DETAILED ROLES OF A PROPHET
A prophet can take a variety
of roles. This is an expression of the creativity of God. A prophet may act in every
role occasionally, but mostly he/she will move in one or more of these roles.
No two prophets should be the same; each should be a reflection of God’s
creativity and calling.
1.
prayer:
Unceasing
prayer for the Christian community is an important task of a prophet.
Because
he/she knows the mind of God, he/she is in a position to pray effectively.
He/she has a clear picture of what God is doing, so he/she knows where prayer
is needed most.
The
prophet watches over the Word of God and prays it into being. He/she must not
rest until God has fulfilled His Word – Isa. 62:6. Praying prophets have
frequently been at a premium in the history of God’s people.
2.
Receiving
the Word of God:
A
key role of a prophet is waiting in the presence of God to receive the Word of
God. God is sovereign so we cannot tell Him when He should speak. Hearing will
always require waiting.
The
task of a prophet is to know the will of God, so that he/she could convey it to
the people of God. A prophet’s ministry consists in handling revelation that is
the knowledge that God has revealed to him/her.
3.
Suffering:
A
prophet is often called to suffering. Deep dealing at the hand of God’s will
often needed to prepare the prophet for receiving the Word of God.
Sometimes,
he/she may actually have to experience beforehand, something of what his/her
people will experience.
For
example, Jeremiah spent many years in captivity. He was often rejected and
ostracized; he was even accused of being a traitor.
Ezekiel
had to lie on his side for 390 days to symbolize the judgement that would come
upon his nation. This suffering made the prophets extremely aware of their
human frailty – Jer. 20:7-10.
It
also equipped the prophet to give what was often a very harsh message in a
spirit of compassion. A true message is nullified if it is spoken in the wrong
spirit.
Suffering
softens the prophet’s spirit, so that he/she can give the hardest word in a
spirit of love. Suffering contributes to Jeremiah’s compassion.
A
prophetic ministry involves having a foretaste of suffering and judgement that
will come as a result of the sin of the Church and the whole world, since
iniquity would soon be universal.
In
such commission, one must be willing to pay the price involved in foreseeing
the coming event. Only then can the warning be passed on.
A
messenger who has not been willing to move into a close combat with reality,
with the pain of the down trodden, will not be able to bring a message of
relief and healing.
A
painless message cannot ease pain. A painless message cannot carry a burden. A
true messenger of the Lord begins every voyage at the Cross. Each and every
piece brought forth from his/her mouth is marked by the cross.
Many
are eager to wear the prophet’s mantle, but are reluctant to bear the
Christian’s cross. This cannot be. There is a burden in being a prophet, which
the Old Testament prophets found that they could not always bear.
4.
Worship:
The
prophetic ministry can often play an important part in worship. Apostle Paul
said that when the Church gathered together, two or three prophets should speak
and others should weigh carefully what is said… – 1 Cor. 14:29-33.
A
prophet that speaks of the glory and wonders of God will inspire his/her people
to worship.
1
Chronicles 24 lists a number of men who were set aside for the ministry of
prophesying to the accompaniment of musical instruments as part of the Temple
Worship.
This
ministry is needed today. In small fellowship, it can be provided by the gift
of prophecy. In large meetings for celebration will benefit from prophets who
can bring a word from the Lord to build the worship.
Miriam,
the prophetess led the children of Israel in worship after they had crossed the
Red sea – Exo. 15:19-21.
In
the Temple, there were people whose role was to prophesy as part of the
worship. They were professional worshippers and prophets, responsible for
leading the worship in the house of God – 1 Chron. 25:1,6.
5.
Encouragement:
Encouragement
of brethren is an important aspect of the prophet’s ministry. Everyone who prophesies
speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement, and comfort. He who
prophesies edifies the Church of God – 1 Cor. 14:3-4.
The
word of the prophet will build up and strengthen the Church. This will be
especially important in times of trial and tribulation. Silas and Judas were
two prophets who encouraged the Church in Antioch – Acts 15:32.
The
Scriptures give a number of examples of prophets who encouraged the leaders of
their nation to act boldly:
i.
Asa – 2 Chron. 15:1.
ii.
Haggai – Hag. 1:13-15.
iii.
Haggai and Zechariah – Ezra 5:1-2; 6:14.
The
prophetic ministry is to alert the Church to the “now-ness” of the Holy Spirit.
