I Corinthians 13-remixed

Elyse Fitzpatrick and Dennis Johnson have written what is turning out to be an excellent book entitled, Counsel from the Cross: Connecting Broken People to the Love of Christ (2009). I am quite certain that I will have more to say about this book in upcoming days and weeks, but today I read a few paragraphs of theirs that I wanted to reproduce here. The authors suggest that we view the very familiar love passage from I Corinthian 13 from a different perspective. Rather than seeing it as a template for how we can be more loving, we should view it as a "sneak preview of what we'll see when we finally gaze upon him 'face-to-face'" (p. 62).

"As the author of language and as God’s Living Word, Jesus can speak in the tongues of men and angels, and yet he condescends to speak simple words that nourish, soothe, and delight our souls. He knows the past and the future, understands all mysteries and knowledge; has all faith and reigns as Ruler over all; and yet, his love caused him to humble himself and remove our mountain of sin. Because of his love, we who are nothing have become “beloved.” He gave away what was rightfully his, humbled himself, and delivered up his body to be burned in the scorching furnace of the wrath of his Father.

"Jesus is patient and kind; he doesn’t envy or boast. When faced with Satan’s temptation to prove his Godhood in the wilderness and on the cross, he never showed off his power. He was utterly humble. He wasn’t arrogant or rude, railing on the disciples, deserting them because of their selfish ambition. He isn’t arrogant or rude with us either. When standing before his accusers he didn’t insist that they treat him with respect, nor did he proudly demand their accolades. He was silent, like a lamb before the shearers. The humble King of heaven wore a crown of thorns and a purple cloak. He is never irritable or resentful, picking away at every little foible he sees. In love, his blood covers our multitudinous sins.

"He doesn’t gleefully rejoice when you sin, glad to finally have an opportunity to give you your comeuppance. He rejoices when you believe the truth, not simply the truth about you—that you are sinful and flawed—but also the truth about him—that he loves you and welcomes you. Out of love for you, he bears all things. He has unflinching faith and hope in your transformation because he knows the power of his love. He knows that one day he will bring you to be with himself. He has endured and continues to endure all things out of love for you. His love never ends. Never.

"Ten zillion years from now, when he has had time to really see what sort of person you are, his love won’t have worn out. In fact, he knows you through and through right now and loves you all the same. Your shameful secrets cannot shock or repel him. His love never ends. One day we will see him face-to-face and then we will fully understand, for the first time, what real love looks like." (p. 63).

Head Coverings: I Corinthians 11:2-16

2 Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. 3 But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife her husband, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, 5 but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven. 6 For if a wife will not cover her head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover her head. 7 For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. 9 Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; 12 for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God. 13 Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, 15 but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. 16 If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God.

I don't know why, but I got a bee in my bonnet today about head coverings (like the head covering reference?). I started thinking about this for a couple of reasons. First, I believe scripture is inerrant and I want to understand scripture accordingly. Second, I fear that the Christian church picks certain issues to harp on but minimizes others. For example, the church is often concerned with homosexuality as sinful (I Corinthians 6:9, among others), but may overlook other issues addressed in the New Testament as cultural. The head covering reference seems to be a perfect example.

I think it is easy to dismiss this one as cultural. Apparently, temple prostitutes in Corinth would keep their heads shaved and so this reference had real meaning to them. I am struck however, by verse 10 and verse 16. I don't think it is so easy to dismiss the idea of head coverings as simply "cultural."

I guess I am left with verse 15, where it states that a woman's hair is given to her as a covering. Anyone else care to share your insights?