that are followed. And the apostle, he speaks here about the ordinances or the traditions, the things that he had committed to them as the mind of God to carry out. And then he speaks of the threefold headship. I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ. The head of the woman is the man. And the head of Christ is the man. is God. Now I want to take that last one first because it's the supreme headship, the headship of God.
And then I want to take the second one, the headship of Christ. And then I want to mention the last one, at least the first one I want to mention at last. After all, the supreme headship in God's universe is the headship of God. Long before creation, commence. God was supreme. And after the new creation comes in, God again will be supreme. You remember that lovely passage in First Corinthians chapter fifteen? After the millennial period? And after every dispensation has been brought to a close, we read that God is all in all.
You know, the universe that God has created is a universe of law and order and discipline. And I think that this is what we find in the passage. This three-fold headship, it points out that there's no such thing as confusion. There's no room for confusion in God's universe. It's a universe of law. It's a universe of order. And the first great headship we find here, the source of authority, is in God Himself. I had a Presbyterian background. while my father and mother were Christians in an assembly before I was born. Both of them in their early life were covenanting Presbyterians.
And when I started to grow up, I was sent to a Presbyterian school. The manager of the school was a fine old gentleman called Dr. Workman. And some of the things that I learned at that time have remained with me through life. Among other things, I had to learn the Westminster Charter Catechism. And I believe it is a very, very fine statement of doctrine. And among other things that I learned at that time, one of the bases of Christian doctrine in connection with the Godhead is, God is a Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost. And the term that we use to describe God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, the Holy Trinity, equal in majesty and glory and dignity.
Now I thank God for that. I believe that that is a fine statement of Christian doctrine. Equal in power and majesty and glory and dignity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This is fundamental. But for purposes of redemption and for purposes of law and order, each member of the Godhead has a function to perform. Now God the Father... is prominent in the Old Testament. God the Son, after his incarnation, when he was born in Bethlehem and for thirty-three and a half years here below, he manifested God.
As our brother mentioned in this prayer this morning, the manifestation of God was our Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man, when he was here upon earth. But he has gone above, gone up to God's right hand, gone right through the heavens, up to the right hand of God. And the age in which we live today is the age of the Holy Spirit. Now God the Father purposes and plans and decrees. That's his special sphere in the Godhead, planning and purposing and decreeing. But God the Son, his great function in the Godhead is redemption. And when he was born in Bethlehem, he was born to die.
And that death that he died upon Calvary's cross, its function in the Godhead is the great work of reconciliation, of men that have sinned against God, and to bring them back to God. But the work of the Holy Ghost, he is the executive of the Godhead. And those plans that were made by God, God the Father, those decrees that were made, the work of the Holy Spirit today, coming forth from the Father, proceeding from the Father and from the Son. He is the executive of the Godhead, and today those plans are being brought into execution. Now each member of the Godhead has a function to perform.
But when we look here at the overall headship of God, we find supreme headship here. God is an absolute control of a universe, and this will be manifested in the coming day. And all the plans and purposes of God will be brought to complete fruition in the coming day. The second headship we find here is the headship of Christ. The headship of God is the supreme headship. The headship of Christ is the mediatorial headship. And when we look at the New Testament concerning the headship of Christ, we find it in various spheres. Now, he's the head of all creation.
We thank God that he is not a creature, as Jehovah Witnesses would tell us. They take that passage in Colossians chapter one, where we find that word, the firstborn of all creation. And they will tell you that he's the first creature. Now, that is not the teaching of Colossians chapter one. It's not the teaching of the Bible. Our blessed Lord is the creator and the sustainer of the universe. Unto the universe, unto the creation that has been created, our blessed Lord, is both creator and upholder and sustainer. He is the head of all creation. And where Adam failed in connection with creation, Our blessed Lord is the last Adam.
We'll pick up the throne, we'll pick up the scepter of universal dominion in the coming day. He is, first of all, the head of all creation. And then he's the head of the church. Oh, what a precious truth this is. Mentioned five times in the epistle to the Ephesians and the epistle to the Colossians, head over all things to the body, which is the church. What a lovely, lovely idea this is, the head of the church. Some people would say that the head of the church is in Rome. Others would say that he's in Canterbury. And others might say he's in Washington or New York. The head of the church is in none of these places. The risen glorified head, the head of the church, is at God's right hand.