It
awakens us to the will and purpose of God for us in the present that is what
God specifically wants to do in us and through us.
6.
Foretelling
the future:
Prediction
of the future is part of the prophetic ministry. Almost every prophet in the
Old Testament appeared first as a foreteller.
Through
the prophet’s fellowship with the eternal God, he/she has access to the future.
He/she is the seer who has insight into God’s purposes for History.
However,
whatever he/she sees for the future is always related to the present. He/she
warns for the future judgements so that people will change their behaviours
now. He/she speaks of future blessing to give hope for the present.
The
prophet speaks to the present, in light of the future that God has revealed to
him/her. For example, Isaiah warned Hezekiah that he would die – 2 Kings
20:1-2.
Calls
to repentance and calls to practical holiness are based on:
i.
A word
concerning the future.
ii.
The vision of the wrath to come is the basis
of a present seeking of the mercy of God.
iii.
The vision of bliss to come is a call to a
walking in the light now.
Prophet
must know God and understand the world and bring God’s revelation to bear to
show people where it is going. He/she should show people what to do next.
History
becomes revelation because there was added to the historical situation a man
prepared beforehand to say what it meant.
The
prophets were not left to struggle with the meaning of events as or after they
happened, they apprehend them beforehand and were warned by God of their
significance.
7.
Direction
and Guidance:
Prophets
bring the Word of the Lord to the Church. Christians can get so caught up in
the events of the words they do not see what God is doing.
This
is particularly true in tumultuous times, when it can be very hard to see the
hand of God at work.
Prophets
will give directions and vision in these situations, so that God’s people will
know what is happening and what they should do.
For
example, Prophet Gad provided guidance to David and showed him how to avoid
trouble – 1 Sam. 22:5.
Prophets
can give direction to those who are seeking the will of God. Sometimes the
prophetic word will be for the Church as a whole or for the leadership of the
Church.
Prophets
admonishes, warns, directs, intercedes etc. far more important they stand at
walls to see what the Lord is doing that they may call the body to respond.
Prophets
are called to stand in the Councils of the Lord. They stand before the Living
God. Having stood before God, they are sent to stand for God, before His people
and speak His Word.
Personal
prophecy must be treated with caution. The gift of prophecy is not usually
directive, so it is dangerous to make life changing decisions on the basis of a
prophecy uttered by a person who has not been recognized as a prophet.
Prophets
will sometimes give direction but generally this should come as “confirmation
of something that God has already spoken to the person concerned.”
God
wants to lead His people by His Spirit. He desires that every believer should
learn to hear the Spirit’s voice.
A
message from a prophet should normally come as a confirmation of something that
the Spirit has already spoken.
Getting
confirmation from a prophet before we act can be really encouraging but we need
to be very careful.
A
personal prophecy can be misleading if we let our plans and desires control our
thinking. Ezekiel gives a surprising warning about this – Ezek. 14:4.
If a
person has let something he/she wants to do to become an idol in his/her
heart/mind. If the person acts on the prophecy, it will lead to disaster. God
does this to reveal the idol and recapture in the person’s heart/mind.
This
means that we must be careful with personal prophecy. If a prophet confirms
what you want to do, it may just be a sign that you have made your own plans
into an “idol in your heart.”
Making
decisions on the basis of a word from another person is dangerous. It is wrong
to be totally dependent on others for guidance.
Many
Christians have been astray because they failed to get their own word from God.
The
major thrust of these servants was to declare God’s heart to His people,
pricking their hearts that they might return to His ways.
Telling
people what they want to hear at the expense of what they need to hear weakens
the Church. It causes people to seek the gifts and manifestations to the
neglect of pursing the character of God.
8.
Interpreting
Dreams and Visions:
This
is an important aspect of the prophetic ministry. God often speak in dreams to
people who are not listening. We must learn to interpret these to understand
what God is saying.
Prophets
are expected to be skillful in interpreting dreams and visions - Deut. 13:1.
This passage makes it unequivocal that the Lord regards prophets and dreamers
as one and the same. Unfortunately, the body of Christ has not yet grasped that.
It
is imperative that at least God’s prophets and hopefully, the entire body, come
to comprehend how important this aspect of prophet’s equipment actually is, and
that His prophets become adept both in having their own dreams and in
interpreting theirs and those of others – Dan. 2:19-23.
Dreams
often include people and objects with which we are familiar with used in
symbolic ways.
