The End Time Church: From the Cathedrals to the Catacombs

By Dan L. White

Copyright ©2017 by Dan L. White, all rights reserved.

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible (WEB) which is in the public domain.

Chapter 45

Mothers and Wives

Did you ever wonder why the four gospels are not Matthew, Mark, Luke and Joan?

Many modern Christians wish those were the four gospels, and the progressives may well come out with a new Bible translation including those four gospels. But the fact is that the four gospels really are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John — four men.

How about the rest of the books of the New Testament?

Acts was written by Luke. Paul’s letters, which including Hebrews I take to be 14, were written by Paul. The letters of James, Peter, John and Jude were written by their namesakes; and Revelation was written down by John.

All those guys were men.

How about Christ’s 12 disciples/apostles?

Luke 6
13) When it was day, he called his disciples, and from them he chose twelve, whom he also named apostles:
14) Simon, whom he also named Peter; Andrew, his brother; James; John; Philip; Bartholomew;
15) Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus; Simon, who was called the Zealot;
16) Judas the son of James; and Judas Iscariot, who also became a traitor.

Those twelve disciples were all men.

Do you see a pattern there? With the authors of the four gospels, the writers of all the books of the New Testament, and the twelve disciples all being men, does that give us a lesson on God’s thinking?

Yes.

An incredibly strong, clear lesson. Christ uses men to shepherd His assembly.

The modern world — Satan’s world — hates that. Modern Bible translations have been produced to correct God’s presumed errors in gender language and equality, and as just stated, they may well produce a Bible translation with Matthew, Mark, Luke and Joan.

Well, no, that would still be unequal. It would have to be Matthew, Mark, Lucy and Joan.

Well, no again — it would have to be Lucy, Matthew, Joan and Mark.

Such Bible translators assume that the Bible can be corrected. But the Bible is the Creator’s exquisitely designed handbook for His creation, the manufacturer’s manual, the pdf for perfection. You may study the Bible for decades and still be routinely amazed at what you find. It is 49 books by original numbering, written by probably 40 men over about 4000 years, yet it is one whole complete work, designed and ultimately written by only one Author.

Therefore we must conclude that when Christ called twelve male disciples and when He had the New Testament written by eight men, that was all exactly according to plan. And when the New Testament includes detailed instructions on how men and women are to function, that also is exactly according to God’s plan.

We must further conclude — and this is important to understand — we must further conclude that Satan’s plan for men and women will be the opposite of God’s plan. And Satan’s end time world and government will be the opposite of Christ’s flock.

Men and woman are equally called to salvation.

Matt 24
40) Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and one will be left;
41) two women grinding at the mill, one will be taken and one will be left.

Acts 5
14) More believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women.

Gal 3
26) For you are all children of God, through faith in Christ Yeshua.
27) For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28) There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Yeshua.
29) If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to promise.

Although men and women are equally called, it seems that in families it is more often the woman who seeks Christ first; then she leads the family on to their Redeemer.

Acts 16
13) On the Sabbath day we [Paul] went forth outside of the city by a riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down, and spoke to the women who had come together.

Being equally called to salvation, women are also equally eligible for persecutions and trials for following Christ.

Acts 8
3) But Saul ravaged the assembly, entering into every house, and dragged both men and women off to prison.

Acts 9
2) and asked for letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

None of Christ’s twelve disciples were women but many women served Him.

Matt 27
55) Many women were there watching from afar, who had followed Yeshua from Galilee, serving him.
56) Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

Acts 1
12) Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.
13) When they had come in, they went up into the upper room, where they were staying; that is Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.
14) All these with one accord continued steadfastly in prayer and supplication, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Yeshua, and with his brothers.

The women there continued with the disciples in prayer and supplication. On your knees before God is the highest position any person can have. All women and girls can have that position as much as they want. In fact, Anna spent basically her whole life in that position.

Luke 2
22) When the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were fulfilled, they brought him up to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord
23) (as it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord),
24) and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.
25) Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him.
26) It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
27) He came in the Spirit into the temple. When the parents brought in the child, Yeshua, that they might do concerning him according to the custom of the law,
28) then he received him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,
29) “Now you are releasing your servant, Master, according to your word, in peace;
30) for my eyes have seen your salvation,
31) which you have prepared before the face of all peoples;
32) a light for revelation to the nations, and the glory of your people Israel.”
33) Joseph and his mother were marveling at the things which were spoken concerning him,
34) and Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary, his mother, “Behold, this child is set for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which is spoken against.
35) Yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
36) There was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher (she was of a great age, having lived with a husband seven years from her virginity,
37) and she had been a widow for about eighty-four years), who didn’t depart from the temple, worshipping with fastings and petitions night and day.
38) Coming up at that very hour, she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of him to all those who were looking for redemption in Jerusalem.