And we are members of his body. Oh, what a lovely truth this is. It was the very first truth that J. A. N. Darby learned when he was a curate of the Episcopal church, a young man. Reading his Bible, one of the great truths, one of the first great truths that was revealed to Darby in reading his Bible was that Christ is the risen head and that we are members of his body here below. Or we only learn this. We'll get rid of many, many of the ideas that people have today in Christendom. There's only one head of the church, and that is the risen head. We thank God for that. A third headship that Christ has is the hint of all principality and power.
I've been very much impressed recently in tracing what the Bible has to say about angels. Seraphim, cherubim, and millions, millions of angels up in heaven. The population of heaven today, we'd love to talk about this, but among others, intelligence in heaven are these angelic powers. On Christ, in the epistle of the Colossians, he's called the head of all principality and power. He has this threefold headship, the headship of all creation, the headship of the body, which is the church, and then the head of all principality and power. On these angelic beings in heaven, he is the head of them too.
Now, the third headship we find here is the headship of the man. And this brings us to a very, very touchy subject. I was in a meeting about a month ago, and I was going through the first epistle of the Corinthians, not exactly along the same lines as we're looking at it now, but I was going through the epistle rather carefully, and on the Sunday morning, when I came to First Corinthians chapter eleven, there was a seat full of very, very prominent people walked in. I wouldn't tell you their names. I have the greatest regard and honor for these folks. But they walked in anyway. Their names are internationally known. And to fill the whole seat.
And there wasn't a single lady in the lot that had a head covering. And wherever I was tempted in my life to skip over this passage and to turn over to First Corinthians chapter twelve, I was tempted that morning. But, you know, everyone on the place knew the passage that we had under consideration, and if I had done that, I think people would have rightly called me a car. And they've rightly said, you're sidestepping and dodging some great truth in the Word of God. And, you know, this is a passage that's very often the point of the day. And, beloved friends, it's not with any object at all of being critical or on kind or anything like that that we look at it.
But the passage here is vitally important today, the headship of the man. Now notice between the Lord Jesus Christ and God, God the Father and God the Son, it's not a question at all of superiority and inferiority. That is not the question at all. We've already mentioned God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, equal in power and majesty and glory and dignity. There's no superiority here on inferiority, but it's a question of order. It's a question of God's order in his universe. And you know the Lord Jesus when he was here below, he said many, many things that for years was a mystery to me.
In the Gospel according to John, we read this. The Father is greater than I. What did he mean by that? And you remember in Mark chapter thirteen, speaking about his coming back again, he said, Of that day knoweth no man, neither the angels, and then he mentioned the word, Neither the Son, but my Father which is in heaven. Do you mean to say that the Lord Jesus as a man here below did not have the attribute of omniscience? He had. When he was born in Bethlehem, he brought all the attributes of deity with him. Instead of any subtraction, there was addition. He became something that he had never been before, and that was a real man.
But when he uses that term, no man knows that day, neither the angels of God, neither the Son, but the Father. Just exactly what did he mean? It was a position of subjection and something that he left in the power of his Father. He was able to work, not to know, that particular point. He did have all the attributes of deity. It's not a question of superiority and inferiority. but it's a question of voluntary subjection to His Father's will. I believe that that is the easiest and possibly the scriptural explanation of that most difficult passage. You know, what the devil tried to do at the beginning, in creation, what he tried to do was to get the woman to take a position of independency of her husband.
Now notice that the Apostle here in this vantage, in speaking of the headship of the man, notice that he goes right back to creation. I'm perfectly aware of the fact that there are all kinds of arguments that try to dilute the teaching of this vantage. And among others, I've heard it suggest that the Apostle Paul was a bachelor, and that he was a woman here. Now, that is the first argument that you use. And people even that are true evangelical believers, they'll bring up this thing and they'll say, The Apostle Paul, he was a bachelor and a woman hater. But you know, I think of that as a slander of God's dear servant. Did you ever read Romans chapter sixteen? And among those names that the Apostle Paul uses, there are quite a number of female names.
And every one of those female names is something courteous and kind to say about. I'd love to turn over to the pastor this morning and speak about the attitude of the Apostle Paul to the opposite sex. He was a perfect gentleman, apart from being a Christian. He was a perfect gentleman, and he had the highest honor, and the highest regard for the opposite sex. He was not a woman hater, but he was a man who understood this great principle of headship. Now, to say that the Apostle, he wrote these things because he was a bachelor. That is just simply not true. What he's laying down here are some vital principles connected with the truth of God. And then another thing that's brought up, it was a local custom.
It was something that was local to Carl. And therefore, it doesn't apply at all to us today. That again is contradicted by the teaching of the passage. The Apostle in the very last verse of this magnificent passage where he deals with the subject, he said, If any man seemed to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches. of God. Notice the churches of God. It was the teaching of the Apostle Paul in every church where he taught and where he led down these great principles connected with behavior and procedure in the church. Now just a word about the headship of the man. We've already spoken of the headship of God supreme.