We
must not assume that they will be fulfilled literally. For example, Joseph’s
dream – Gen. 37:5-12; 40:5-22; 44:11-32.
Kings
and rulers will often hear God through dream. Prophets can help them to
understand what God is saying – Prov. 25:2.
Those
particularly gifted with dreams, vision, prophecy and revelation need to be
careful not to think of themselves too highly, as being the prophetic group.
They
must come to the understanding that they serve only one dimension of the
Church’s greater calling as a prophetic community.
9.
Correction
and Admonition:
There
is also a negative side to the ministry of the prophet. This can be seen in the
calling of Prophet Jeremiah – Jer. 1:10,
“See I have this day set thee over the
nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and pull down and to destroy, and
to throw down, to build, and to plant.”
God
often have to uproot and teardown, destroy and overthrow, before He can begin
to plant and build. Prophets co-operate with God in breaking down all that is
not built on the true foundation.
They
do this by announcing God’s judgement. At the same time, they watch over all
that God is building to see that it is built according to His Word.
This
awesome task but God cannot complete His restoration work until the prophetic
ministry is restored.
Apostle
Paul described a prophetic ministry as ministry that cut to the hearts of the
people – 1 Cor. 4:20-21.
No
compromise, that is a prophet’s heart when he/she sees the thing that need to
be opposed, and hears God’s Word, he is merciless.
A
prophet’s job is lonely; he is usually a one man verbal demolition team. He/she
must attack the root of evil, which goes very deep and affects everything.
He/she
does not criticize this or that evil, he/she criticizes the system that
produced a forest of bad trees and bad fruit.
Prophet
Elijah prayed a terrible prayer. But there is something far more dreadful than
physical calamities and suffering, namely:
i.
Delinquency.
ii.
Spiritual apostasy.
This
is very rarely perceived. Desperate disease that calls for drastic measures.
Prophet Elijah was a confrontational prophet. God used him to confront the
evils of his time.
One
element of Christian compassion is outrage. If we see what is wrong as God sees
it, we feel about it as God feels it.
Moses
was outraged when he looked on the burden of his people. His action was
immature but his outrage was natural.
In
the time of the prophets, as Israel’s national decadence brought in its wake
violent, social injustice and in humanity, the outrage of prophets is searing.
Amos was furious when he saw the poor sold for the prize of shoes – Amos 2:6.
The
prophetic voice of Israel was primarily a word of judgement upon the people of
God.
So
the prophetic voice of the Church must be a word which warns of impending
judgement upon the Church. Warning to the world is secondary.
10.
Exposing Rotten Leadership:
Rotten
leadership has done terrible damage in the Church. It has imparted sin (and
perhaps evil spirits) to 600 and 1000 of ordinary people who trusted their
leaders and were vulnerable because they submitted to them.
When
the leadership of a Church is rotten, the prophet should be exposing it.
The
reality is that a prophet is not needed to expose most problems within the
Church leadership. The people, who are close to the leader, usually know what
is going on.
The
problem is that they are too loyal to challenge the leader they look up to. The
prophet is usually the only one tough enough to call the leader on their
faults.
God
has provided a way to protect leaders and people but the Church consistently
refuses to adopt it.
Leadership
incidents will only stop when the Church goes back to “Balanced Ministry,” with Churches led by a team of:-
i. Apostles.
ii. Prophets.
iii. Evangelists.
iv. Pastors.
v. Teachers.
Working
together in submission to each other. As long as we perpetuate the myth that
one person must be “top dog,”
embarrassing incidents will continue to shame the Church and hurt innocent
Christians.
God
cannot protect His people from evil, while the leaders of His Church refuse to
adopt the spiritual protection He has provided. Prophets should be exposing
this problem.
11. Announcing Judgement:
God
raised up the prophets to speak to evil people and nations and warn them of
approaching judgement. God’s purposes in judgement are clearer, if a prophet
announces them in advance
The
prophet’s declaration and intercession gives God authority to deal with evil.
When a situation turns sour and God needs to take an action, His prophet
announces His condemnation of evil.
The
prophetic declaration expresses God’s judgement and verdict on the evil. God’s
action against the evil represents His sentence against the evil. Prophets and
judgement goes together.
Unless
God sends judgement against emerging evil, the prophet would just be crying in
the wind. Prophets and judgement were God’s strategy for constraining evil in
the world.
The
modern world thinks of judgement as a grumpy god going round waking people.
However, most people in the world do not get justice. Their life is full of
injustice.
