March is almost over. This month in the U.S. was designated as Women’s History Month. A celebration of the significant achievements of women—their work, contributions, and impact for good through the years. As roughly fifty percent of the planet’s population is female (the rest are male; there are NO other genders), the task of highlighting the accomplishments of so great a subset of society, living and late, is huge.
It’s true, women are creative, compassionate, driven, and strong. Because women are specifically formed by God to be mothers, they are, by design, humanity’s earliest educators. As such, they are hardwired to be a catalyst for positive change, leaders who inspire action, solve problems, and encourage improvement. Mothers often exercise their God-given powers to coerce, constrain, and compel others; “… to provoke unto love and to good works.” (Hebrews 10:24 KJV) It’s their job.
However, women can and sometimes do use their inherent powers to initiate action of another sort—trouble. Ask anyone who grew up with sisters; they will tell you that one of the most common phrases heard in the house was, “She started it!”
In case you think me misogynistic … puhleeez. Being a woman, naturally, I don’t think women are inferior. The biblical woman is described as beautiful, discerning, gracious, generous, and kind. I believe that women may be the most valuable—untapped—resource in our church world.
Nevertheless, it’s an undeniable fact that men and women are distinctly DIFFERENT. From conception, men and women are created to be unique from one another—physiologically, psychologically, socially, and emotionally. Their roles are different, and their physical capabilities are different. In God’s economy, men and women are shaped differently, but their souls weigh the same.
From the very beginning, women have been targeted and exploited by the enemy because of their unique characteristics. Consider:
EVE: She was the true First Lady. Eve was not even the mother of all living yet when the serpent beguiled her, and she innocently (or not so innocently) fell for it. In her natural gullibility, she believed his lie and ate the forbidden fruit. Then Eve convinced Adam to do the same, which resulted in them BOTH being cast out of their perfect world into lives full of pain and suffering. Adam has historically taken the rap, but clearly Eve started it. They learned a hard lesson that day—and education is always SO expensive! When God gives a specific command, He expects specific obedience—not a workaround. Thanks a lot, Eve. YOU started it.
SARAH: She got frustrated when she knew Abraham was to be the father of nations but she had not been able to give him children. So she took things into her own hands by offering HER solution to the dilemma—Hagar—to get things moving toward the fulfillment of God’s promise. Of course, when God makes a promise, He can fulfill it without our help. And He did. Sarah eventually bore the true promised seed, Isaac—yes. But Hagar had already borne Ishmael—because of Sarah. By stepping ahead of God, Sarah initiated a bloody, cruel family feud that continues to this day. She started it.
MIRIAM: When Israel was in the wilderness, “Miriam and Aaron began criticizing Moses.” They questioned his authority, asking, “Is it true that God only speaks to Moses? Hasn’t He spoken to us, too?” (Numbers 12:2) It’s interesting that the grammatical structure of this sentence in Scripture indicates where the criticism actually started. According to the CJB, the Hebrew verb form for “began criticizing” refers only to a female and is in the third-person singular female. Thus scholars believe that it was Miriam that started the verbal criticism of Moses, with Aaron later chiming in. God nipped this vitriolic attitude in the bud, however, by striking Miriam (not Aaron) with leprosy, albeit temporary. God wanted the camp of Israel to see and to KNOW that this kind of treasonous behavior was unacceptable—and potentially deadly.
It’s sadly clear that, in spite of the leprous lesson, Miriam started an epidemic. Very soon after, in Chapter 16, we read that the same attitude of jealousy was picked up by Korah (Moses and Aaron’s first cousin), friends Dathan and Abiram, and 250 other notables in the camp. They swaggered up to Moses and Aaron and declared (in words very similar to Miriam’s), “Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?” (Numbers 16:3 KJV)
Whoa. What chutzpah. When God ordains for us a structure of leadership, it’s like an umbrella over our heads. It’s not wise to criticize the umbrella—you need it—nor is it smart to step outside the covering to question its authority. It’s better to just stay put, hold on … and pray. If the “umbrella” seems to have gotten bent, God Himself will straighten it out, if need be. Selah.
In the case of Korah & Company, the judgment of God was swift, horrific, and legendary. He made the earth open up and swallow them whole—and then sent a plague that killed another 14,700 souls. God forbid. But, you know, I wouldn’t be surprised if, as Korah fell into the chasm of judgment, in one last gesture of defiance, he pointed to Miriam and screamed, “SHE STARTED IT!”
EUODIA and SYNTYCHE: The Apostle Paul mentions these two women briefly in his letter to the church in Philippi. (Philippians 4:2) It appears that they were at odds with each other, and it is likely the brawl was a public one, due to the fact that Paul had heard about it even while in chains in a Roman prison. Two women fighting in this manner would have put the unity of the believers in Philippi in jeopardy. Therefore, Paul HAD to take the time to address it. They may have thought their little tiff was just between them, but here it is in black and white, in the most widely read book in the whole world.
Paul urged, “Make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” (Philippians 2:2-4 NIV)
What greater GOOD could’ve been accomplished if the healing help spent on these two women IN the church had been directed instead on sin-sick souls OUTSIDE the church?
But then, consider MARY of Bethany, who poured out herself at the feet of Jesus. “She hath done what she could … and verily I say unto you, Wheresoever the gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, that also which this woman hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.” (Mark 14:8-9) What a greater testimony!
Ladies, there’s so much to do—let’s make our efforts count for GOOD. Let’s do what we can—using our unique and special strengths and energies to build memorials that stand higher than us, last longer than us, and declare the untarnished Gospel of Jesus! What GOOD can we initiate together? Let’s start an epidemic of faith, fortitude, kindness, and courage—a movement of TRUTH that helps to turn hearts to God!
Think of it: by God’s grace, in the Judgment Hall of Heaven one day, there WILL be a line of redeemed saints that are there because of YOUR testimony! Who knows, but that they will joyfully and gratefully say of YOU, “SHE started it!”