The headship of Christ in these three different spheres and yet our Lord here below voluntarily took opposition. of subjection to his father's will. He never, never at any time acted independently. That's what the devil tried to do with him, not the temptation. He presented to him exactly the same temptation that was presented to her first parents from the Garden of Eden. And remember, Eve, she fell. Why did she fall? She took an independent position. When the tempter came to her and started to speak, what should she have done? She should have called her head. She should have called to Adam and said, now, you deal with this matter.
But instead of that, she acted independently, and sin was introduced. And remember this, sin always has as its basis its origin, independence of God. And exactly what the devil that tempted her did to our first parents from the Garden of Eden was exactly the same temptation that was presented to our Lord. in the wilderness. But for the first Adam fell, our blessed Lord, he gloriously overcame. He did not take a position of independence, but it was complete dependence upon his Father's will here below. Now here began the headship of a man. On the Apostle in dealing with the question, he said, Any man praying or prophesying with his head covered dishonors his head.
Well, why of that? Well, the Apostle points out that in the assembly that the man is the representative of God, and notice, instead of going back to the Father, he goes right back to the original creation. He says the man is the image and glory of God, and therefore he keeps his head on cover when he prays or prophesies. There are two words that are very greatly confused and misunderstood in many people's minds that are used in connection with the original creation. You remember when God created the first man Adam. We read that Adam was the image.
God created him in his image and in his likeness. Now, just what do these two words mean? I believe that the word image was that man, the original man, the great prototype there in the Garden of Eden, Adam, the first man, Adam, that he was the image of God. That is, that he was God's representative. He was God's delegate. And here below, God placed authority and dominion in his hand. He was the image of God. But then likeness is moral. You know, both of these have been destroyed as far as the world is concerned. The image has been the face. On the coin of the realm, with the stamp of God upon it, as we look at man today, oh, that image, man as God's representative below, it has been the face.
And as far as likeness is concerned, that is the moral likeness. Oh, it has been almost completely obliterated today by sin. But the object of God today, as far as man is concerned, is to bring us back to that image and to that likeness. Not only man as the representative of God's delegate, delegated authority in his hand here below, but I'll thank God to the likeness. We know not what we shall be, but we know that when he shall be manifested, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Now the apostle, in giving the teaching here, he points out that man, when he prays or prophesies, he is the image of the glory of God, and therefore he keeps his head on cover.
If any man were to come in here and keep his head on, and stand up to pray or to open the Word of God and teach. Well, people would say, you know, that man, he certainly doesn't know anything at all about the teaching of the Word of God. It would be an insult to his head. And who is his head? His head is Christ. And that supreme glory when God's people are gathered together is the head, the head both of the local church and the church, universal. And therefore, man, he uncovers his head when he prays or prophesies. And then the Apostle said, if any woman prays or prophesies with her head uncovered, she dishonors her head. And who is that head?
It's the man. You know, man has a responsibility before God. And again, just let's make it perfectly plain, that between a man and his wife, or between a man and a woman, it's not a question at all of superiority and inferiority. It's a question of God's order. And God has leaned on this order in his word that the man is the head in the house. Oh, today as we look at the condition of things in this modern world, I believe the juvenile delinquency and all the troubles that are afflicting men in this country today, it stands from the home.
And where does it come from? The lack of discipline. The length of the fact that man in the house is the responsible head responsible to God for what takes place in that house. When I go into my home, if I see anything there that's not right, before God I'm responsible. And I have to answer to God for it. Now there is a big difference between being a head and the boss. And I want to make that clear. There's some man act like a boss. But, you know, it's another thing to be a responsible head. There's a tremendous responsibility connected with it, and a man in the home is the head. Not only is the head of the house, but he's also the head of his wife.
Now that again is not putting her in an inferior position. The Apostle in giving the teaching here, he goes right back, as we say to the original creation. Where did woman come from? Oh, that first great surgical operation that was performed. The Lord God, He caused the deep sleep to fall upon Adam. And while He was in that deep sleep, He opened His side. And from underneath His heart, He took a portion of His balm, His flesh, and relieved that He had built it a woman. And when Adam awoke from His deep sleep in the morning, there was His bride by His side. Now, good old Matthew Henry, in speaking about that passage, this is what he says about it.