Various
empires and political leaders have promised to get them justice, but the
ordinary people never received it. Fair judgement is good news for most people.
If
we want to understand God’s judgement, we should need to be “Beatitudes.” Math. 5:1-11.
The
poor will be blessed. The rich will be disappointed, because they have already
received their comfort. Those who have plenty and privileges might miss out.
12. Warning of Danger:
When
Apostle Paul was going up to Jerusalem, prophet Agabus warned him of impending
danger he could face there – Acts. 21:10-11.
God
often prepares His people in this way. The prophet is a watchman, who warns
God’s people of coming trouble - Amos 3:5-7.
13.
Interpreting the Signs of the Times:
The
Lord Jesus Christ criticized the Jews because they could understand the weather
but they could not interpret the signs of the times – Luke 12:54-56.
Prophets
must be able to understand the signs of the times and interpret them to the
world.
The
seers are one who has understanding of the times. They have the ability to
perceive and discern the spiritual significance of a situation and can give the
Lord’s perspective on a given situation.
Their
strength are gifting of illumination and discernment, though they may or may
not communicate what they see in any one set or particular manner.
These
kinds of prophets are extremely valuable as a watchman and intercessors in the
midst of the Church.
Within
the long, circuitous, often delayed progress in understanding, there were
sudden explosions of saving activity. It is to the prophets that God revealed
the coming and meaning of such times.
Indeed
from one point of view, the prophet may be described as the person who more
than anyone else, knows what time it is.
If a
prophet has no personal history with God, no spiritual depth to draw from, no
deep root in firm soil establishes over many seasons of Christian experience,
how can he or she presume to speak from a position of revelation into what God
is telling the Church today?
Furthermore,
if a prophet cannot accurately interpret and read signs of the present times,
if he or she cannot correctly judge and precisely discern his or her own
generation; if he or she cannot relate to what God is saying and doing in terms
of present truth, how can he or she presume to speak of the future events?
14. The Meaning of History:
Prophets
have a role of explaining the meaning of history. When a culture losses an
understanding of its history, it loses its sense of direction. This is also
applicable to Church community.
The
Church at large has been unable to give effective lead in secular society due
to the loss of a sense of mission and direction.
Without
a clear sense on its own purpose, identity and destiny, the Church has been
powerless to influence an increasingly secular society.
A
major cause of the Church’s loss of direction has been due to the lack of clear
concept of the meaning of history. Mankind is crying out for an understanding
of history.
This
is fundamental importance for grappling with the underlying issues concerning
the meaning and purpose of life itself.
“The Church will never be able to
satisfy the deepest longings of mankind and give a lead to secular nations or
point the way to creative policies promoting health, happiness and well-being
of mankind until Christians recover an understanding of history.”
Clifford Hill (Shaking the nation).
God’s
actions in human history had to be interpreted and this was one of the major
roles of the prophets. The Bible reveals a God who has plans for the whole
world, which cannot be thwarted.
Once
God has announced His purposes nothing can stand against Him or prevent Him
from fulfilling them.
This
understanding of God as the Lord of history is something that has very largely
been lost by Churches especially the Western Church.
This
has resulted in a powerlessness to declare the Word of God with prophetic power
and conviction in the second of the 20th Century, when all the
nations have been shaken.
When
God stretches out His hand and says that the time has come for a nation or a
people, they can no longer stand. God’s plan for history is revealed through
His prophets.
This
helps one to understand the mystery of Christ which was not made known to men
in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy
Apostles and Prophets – Eph. 3:4-5.
15.
Testing of Prophecy:
Testing
of prophecy is another important task of prophets – 1 Cor. 14:29. Part of
prophetic role is to sit and listen to prophecies and “weigh carefully” the
words that are spoken.
This
is something that two or three should do together. If a prophecy does not get a
consensus support, it should be discarded.
Testing
prophecies is a very important aspect of the prophetic ministry. We are now
hearing more and more prophetic words being spoken to the Church, but the
quality is still very mixed.
Christians
do not know which words they should take seriously; many warnings of disasters
have not been fulfilled. This unclear sounding of the trumpet is producing
confusion in the Church.
The
solution is for prophets to get more involved in testing of prophecies and
sorting out the wheat from the chaff. Churches that are moving in prophecy
should sit up and follow the processes for this to happen.
16. Watchman:
Some
prophets are watchmen or men of vision who stand on the walls of the city of
God to see what He is doing. They look into the distance to see what is coming.
