The Gospel is Easier for Women than Men! Spirituality and Spiritual Growth Proceed from the Gospel!
This is Part 2 following the article: "Men and Women Differences: How They Affect Spirituality and Spiritual Growth." In this article, I talked about the tendencies of men, vs. those of women.
MEN ARE DIFFERENT FROM WOMEN
Men are more dominated by practical, functional and goal oriented things. Their desire is to reach the destination, and get the job done, rather than stop and smell the roses along the way. Men are results oriented and rational, while women are more people oriented and relational.
Looking at the gospel of Jesus, and a life of spirituality and experiencing spiritual growth, women most often out-run men. I talked about this in the last article: men are more Old Testament focused because it is more concrete, rote and rational.
When it comes to the gospel of Jesus, and living a life of spirituality and experiencing spiritual growth, women most often out-distance men. I mentioned in the last article that men are more Old Testament focused because it is more concrete.
Men understand things like, "DON'T commit adultery, cuss or steal" and "DO go to church, read the Bible, attend small group, and give money." Men thrive on measurable things that they are able to apply. This is the way the Old Testament is.
The New Testament speaks of more spiritual things: our unity with God, Christ within us, the glory of God in us, and the gospel being God's presence and power in us. Many men back away from things like this. It takes too much time to figure them out. They're too busy trying to get to some destination, and this is like stopping to smell the roses. It's not concrete enough for men.
THE GOSPEL SHOULD BE OUR GROUND IN LIFE
This shows why men fall short spiritually at times. If their focus is the more concrete Old Testament based on laws, rules, precepts and principles, the New doesn't make sense to them. Thus the gospel is easier for women than for men. Paul says this OLD system has been replaced by the NEW Covenant gospel.
He says we are not to minister the OLD Testament but the NEW (II Cor 3:6-7). The NEW actually replaced the OLD (Heb 9:9-10, 10:9). The Old was abolished (Eph 2:14-15). He says it was nailed to the cross of Christ - which means it was put to death (Col 2:14).
But men are rational thinkers. As such, they easily revert back to the Old Testament ways. At best, they try to mix the Old with the New - grace with law. Jesus says not to do this. Paul calls us fools if revert back to the Old Testament when we have the better New Testament (Gal 3:1-3, Heb 11:39-40). At the same time, women are relational thinkers who more easily integrate the tenants of the gospel.
The ministry of the New Testament gospel is about 'fathering the gospel' in the lives of others (I Cor4:15). It is ministering the love of God, or the love of Christ (John 13:34-5, 15:9, Eph 3:17-19). It is about ministering in grace and truth (Eph 4:29, John 1:17). It is about ministering the glory and the fullness of God in us (II Cor 3:18, Eph 3:19-20).
You can't give away what you ain't got! If these things are not in your life, and if you are founded in law under the Old Testament, you can't minister God's manifold grace and his unconditional love. Paul says you must be dead to the law to live in God and to minister his New Covenant gospel (Gal 2:19). If anyone, man or woman, is stuck in the Old Testament religious system to any degree, they can't minister the New Testament gospel. They are trying to mix law and grace - oil with water - the blood of animals with the blood of Jesus.
Living under rules and principles, men work in order to acquire. The gospel speaks of resting and receiving, which women do better than men.
THE OLD TESTAMENT IS NOT BAD
The Old Testament is NOT bad! It has lots of good stuff in it - history, prophecy, Proverbs, Psalms, etc. But the Old Testament pointed to the New Testament (what we call the Christ event, or the life, death and resurrection of Jesus). It's said it 'foreshadows the New.'
Jesus says we must repent of believing all other things and believe the gospel of the Kingdom of God that is now ours (Mark 1:14-15). What he means by saying its been abolished is that it is no longer meant to govern our lives. We are not longer meant to live by it. We are meant to live by the New Covenant gospel. We are to repent from trying to live by means of the Old Testament. Everyone failed who ever tried to live by it anyway (Rom 3:10, Acts 15:10).
ALL THINGS HAVE BEEN MADE NEW
"Old things have passed away (died). Behold! All things have been made new" (II Cor 5:17). This literally means ALL things. Even we have been made a 'GodMan' - a new species. Paul calls this being a New Creation in Christ. I call it being a NCIC (pronounced 'Nick'). This is all because ALL the law, prophets and psalms were fulfilled in Jesus (Matt 5:18, Luke 24:27, 44).
This means we are no longer to live by ROTE - by precepts and principles. This is how things were in the Old Testament. Most men, who think rationally, don't like this. They like the concreteness of living by rote. The New Testament speaks of relationship: first with God and then with each other. This is the way most women think. This is usually too subjective for most men, and not objective enough. In the last article I showed how Eve's desire was to relate to Adam, but his desire was to rule her.
In the New Testament, we are all equal in Christ. Yes, we are male or female physically, but there is no male or female spiritually (Gal 3:28). We are all the same, and as one in the eyes of God. Women were not equal in the Old Testament. Women were held in low esteem.
In the Bible, women could be stoned for adultery, and other things. They had no rights. The gospel of Jesus gave women equal rights. The New Testament makes them the same as men, at least in God's eyes, if not in the eyes of men who are usually the church leaders.
As The Gospel Coach, I see that women much more readily and easily live in the gospel of the New Testament than men do. And living a gospel life of belief was the very first command of Jesus after spending 40 days in the wilderness with Satan. The most important thing on our Lord's mind and heart were the first words out of his mouth: "Repent and believe the gospel."
