Please sir, kindly explain 1 Corinthians 14:34. Can a sister read the Bible or ask questions during Sunday school period on Sunday? Can a sister be appointed in to the committee of the church? Again, should a brother who marries outside the faith be disfellowshipped even when the brother has not forsaken the assembly of God’s people.
Question #1. The restriction in 1 Corinthians 14:34 respecting women pertains to the assembly of the church together for the purpose of worship. It does not prohibit women from speaking in the presence of men, whether one or two or several outside of the worship assembly, such as in a Bible class. Another verse of Scripture, though, prohibits women from religious teaching in an authoritative way over men irrespective of the setting (1 Timothy 2:11-12). A woman is neither allowed to teach a class in which men are present nor is she permitted from the audience to wrest the class from the teacher; men would be prohibited as well from taking over a class from the audience (1 Corinthians 14:29-31). See the following URLs of articles for a more thorough answer to this question.
https://www.gospelgazette.com/gazette/1999/may/page15.shtml#women
https://www.gospelgazette.com/gazette/2012/jun/page15.html
https://www.gospelgazette.com/biographies/priscilla.shtml
https://www.gospelgazette.com/gazette/2005/jan/page15.htm#answer3
Question #2. A committee is two or more persons working together to accomplish an assignment or a common goal. Whether designated as a “committee” or not, persons, some of whom happen to be women, often work together to accomplish a common goal. Yes, a woman can work with other men or other women or a combination of men and women to accomplish something (e.g., help deacons facilitate benevolence, gather information for decision-makers, etc.). Yet, a committee, irrespective of whether it is comprised of men or women is no substitute for the male leadership that God mandates for the church (e.g., elders or faithful adult members in the absence of an eldership). Women are permitted and even expected by God to practice Christian service, within their divinely-given roles (Romans 16:1).
Question #3. The only New Testament verse that specifically may prohibit a child of God from marrying a non-Christian is 1 Corinthians 7:39, and that verse pertains to the widow and does not specify a widower. Often, people surmise that 2 Corinthians 6:14 prohibits marriage between Christians and non-Christians, but such a position is an overstatement of what the verse actually teaches. See the following article URLs concerning 2 Corinthians 6:14 for a fuller treatment.
https://www.gospelgazette.com/gazette/2012/feb/page9.html
https://www.gospelgazette.com/gazette/2012/mar/page16.html#article2
https://www.gospelgazette.com/gazette/2013/sep/page8.html
Regarding 1 Corinthians 7:39, Christian brethren view the teaching therein from two different perspectives: (1) The verse prohibits a Christian widow from marrying a non-Christian man, or (2) The verse prohibits a Christian widow from marrying a man non-Christian or unfaithful Christian influence (cf., Ephesians 6:1 “only in the Lord”) only if doing so would harm the widow’s practice of Christianity (cf. 2 Corinthians 6:14). That God recognizes marriages between Christians and non-Christians is clearly understood from 1 Corinthians 7:12-13.
In any case, the context of 1 Corinthians 7:39 does not mention a procedure to follow even if (1) the correct interpretation were that a widow (not a widower) must not marry a non-Christian. (2) I am not aware of any congregations that though they may believe 1 Corinthians 7:39 prohibits a widow from marrying a non-Christian that have also come to the conclusion that the church must withdraw fellowship from the widow who marries a non-Christian. Evidently, even churches that believe 1 Corinthians 7:39 prohibits a widow from marrying a non-Christian don’t believe it very much or to any degree of consequence.
I am not convinced that 1 Corinthians 7:39 prohibits a Christian widow from marrying a non-Christian. It may well be that 1 Corinthians 7:39 is comparable to 2 Corinthians 6:14 and Ephesians 6:1 wherein Christians are cautioned to guard against placing themselves into circumstances that predictably will lead to the compromise of one’s Christian faith. I would be very hesitant to withdraw especially from a brother who married a non-Christian woman who otherwise was a fit biblical candidate for marriage. The only reason that I can imagine why 1 Corinthians 7:39 would pertain to a widow more than to a widower, irrespective of the correct interpretation, is to protect the heritage of the deceased Christian husband in that of his wife.
