Wayne Grudem

JESUS! In Word and Song

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WEEK 27

PENTECOST

Pentecost Sunday is a commemoration and celebration of the official birthday of the Christian church, marked by the receiving of the Holy Spirit by the early believers. Pentecost Sunday is observed on the seventh Sunday after Easter and ten days after Ascension.1

“[Y]ou will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1:5 ESV).

The effects are seen in the Apostles on the Day of Pentecost. Pentecost changed all their outlook. The Scriptures were made luminous in the light of the Holy Ghost. The change in their characters was even greater than the change in their knowledge. The Gospels portray these men as proud and contentious, selfish and cowardly; but the first pages of the Acts of the Apostles tell another story. Pentecost transformed them.2

Under the training of Christ the disciples had been led to feel their need of the Spirit. Under the Spirit’s teaching they received the final qualification, and went forth to their lifework. No longer were they ignorant and uncultured. No longer were they a collection of independent units or discordant, conflicting elements.3

“[L]et us recall and realize all the mighty and marvelous signs of this first Pentecost, and its instant and immediate results and effects; of conquered cowardice, of utterance, of courageous speech, of other tongues.”4

The preaching of the cross of Christ was the very center and heart of the message of the apostles. It was not the teaching of Christ, nor the example of Christ either. What they preached was His death on the cross and the meaning of that event.5

[T]hey were to proclaim to the world the truths entrusted to them. The events of Christ’s life, His death and resurrection, the prophecies pointing to these events, the mysteries of the plan of salvation, the power of Jesus for the remission of sins.6

“[T]he gospel must be proclaimed. The wonderful truth that through Christ alone could remission of sins be obtained, was to be made plain.”7

[W]e should read the writings of the New Testament as God’s very words, still living and powerful to speak to our hearts today with the authority of God himself. No other words spoken today can ever equal the words of Scripture itself in authority, in purity, or in power.8

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ENDNOTES

(27) Abiding Miracle

            1. Joe Carter, “9 Things You Should Know About the Christian Calendar,” 1 December 2019, The Gospel Coalition, 3 July 2021 https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/9-things-know-christian-calendar/.

            2. Samuel Chadwick, The Way to Pentecost (Fort Washington, PA: CLC Publications, 2000) 169-170.

            3. Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911) 45.

            4. W.C. Doanne, “Commentary on Acts 1:2,” 1876, James Nisbet’s Church Pulpit Commentary, 16 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/acts/2-1.html#verse-cpc.

            5. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Walking With God Day by Day (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2003) April 2nd.

            6. Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1911) 27.

            7. White, 31-32.

            8. Wayne Grudem, The Gift of Prophecy (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1988) 49.

            9. W.C. Doanne, “Commentary on Acts 1:2,” 1876, James Nisbet’s Church Pulpit Commentary, 16 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/acts/2-1.html#verse-cpc.

            10. Samuel Chadwick, The Way to Pentecost (Fort Washington, PA: CLC Publications, 2000) 35.

            11. Chadwick, 37.

            12. Chadwick, 40.

            13. Chadwick.

            14. Chadwick 43.

            15. W.C. Doanne, “Commentary on Acts 1:2,” 1876, James Nisbet’s Church Pulpit Commentary, 16 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/acts/2-1.html#verse-cpc.

            16. Alexander MacLaren, “Commentary on Acts 2:1,” Alexander MacLaren’s Expositions of Holy Scripture, 16 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/mac/acts-2.html.

            17. MacLaren.

JESUS! In Word and Song

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WEEK 24

THE GREAT COMMISSION

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and made disciples of all nations teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matt 28:18-20 ESV).

“Jesus commanded his disciples and now commands us also to teach believers to observe all that he commanded.”1

“Men are ignorant of Divine things, and must be taught. Only those can be considered as proper teachers of the ignorant who are thoroughly instructed in whatsoever Christ has commanded.”2

Now to teach all that Jesus commanded, in a narrow sense, is simply to teach the content of the oral teaching of Jesus as it is recorded in the gospel narratives. However, in a broader sense, ‘all that Jesus commanded’ also include the Epistles, since they were written under the supervision of the Holy Spirit. Furthermore the New Testament epistles also endorse this view of the Old Testament as absolutely authoritative words of God, then it becomes evident that we cannot teach ‘all that Jesus commanded’ without including all of the Old Testament as well.3

“[T]here is only one method of evangelism: namely, the faithful explanation and application of the gospel message. [T]he test for any proposed strategy of evangelistic action must be this: will it in fact serve the word?”4

“These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them [to].proclaim as you go saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Matt 10:5,7 ESV). “[H]e gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction”(Matt 10:1 ESV).

