God’s Purpose for Women

Have you wondered what is God’s purpose for women in society?  For those who believe in creation history, it may seem that the feminine gender was an afterthought of God. Yet, God makes it clear that, while Eve was created to assist Adam in his duties outlined at Genesis 1:26,27, she had specific attributes and capabilities that would allow her success in being able to fulfill her place in God’s family.

Women were not created inferior to men.  Our roles in reproduction may be different, and our physical strength may be less in some cases, yet we also inherited the likeness of God and his core attributes. Women are as capable of leading, building, and helping to establish a better world.

The question has been on the table, it seems, as there is a resurgence of ideas such as  “this is a man’s world,” and the persistent belief that women are decorative pieces for man’s enjoyment. We are usually seen only in relation to our connections to the roles of  wife, mother, sister, friend.  We are rarely celebrated for our ingenuity and drive.  Often, women are taught to scale back when it comes to ambition.  It all calls into question God’s wisdom and purpose in creating and using women throughout biblical history.

Women were called to Co-Rule with men

Women are called to co-rule with men. God’s directive in Genesis states that both were made in the image and likeness of God and that subduing and making the earth a suitable home was their purpose.  It is later, in the new testament, that we see in the hierarchical structure of the family further explained: women are to submit to their husbands as they do to the Lord and that men must be careful in how they treat and lead their wives because the privilege of having their prayers answered hinges upon it.  An example of submitting to our husband as our Lord was given by Sarah. In no way was she ever diminished or her counsel disregarded by God or Abraham.

But God didn’t just see a woman’s role as being confined to the home. He exemplified through Jesus that women were individuals worthy of salvation, positive action, and spreading the good news. Women are seen by God.  Further, the nuclear family, as described in the bible, has changed.

Today, women head homes and sometimes without a mate. Women are more likely to work outside of the home and are primary decision makers. Women sometimes choose to remain single and, much to the consternation of some, women are taking the lead in preaching the good news. Some of this may have been foreseen by God when he stated in his word, the women telling the good news are a large army.

Has the View of Women Become an Old Trope?

Christian women, regardless of marital status, are passionate about their relationship with Christ as well as seeing a good measure of success in their secular life.  The question then is what is the ceiling for women in life? Looking from God’s view, we’ve been suitable to be placed as judges at a time when that role was the decision maker for a nation.  We’ve been capable of detailing how to escape danger and thus preserve the will of God. Multiple times we are shown as capable in business endeavors and offering our view concerning issues that changed the course of history.

We don’t have to out shout men. We don’t have to spend our lives with the mindset that we are out to prove we are better than men. Hopefully that capable, equal, helpmate ideal, first created in Eve, never dies because it represents our core feminine qualities.

Women can fulfill their God given role, using their cooperative spirit, by preaching the good news neighbor to neighbor. For those who have remained single, they can build up their family by including extended family in their efforts. They can choose to lead in their field of education and employ the spirit of influence we have been so generously endowed with.

A Realized Self Concept

Just like men, women are called upon to grow.  We grow in our relationship with God and our personal abilities.  This includes development of the fruitage of the Spirit. We must to come to view ourselves the way God views us – worthy of salvation and precious in the sight of God. When we realize that our lives matter, it changes our outlook.

Consider the woman who was caught in the act of adultery and worthy of death according to the law. Having been granted grace by Jesus Christ, she was told to live her life avoiding the mistakes of the past. We do not have to stay in failure, false pride or low self esteem. We can allow ourselves to be molded for greatness. That greatness is the individual idea of our potential uniquely given to us by God. That greatness is not limited in scope. It steps outside gender toward soul and spirit. It says, we are inheritors of salvation no less than our male counterpart with all the promises of God being made toward us as well.