1. About 50 years ago there was a great deal of tension in various congregations.
2. Bible believing people had some very strong disagreements about hair.
3. Much of the difficulty came from 1 Cor. 11, a passage that speaks about women and long hair.
4. In this same chapter Paul spoke about men and their having short hair.
5. In other parts of the Bible we read about hair, and these have also been troubling texts.
TODAY I WANT TO DISCUSS WHAT MIGHT BE CALLED THE “HAIR PASSAGES” OF THE BIBLE, AND SPECIFICALLY PASSAGES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT THAT DEAL WITH HAIR.
a) These passages are still the basis for many questions, sometimes within the church.
b) As we talk to people, this passages are texts people want to discuss.
c) Our study begins with two passages in 1 Cor. 11.
d) In verse 15 we have a statement about women; Paul said “long hair is a woman’s glory.”
e) In this same verse we read that a woman’s long hair is God given for a “covering.”
f) READ verse 15.
g)
A man’s hair
is described in the previous verse – READ verse 14.
2) Neither of these verses say that it is a sin for a woman to cut her hair.
3) We also do not find anywhere else in this chapter that a woman sins if she cuts her hair.
4) What we do find is a reference to the length of hair. Hair is a covering and long hair is a woman’s glory.
a) Women are associated with long hair and men are associated with hair that is not long.
b) We also find another important piece of information back in verse 6: READ.
c) The Corinthians were told it is a “shame” for a woman to be “shorn” or “shaved.”
d) “Shorn” is the same word used in Acts 8:32 to describe the shearing of sheep.
e) A few of us have watched a sheep sheared; after the work was done, the sheep was pretty bare.
f) At times we hear of “skinheads;” we can envision what that term describes.
g) Paul described women who shaved off all their hair.
5) I had no part in the debates and discussions about long and short hair 50 years ago.
a) Hopefully at least some who were part of that pointed out a small but important fact.
b) We do not see the word “sin” associated with hair questions in 1 Cor. 11.
c) In verse 6 Paul said a woman who has her hair sheared to the skin has involved herself in “shame.”
d) A man who has long hair is involved with “dishonor” (verse 14).
e) Men with long hair and women with short hair are not spoken of very favorably.
f) There is no disagreement about that whatsoever.
g) Not saying something favorable about a practice is not the same as saying it is sinful.
6) Paul used words that have the sense of ugly, dishonorable, undesirable, social embarrassment, disgrace.
7) He did not say sin.
8) If someone is asking about this chapter and you can’t remember anything else, file away this one point:
9) Sin is not associated with the discussion about hair.
10) Certain things are not wise, good, recommended, or good etiquette.
11)
We
may be on “thin ice” as they saying goes, but not formally cross the line where
we commit sin.
12) Back in verse 14 Paul spoke about “nature teaching” some basic facts about hair.
a) This may mean men and women kind of “automatically know” some things about hair.
b) In our world there are instances of what we might refer to as in-born or “natural” knowledge.
c) Paul may have meant that people just naturally know something about hair.
d) Women generally have long hair and men have shorter hair.
e) It is also possible Paul meant this information about hair was given at creation.
f) God has a general plan for hair.
13) When discussing this matter we must also pay attention to the words “short” and “long.”
14) If most men are in a culture where their heads are shaved, women with 3 inches of hair have long hair.
15) Saying something is “long” or something is “short” is subjective; it is hard to judge.
16) Consider the matter from this perspective:
a) Suppose a woman has hair that is ten inches long, but she somehow rolls it up into a bun?
b) Ten inches of hair are rolled up into a style that is one inch tall.
c) Do we consider the woman’s hair long or short?
d) Would it be wrong to wear hair rolled up since only an inch or two would be showing?
e) When hair is cut, there are usually varying lengths on various parts of the head.
f) What part should we look at to determine if hair is “long” or short?
g) Do we measure the longest part, the shortest part, or do we take an average of all the measurements?
17) In years past there was sometimes a spirit (attitude) where people were ready to be hair judges.
18) Not long ago I was speaking with a preacher who is having some problems.
a) He worships with a congregation where this is a man who is creating some problems.
b) A man comes to worship and he is there every single time.
c) If there is something outside of worship, this man will never participate.
d) He was recently asked about his lack of participation outside of worship and he said he had a job.
e) He said his job was to judge. He believes he is to site back and evaluate others.
f) He may lay claim to that position but the Bible says that job has already been taken.
19) When we come to the subject of hair, this is a matter of judgment.
20) Nature teaches men to have short hair and by implication women to have long hair.
21) There are people who act like the Bible is filled with information on the length of hair; it’s not.