MEN ARE DIFFERENT FROM WOMEN
Men are more dominated by practical, functional and goal oriented things. Their desire is to reach the destination, and get the job done, rather than stop and smell the roses along the way. Men are results oriented and rational, while women are more people oriented and relational.
Looking at the gospel of Jesus, and a life of spirituality and experiencing spiritual growth, women most often out-run men. I talked about this in the last article: men are more Old Testament focused because it is more concrete, rote and rational.
When it comes to the gospel of Jesus, and living a life of spirituality and experiencing spiritual growth, women most often out-distance men. I mentioned in the last article that men are more Old Testament focused because it is more concrete.
Men understand things like, "DON'T commit adultery, cuss or steal" and "DO go to church, read the Bible, attend small group, and give money." Men thrive on measurable things that they are able to apply. This is the way the Old Testament is.
The New Testament speaks of more spiritual things: our unity with God, Christ within us, the glory of God in us, and the gospel being God's presence and power in us. Many men back away from things like this. It takes too much time to figure them out. They're too busy trying to get to some destination, and this is like stopping to smell the roses. It's not concrete enough for men.
THE GOSPEL SHOULD BE OUR GROUND IN LIFE
This shows why men fall short spiritually at times. If their focus is the more concrete Old Testament based on laws, rules, precepts and principles, the New doesn't make sense to them. Thus the gospel is easier for women than for men. Paul says this OLD system has been replaced by the NEW Covenant gospel.
He says we are not to minister the OLD Testament but the NEW (II Cor 3:6-7). The NEW actually replaced the OLD (Heb 9:9-10, 10:9). The Old was abolished (Eph 2:14-15). He says it was nailed to the cross of Christ - which means it was put to death (Col 2:14).
But men are rational thinkers. As such, they easily revert back to the Old Testament ways. At best, they try to mix the Old with the New - grace with law. Jesus says not to do this. Paul calls us fools if revert back to the Old Testament when we have the better New Testament (Gal 3:1-3, Heb 11:39-40). At the same time, women are relational thinkers who more easily integrate the tenants of the gospel.
The ministry of the New Testament gospel is about 'fathering the gospel' in the lives of others (I Cor4:15). It is ministering the love of God, or the love of Christ (John 13:34-5, 15:9, Eph 3:17-19). It is about ministering in grace and truth (Eph 4:29, John 1:17). It is about ministering the glory and the fullness of God in us (II Cor 3:18, Eph 3:19-20).
You can't give away what you ain't got! If these things are not in your life, and if you are founded in law under the Old Testament, you can't minister God's manifold grace and his unconditional love. Paul says you must be dead to the law to live in God and to minister his New Covenant gospel (Gal 2:19). If anyone, man or woman, is stuck in the Old Testament religious system to any degree, they can't minister the New Testament gospel. They are trying to mix law and grace - oil with water - the blood of animals with the blood of Jesus.
Living under rules and principles, men work in order to acquire. The gospel speaks of resting and receiving, which women do better than men.
THE OLD TESTAMENT IS NOT BAD
The Old Testament is NOT bad! It has lots of good stuff in it - history, prophecy, Proverbs, Psalms, etc. But the Old Testament pointed to the New Testament (what we call the Christ event, or the life, death and resurrection of Jesus). It's said it 'foreshadows the New.'
Jesus says we must repent of believing all other things and believe the gospel of the Kingdom of God that is now ours (Mark 1:14-15). What he means by saying its been abolished is that it is no longer meant to govern our lives. We are not longer meant to live by it. We are meant to live by the New Covenant gospel. We are to repent from trying to live by means of the Old Testament. Everyone failed who ever tried to live by it anyway (Rom 3:10, Acts 15:10).
ALL THINGS HAVE BEEN MADE NEW
"Old things have passed away (died). Behold! All things have been made new" (II Cor 5:17). This literally means ALL things. Even we have been made a 'GodMan' - a new species. Paul calls this being a New Creation in Christ. I call it being a NCIC (pronounced 'Nick'). This is all because ALL the law, prophets and psalms were fulfilled in Jesus (Matt 5:18, Luke 24:27, 44).
This means we are no longer to live by ROTE - by precepts and principles. This is how things were in the Old Testament. Most men, who think rationally, don't like this. They like the concreteness of living by rote. The New Testament speaks of relationship: first with God and then with each other. This is the way most women think. This is usually too subjective for most men, and not objective enough. In the last article I showed how Eve's desire was to relate to Adam, but his desire was to rule her.
In the New Testament, we are all equal in Christ. Yes, we are male or female physically, but there is no male or female spiritually (Gal 3:28). We are all the same, and as one in the eyes of God. Women were not equal in the Old Testament. Women were held in low esteem.
In the Bible, women could be stoned for adultery, and other things. They had no rights. The gospel of Jesus gave women equal rights. The New Testament makes them the same as men, at least in God's eyes, if not in the eyes of men who are usually the church leaders.
As The Gospel Coach, I see that women much more readily and easily live in the gospel of the New Testament than men do. And living a gospel life of belief was the very first command of Jesus after spending 40 days in the wilderness with Satan. The most important thing on our Lord's mind and heart were the first words out of his mouth: "Repent and believe the gospel."
About the Author:
Live in the power of God! men and women differences Also visit Roger Himes, The Gospel Coach to get daily Gospel Tweets spirituality and spiritual growth The gospel empowers you to live better by accident than you ever could on purpose!
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