WWUTT: Galatians 3:28, There is No Male or Female?

WWUTT: Galatians 3:28, There is No Male or Female? June 24, 2016

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Galatians 3:28 says:

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus!

Paul is very simply saying that in Christ: no one is inferior, and no one is superior. Jews can’t consider themselves better than the Greeks, nor can the Greeks think of themselves any better than the Jews, because everyone has sinned and have fallen short of God’s will for our lives.

For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, giving His riches to all who call on Him. (Romans 10:12)

For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by His grace as a gift. (Romans 3:22-24)

Slaves were treated as less than human and had fewer rights than one who was free. But, like with the Jew and the Greek, there is no distinction. For both are enslaved to sin and both are equally set free in Christ.

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1)

Women were considered by the culture to be subservient to men. But, as with the Jew and the Greek and the slave and the free, both men and women are made in the image of God, and to both are given the kingdom of God.

So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:27)

That’s the part of the verse that tends to get abused.

What Galatians 3:28 doesn’t mean is that women can be pastors and deacons.

I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather she’s to remain quiet. (1 Timothy 2:12)female pastors1

Paul said elsewhere that pastors, elders and deacons are roles specifically designated for men.

Nor does this verse mean that God is cool with transgender behavior.

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16 that it is a disgrace for a man to wear his hair long to look like a woman, and a woman should not shave her head to look like a man.

A woman shall not wear a man’s garment, nor shall a man put on a woman’s cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord. (Deuteronomy 22:5)

God created the sexes – men and women – unique and for different purposes. There are things a man can do that a woman cannot. And, there are things women can do that men cannot. Both must fulfill their calling according to God’s will and His design. Men and women are designed to compliment one another in strength and weakness.

We, though many, are one body in Christ, individually members of one another! (Romans 12:5)

You see, we are many parts, but one body in Christ Jesus, when we understand the text!


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