To call persons to the ministry belongs only to Him who can give them power to cast out unclean spirits.”5  “[T]hey were to make disciples who obeyed the commands they had received.”6

[T]hree things Jesus did to shape disciples. Observation: He let them listen and watch as He lived. Impartation: He made sure they had authority and power in His name. Delegation: He sent them out to do what they had seen Him do—heal and deliver, both spiritually and physically, the helpless and harassed.7

Imagine what kind of disciples we might develop if we employed His simple, focused method: powerfully declare and demonstrate His kingdom, make sure disciples are filled with spiritual authority and power, and place them in front of dire human need that only the power of God can meet.8

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ENDNOTES

(24) Following His Lead

            1. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994) 27.

            2. Adam Clarke, “Commentary on Matthew 28:20,” 1832, Adam Clarke Commentary 22 June 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/matthew-28.html.

            3. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994) 27.

            4. J.I. Packer, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God (Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979) 86.

            5. Adam Clarke, “Commentary on Matthew 10:1,” 1832, Adam Clarke Commentary 15 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/matthew/10-1.html#verse-acc.

            6. Doug Newton, Fresh Eyes on Famous Bible Sayings (Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2018) 139.

            7. Newton, 141.

            8. Newton, 142.

            9. “ . . . he . . . gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction” (Matthew 10:1 ESV).

            10. “These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them . . . proclaim as you go saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” (Matthew 10:5,7 ESV).

JESUS! In Word and Song

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WEEK 20

THE RESURRECTION

“Easter Sunday is celebrated on the first full moon following the vernal equinox, when the Sun crosses the equator going north. For this reason, Easter can fall on any date from March 22 through April 25.”1

“God raised him on the third day. [H]e is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead.  To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:40,42-43 ESV).

He was dead. His enemies thought they had done him in, and they were glad. His friends thought he was done for, and they were sad. But heaven watching was preparing the music that should ring around the world declaring the defeat of evil, the mastery of sin, and the ransom of the race.2

It is a pledge and assurance that our sins are forgiven. Death was the penalty of our sin; the debt we owed to God; Christ engaged to discharge that debt for us; till He discharged it in full, He was to remain in the prison of the grave. His liberation from that prison was to be the token to us that the anger of God was appeased, that our whole debt was paid to the uttermost.3

[O]ur Lord by His work upon the cross, in addition to bearing the penalty and punishment of our sins as our substitute, was also destroying the works of the devil. He was delivering us from the bondage and the dominion of the devil, and was also delivering us from the territory of death. We are no longer dead in trespasses and sins; we do not belong to the realm of death, we are alive unto God. And likewise He has delivered us from the tyranny and power of sin.4

“It means that the Atonement is complete; it means that God the Father has accepted Christ’s work as a satisfaction for the sins of the whole world. It means that the problem of a future life has been solved.”5

Jesus the Messiah has come; he has lived, died, and risen among us, atoning once for all for our sins. [H]e has written his laws on our hearts. This new covenant is the ‘eternal covenant’ in Christ, through which we shall forever have fellowship with God, and he shall be our God, and we shall be his people.6

JESUS, I stood at the foot of the cross knowing in my heart You were the Son of GOD. Today I’m at the garden tomb where the stone has been rolled away. Now I believe history and again see with the eyes of my heart that You are the Son of GOD!

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ENDNOTES

(20) Have You Heard?

            1. Joe Carter, “9 Things You Should Know About the Christian Calendar,” 1 December 2019, The Gospel Coalition, 3 July 2021 https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/9-things-know-christian-calendar/.

            2. G.C. Morgan, “Commentary on John 20:1,” 1983-1999 Coffman Commentaries on the Bible, 11 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/john-20.html.

            3. H.L. Nicholson, “Commentary on John 20:1,” 1905-09, The Biblical Illustrator, 11 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/tbi/john-20.html.

            4. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Great Doctrines of the Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2003) I:345.

            5. J.H. Coward, “Commentary on John 20:1,” 1876, Church Pulpit Commentary, 11 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentary/john/20-1.html#verse-cpc.

            6. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994) 522.

            7. Edmond L. Budry and George Friderick Handel, “Thine is the Glory,” 1904, Hymnary, 4 June 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/thine_is_the_glory_risen_conquering.

            8. Charles Wesley, “Christ the Lord is Risen Today,” 1739 Hymnary, 11 February 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/christ_the_lord_is_risen_today_wesley.

            9. Edmond L. Budry and George Friderick Handel, “Thine is the Glory,” 1904, Hymnary, 4 June 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/thine_is_the_glory_risen_conquering.

