Is it Sinful for Women to Have a Career?
By David J. Stewart
Concerning women working, it is not a sin if a woman's husband permits it.
The Bible teaches that a man ought to be the head of his home; not a tyrant,
but in charge nonetheless. 1st Timothy 5:14,15 teach that a women's place
is in the home. God created each woman to be a "help meet" for a husband...
"And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him" (Genesis 2:18)
This ought to be a woman's ultimate goal—to marry, have children, be a homemaker, and stay out of trouble. Many women today have made a career their life. Sadly, their children are being raised by others, or even worse, by the TV or internet. God never intended for women to be in the workplace while their children survive in a daycare center with people who are only there to punch a clock and go home. That's insane.
I think if a woman wants to pursue a career, it can be within God's permissive will, if one keeps her priorities straight, i.e., to fulfill the goal of getting married, having children, being a full-time mother to those children, and helping one's husband. Of course, this is VERY difficult because your burning the candle at both ends. I believe that many women today ought to quit their careers, go home and spend time with their kids and husband. Tragically, they cannot, because they're so materialistic that they have bills galore to pay. Materialism (akin to covetousness) is a deadly trap. The Bible teaches in 1st Timothy 6:8 that we ought to be content with just food and clothing. Wow! Most people would die without their TV, radio, VCR, video games, cell phone, computer, et cetera.
It's all a mind set, a matter of priorities. Most people use the excuse that they want to give their kids a better life by pursuing a career; but oftentimes it doesn't work out that way. There's nothing more precious than a mother who raises her children at home, makes her husband happy by helping him, and spends her time making a house into a home. Only a loving and responsible mother/wife can turn a house into a home.
A career isn't just a job, it's a lifetime investment, that usually requires a 30-year commitment. I don't think it's wrong for a woman to work outside the home, but it should be only with her husband's blessing. If you pursue a career and get married, you ought to be willing to quit your career at any point if your husband asks you to. This is Biblical. A wife is expected by God to obey her husband (Ephesians 5:22... "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord"). Feminism teaches the exact opposite, i.e., that women don't have to obey their husbands at all.
Having said all that, pray for God's wisdom in this matter. Ask Him to guide you and make the right decisions, which will affect the rest of your life. If you are a woman, I think it's appropriate for you to pursue a career if that's what you think God wants you to do; but know this:
- If you marry and your husband asks you to quit your career, you should.
- If you have children, you need to raise them yourself (not just spend some time with them a few hours a day). Kids need mom, the biggest mental and spiritual influence in their development.
The virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 sold garments she had made and even bought some real estate. She was the envy of the town. There are many ways to make money which won't lock you into a career. If you do choose a career, try to pick a career that will make it easier on you as a wife and mother. I'm not sure what that would be, but I'd pick something that, if you did quit for several years, you could always go back to it when the kids are older. I would never take computer science, because it changes all the time. After a few years, you'd be in the stone age if you got away from it. But nursing never changes. Once you learn nursing, you have a lifetime skill. You could also start your own business. People make a lot of money pet-watching, house-cleaning, et cetera.
It's not a sin for you to have a career; but it
is a sin if you don't obey your future husband or raise your future
children. No mother should pursue a career. I also firmly believe
it is a horrible sin to delay having children for the sake of pursuing a
career. I've never liked birth control; but cannot say it is sinful per
se. I believe God intends for us to have big families (Genesis 1:28).
I hate what's going on in China, i.e., forced abortions and force
sterilizations. In America, Planned Parenthood is relentlessly
trying to reduce the population by talking mother's into murdering their
babies, or into not having any more babies. It is sinful. So I say to you,
have a big family, and be there for them. Money should be the last of your
priorities.
Urbanization is Destroying America
The entire notion of a woman having a career is unbiblical, not sinful per se; but not something that is taught in the Scriptures. Woman have traditionally stayed at home, working to make a house into a home. This entailed everything from milking the cows, baking cookies, picking apples, making clothing, raising bees for honey, thrashing wheat, to killing chickens for dinner and preparing them. In today's urbanized culture, women have lost the art of being homemakers. Few women make their own clothing anymore, or bake their owns breads. Everything is quick and easy out of a package, to accommodate today's busy career woman.
I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time the other day. I saw a commercial on TV showing a mother feeding her kids microwaved food, with the advertisement, "Give your kids that good old-fashioned homecooking like grandma used to make." Out of a microwave? You've got to be kidding? What has this country become?
We need a revival in America, where mothers once again realize the importance of being at home raising their kids, and forsake the root of all evil, which is covetousness (aka, "the love of money"—1st Timothy 6:10). Phooey on a career. Phooey on keeping up with the Joneses. Phooey on securing a financially stable retirement. As I type, there are literally tens-of-billions of dollars in unclaimed retirement funds, et cetera, all across America. Don't be a sucker for the Devil. The biggest mistake you'll ever make, and the loneliest road you'll ever travel, is the path to financial wealth and security. You can save all the money you want, make all the investments you can, buy all the insurance available—you're still going to die one way or another. Anything in your estate will be largely stolen by the government before your kids ever receive a penny. No wonder Jesus told us instead to Lay Up Treasures in Heaven.
