What is a “helper”?
The sad reality about living in a broken world is that our ideas about God, truth, theology, womanhood, and more are skewed. No one grows up without some level of misunderstanding about God and His Word. Others face spiritual abuse and church hurt that leaves them reeling. Still, others hear words like “submission” or “helper” or “keeper at home” and cringe as they recall spiritual manipulation to justify abuse.
My heart breaks for all who have been hurt by a wrong understanding of Scripture. The thing is: Bad theology hurts people. It’s crucial for us to rightly understand God and who He is as we seek to live our lives honoring Him. Because of the brokenness of this world, we often have to unpack and re-assemble our theology to get it right. We want to shake off any false presuppositions we’ve picked up along the way and return to the truth of Scripture.
It’s no surprise that 2,000 years after Christ in a vastly different culture, we’ve gotten some things mixed up along the way. But, praise God - He is faithful to reveal and refine us where needed! I’ve already written a blog post on biblical submission, so today I want to focus on another concept that often carries a negative connotation: women are helpers.
In the creation account, God says he will make a helper for man.
"Then the LORD God said, 'It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him (Genesis 2:18).’ “
When we hear the term “helper" in relation to marriage, we may think of the 1950s housewife stereotype, but the Bible gives us a different picture.
The Hebrew word for "helper" is "ezer" which means help, deliverer, succor, aid (think military). This word is used to describe God throughout the Old Testament - He was Israel’s deliverer, helping them over and over again.
"Helper" and the Trinity
When Jesus prays in John 16, He refers to Holy Spirit as a "Helper" He is sending to help Christians in their walk.
Holy Spirit is a helper, and so is woman. The ideal family dynamic reflects the Trinity: fathers reflecting our Heavenly Father, mothers reflecting Holy Spirit, and children reflecting Jesus.
The wife’s role as “helper” is more akin to a military aid than a household servant.
This biblical truth empowers women to walk confidently, encouraging and exhorting their husbands about spiritual matters.
While anyone can cook and clean, our identities as soldiers of Christ are innately tied to God’s will for our lives.
We can let these truths intimidate us, or feel overwhelmed by the task before us. Or, we can pick up our Bibles, shake off the anxieties, and walk worthy of the calling with which we've been called.
"I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love (Ephesians 4:1-2)."
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