I Corinthians 11:11  Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.
12  For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.
13  Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?
14  Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?
15  But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.
16  But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.

God continued to direct the apostle Paul to deal with the issue of relationships in these verses. All of this is in connection with the command of verse 1. We all follow someone. Christians need to follow Christ. Christ is not here in body, but He is here through the Word of God and through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will never direct the child of God contrary to the written Word of God. There is no new revelation coming from God.
As we look at verse 11 we are reminded that as we noted in the previous verses, God has an order in Creation. God told us that the woman was made for man and not the man for the woman. We have also seen that the man is the head of the woman and that Christ is the head of the saved man. As we look at verse 12 we see that the woman is important for the man and the man is also important for the woman, in the Lord. We noted yesterday that God said it is not good for the man to be alone. Most men need a woman as an intimate companion in life. A few men have no interest in an intimate companionship. They are content to have a few friends to visit with at times, but they do not need that close relationship that a godly marriage affords. However, most men are like Adam. He was happy when God brought Eve to him. He was happy with her until he sinned. When he sinned, he blamed God and his wife for his sin. God did not give Adam a wife so that he could blame her for his sins. For those godly couples who are married, you know that there is a blessing there that you longed for. It is important for the man and the woman to seek God’s direction prior to marriage as we noted in chapter 7. It is also necessary to build on Jesus Christ as the foundation and the builder of our lives. Without Him we will face many different problems. Some of those breakdowns have long lasting effects.
In verse 13 Paul continued with his teaching on the matter of praying. He challenged the saints to think about the proper way that we come to God. He knew that the saints would see that it was not proper for a woman to come before God in prayer uncovered. God has already shown the importance of a right attitude toward Him and if the woman is not covered she is out of the will of God. We have also seen that the woman’s covering is her long hair. That just makes proper sense for the godly person.
In verse 14 we are shown that even nature teaches us that if a man has long hair, it is a shame unto him. We know from the account of Absalom that his vanity and rebellion caused him to be caught up in the boughs of a thick oak tree as he was riding his mule and fleeing from Joab’s men. He was hanging there and could not get himself untangled from that oak tree. He was there for some time because Joab’s men came and told him about it and then he went there and killed him as he was hanging there by his long hair. Absalom was so vain that he thought his long hair was his manhood. In reality it was evidence of his rebellion against God.
Some years back I worked as a mechanic. I got to know another mechanic from another shop and he had a friend who worked with him in his shop. That friend had long hair. He liked his long hair, but he complained that when he was working underneath a car, that long hair would sometimes get caught in the wheels of the creeper as he was moving around under that car. Or he would be bending over the engine and that long hair would get in his way and he could not see what he was doing properly. The simple solution would have been for him to cut that long hair off, but he was not going to do that.
The rebel will be proud of his long hair. However, God says it is a shame for him to have long hair. Nature will even prove that to be so.
By contrast, verse 15 tells us that the godly woman with long hair is glorifying God with her evidence of humility before Him. Her long hair is a glory for her. She can know that she is pleasing God in submitting to His standard for her. God shows us here that He cares about the whole person. Every aspect of the Christian life needs to be under His control. Every aspect of the Christian life is to be for His glory. God gave her that long hair for her covering. Some women have straight hair and some have curly hair. Some have quite curly hair and some have a slight wave in their hair. Rather than a godly woman looking in the mirror and looking in magazines and being discontented with how God made you, understand that your long hair is given to you for a covering.
In verse 16 Paul drew this section to a conclusion for now. To be “contentious” is to look for a fight. It is talking about a person who wants to argue rather than submit. Paul stated that there was no custom in God’s true churches for this contentious attitude. If a person wants to argue against what God says, the local church does not need to find a way to accommodate rebellion. God knows what is right. The apostle Paul opposed different people in his ministry. He was not wrong in doing that. The Truth is God. The person who believes in God and follows Him must stand upon the Truth. Those who want to oppose that are wrong and need to be exposed as wrong. There can be no accommodation of lies in a true Christian’s life nor in a true Christian church. When a church honours God, it will offend the rebels and they will avoid that place and they will also try to discredit that place. The important fact is for a true saint to stand upon the Word of God. Man’s opinions do not equal God’s truth.
Since the fall, man has often challenged God. Every time, man has failed. Cain challenged God in Genesis 4. He was wrong. He murdered his brother and lived with that sin. He was a marked man because of his defiance against God. By Genesis 6, we see that the majority of the population of the earth was defiant against God. They lost out. God did not change. He told Noah to build an ark and to prepare for a flood that would destroy the rest of humanity and the animal world as well. Only those God brought into the ark survived that judgment.
As we come to the New Testament and the “church age”, God still has His righteous standard. If a person wants to play religion on his or her terms, God has no place for that in one of His churches. Pastors do not need to accommodate rebellion. They dare not twist Scripture to try to appease those who want to redefine righteousness. God will hold them accountable.
The blessing is found when the saint submits to God’s will. God will give contentment to those who submit to Him and follow Him faithfully. He is able to give us an attitude adjustment that will be for His glory. The important fact is to truly know Him through Biblical salvation. That moment changes the person for eternity!
Pastor Bartel