They
often see a long way ahead. Several scriptures describe the role of watchman –
Hos. 9:8; Ezek. 33:1-11.
Prophets
are called watchmen because they basically functioned in the spiritual realm
just as the literal watchmen did in the natural realm.
The national
watchmen were stationed at specific posts on the walls of the city that gave
them the visibility to watch for the king or other members of the nobility to
announce their coming.
They
were also to look for enemies from without, or disorder arising within the city
or camp of Israel.
Watchman
should not be in the city eating and drinking with the town’s folks. Watchman
should not be out on the watch-tower looking into the night.
The
watchman, like the eagle must be free to fly as he or she wills (in God) and to
flow prophetically in all the prophetic function and not be restricted by man.
Without
the freedom to fly like an eagle, the watchman will become a controlled,
chained prisoner of the Church itself.
The
true Church could not have become the “institution” it has been, if the
watchmen of the Church had not been rendered impotent.
Elijah’s
servant needed to have his eyes opened to see the full reality of his
situation. This is something we all need – 2 King 6:15-17.
17. Challenging the Nation:
The
primary responsibility of a prophet is to speak to God’s people but he/she may
also be called to speak to his/her nation.
Many
of the prophets of the O.T. found themselves confronting Kings, and taking an
important role in national affairs. Some also addressed their words to foreign
nations.
Isaiah,
Jeremiah and Ezekiel prophesied to the surrounding nations – Isa. 12-13; Jer.
46-51; Ezek. 25-32. The Church will always be the prophet’s main concern but
this wider prophetic role urgently needs restoring.
The
prophets of Israel did not live in isolation, they were acutely aware of
international politics and the rise and fall of nations. Some of them
pronounced messages against the nations of their times.
All
of them were concerned about the world’s situation, and it was part of their
calling to issue prophecies against the other nations of the world.
Having
matured in their prophetic gifting through years of faithful obedience to God,
prophets will begin to operate on new levels of prophetic ministry and authority.
Worldwide,
prophets will speak before civil governments, delivering powerful prophetic
speeches to nations, literally shaking their existing political foundations.
18.
Initiating God’s Action:
God
does nothing without warning His people first. Part of prophetic role is to
release God’s activity by providing these warning – Amos 3:7. Isaiah spoke of
God stretching out His hands according to His plan – Isa. 14:24-27; 52:10.
Prophetic
hearts not prophetic charts will change the course of history and bring God’s
prophesied will into actual effect.
19.
Explaining what must be Done:
Many
prophecies are warning of future disastrous events, but very few are explaining
what God is doing and how He will work through these events to bring change.
Seeing
from within the dark cloud of events seems to prevent them from seeing what the
Lord is seeing.
A
related problem is that many Christians enjoy warnings of judgement on the
world more than they want strategies that would require them to take action to
bring in the victory of God.
God
does not cause troubles and calamities; they are rooted in human evil or folly
with a bit of demonic mischief thrown into the world.
During
a judgement, God takes the human mess and works with it for good to achieve His
purposes.
The
role of the prophet is to warn people of the trouble before they come, so that
God’s people can prepare.
Major
important task of a prophet is to explain what God is doing through the event,
so that His people can participate in His purposes.
Prophets
can truly accomplish this task, if they are standing outside the dark cloud of
human events and seeing with the eyes of God.
When
a prophet receives a warning of a calamitous event, the task has just begun.
The
next is for prophets to find out what God plans to achieve through the event
and His strategy for the people who want to participate in His purposes during
that event. We need more eyes of God and less of the dark cloud.
According
to Rom. 12:6, Christians with the gift of prophecy should prophesy in
proportion to their faith. Prophesying judgement to a nation in decline does
not take much faith.
Prophesying
the strategy by which God will use the judgement to change the nation and bring
a great victory takes much more faith. That is a challenge for modern prophets.
20. Theology:
Prophets
should be experts on God. Their role in theology is to pass on theological and
biblical insights to the Church. A prophet should also be a theologian.
Jeremiah
was of all the prophets of the Old Testament, the supreme prophet of the human
heart. Jeremiah would have nothing from his hearers and readers but their
hearts.
Let
other prophets negotiate and send ambassadors as they please. Jeremiah, in
season and out of season, for a long life time had siege to the heart of his
hearers.
“Seers are men of revelation. Seers are
men of enlightenment. Seers are men of
intellectual maturity.” Lars Widerberg.
