When we read chapters one and two of Genesis, we see that God created both man and woman and both are in the image of God. So, there is an equality that God is showing us between the genders. Both genders are made in God’s image.
Also, from Genesis chapter one and two, we see God doing something more than just a to-do list. God didn’t just “check the boxes.” He brought His will to bear upon the chaos (Genesis 1:2), and out of chaos, God caused order and purpose.
Order and purpose
We see this order and purpose in His creation on the first five days, and we see it on the sixth day in how God first created man and then woman. God’s creation order of man and woman is affirmed by the apostle Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit:
“For Adam was formed first, then Eve;“
1 Timothy 2:13
Both genders are made in God’s image. Therefore, they are equal in quality, value, and destiny. They both are from the same image of God (quality), they both enjoy the paradise of Eden (value), and each judged by God (destiny). This equality is affirmed:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.“
Galatians 3:28
Quality, value, and destiny
Notice that Genesis, chapters one and two, are before sin and the fall, so we see God’s intended design. Why didn’t God make man and woman at the same time and in the same way? I’m glad you asked!
Men and women are equal in quality, value, and destiny, but God has established separate roles. There are some things we need to understand. First, we see that God assigned responsibility for a marriage’s moral compass to man. Yes, God lays the leadership role upon man, and when a moral failure occurs within a marriage, it’s the man that God first takes to the woodshed!
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.
Genesis 3:6-9
8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?”
Nothing would make my blood run cold faster than hearing my dad yell, “Gary, where are you?!”
Godly men are essential for families, churches, and society. However, leadership isn’t leadership if no one is following, and you can’t make someone follow you. We are told:
“In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.”
Ephesians 5:28
Now for a man to accomplish his moral leadership role in marriage, the wife needs to follow his Godly leadership within their marriage. The Holy Spirit inspired the apostle Paul to write:
“But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.“
1 Corinthians 11:3
After the fall in the Garden of Eden, everyone is a sinner (Romans 3:23), so marriage is challenging, even for Christians. The sin that lives in our flesh wars against us; so often, our sin-nature sets wives against husbands and vice versa. Only as each person strives to please Jesus our Lord can we become acceptable to our mates.
Jesus and His Bride
Also, in man and then woman’s creation order, we see a beautiful picture of Jesus and His Bride, the Church. Jesus is the Head, and His sacrifice on the cross came before the birth of the Church (in Acts 2). From the very creation of humanity, we see Jesus and His Bride. Now that’s good news!
Photo by Sandy Millar on Unsplash
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