You can’t make this up.

Just because it can be done doesn’t mean it should be done. Contrary to the article, the controlling issue here shouldn’t be whether the mission can be successfully accomplished regardless of the Marine’s “gender.” Women shouldn’t be in that position in the first place.

Why?

Here’s my notes from a message I gave on this subject a year ago at Orwell Bible Church:

A Biblical and Theological Response and Statement of Opposition to Women Serving in the Military
Pastor Dan Greenfield

1. The Bible is God’s Word stating His will for all of human life, teaching everything needful for faith and practice. No man or institution has authority superseding that of God’s Word.

2. Men and women owe their existence solely to God, not any evolutionary process. God created both man and woman in his image, man (Adam) from the dust and the woman (Eve) from man’s rib (Gen 1–2).

3. Men were specially created and constituted by God to lead, provide, and self-sacrificially protect their wives, families, and societies (Gen 9:6; Rom 13:4; Eph 5:25; 1 Pet 3:7).

4. Women were specially created and constituted by God to help and support their husbands and give, nurture, preserve, and care for life within marriage and their various spheres in society (Gen 2:18, 20, 22; 3:20; 1 Cor 11:9; 1 Tim 2:11–15; 5:14; Titus 2:3–5). Their natural vulnerability is not a fault but serves their God given roles and demands loving care, consideration, and protection (1 Thess 2:7; 1 Pet 3:7).

5. By God’s creation men and women are fundamentally distinct from one another in ability, constitution, gifts, and purpose. Women should not minimize such in order to attain equal status with men; instead, they should gratefully recognize, joyfully celebrate, and faithfully live to their fullest ability (cf. 1 Tim 2:11–15).

6. Adam’s failure to obey God’s command and to protect his wife caused sin’s destructive effects to spread throughout the created order, of which warfare is one such sad but necessary effect (Rom 5:12ff; 8:20–21).

7. The objective of warfare is for governments to inflict destruction and death on an enemy in order to protect the welfare, security, and good order of the nation and its citizens (Rom 13:4). This is in keeping with the role and responsibilities God gave men (cf. #3) but not women (cf. #4).

8. Throughout Scripture only men were the subjects of military service and involved in combat (Gen 14:14; Num 31:3–4, 21, 49; Deut 20:5–9; Josh 1:14–18; 6:3, 7, 9; 8:3; 10:7; Judg 7:1–8; 20:8–11; 1 Sam 8:11–12 [contrast v. 13]; 11:8; 13:2; 14:52; 16:18; 18:5; 24:2; 2 Sam 17:8; 23:8–39; 24:2, 9; 2 Kings 24:14–16; 1 Chr 21:5; 27:1–15, 23–24; 2 Chr 17:12–19; 25:5–6; 26:11–14; Neh 4:14).

While Deborah did go with Barak, God commanded Barak to lead the army into battle, promising him victory (Judg 4:6–7). Barak’s unwillingness to go without Deborah demonstrated weakness on his part. Furthermore, Deborah did not take part in the battle (Judg 4:10, 12, 14b)

Jael’s action in killing Sisera (Judg 4:21) was not as a soldier in combat but occurred in her domestic jurisdiction against one who was not on the field of battle.

9. While women could use their God-given gifts in military service and some may be able to effectively participate and contribute in warfare, this does not provide biblical grounds for doing so (just because they can doesn’t mean they should, cf. #4).

10. Women can care for and treat those ill or injured as a result of military service, but such service should not necessarily require women enlisting in the armed forces.

11. Those enlisting in the United States military must affirm the oath of enlistment, obliging the enlistee to defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic, obeying the orders of the President and the enlistee’s officers, and depend on God’s help to do so. Women enlistees would therefore take the role of military defender which is out of line with God’s Word and her created constitution. While some have attempted to distinguish between combatant and non-combatant roles, the enlistment oath makes no such distinction.

 U.S. Code § 502

(a)Enlistment Oath.—

Each person enlisting in an armed force shall take the following oath:

“I, __________, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

12. Civil authorities that intentionally place women in harm’s way or rely on them for military service violate God’s Word, demean rather than honor women, and disgracefully surrender the God-given roles and responsibilities of men. Furthermore, conscription of women into military service would force many to take an oath against their consciences to do what they believe is wrong.

13. Women who are forced to register for the draft and/or conscripted into military service have biblical grounds for “civil disobedience.” While Christians must submit to government authorities (Rom 13:1), when such authorities blatantly violate Scripture, Christians must respond with “we must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).

14. Chaplains are not required to advocate, support, or agree contrary to their consciences in these matters, nor can they be forbidden to give biblical counsel regarding these matters as represented by this statement.