            10. Budry and Handel.

            11. Budry and Handel.

            12. Budry and Handel.

            13. Charles Wesley, “Christ the Lord is Risen Today,” 1739 Hymnary, 11 February 2021 https://hymnary.org/text/christ_the_lord_is_risen_today_wesley.

JESUS! In Word and Song

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WEEK 15

THE SUFFERINGS OF JESUS

“The Heidelberg Catechism says that Christ sustained the anger of God against the sin of His people ‘during his whole life on earth, but especially at the end’ (Q&A 37).”1

“One who is the Creator of the universe lived His life on the same plane ours is lived, passed through the same trials we experience, and suffered not only as we do, but far more acutely.”2

A large boulder on the seashore takes the full force of each wave, while small rocks and pebbles move back and forth with the waves. JESUS took the full brunt of resistance against Him (for He never sinned), while we move back and forth with sin making it not as severe as the suffering of JESUS.

He was made perfect ‘through suffering’ (Heb 2:10). Therefore we should see all the hardship and suffering that comes to us in life as something that God brings to us to do us good, strengthening our trust in him and our obedience, and ultimately increasing our ability to glorify him.3

The suffering of JESUS consisted of two reasons: (1) He suffered because He was the Son of GOD and spoke Truth and lived it out (Matt 4:17) and (2) He suffered because He was the Son of Man and tempted to sin but did not (Heb 2:18).

Scripture speaks of two kinds of suffering Christians experience: (1) We will suffer as JESUS suffered by unholy men because we speak Truth and live it out (Acts 4:1-3) and (2) we will suffer because we are mere men; we’re tempted to sin, and succumb to it (1 John 1:8).

“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim 3:12 ESV).

The indwelling of Christ in the believer is a kind of second incarnation of the Son of God. When Christ enters the heart of a poor sinner, He once more clothes Himself with our nature. The life Christ lived in the days of His time on earth was a life of sorrow, of conflict, of temptation, of desertion, of want and of suffering in every form. Does He now live a different life in the believer? No; He is still tempted and deserted, in sorrow and in want, in humiliation and in suffering—in His people. Did you think that these fiery darts were leveled at you? Did you suppose that you were deserted, you suffered, you were despised, you were trodden under foot? No, it was Christ dwelling in you. All the cruelty of Satan, all the power of sin and all the contempt of the world are leveled, not against you, but against the Lord dwelling in you.4

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ENDNOTES

(15) JESUS, You Suffered

1. “The Sufferings of Christ,” Ligonier Ministries, 17 June 2021 https://www.ligonier.org/learn/devotionals/the-suffering-of-christ/.

            2. A.W. Pink, “Commentary on Hebrews 2,” A.W. Pink’s Commentary on John and Hebrews, 9 February 2021 https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/awp/hebrews-2.html.

            3. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994) 812.

            4. Octavius Winslow, Evening Thoughts (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage Books, 2005) November 7th.

            5. John Newton, Letters of John Newton (Carlisle, PA: THE BANNER OF TRUTH TRUST, 1960, reprinted 1990) 82.

            6. “ . . . ‘Sing aloud with gladness . . . and raise shouts . . . proclaim, give praise, and say, . . .” (Jeremiah 31:7).

HEAVEN

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FACTS OF HEAVEN

“Death not only cannot destroy a Christian, but it cannot hurt him….a child is frightened in the dark where there is no danger, because he is a child, so a good man may be frightened at the terrible looks of death.  But he will find this awful appearance to be only a shadow, that can look terrible but can do nothing terrible” Jonathan Edwards (ref#229, p116).

“The city of the great King – heaven – is a place of active service.  Redeemed spirits serve Him day and night in His temple.  They never cease to fulfill the good pleasure of their King.  They always rest, as far as ease and freedom from care are concerned, and they never rest, in the sense of laziness or inactivity.” Charles Spurgeon (ref#34, July 12th PM).

“When the soul departs from the body it is received by the blessed angels and conducted by them to the third heaven….Luke 16:22: ‘And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom…” Jonathan Edwards (ref#229, p118).

“Heaven is far above the stars.  So it is said that Christ ascended far above all heavens (Eph 4:10)” Jonathan Edwards (ref#229, p119).  “There shall be no more indwelling corruption, wicked thoughts, or sinful dispositions to torment them….Rev 21:4” Jonathan Edwards (ref#229, p120).

“…more important than all the physical beauty of the heavenly city, more important than the fellowship we will enjoy eternally with all God’s people from all nations and all periods in history more important than our freedom from pain and sorrow and physical suffering, and more important than reigning over God’s kingdom—more important by far than any of these will be the fact that we will be in the presence of God and enjoying unhindered fellowship with him. ‘Behold, the dwelling of God is with men’” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p1164).

