Do you remember Mission Impossible?  Beginning in 1966, this popular TV series told the story of a small group of undercover government agents.  Each week, the group is given an "impossible" mission by an unseen government official.  The jobs usually involve incredibly dangerous covert operations against crime lords or dictators.  The tension was palpable, and there was always a little bit of doubt that the team would succeed right up to the end.  The series spawned several modern movies which contain lots of superhuman special effects and stunt work.  In the end, the Impossible Mission Force got the job done, no matter the cost.

Take away the stuntmen and special effects, and there are times when studying the Bible can feel like an impossible mission.  Some passages of Scripture contain ideas which seem far beyond our ability to comprehend; so much so, in fact, that we often don't even try.  However, one of the advantages of preaching through entire books of the Bible is the inability to skip difficult or controversial passages.  All Scripture is God-breathed, even the passages that cause us significant difficulty.  Accomplishing "impossible" missions through the power of the Holy Spirit is vital for our growth as believers.  We are called to do the hard work of understanding that which is tough to understand.  We get to do that hard work this week.

Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to join us as we continue in our series on First Corinthians, A Better Way.  We'll read the first half of chapter 11, where the Apostle Paul addresses a problem that the Corinthian church was facing: the role of women in church life and culture.  Corinth was the home of a wide-ranging set of sexual beliefs.  When the Gospel took root in the city, those who were transformed by Jesus struggled with how to live holy lives, especially in the area of sexuality and gender.  It appears that some women in the church were using their new-found freedom in Christ to begin to blur the lines between genders. Paul's response is to clarify appropriate and holy behavior for both men and women.  By presenting both theological and practical arguments, he encourages the church to accept gender distinctions and pursue Godly relationships.  

In our modern context, this conversation provokes some emotional responses.  There is real tension between this Biblical teaching and our society's post-Christian philosophy of life.  Our goal this week will be to face these tensions head-on, seeking to place ourselves under God's authority in these areas.  We'll do our best to unpack the historical context, and Lord willing, we'll arrive at some principles that we can put into practice today.