The Hand That Rocks The Cradle
“Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.” (1 Timothy 2:15 KJV)
There are some verses in the Bible that are problematic to 21st century ears. God has done so much for me that long ago, I have stopped doubting the reliability of Scriptures. When I hit a verse like (1 Tim 2:15) I just tell myself, “Tony you will understand better…later.”
As a new believer, this passage was confusing from two perspectives:
1). What about justification by faith? Is Paul saying that a woman has to be a mother to receive salvation?
2). Is Paul limiting women to just motherhood? Isn’t this the institutionalized chauvinism that my liberal friends are always complaining about?
Time and experience have answered these questions but the answers were not linear. Truth is often nuanced.
To understand this passage we have to address:
3) Experiential Knowledge.
Regarding context, the modern perspective about what Jesus did is totally different than the 1st-century church. Today, American Christians either have Jesus on the cross or in the clouds. Someone needs to repeat the message of the ascension; “Stop staring at the sky. It’s time to get to work.”
For the first-century Jewish convert to Christianity, Jesus is the King and the Kingdom must still be established. Yes, the way that this kingdom will be established is unique but the call is still clear. The cross was not the end of Israel, it was the commencement of revolution.
All Kingdoms have common necessities for both their establishment and continuance. One of those necessities are children. Industrialized countries don’t push “Family” because they have morals. The nuclear family receives tax deductions because the family feeds the BEAST. The family provides the most important resource to all nations: children. The health of God’s Kingdom is equally dependent upon its children both physical and spiritual. Children are valuable to the mission. The Kingdom of God in turn is essential for the salvation and/or redemption of this world.
Let’s also take a closer look at terms. The term salvation in the Bible does not consistently mean “Saved” from a purely spiritual perspective. Sometimes salvation means “Delivered from present circumstances”. Especially in the Old Testament, salvation frequently means “Delivered”. When Paul writes in Romans 8 about the impact of the Sons Of God, he is not limiting that impact to the spirit or soul. Paul is reiterating what Jesus said about the Kingdom. We are like leaven taking over the whole loaf. So he is not saying that women are spiritually saved thru their hips. He IS saying that the hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that transforms the world.
Finally, let me touch on how experiential knowledge changed how I viewed this text. I am a middle aged man but a new dad. My kids are everything to me but I am thankful that my wife is at home with them and I am at work. The other day, I played primary caregiver while my wife went on appointments. It was 2 o'clock before I could even eat. Being a parent is easy. If you want to be trifling, just plop them in front of the tv. When we do that, Hollywood molds the heathen of the future. If you want to be a godly parent though….you have to be willing to die a little each day. Bearing and raising children God’s way is more rewarding but it’s an unmistakable sacrifice. Godly childbearing is a cross that someone must carry…..if the Kingdom is to advance.
Finally, we must remember the ghostwriter of Paul’s text. That ghostwriter is a God that foreknew this fact: Pastor Tony Ares would one day be left at home and alone with his kids.