1ST COVENANT

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FAITH COUNTED AS RIGHTEOUSNESS

“The exodus was a sign for Israel, just like the death and resurrection of Jesus are a sign for the church.  The meaning of the sign is that God is for you and will work for you and take care of you if you will only trust him” John Piper (ref#277).

“…Old Testament believers, were saved by looking forward to the work of the Messiah who was to come and putting faith in him” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p519).

“…the law did not call for meritorious works, but for the obedience which flows from faith.  If love is what the law aimed at, and only faith can love, then the law must teach faith…the law…taught us to trust the gracious God…and to live out the obedience of faith” John Piper (ref#277).

“Acceptable sacrifices are based on a right relationship brought about by faith in the God who delivers” The ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p1388, [Jer 7:22-23]).

“Paul teaches that we should not leave the law behind, not reject the law for something else, but fulfill the law in the power of the Holy Spirit through faith which works itself out in love” John Piper (ref#277).

“True religion consists of communion with God based on trust and issuing into obedience” The Reformation Study Bible (ref#56, p13, [Gen 3:6]).

1ST COVENANT

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COVENANTS

“…God works in history to redeem His chosen ones through a series of covenants.  These covenants define His law, assess penalties for breaking His law, and provide for the imputation of Jesus’ vicarious fulfillment of God’s requirements…” Carol J. Ruvolo (ref#228, p148).

INTERVENING FATHER, Your loving will and compassion work to my advantage through the covenants You set in place.  Through them I have no question about my course with You.

“A covenant is an unchangeable, divinely imposed legal agreement between God and man that stipulates the conditions of their relationship” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p515).

In sovereign authority You reveal Your desire and my part is only to accept or reject it (ref#63, p 515).  You will be my GOD and I will be Your child if I keep Your decrees and ordinances (Lev 18:5).  Moses writes that the man who can practice the perfect conformity to Your will shall live (Rom 10:5).  “If you obey…by loving the LORD…by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments…then you shall live…” (Deut 30:16 ESV).

FATHER, how I long to keep Your covenant but, my contribution makes it impossible.  I may not murder, but I certainly can’t keep Your law that says I am a transgressor even if I am angry at someone (Matt 5:21-22).  And Your stipulation is that if I fail in one point of Your law, I become accountable for all of it (James 2:10).

So, because I can’t keep Your covenant I am liable to judgment—liable to the hell of fire (Matt 5:22).  The very ordinance which You designed and intended to bring me life actually means death to me (Rom 7:10).  On my own I cannot keep Your covenant of works.

“…the covenant of works is still in force for every human being apart from Christ, even though no sinful human being can fulfill its provisions and gain blessing by it….for Christians today to think of themselves as obligated to try to earn God’s favor by obedience would be to cut themselves off from the hope of salvation” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p518).

Thank You, FATHER, for CHRIST and Your covenant of grace.

SCRIPTURE

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BIBLICAL WRITERS

FATHER, now is the time I sit before a large table full of paper slips placed into subject piles all containing quotes about Your Holy Scriptures.  Thank You for the honor to record what Your godly people have said about Your Book.  But, all these quotes are written by men and women who don’t possess the SPIRIT in order to write Your exact words.  Only men who have written the Bible fit that category.

“Sermons, and tracts, and theological writings of all kinds, may be sound and edifying, but they are only the handiwork of uninspired man.  The Bible alone is the Book of God” J.C. Ryle (ref#273, p3).

“All the words in Scripture are God’s words” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p73).  “Its first line, its last line, all its teachings, understood or not understood, are by the same Author…Whoever may have been the writers—whatever their circumstances, their impressions, their comprehension of the book, and the measure of their individuality in this powerful and mysterious operation—they have all written faithfully and under superintendence…under the guidance of the same Master, for Whom a thousand years are as one day; and the result has been the Bible” Louis Gaussen (ref#246, p8-9, “God-breathed Scripture”).

“The apostles and prophets were the people to whom God revealed spiritual truth” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, Nov 7th).

“…no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Pet 1:21 ESV).

“…when these…were written, it was not a case of a man in control of himself, using his natural powers and propensities and abilities, thinking things out and then writing as best he could.  Not at all!  The whole time, he was controlled by…the Spirit…this divine energy.  This divine [creative impulse] came upon him, it held him and carried him, and he was borne along by the Spirit.  And it was as a result of that process that…prophecies and…Scriptures came into being” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#250, p45).

