It seems that it has again become fashionable for women in the US to have long hair. Scripture presents Christian women with clear revelation for why they should have long hair regardless of what the current fashion trends may be.

Divine Commendation

In figurative language, God commends a woman’s having long hair when He includes a statement about Jerusalem’s hair having grown as part of her natural beauty that He had bestowed upon her as a grown woman:

Eze 16:7 I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare.

Feminine Excellence

The Apostle Paul challenges the Corinthian believers about proper practice in public worship partly by reasoning with them from the instruction that they innately receive concerning what is excellent for a woman:

1Co 11:13 Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?

¹⁴ Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?

¹⁵ But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.

From divine viewpoint, long hair is a uniquely excellent¹ attribute that God has given to women. It is not incidental that God here extols one of the same things to which He directed attention to about Jerusalem when she had grown up.

Conclusion

Although fashions frequently change in human cultures, God’s truth remains unchanged. Christian women should have long hair because their having long hair is a unique excellence that God has bestowed upon them and commended to them in His perfect Word.

¹ This terminology is based on the excellent explanation provided in preaching and teaching by Pastor Mark Minnick that the glory of something may best be understood as its unique excellence.

Copyright © 2011-2024 by Rajesh Gandhi. All rights reserved.

Two key passages reveal what God wants men whom He has redeemed to believe about whether He cares how long their hair is.

First Corinthians 11:13-15

Paul’s teaching in First Corinthians 11 is likely the most well known passage about divine perspective concerning the length of a man’s hair. In the midst of extensive teaching about head coverings in public worship settings, Paul states,

1Co 11:13 Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?

 ¹⁴ Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?

 ¹⁵ But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.

This divine revelation makes clear that God does care about the length of a man’s hair. According to Paul, even nature instructs believers that it is a shame for a man to have long hair.

What Paul teaches here is corroborated by revelation in a second passage given by God through the prophet Ezekiel, which although it was given prior to Paul’s statement, pertains to divine perspective about the hair length of his ministers in the future Millennial reign of Christ on the earth.

Ezekiel 44:15-27

In a lengthy passage concerning regulations for the Zadokian priests who will serve God in the Millennial temple (Ezek. 44:15-27), God makes known His viewpoint about the length of hair that his priests will have to have:

Eze 44:20 Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.

Through this revelation, God teaches us that His priests in the Millennium will not be allowed either to shave their heads or to grow their long; instead, they will need to maintain their hair at an intermediate length (cf., “they shall keep their hair well trimmed” [NKJV]).

Conclusion

A comparison of these two passages shows believers that God does care about the length of hair that a Christian man has. Christian men who are devoted to walking in God’s ways in all areas of their lives should heed what He teaches about what length of hair He wants men whom He has redeemed to have.

Copyright © 2011-2024 by Rajesh Gandhi. All rights reserved.

In discussions about politics, I have encountered three wrong theological views about human sinfulness and politics. These views have contributed to many believers making wrong choices about which political candidates they have supported.

All Sins are Equally Sinful in the Sight of God

—Contrary to what some believers have said, all sins are not equally sinful; Jesus testified that some sins are greater than other sins are.

Joh 19:11 Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

All People are Equally Unrighteous before God

Several lines of biblical reasoning show that the view that all people are equally unrighteous before God is false.

—Chorazin and Bethsaida will experience greater judgment than will Tyre and Sidon because they were more unrighteous than Tyre and Sidon were.

Mat 11:21 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

 ²² But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you.

—People who have had greater knowledge of the will of God will receive greater punishment than those that did not because those who knew more but failed to do God’s will were more unrighteous.

Luk 12:47 And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.

 ⁴⁸ But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

—All lost people will not receive the same punishment as every other lost person; they will be judged according to their works, with those who have sinned more being punished more.

Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

 ¹³ And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

Voting for a Civil Leader and Not a Pastor

I have heard several believers support the candidate for whom they have voted in spite of the candidate’s moral failures by arguing that they are voting for a civil leader and not a pastor. The Scriptural records of the actions of two leading men of God show that this view is not biblical.

—Jesus said John the Baptist was the greatest prophet of the OT saints (Luke 7:28). John confronted the sexual immorality of an unsaved king:

Mat 14:3 For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias’ sake, his brother Philip’s wife.

 ⁴ For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her.

In various ways, Paul the Apostle was the leading apostle of Jesus Christ (for example, 1 Cor. 15:10). He confronted the sexual immorality of an unsaved governor in a non-Christian government:

Act 24:24 And after certain days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, which was a Jewess, he sent for Paul, and heard him concerning the faith in Christ.

 ²⁵ And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee.

These two leading men of God, the former of the OT prophets and the latter of the NT apostles, showed by their dealings with unsaved civil authorities that the sexual immorality of a civil official is a vitally important matter, just as it also is for pastors.

Conclusion

Christians must base their political views and choices on a proper theology of human sinfulness. Such a theology requires the rejection of the three incorrect views treated in this post.

Copyright © 2011-2024 by Rajesh Gandhi. All rights reserved.