{"id":101,"date":"2007-04-17T01:23:57","date_gmt":"2007-04-17T08:23:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/strivetoenter.com\/wim\/2007\/04\/17\/is-god-male\/"},"modified":"2007-04-17T01:23:57","modified_gmt":"2007-04-17T08:23:57","slug":"is-god-male","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmoutreach.org\/wim\/2007\/04\/17\/is-god-male\/","title":{"rendered":"Is God Male?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is God male in some way? <\/span>Many Christians think that he is. <\/span>But how could God be male when God is pure spirit? <\/span>God has no male sexual organs and he has no testosterone. <\/span>Because God does not have a body, it is impossible for him to be structurally male. <\/span>Therefore in his essence<\/u> God is neither male nor female. <\/span><\/p>\n

But some would argue that God is male in his characteristics. <\/span>If that were true, then God would only describe himself in purely male characteristics. <\/span>But that just isn’t so. <\/span>Although God describes himself with many male characteristics, he also describes himself with female characteristics. <\/span>God describes himself as a mother in Isaiah 66:13 and as a nursing mother in Numbers 11:12. <\/span>God’s motherly characteristics are highlighted in scripture as well as his fatherly characteristics. <\/span>God is described with both male and female characteristics therefore God is not uniquely male because of his characteristics. <\/span><\/p>\n

So why is God always referred to with the male terms of “he”\u009d and “Father”\u009d and never “she”\u009d or “Mother”\u009d? <\/span>It is because God has chosen a relationship<\/strong> with us as Father. <\/span>It is with this relationship that God shows us his nature and his love. <\/span>God is the source of all things. <\/span>As source he is referred to as Father. <\/span>Ephesians 3:14, 15 says:<\/p>\n

\n

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name<\/u>. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Every family in heaven and on earth derives its name from the Father. <\/span>The word family in Greek is “patria”\u009d and it is a feminine noun meaning family or lineage running back to some progenitor. <\/span>God is that progenitor. <\/span>1 Corinthians 11:12<\/st1> says:<\/p>\n

\n

For as the woman originates from the man, so also the man has his birth through the woman; and all things originate from God<\/u>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

God is the source and originator and progenitor and as progenitor he is called Father.<\/p>\n

The man was also created first to be the source of the woman. <\/span>Adam then became the source or foundation for the woman. <\/span>But God did not keep the preeminence with the male alone. <\/span>He then made the woman to bring forth every other man. <\/span>The woman then became preeminent as the source of the male. <\/span>God has brought equality to both the male and the female by allowing each one to be the source of the other, yet ultimately the preeminent source must be honored as Father – the progenitor of every family.<\/p>\n

Scripture shows that God is not male, but he has chosen to call himself Father because he is the ultimate source. <\/span>When we honor him as Father, we do not honor him as male, but we honor him as our source.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is God male in some way? Many Christians think that he is. But how could God be male when God is pure spirit? God has no male sexual organs and he has no testosterone. Because God does not have a body, it is impossible for him to be structurally male. Therefore in his essence God is neither male nor female. But some would argue that God is male in his characteristics. If that were true, then God would only describe…<\/p>\n

Read More Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":[]},"categories":[37],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nIs God Male? - Women in Ministry<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mmoutreach.org\/wim\/2007\/04\/17\/is-god-male\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is God Male? - Women in Ministry\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Is God male in some way? 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It seems that everywhere we look these days, complementarian men are quoting the act of creation as God's intention to put the women underneath the rule of the man.\u00a0 They are also quick to note that there are two different kinds of rulership of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Adam and headship"","img":{"alt_text":"Ruler or ruled? Women in Ministry blog by Cheryl Schatz","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mmoutreach.org\/wim\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/creation-ruler2.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":852,"url":"https:\/\/mmoutreach.org\/wim\/2009\/02\/02\/adam-and-his-ms-organ\/","url_meta":{"origin":101,"position":1},"title":"Adam and his Ms. organ","date":"February 2, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"The creation account has been used by many as a foundation to produce myths and stories.\u00a0 While this post will concentrate on modern day myths, it is also helpful to understand some of the historical myths about the creation of male and female. 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Ortlund Jr., Mr. Ortlund redefines the creation account in such a way that God's creation of the male first is said to be necessary in order that the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "1 Timothy 2"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.mmoutreach.org\/wim\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/01\/distort1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":837,"url":"https:\/\/mmoutreach.org\/wim\/2009\/01\/30\/man-give-woman-self-understanding\/","url_meta":{"origin":101,"position":3},"title":"Did the first man give woman her self-understanding?","date":"January 30, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Was the first man needed to give woman her self-understanding?\u00a0 According to Raymond C. Ortlund Jr. pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, the answer is yes. Ortlund has written chapter three of Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood CBMW's book. 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