Yesterday we saw how the man and woman, were made to work together as equals and as partners, however, this did not last. God had instructed Adam and his wife not to eat of the fruit, because they would die. This death includes 3 things.
1. The physical body would one day die.
Man was never ever supposed to die. However, when Adam and Eve sinned they were banished from the Garden of Eden and from the tree of life. Thus, from that moment their bodies decayed, and they eventually died (gave up the ghost). This, however, was not what God meant when He spoke of death. Notice He said, in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die (Gen 2:17), Adam and Eve did not give up the ghost till 900+ years after eating the fruit.
2. Man would be separated from God
From the moment they sinned, they no longer walked with God. They were separated from Him. However, this was not just a mood God was in. They were actually spiritually separated from Him, because the moment they ate the fruit, the spirit of death possessed them. Ephesians 2:2, calls this spirit the prince of the power of the air. Satan is the principality of the air, or as Ez 28 calls him, he is the anointed cherub that covers the earth (air). By Adam's sin, satan entered into him as a spirit of sin and death (Rom 8:2). The presence of satan in the flesh, restricts God from fellowshipping with mankind.
3. Man would be separated from each other.
Here is where the rubber meets the road. The presence of satan in the flesh, caused a separation between mankind. This separation was something called "self". Self was created the day Adam sinned. Self is defined as a person's essential being that distinguishes them from others. Remember when God made Adam and Eve He made them one. Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created. (Gen 5:2)
They were one, however when self was created it caused a turn in their hearts from God's original intent. Adam was no longer willing to die along with his wife. He was no longer boasting how she was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh. She was now considered another person.
Genesis 3:12
And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
Notice the separation in Adam's speech. Eve was no longer considered of Adam when judgement came into play. He was now willing to allow Eve to receive the blunt of God's wrath. With self, there is always self-preservation. Self-preservation is the enemy of God. Hence Jesus' first message instructs us to deny self.
What does all this have to do with the woman and ministry?
The fall of man caused a separation between the man and the woman, by the spirit of death within them. However, this was not what cost the woman her role in ministry.
THE CURSE
Genesis 3:16
Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
The woman was judged severely for her actions. She not only was judged in child bearing, but she was judged in her emotions. Her emotions would now be constantly toward a lover (desire to the husband). She will seek and yearn for love from the man. However, consider this other aspect of the curse.
and he shall rule over thee.
The woman and the man from here on out, would no longer work together as equals. They would no longer share the responsibility of ministry. Instead, the man would be a ruler over the woman. The woman, was now included in the group of those Adam would rule and have dominion over. Even as he ruled over the animals and plants, so would he also rule the woman.
Moreover, she had lost her right to ministry. She had to subject herself to the man. From this point all the way to Christ, God rarely ever used the woman, to head up his mighty moves. She was restricted from ministry in the temple. The testimonies of men in the Old Covenant far exceed (numerically) the works of the women. Nevertheless, God always gives glimpses of His eternal purpose for the woman. We will continue to look at those throughout the week.
Praise God for Christ Jesus, who was able to reverse the curse, and bring the woman, back alongside the man, to work the work of the ministry. To see exactly how He did this, you have to stay tuned.
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