What does the Bible, God’s Word, have to say about headship?
The word “head” appears three times in
1 Corinthians 11:3:
The head of every man is Christ.
The head of the woman is the man.
The head of Christ is God.
Taking the last of these three statements first, “The head of Christ is God”, there is no suggestion of inferiority in the relationship of Christ, the Son, to God the Father. The order is one of priority of function rather than one of superiority or inferiority. The Son, although co-equal with the Father, submitted Himself to the Father in His role as a man to become our Savior.
In Hebrews 2:9, we read, “We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death”. In Hebrews 10:7 & 9, He could say, “Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God”, but He also said in John 10:30, “I and my Father are one”.
Ephesians 1:22-23 states, “And hath put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be the head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all”. Colossians 1:18-19 tell us that Christ (The Son) is head of the body, the church. It also goes on to state, “that in all things He might have the pre-eminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell”. Colossians 2:10 tells us “and ye are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power”.
A local church or assembly should recognize the Lordship and headship of our Savior and Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, alone. Each assembly is autonomous with the spiritual leadership of a plurality of male elders (under-shepherds), appointed by The Holy Spirit and recognized by the assembly
(Acts 20:17,28).
Now, turning to the first statement, “The head of every man is Christ”, we recognize His Lordship and headship for who and what He is. He is the one who humbled Himself, becoming a man, in order that He could become our Savior by paying the price of our redemption when he died on the cross at Calvary. “The Lord hath laid upon Him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). Having returned to heaven, He has sent the Holy Spirit to indwell each believer and to guide us in all truth. In the analogy of the human body, each physical member is inter-dependent but each receives its instructions from the head. The same is true in the spiritual realm, we respond to the instructions from our spiritual head, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Scriptures teach the priesthood of all believers (1 Pet. 2:5,9), meeting on the first day of each week to remember our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ at the Lord’s Supper (Acts 20:7).
All believers, regardless of race, social standing or gender, are one in Christ (Galatians 3:28) and able to worship as priests to God (1 Peter 2:5 & 9). However, in the second statement, Paul, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, declares, “The head of the woman is man”.
When the local assembly is gathered, roles are distinguished. In 1 Corinthians 11 and in 1 Timothy 2, Paul goes back to creation to show that although in subsequent generations, man is born of a woman, so that there is an inter-dependency, woman was created for man. Women are to acknowledge the headship of the men by their not speaking or praying audibly in meetings of the assembly (1 Timothy 2:11-12). In addition, women are to cover their hair, which was given them for a glory (1 Corinthians 11:15).
Men are not to have their heads covered when the local assembly is gathered, as the man is the image and glory of God (1 Corinthians 11:7). For a man to have his head covered would be to veil God’s glory. On the other hand, the woman is the glory of man (1 Corinthians 11:7) and her long hair is a glory to her, which ought to be covered (1 Corinthians 11:15).
It has been argued that these restrictions are only cultural and not for our situation today. This is neither logical nor correct. The statement, “The head of Christ is God”, is not cultural. Paul’s reference to the creation order is not cultural.
It has been, and still is, common for Jewish men to wear a head covering, so Paul was going against local culture and tradition when he gave these instructions.
In addition, it is stated in 1 Corinthians 11:10 that women ought to do this because of the angels. Angels were observing not only the assembly in Corinth but still have a function today and observe our assembly gatherings.