Two Things That Should Be Obvious

By Kevin DeYoung - Posted at The Gospel Coalition:

Tis the season for allegations of men treating women badly. From Harvey Weinstein to Louis C. K. to Roy Moore to Aly Raisman’s testimony on 60 Minutes, the last two months have seen a number high-profile men accused of unwanted advances, sexual harassment, and much worse.

To be sure, we should not presume guilt just because accusations are made. Of the dozens of allegations made public this fall, some have been owned up to, while others are still resolutely denied. This article is not about the specific accusations or the people involved, let alone about what should be done when athletes or politicians or media moguls have past sins uncovered. This post is about the bigger picture, about first things, about the principles that all Christians should agree on.

There are two things that should be obvious to all Bible-believing Christians.

First, men should honor women, not harass them; treat them as fellow image bearers, not sexual fantasies; and protect them, not perpetrate disgusting advances against them. That should all go without saying, but perhaps it has gone without saying for too long. As I’ve said before, underlying Jesus’s ministry was the radical assumption that women have enormous value and purpose. The clearest example is his mother, Mary, who’s called highly favored in Luke 1:28. Moreover, Jesus used women as illustrations in his teaching, mentioning the queen of the south (Matt. 12:42), the widow of Zarephath (Luke 4:26), women at the second coming (Matt. 24:41), and the woman in search of her lost coin (Luke 15:8–10). He held up the persistent widow as an example of prayerfulness (Luke 18:1–5), and the poor widow’s offering as an example of generosity (Luke 21:1–4).

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