Surely most people would think that Anna’s was a wasted life. For eighty-four years Anna never left the temple, fasting and praying night and day. And God picked her, along with Simeon, to greet His little baby boy when Mary and Joseph brought Yeshua to the Temple.

Obviously, Anna was very esteemed in God’s sight. Any parents who have a new child share that baby first with the people they cherish most, and that’s what God did with Anna. Nevertheless, although Anna was an extremely spiritual person, her function was not to write New Testament books or to be an elder in the assembly. Doing the job she was called to do did not make Anna a second class Christian. She was not an apostle or an evangelist or an elder, but with God she was first class all the way.

The most honored position in the whole Bible, other than that of the Son of God, was given to a woman — the mother of the Son of God.

Luke 1
26) Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
27) to a virgin pledged to be married to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
28) Having come in, the angel said to her, Rejoice, you highly favored one! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women!
29) But when she saw him, she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered what kind of salutation this might be.
30) The angel said to her, Don’t be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31) Behold, you will conceive in your womb, and bring forth a son, and will call his name ‘Yeshua.’

Luke 1
39) Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah,
40) and entered into the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth.
41) It happened, when Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, that the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
42) She called out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
43) Why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
44) For behold, when the voice of your greeting came into my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy!

Mary was especially blessed to have found such favor with God, to bear His only begotten Son, the firstborn of many brethren.

Rom 8
29) For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Since Yeshua was the firstborn of many brethren, other women who bear those brethren are also blessed. When they bring forth their own children, in a sense they are blessed like Mary, because each of those children that they bear may become a child of God. Each baby borne by each woman may be a younger sibling of the child that Mary bore.

Therefore all women, less than but like Mary, are also under this blessing.

“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!”

No man will ever know what it is like to have a fruitful womb. Although many men today may appear to have a fruitful womb, none actually do.

No man can even imagine what that is like, to be carrying your child within you, and that child is from you and living on you. Then to nurse that child at breast, from first breath through the time of coos and giggles is simply beyond the universe of a man’s understanding.

Papas have their place but papas don’t have paps.

King James Version Luke 11
27) And it came to pass, as he spake these things, a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked.

Mary and Joseph show God’s plan for women and men, wives and husbands, mothers and fathers.

First of all, Yeshua was known as Joseph’s son. Even though he was not Joseph’s biological son, in the earthly family he was known as Joseph’s son.

Luke 4
22) All testified about him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth, and they said, Isn’t this Joseph’s son?

John 1
45) Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote: Yeshua of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.

Yeshua was not known by the anti-Bible custom of matriarch-patriarch naming, such as Hillary Rodham Clinton. He was not known as Yeshua ben Mary-Joseph. He was simply Joseph’s son.

Secondly, even though Mary was most blessed among women, in the family God still worked with Joseph as head of that family.

Matt 2
13) Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
14) He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt,

19) But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying,
20) Arise and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for those who sought the young child’s life are dead.
21) He arose and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22) But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in the place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there. Being warned in a dream, he withdrew into the region of Galilee,
23) and came and lived in a city called Nazareth; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophets: He will be called a Nazarene.

This is a very important point. Even though Joseph was not the biological father, and even though Mary was the most blessed and honored of all women, God still looked at Joseph as the head of that earthly family. God spoke to Joseph in dreams and told the head of the family what to do with his family. Even though the angel spoke to Mary first, when she was told what about the coming birth, God later recognized the authority of the husband and spoke to him.

On the other hand, look what Mary the mother did.

Luke 2
15) It happened, when the angels went away from them into the sky, that the shepherds said one to another, Let’s go to Bethlehem, now, and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.
16) They came with haste, and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby was lying in the feeding trough.
17) When they saw it, they publicized widely the saying which was spoken to them about this child.
18) All who heard it wondered at the things which were spoken to them by the shepherds.
19) But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart.

Both Mary and Joseph were there and both heard the same sayings but Mary the mother pondered, apparently more than Joseph did, if he pondered at all.

Luke 2
46) It happened after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them, and asking them questions.
47) All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.
48) When they saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, Son, why have you treated us this way? Behold, your father and I were anxiously looking for you.
49) He said to them, Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?
50) They didn’t understand the saying which he spoke to them.
51) And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth. He was subject to them, and his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.

