Biblical womanhood

During a time of national turmoil, the nation of Israel was served by the men of Issachar, men, Scripture tells us, according to 1 Chronicles 12:32, “who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” We are all to some extent the product of our culture. But we need to understand the times we live in. The Feminist lie says that you can be what you want to be. You can define yourself, the world and God. We live in a time where men are not men and women are not women. Where the distinctions between the sexes have become so blurred that homosexuality is a cultural norm, bi-sexuality is flaunted across the magazines and promiscuity is considered acceptable. Just look at any soap opera today and see if these are not the essential ingredients to make it successful.

But God tells us that fulfillment does not come through pursuing what we think will fulfill us. Fulfillment comes through pursuing the purpose for which we have been created and that is to trust in God’s good purposes no matter what the culture tells you is good for you. In the garden the serpent called Eve to pursue what seemed good to her. After all, she saw that the tree was "good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise" (Gen 3:6). She grasped at what the serpent told her would be fulfilling and rewarding and Adam instead of leading his wife away from sin, stood by passively and went with the flow.

Eve said “no” to God’s word and God’s design. The result was a usurping of the created order and fracture of the universe. The mystery of the gospel however begins with a young virgin being visited by an angel and told that she would be the mother of the Son of God. Mary had no ambition but the will of God and her response unlike Eve was a “Yes”. “ I am the Lord’s servant…may it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38). She didn’t know how it would all pan out. She could probably imagine the risks the losses the interrupted plans. But she trusted God .The result: salvation for the world.

Whether you have biological children or not, you are all spiritual mothers to somebody, and you can be praying—single women, childless women, women with a quiver full of children, women who’ve never had any children—God has put you in the position of being true women for children in his kingdom. To raise a future generation of warriors for Christ and missionaries who will take the gospel to the unreached peoples.

The older are to teach the younger. The older can pray for the younger. The bigger family is the family of God- the church of Christ, his bride. Whether they be biological, friends, adoptive, foster or someone you are praying for over the other side of the world, ask the Lord to bring you someone you can be a spiritual mother to, someone you can nurture and teach the gospel truth to, and watch the Lord act.

So whether male or female, we praise God for womanhood because "true womanhood is a distinctive calling to display the glory of the Son of God in ways that would not be possible had God not created womanhood" (John Piper). So embrace it. Say yes to God and his designs for you. The stakes are high. The calling is great. True biblical womanhood was made for the glory of God.

N.B. I thoroughly recommend "Voices of the True Woman Movement"- Nancy Leigh DeMoss (Inc. Piper, Kassian, Eareckson Tada, Parshall) http://www.truewoman.com/.  Manhood and womanhood are  primary issues for the church. God's design in masculinity and femininity is intrinsic to his purpose in creating the universe, that is the display of the glory of his grace, ultimately seen in the Bridegroom dying for His bride. Male and female display the gospel in both unique and complementary ways.