“If the Bible is not inspired in the strictest sense of the word, then it is worthless; for it claims to be God’s Word” A.W. Pink (ref#250, p3, “The Impregnable Rock”).

SCRIPTURE

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WHAT IS THE BIBLE?

“The Bible isn’t a series of stories.  It isn’t a catalog of interesting characters.  It isn’t a manual of theology.  It isn’t a book of interesting wisdom principles.  One story, with one hero, forms the cord that holds the whole Bible together.  The Bible is essentially the story of redemption. This grand redemptive story, with God’s essential explanatory notes, is the main content of the Word of God” Paul David Tripp (ref#190, Dec 9th).

“The message of the Bible is not to urge us to try to find truth; it is to ask us to listen to the truth, to God’s truth.  For its whole point is to say that God, knowing Himself, knowing man, knowing everything, has devised and schemed a plan whereby men and women can be delivered out of their failure and sin and can be made citizens and worthy citizens of God’s kingdom.  This is God’s plan” Martyn Lloyd-Jones (ref#189, July 2nd)!

“…God’s faithfulness to his people convinces us that there is nothing missing from Scripture that God thinks we need to know for obeying him and trusting him fully….Scripture today is exactly what God wanted it to be, and it will stay that way until Christ returns” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p68-69).  “…He holds everything together by what he says—powerful words” (Heb 1:1-3 MSG)!

“O Word of God Incarnate”

 

O Word of God incarnate, O wisdom from on high,

O truth unchanged, unchanging, O light of our dark sky;

We praise thee for the radiance that from the hallowed page,

A lantern to our footsteps, shines on from age to age.

 

The church from her dear Master received the gift divine,

And still that light she lifteth o’er all the earth to shine.

It is the golden casket, where gems of truth are stored;

It is the heave’n-drawn picture of Christ, the Living Word.

 

It floateth like a banner before God’s host unfurled;

It shineth like a beacon above the darkling world.

It is the chart and compass that o’er life’s surging sea,

‘Mid mists and rocks and quicksands, still guides, O Christ to thee.

 

O make thy church, dear Savior, a lamp of purest gold,

To bear before the nations thy true light, as of old.

O teach thy wand’ring pilgrims by this their path to trace,

Till, clouds and darkness ended, they see thee face to face.

 

Author: William Walsham How, 1867 Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p72)

CREATION

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MANHOOD AND WOMANHOOD

“The fact that God first created Adam, then after a period of time created Eve (Gen 2:7, 18-23), suggests that God saw Adam as having a leadership role in his family.  No such two-stage procedure is mentioned for any of the animals God made, but here it seems to have a special purpose” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p461).

“…the curse brought a distortionof Adam’s humble, considerate leadership and Eve’s intelligent, willing submission to that leadership which existed before the fall” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p464).  “Differentiated roles were corrupted, not created, by the fall. They were created by God” John Piper, Wayne Grudem (ref#274, p35).

“God made Eve for Adam…I will make him a helper fit for him” (Gen 2:18)” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p461). Before the Fall, Eve’s role was to assist Adam in his endeavors.  But after the Fall GOD informed Eve of her now deprived nature:

“…Your desire shall be contrary to your husband, but he shall rule over you” (Gen 3:16 ESV).

“These words from the Lord indicate that there will be an ongoing struggle between the woman and the man for leadership in the marriage relationship…” ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p56, [Gen 3:16]). “Eve will have the sinful ‘desire’ to oppose Adam and to assert leadership over him, reversing God’s plan for Adam’s leadership in marriage. But…Adam will also abandon his God-given, pre-fall role of leading, guarding, and caring for his wife, replacing this with his own sinful, distorted desire to ‘rule’ over Eve” ESV Study Bible (ref#125, p56, [Gen 3:16]).  “…the word…has nuances of dictatorial or absolute, uncaring use of authority, rather than considerate, thoughtful rule” Wayne Grudem (ref#63, p464).

“This is the way God meant it to be before there was any sin in the world: sinless man, full of love, in his tender, strong leadership in relation to woman; and sinless woman, full of love, in her joyful, responsive support for man’s leadership.  No belittling from the man, no groveling from the woman.  Two intelligent, humble, God-entranced beings living out, in beautiful harmony, their unique and different responsibilities…” John Piper, Wayne Grudem (ref#274, p52).

 “We are not sinless any more.  But we believe that recovery of mature manhood and womanhood is possible by the power of God’s Spirit through faith in his promises and in obedience to his Word” John Piper, Wayne Grudem (ref#274, p52).

The discerning HOLY SPIRIT within us proves the authenticity of His Word.  To discover the Truth we must ask ourselves: Is our viewpoint a rebellion against GOD or is our stance affirming Him?