Again, Joseph was there with Mary — he probably led in the search for three anxious days! — and he also heard what twelve year old Yeshua said. Yet it was Mary the mother who kept what Yeshua said in her heart.

It seems that Mary’s heart was different than Joseph’s. Is it presumptive to say that Mary’s heart was different because she had a —

Mother’s heart?

You know exactly what I mean when I say a mother’s heart. You have seen it, felt it, been shaped by it — a mother’s heart.

What’s in a mother’s heart?

Mother’s love.

From our Homeschool Helpers Newsletter titled I Want My Mama.

God did not place women as top authority in the family. As girls they are under their fathers’ authority and protection. Later they are under their husbands’ authority. Women have a choice as to who they will marry, but once married, they are under their husbands, regardless of the character of the men. Women do not get to depose their husbands because of the husbands’ lack of character. If such were not the case, then all men would be deposed.

However, the fact is that in their own way, wives and mothers have the highest position in humanity.

I was watching interviews with some former World War II German soldiers. They had taken home movies of the war they went through, and their personal experiences made for some interesting viewing. Those interviews were made several decades ago, and even then the former soldiers were old men.

War is an unimaginably horrible experience and some soldiers just flat out lose their minds. The terror is so great that their minds simply stop working in a normal way. Shell shock, it’s called. The war that the Germans began because of their unquestioning loyalty to their mad Fuhrer killed 60 million people worldwide. Germany itself lost about 8 million people, 10% of its pre-war population, and their major cities were bombed into rubble, along with their railroads and highway bridges. So they too faced the terror that they caused.

One German ex-soldier had a particularly striking statement. He fought with and under a sergeant. Through the battles, that sergeant was a particularly tough man, leading his men into and through the human carnage that they faced. The soldiers under him respected him for his toughness, which is what counts in war.

However, eventually that sergeant himself was hit. He had been outwardly tough as he watched enemy combatants blown to bits, and tough even as his own men were maimed and claimed as casualties of war. When it was his own body that was torn apart, though, and when it was his own life that was flowing onto the dirt under him, what did he do?

The ex-soldier said that experience really got to him personally, when he saw his tough, hardened sergeant go down, and all that toughness and hardness disappeared in an instant of mortality, as the man lay crying and sobbing, screaming and moaning, suffering and hurting.

What did that tough sergeant say, as he was bleeding, guts out, life ebbing –

He said —

I want my mama!

When people are in a life threatening situation, when nothing else matters but life itself, when they may be surrounded by friends and buddies and medics who can’t really help, what is often said?

I want my mama!

You’ve heard that before, where grown men and women who have lived independently suddenly face not living at all, and they hearken back to their childhood cry –

I want my mama!

I have often heard of that happening. But in all my reading in my decades of life, I have never heard of someone in that situation saying, I want my daddy.

No.

Daddies have their place, certainly, head of the family, leader and enforcer of right, the sergeant who sets the battle plan. But in their own way, mothers rule. They have a nurturing nature, a watchfulness, a gentleness, a warmth, a mother’s love – a place that no father can fill.

And in its own way, this is the highest position in humanity.

When life is on the line and death is at the door, mother’s love is what people cry out for.

I want my mama!

And in line with that — Have you ever seen a man that you wished was your mother?

Me neither.

Paul wrote about the most excellent way.

1 Cor 12
27) Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.
28) God has set some in the assembly: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracle workers, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, and various kinds of languages.
29) Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all miracle workers?
30) Do all have gifts of healings? Do all speak with various languages? Do all interpret?
31) But earnestly desire the best gifts. Moreover, I show a most excellent way to you.

What is this most excellent way? This most excellent way is where women seem to naturally excel.

1Cor 13
2) If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but don’t have love, I am nothing.

13) But now faith, hope, and love remain—these three. The greatest of these is love.

Love is what women, wives and mothers do best. You see, men and women are different.

The liberals, progressives, socialists have a campaign now to encourage women to expose their breasts to the world. They claim that ‘Men can appear topless so women should be able to be topless in public, too. Anything else is discrimination.’ Of course, this blatantly ignores the fact that men and women are different. Women have little response to men’s chests. Men have great response to women’s breasts. Men and women are just different, outside and inside.

Men and women were designed by God to be different, both formed in the image of God and yet different from each other. And, in a Christian marriage, those two different individuals can combine to reflect the whole nature of God Himself, strength and fortitude combined with love and mercy.

Love is what women do best — a daughter’s love, a wife’s love, a mother’s love — love is what women do best.

The New Testament is totally clear about male and female functions in the family and in the flock. God did not give women positions of authority. God gave women the position of love. Since God Himself is love, what can be higher than that?