Keepers At Home
“The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.”
Professing Christians find it easy to criticize what the government does and does not do, but the government is not the Church. What is worse? A government that does not follow God’s Word, or churches that do not follow God’s Word? We are told in the Bible, among other things, that women are to be keepers at home. It is obvious that American culture as a whole no longer abides by this, but even worse, most churches do not abide by this because pastors are afraid, and they are more influenced by modern culture than they are the scriptures. Notice that the Bible says older women are to teach younger women to be keepers at home so they do not blaspheme the Word of God. Sadly, most older women today either were not taught this, or they ignored it, and therefore they are not teaching it to the younger women.
Why is it that women today do not like to be told to be keepers at home? Even professing Christian women scoff at this clear directive from the Bible and come up with excuse after excuse as to why this is not applicable to them, or how things are different now than they once were. Why do many of them become angry and push for their “right” to work outside of the home? Young women are told that the only way they can have value is to abandon service to their husbands and children, as keepers at home, for the more “successful” endeavors that a career can provide. Women would rather have jobs away from home so they can get away from their household duties. Women do not want to serve their husbands. Women do not want to nurture their children, they would rather send them away to daycare or to be indoctrinated by an antichrist government, just so they can have their “me” time. Women and girls are being taught to do the opposite of what God commands them to do, so when they are told what God’s Word actually teaches, they are offended. This is not a trivial matter. It is stated in the scriptures if this directive is not followed, it will result in the Word of God being blasphemed.
Kari and I have been married for 20 years and we have been blessed with 12 children. When we got married, there was no question that she would be a keeper at home. We were blessed with friends by the name of Steve and Teresia who spent time with us and showed us what the Bible says about this matter. We saw that it would be best for our children and our marriage. In a world that honors women for their degrees and corporate positions, women that honor God with their lives as keepers at home are scoffed at and told they are not good enough. As is often the case, what mankind highly esteems, God abhors. Giving examples of women that have left their homes and did “good things” will be no defense in front of the God who creates us and commands us.
In his wisdom and loving-kindness God has given us instructions in his Word, not to merely lay down rules, but because he knows what is best for individuals, families, and communities. The problem is most people think they know better than God. Many children are no longer being raised by their mothers, they are being raised by teachers and daycare workers. Women leaving their homes hurts marriages. Women divorce their husbands, because they are deceived by some other man, or they do not think they need their husbands anymore since they have their own paycheck. Many of them come home and are “too tired” for their husbands or their children. Husbands crave the attention of their wives, but women are often giving that attention to co-workers or supervisors instead. Then the women wonder why their husbands become depressed and then find what they are craving in the arms of someone else. That is by no means a justification of adultery, but a wife that gives her husband the respect and attention that he desires will find that he is willing to lasso the moon for her. A wife that ignores him and gives that attention to others leaves a gaping hole in his soul and it makes him all the more vulnerable to temptation.
There is so much that can be and should be said about this subject. Though we will have posts that deal with the subject of biblical womanhood, we also suggest the blog of Lori Alexander entitled “The Transformed Wife.” She endures a lot of ridicule for proclaiming the Lord’s Word about the issues of biblical womanhood, but she does not back down, and we pray that God will use her posts and ours to open the eyes of both men and women to God’s ways.