21.
Healing the Sick:
Some
prophets are used in healing the sick. Elijah was a prophet who moved
effectively in the gift of healing. Elisha followed his mentor’s footsteps – 2
Kings 5:7-10; 2 Kings 4:32-35.
22. Appointing and Anointing Leaders:
In
Old Testament times, God often used a prophet to appoint and anoint a king.
Samuel anointed Saul and then David as King.
A
prophet anointed Solomon as David’s successor – 1 Kings 1:38-39. Elijah was
told to anoint Jehu the son of Nimishi King over Israel – 2 Kings 9:1-10.
In
Godly nation, prophets may have a role in the appointment of political leaders.
Prophets also have a role in anointing other prophets for ministry – 1 Kings
19:16, 19.
23.
Advising Kings and Political Leaders:
Prophets
have a powerful role in providing advice to kings and rulers. When God wanted
to give guidance to a ruler, He often gave it through a prophet.
King
David had the prophets Nathan and Gad in his palace. They advised him about a
whole range of matters – 2 Sam. 7:1-4, 17; 24:10-14; 1 Sam. 22:5.
A
prophet advised Ahab as he went to battle – 1 Kings 20:13-29. Elisha provided
guidance to the army of Israel that frustrated its enemies – 2 Kings 6:9-12.
PROPHETS
LEVEL OF ACTIVITIES
Prophets can minister at
different levels such as:
1.
People
– some
prophets specialize in speaking to individual people. Personal prophecy
provides guidance and correction.
2.
Church
– other
prophets speak primarily to their Church denomination. As they develop in this
ministry, they may also speak into other Churches. Prophets provide a Church
with:
i.
Guidance.
ii.
Vision.
iii.
Warning.
iv.
Purity.
3.
The
Nations – some people will be called to be a prophet to their
nation. They may also develop to speak to other nations. A prophet to a nation
provides:
i.
Advice to rulers.
ii.
Interpretation of God’s law.
iii.
Warning of judgement.
It
is for this reason that prophets so often appear in the presence of rulers. It
would sometimes seem as though they were primarily sent to kings. For through
the kings, they might best influence the welfare of the nation.
Hence,
also their closeness to the priest. It would be a grave mistake, however, to
assume that because of the great interest of the prophets in the monarchy, they
were themselves primarily politicians.
Their
political activity is always subservient to a religious end. They did serve as
the counselors but they did so in order that the theocratic kingdom might
prosper.
Daniel
would be an example of a prophet of the government. His prophecies spoke of
monumental changes in world order.
There
are just such prophets today. Some of these prophets are actually in
governmental positions.
Prophets
seem to be sent to various institutions of society, such as;
i.
Legal offices.
ii.
Educational offices.
iii.
Government offices.
Government
prophets may not give personal prophecies. They also understand trends and are
watchmen on the wall for their nation.
The
prophetic institution as such may be regarded as the guidance of this
theocracy. The prophets were to build upon the foundation of the Mosaic Laws and
to expound that law unto the nation.
They
would thus be preservers and defenders of the principles upon which the
theocracy had been founded by God.
THE ROLE OFA WOMAN IN THE HOME AND THE CHURCH
INTRODUCTION:
This is an attempt to bring to the notice of the
people under this teaching what is considered as the roles of women in the home
front, their responsibilities to the homes and roles and responsibilities to
the Churches they belong to.
If a thorough study and expansion is done, many people
stand to benefit from this teaching. And so it is recommended for all and
sundry.
ROLE
DEFINED:
i.
Role is a part or
a function one play in life or in any event.
ii.
Role is the
function or position that somebody has or is expected to have in an
organization, in the society, in the family or in a relationship.
iii.
Role is the
degree to which somebody or something is involved in a situation or any
activity and the effect that they have on it.
THE ROLE OF
A WOMAN IN THE HOME:
TO THE
HUSBAND:
The position of a woman in each home so unique and
important; so also are the roles a woman so unique and paramount but as diverse
as numerous as women are in our world with individual differences.
My concern in this presentation will be focused upon
the ideal woman, which every woman on the planet earth should seek to emulate.
Prov. 31:10-31.
1.
The first role of
a woman in the home is that of a good wife to her husband. As the direct
counterpart of her husband, she has the responsibility of being good to her
husband all her life.
2.
The woman is to
complement her husband in all aspects of life helping to bring into fulfillment
her husband’s vision and aspiration in life.