22) There are about 3 verses in this chapter that deal with the subject.
23) We have general information that most follow without difficulty.
24) This should never be a stumbling block or a basis for problems in our day and time.
25) Sadly this is not always the case.
a) In this area some time ago I studied with a man.
b) First and foremost on his mind was the issue of a woman’s hair – he believed it had to be long.
c) He wanted to know if that was what I believed.
26) When someone tries to make an issue out of 1 Cor. 11 here is a dilemma for them to consider:
a) Imagine a woman who has a serious medical condition and needs treatment.
b) Doctors can treat her but they warn of side effects, one of which is hair loss.
c) If the woman proceeds with the prescribed treatment, she will go bald.
d) If women must have long hair, would it not be sinful for the woman to receive proper medical treatment?
e) If a woman who has short hair sins, certainly having no hair is far, far worse.
f) Someone say, “that’s just an illustration. I don’t think that would happen too often.”
g) In
the Old Testament women had their heads shaved to check for leprosy (Lev.
13:27-31).
In Deut. 21:12 – If a man in Israel married a
non-Hebrew from a battle campaign, the woman shaved her head.
h) Let’s take something more modern; there are growing instances of “female pattern baldness.”
i) Girls as young as nine are going bald. This is a fact.
j) Suppose a young girl experiences female pattern baldness and wants to be baptized when she is 14.
k) By this time all her hair is gone. Would we say she has no hair so she cannot be immersed?
l) If people were consistent on insisting on “long hair,” all the arguments eventually fail.
m) Here is another question to consider:
n) Was the church at Corinth so on track Paul wanted to talk about hair length?
o) We know this was not the case.
p) Hair was only an illustration to help deal with some very serious issues such as authority.
27) Tonight we are going to look at some of the tools the devil uses to trap people.
28) One of his tools is the very thing we are looking at this morning.
29) He will snare people with something such as a matter of judgment and people become consumed by it.
TWO OTHER “HAIR PASSAGES” THAT HAVE STIRRRED QUESTIONS IN THIS COUNTRY AND ABROAD ARE FOUND LATER IN THE NEW TESTAMENT.
a) In 1 Tim. 2:9 Paul spoke about women dressing in “modest” apparel.
b) As the apostle spoke about women and dress he said four things were forbidden.
c) This entire verse will be read – READ.
2) Paul said “no costly clothes.”
3) No “pearls, gold, or braided hair.”
4) Coupled with this text is something Peter wrote, 1 Pet. 3:3.
5) Peter also spoke of “braided hair,” valuables such as “gold,” and clothing.
6) Here is how 1 Pet. 3:3 reads – READ.
a) Both of these passages do a pretty good job of explaining themselves.
b) Let’s start with 1 Tim. 2:9.
c) Paul said “no costly clothes.”
d) What is “costly clothing”?
e) If we can buy a pair of jeans at the second store for a dollar and a new pair is $40, must all our clothes be second hand?
f) $40 compared to $1 is costly.
g) If all the information we had was 1 Tim. 2:9, we might not be completely convinced what the thought is.
7) Peter addressed this same topic and he adds some information that makes things very clear.
a) Let’s read 1 Pet. 3:3 one more time – READ.
b) In the first part of this verse Peter spoke about a woman’s “adorning.”
c) We might simplify that and say “beauty.”
d) How is a woman going to look pretty?
e) In the first part of the verse Peter said “let it not be” (do not use the following things).
f) In the list that follows, notice the last item: Peter said “don’t put on any clothes.”
8) Is it not interesting that people run straight to the word gold and say “it’s forbidden.”
9) Others head straight for the “braided hair” and say, “see it’s wrong.”
10) I have yet to meet anyone who points out the last part of the verse and says, “women need no clothing.”
a) Clothes were not wrong; a specific type of clothing was wrong.
b) Gold was not wrong, but something associated with gold was wrong.
c) Pretty hair was not wrong, but something associated with the hair was out of order.
d) Paul and Peter dealt with women who were trying to make fashion statements.
e)
Especially
in 1 Tim. 2:9, it appears women came to assemblies and tried to out dress and
outdo one another.
f)
Both
passages deal with “over-dressing” (there was a lack of moderation).
g)
Paul
and Peter said this had to be addressed.
11)
Jesus
once deal with people who failed to consider the “weighter matters of the law”
(MT. 23:23).
12) We call that “majoring in the minors.”
13) A lot of people have created religious rules for hairstyles and what people wear or do not wear.
14) Virtually no attention has been given to the basic facts of the faith.
15) The beginning—the facts of the faith—is where we need to start. Have we?