I am always shocked at prejudice. I just don’t get it............

I am always shocked at prejudice. I just don’t get it—any prejudice.

The one I want to address here is prejudice against women. Like I said, I don’t get it. I know it is a spiritual

battle and the enemy hates women but he hates men too—why the prejudice against women today. Haven’t we evolved? The women’s movement of the 70’s was supposed to liberate us, instead we have a different kind of bondage.

In many places women are still considered just one level above an animal. Some religions still not only permit beating wives, torturing women, mutilations of women, they actually encourage it. 

This is still seen in the church. The words may speak equality but the actions often prove otherwise. Recently, I have been having discussions with another pastor and we were at an impasse on whether we would move forward together in ministry or not. My heart was broken but after being in prayer I realized that underneath it all he dismissed me because I am a woman and therefore considered emotional.

Let me point out that while I am definitely passionate—I am not emotional*. Actually, I am pretty logical. I hold most things close to my heart until I hear God clearly then BOOM, the decision is made, the time has come, the enthusiasm and the zealousness pour out. This looks emotional to most people.

Mike and I talked to the pastor together. Everything changed, just because Mike was there. Nothing I had been saying changed. Mike was respected and listened to…..

This should not be in the church. I cannot find any place in the Bible where women supposed to be considered less than men or sub-human.

Rachel and Leah

“Women often played pivotal roles in Jewish society, so it would not have been unusual for her (Mary of Magdala) to follow Jesus and the disciples. The pages of Jewish history are full of heroic matriarchs such as Rachel, Sarah, Leah, and Rebecca. Miriam worked with her brothers, Moses and Aaron, to lead the exodus from Egypt. And of course the prostitute Rahab helped bring about the Israelite victory over Jericho. Women in Jesus’s time were

Miriam

considered equal to men, though separate in their worldly responsibilities. They were allowed to choose their marriage partner, enter into contracts, buy and sell property, and would speak at weddings. It was forbidden for men to beat or mistreat women, and in the case of rape, it was understood that such an act occurred against a woman’s will and that the man was presumed guilty. In fact, women were treated better in the time of Jesus than they are in a great many places in the modern world.” Killing Jesus

What has happened? Why are we so distorted today? Where did all the error come from? Actually it doesn’t really matter how you reason it out….it is the enemy.  

Genesis 3:15 (HCSB)

¹⁵ I will put hostility between you and the woman,
and between your seed and her seed.
He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.

Nothing has changed since the Garden of Eden except that the enemy appears to be winning in the “prejudice against women” department.  After we moved to Guam I went to a church that was having a conference for pastors. It was 3 meetings a day for 6 days. I was so excited. The teachings were all by different missionaries. It was spirit-filled and exciting but I knew something was wrong. I could not put my finger on it. I decided to just enjoy it and filter the error out later.

Someone introduced me to the pastor’s wife. While we were shaking hands she asked if my husband was a pastor and I told her, “No, I am the pastor.” She dropped my hand like I had a disease, looked me up and down and turned her back. I could not believe it. I thought I had to be wrong. I went 3 days. Friday afternoon the speaker was a guy from Australia. He was terrific. His message was absolutely breath-taking so Friday night Mike and I decided to go together. We got there a few minutes before they were starting and it was packed to the roof. The usher walked us to the second row. The praise was old fashioned but lively and good.

Jezebel

Friday night was the Church’s head pastor. He came in and started preaching. His topic? Those Jezebel women who try to have a position in the church. Some of his great one-liners were: “If you have a strong personalitied woman who thinks she knows the word you need to tell her husband to get control of her. Jezebel women will try to take over the church. They will ruin your ministry. Keep them in their place.” Mike could not wait to get out of there. I saw the pastor’s wife on the way out and again she would not shake my hand.

When we got to the car Mike began to quote scripture after scripture about how much error that message presented. I do not think he had ever seen anything like this man. I have experienced this a lot. He went home and researched to make sure he knew the word. He did.

There are so many examples of how valued women were in the Bible. Women are equal to men—Jesus

proved it but that is not to say they are the same. They have different styles, different jobs but they should get the same respect. There is all kinds of word-twisting to make submission into something it is not.

What does this have to do with intercession?

It is time to take back the heritage of mankind. It is time discard the prejudice and prepare the whole body of Christ.

If you know a woman—pray for her. 

If she is in ministry pray double.

Pray for the bride to be clean and pure.

*  I used to be somewhat emotional but there is a transformation process in Christ.