3.
Although the
woman is opposite in nature to her husband, she must not oppose her husband or
contend with him; she is expected to demonstrate strong support for him at all
times.
4.
The woman is
expected to be a loving wife and a mother to her husband.
·
Providing
motherly care and concern for her husband.
·
Providing the
needed comfort and support for the husband.
·
Meeting the husband’s
emotional, psychological and physical needs.
5.
The woman is
expected to submit to her husband with love, accepting to share the life of her
husband with him.
·
Respecting and
honouring her husband and obeying him at all times.
·
Reverencing her
husband at all times and paying him due diligence as Sarah called her husband
her lord. Gen. 18:9-12.
·
Helping to keep,
nurture and build the husband’s life which she has come to share.
·
Making the home
conducive for her husband for relaxation and place of rest after the battering
effect of the outside world.
6.
The woman is
expected to have and enjoy uninterrupted close intimacy with her husband at all
times.
·
Her love for her
husband must never be shifted to the children. The husband remains number one
factor in her life and home before the children or any other person or thing.
·
Children must not
be allowed undue interference into matters and issues that is not directly
their concern.
7.
The woman as a
good wife and partner of her husband must be concerned with the development of
her husband and herself. Tangible investment and support must be made in the
development of her husband and herself in the aspect of life:
·
Economically.
·
Financially.
·
Educationally.
·
Spiritually.
·
Physically.
8.
The woman is
expected to develop good character which will make her husband to be open to
her and trust her enough to enable him confide in her.
9.
The woman is
expected to be the chief adviser to her husband in all aspects of life
positively, thus assisting him positively in;
·
Planning for
their future (old age, when their children have grown gone out from them).
·
Making the needed
savings or investment for old age such as;
10.
The woman must be
prepared to meet with the felt needs of her husband such as;
·
Emotional needs.
·
Psychological
needs.
·
Spiritual needs.
·
Physical needs.
·
Sexual needs.
Any woman who does not want to have anything to do
with sex or who is not prepared to meet the husband’s sexual needs should never
venture into marriage relationship and should be advised to remain like angels.
11.
The woman is
expected to work for the safety of her husband at all times without seeking to
hurt him in life whatever the situation. Abigail a case study. 1 Sam. 25:14-17.
TO THE
CHILDREN AND HER HOUSEHOLD:
1.
The woman is
expected to be a loving and caring mother to her children and the members of
her household.
·
Providing a
motherly care and concern for members of her family.
·
Providing the
needed care and comfort for the members of her family.
2.
The woman apart
from being a good mother, she is expected to be a home maker and a good home
manager.
·
Making the home
conducive for every member of the family.
·
Managing very
well the resources (income) of the home no matter how small it is.
·
Providing the
needed comfort her children and every members of the family to enable them
always return home at the end of each day not desiring to remain outside the
home for solace.
3.
The woman as the
co-labourer with her husband in building the family is expected to foster unity
amongst members of her family and home.
·
The woman in unity
with her husband extends such unity to the children and members of her
household.
·
The woman is
expected to make the children love their father as they love themselves.
·
The woman is not
expected to run down her husband or bring him to disrepute in the presence of
the children and family members so as not to cause disaffection.
4.
The woman as good
partner of her husband must collaborate
with the husband in the development of her children and members of her
family in the following aspects of life:
·
Physically.
·
Educationally.
·
Economically.
·
Psychologically.
·
Spiritually etc.
5.
The woman is
expected to be a good motivator of her husband in planning for family and the
future of the family.
·
Helping her
husband to make savings for landed property purchase for the family.
·
Helping to build
house (family house) and commercial houses to generate enough funds for the
family.
·
Labouring
together with the husband to generate money for the family and to ensure good
and profitable inheritance for their children when they both leave the stage.
For a woman to do all these, she must be
very industrious as the ideal woman in Prov. 31:13-19.
6.
The woman is
expected to take active part in the home and an active partner of her husband
in building the family.
·
Passivity on the
part of a woman in matters that concern her home and family members is a
disservice.
·
The woman must
demonstrate activeness, and labour to make needed contribution for the well
being of the family.
NB: The resources and earnings of the man is for all
members of the family including the woman. Whatever that is good for geese is
also good for the ganders, therefore, resources and earnings from the woman of
the household should also be available for all members of the family, the
husband inclusive. See example of the ideal woman. Prov. 31:10-21.
