How to Honor God A fresh look at 1 Corinthians 11:2 16 on the daily Bible refresh with Dr.

Brad Miller hello good people.

Welcome to Daily Bible Refresh.

My name is Dr.

Brad Miller, here to give you a fresh look at a New Testament reading.

Every single day we use the Revised Common Lectionary, which is a three year cycle of readings.

We're in Year C, the Epiphany season.

We make the Bible understandable by giving you this reading from the Message version of the Bible.

Relatable by offering you a couple of points to ponder and applicable, I'll give you an action step.

We have a prayer.

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Here is our reading for the day from 1 Corinthians 11:2 16 reading from the Message if it pleases me that you continue to remember and honor me by keeping up the traditions of the faith that I taught you.

All actual authority stems from Christ.

In a marriage relationship there is authority from Christ to husband and from husband to wife.

The authority of Christ is the authority of God.

Any man who speaks with God or about God in a way that shows a lack of respect for the authority of Christ dishonors Christ.

In the same way, a wife who speaks with God in a way that shows a lack of respect for the authority of her husband dishonors her husband.

Worse, she dishonors herself.

An ugly sight like a woman with her head shaved.

This is basically the origin of these customs we have of women wearing head coverings in worship.

While men take their hats off by these symbolic acts, men and women who far too often butt heads with each other submit their heads to the head God.

Don't, by the way, read too much into the differences here between men and women.

Neither man nor woman can go it alone or claim a priority.

Man was created first as a beautiful shining reflection of God.

That is true.

But the head on a woman's body clearly outshines in beauty the head of her head.

Her husband.

The first woman came from man, true, but since then every man comes from a woman.

And since virtually everything comes from God anyway, let's quit going through these who's first routines.

Don't you agree there is something naturally powerful in the symbolism?

A woman, her beautiful hair reminiscent of angels praying in adoration.

A man, his head bared in reverence, praying in submission.

I hope you're not going to be argumentative about this all God's churches see it this way.

I don't want you standing out as an exception.

An interesting and a challenging verse of Scripture here, and we need to examine it in a careful way with a contemporary interpretation through a progressive Christian lens.

Here's a few points to ponder, to think about.

We need to consider the cultural context and a modern application to to that context in our time.

Paul wrote to a specific cultural context in 1st century Corinth where head coverings and gender roles carried particular social meanings.

Today we're called to understand the spirit behind these instructions which was mutual respect and dignity.

Rather than literally applying cultural practices from 2000 years ago to today, progressive Christianity invites us to distinguish between timeless spiritual principles and time bound cultural expressions.

A second point to consider it is the dismantling of hierarchical power structures.

While Paul appears to describe a hierarchy, he actually is subverting it by emphasizing mutual dependence.

He says neither man nor woman can go it alone.

This passage surprisingly contains seeds of egalitarianism, especially when Paul declares everything comes from God and dismisses whose first routines.

This reminds us to question all systems of domination and subordination in our faith communities.

One more point to ponder it has to do with the body of politics and sacred worth this text today.

The text's preoccupation with bodies, hair and physical appearance reflects ancient concerns about honor and shame.

And today we can reframe this as a conversation about bodily autonomy and sacred worth.

Everybody, regardless of gender expression, reflects divine beauty.

It deserves respect.

This calls us to challenge martyrdom systems that police bodies or enforce gender conformity.

Here's your action step for today.

This week, examine one way your faith community might unconsciously perpetuate gender based power dynamics.

This could be in leadership structures, worship practices or casual language.

Initiate a respectful conversation about how these practices might evolve to better reflect God's vision of equality and mutual respect.

Remember, change begins with awareness and dialogue.

We're going to have a Closing prayer.

Just a minute.

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Now let's pray.

Oh, God, you liberate us in so many ways.

And we confess that we often struggle with ancient texts and modern questions.

Help us to hold both with grace, honoring our tradition while working for justice.

Give us wisdom to see beyond cultural constraints, courage to question inherited power structures, and compassion for all who have been marginalized.

Remind us that your love knows no hierarchy, your grace transcends all human divisions, and your spirit leads us toward fuller inclusion.

May we build communities where all bodies are honored and all voices are heard and all people know their sacred worth.

Amen.

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It's@voiceofgoddaily.com My name is Dr.

Brad Miller.

Until then, remember that God's loyal love doesn't run out.

His merciful love doesn't dry up.

It's created new.