He said, you know, when God created the original man, and when he built it, the original woman, he said, he didn't take her out of his head, that she might rule over him. He didn't take her out of his feet, that he might trample on her or abuse her. But he took it from underneath his heart, from his side, that he might love and cherish, with the deepest, warmest affection, this one that came from him. Notice the prepositions that the Apostle uses here. He uses the preposition of, and for, and by. These are the little prepositions that he uses here.
Man is the head, but the woman was taken from man. And the woman is recognizing that position, that her husband is her head. It's not a question at all of putting her in an inferior position, but he is the responsible head in the home. And also, he is the responsible representative of God in the assembly. Now, the Apostle in applying this, he says that a woman in the assembly should either pray or prophesy. When she does it publicly, it must be done with the covered head. Now, I know there's a problem here with this verse three. The woman praying or prophesying.
The Apostle in chapter fourteen says, Let your women keep silence in the church. And what does that mean? It means just the effect of what it says. The word of God doesn't contradict itself. In the gathering of the local church, the woman is silent. But at the same time, the fact that it's mentioned here of her praying or prophesying shows that there must be certain occasions when she can pray. And when she can prophesy or open the Word, I believe it's among her own sects. I believe we get the scriptural authority here for a woman, an elderly woman, that ministers the word, doing it among her own sex. There's a sphere where the woman, I believe, has a very, very important work to perform.
It may be in the home, with the children, or it may be in women's meetings, among her own sex. But as far as the local church is concerned, when it's gathered together, the Apostle says, let your women keep silence in the church. Now afterwards he gives us the regulation here concerning the head covering. And what we get here I believe is a beautiful, beautiful symbolism connected with it. And I don't think that any sister that wishes to be in obedience to the Word of God and in conformance to the teaching of this passage, I don't think should have any difficulty with it at all. The man uncovers his head, but the woman when she comes into the church, in the presence of the people of God that are there.
She covers her hair. And where is that? Believe that her hair is her glory. The man is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of the man. And her glory is in her hair. I don't think there's anything more beautiful about a woman than her hair. You know, we find nature of earth here. Among birds, and animals is generally the meal that wears the glory. Now we find it in the lion, we're talking about lions last night. The male lion wears the glory, he has the mane. And among birds is the peacock. And when that beautiful, beautiful tail that it has, the peacock, it's the meal that wears the glory.
But as far as man and woman is concerned, it's the woman that wears the glory. And her glory is in her hair. You know, the most of us men, when we get to fifty, sixty years of age, our hair starts to go. You don't find that very often in a woman. And even with an elderly sister, it's a beautiful thing to see a lovely head of hair. Her glory is in her hair. But when she comes into the church, so that only one supreme glory may be seen, she covers her glory. She covers it. And why is that? Well, first of all, it's because of the angels. The Apostle tells us, and why the angels? Do you know that when we're in this little meeting this morning, I believe that we have an unseen audience, the principalities and powers of which Christ is head, is observing what we're doing here.
The unseen audience in the meeting, because of the angels. And the angels, in the presence of their head, the Lord Jesus Christ, in the presence of their head, they veil their glory. They cover their feet on to say, Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty. We get that in Isaiah chapter six. Because of the angels, and if the angels were to see any sister coming into the gathering of God's people without a covering on her glory, her glory is covered. I think we would think it very, very strange indeed. They cover their glory in the presence of their head. And when we come into church capacity, into a church meeting, it is the teaching of the Word of God.
that the sister, that she covers her head. First of all, on account of the angels. And secondly, it's on account of her head showing that symbolism, that beautiful symbol that she is subject to her head. Now, I think that this is the teaching of the word concerning this passage. I just want to leave it there. I've spoken longer about it this morning than I have any intention, whatever, of doing. But I feel that it is something that should be going into detail today. and perfectly understood what is the teaching of the Word of God concerning it. And I think if we do, recognizing the authority of Christ among His gathered people, and that God is a God of order, a God of discipline, I don't think we would have any difficulty at all in tearing out this section of the Word of God.
May God bless His Word. Shall we pray? Our God and Father... We turn now to thee now in the name of the Lord Jesus. And we do thank thee for these simple precepts of my word. And our Father, we do pray that we may not only understand them, but that we may carry them out. Our Father, as we look at the world a day with its... in subjection to thy will, law and order breaking down on every hand. Our Father, we pray thee that we may not only be law-abiding citizens in the country in which we live, but that we also may be subject to the precepts of thy word.
Bless thy dear people here this morning. Remember those that are sick. They think of those in the room that are not able to come out to the meeting, and we pray thy blessing. And we pray, our Father, that each one of us may have the desire to please thee in our little lives here below. We ask it in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen.