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Women Pastors And Elders

by Henry Bechthold  
1/27/2011 / Bible Studies

Women pastors and elders are now being ordained throughout most Christian denominations. However, some still maintain that men and women have been assigned different roles in the Church, with men being designated by God for leadership; although the majority insists that this "male leadership" exclusivity does not apply to the New Testament Church.

Numerous scriptural references have been presented to attempt to prove God's choice of men for leadership; simultaneously, arguments have been offered in an effort to rebut these scriptures. By and large, these arguments have been accepted and endorsed by the vast majority of the Church, thus resulting in the ordination of women in churches across America.

It is my assertion that we need to revisit this issue and reexamine the biblical evidence, because, as with so many other doctrines, the Church has adopted its official position on this issue based on weak biblical arguments and the opinions of men. In fact, the weight of biblical evidence strongly contradicts the Church's stance.

In 1st Timothy 2:11-15 and 1st Corinthians 14:34-38, the Bible states that women are not to teach or to have authority over men, that they are to be submissive, and that they are not to speak in church (That is, in a "teaching, instructive capacity", based upon the context of the verses that precede Paul's counsel in 1st Corinthians 14). And, in 1st Corinthians 14:37, Paul states that his instructions regarding women are the "commandments of the Lord"! Furthermore, Scripture declares that man is the head of woman even as Christ is the head of man; moreover, it states that wives are to submit and be subject to their husbands "in everything" as the Church is to Christ (1st Corinthians 11:3-10; Ephesians 5:22-24).

With such clear and authoritative biblical instruction as we read in these scriptures, what arguments were presented to justify the ordination of women as elders and pastors within the contemporary Christian Church?

One argument presented was that the New Testament teaches that we are all "one" in Christ, and that there is no differentiation between male or female (Galatians 3:28). Therefore, the point was made that men and women are equal in the New Testament. It was also emphasized that the Bible says we are to submit to "one another", in Ephesians 5:21, thus, it was suggested that men are to submit to women just as much as women are to submit to men.

Some also argued that the submission of women pertains only to their husbands at home, and not to public or church life. Additionally, they reminded us that there are records of women prophets in the Bible, which they say reflects equal leadership status with men from God's perspective.

One of the most popular arguments was that the Apostle Paul's instructions concerning the submission of women were based upon the customs of the times. In other words, his counsel only applied to Christians living in his day, because it was motivated by cultural reasons rather than biblical reasons. And, accordingly, they asserted that this is the twenty-first century, and times and customs have changed.

We will now biblically answer these arguments and unveil the manipulation and deception employed by many in church leadership regarding this issue. We'll begin with the text used in Galatians 3:28, which says there is no differentiation between male and female. Church leaders know that the context in Galatians is dealing with how we receive justification, righteousness and salvation. It has nothing to do with particular "roles" or "callings" in life from God. Galatians is simply stressing that we are all justified and saved in the same way through faith in Jesus Christ, whether we are Jew or Gentile, male or female, etc. To attempt to use this scripture to contradict the earlier texts from Ephesians, Timothy and Corinthians, is flagrant manipulation of God's Word. After all, the Apostle Paul is the author of all of these Bible books. He does not write one thing to the Ephesians and Corinthians, and then write something completely opposite to the Galatians. Modern theologians should not attempt to make Paul contradict himself, in order to justify their unbiblical positions.

The argument taken from Ephesians 5:21, which says that we should be submitting to one another, is another classic example of twisting scripture. Once again, the context of the passage is ignored. Verse twenty-one is the end of a long sentence, which began in verse eighteen. It is part of Paul's counsel to the church members in general, to be filled with the Spirit, to speak and sing to each other with psalms and spiritual songs, to give thanks for all things, and to have an attitude of submission to one another. Verse twenty-one is not dealing with the issue of submission between a man and his wife. The husband and wife scenario first begins in verse twenty-two. In fact, when Paul addresses this situation in Ephesians 5:22-24, it is in obvious contrast to the Church's position today. Paul states that the wife is to submit to her husband "as to the Lord". He says that the husband is "head of the wife", just as "Christ is head of the Church"; and that wives should be subject to their husbands "in everything", as the "Church is to Christ". You will find no such verse in the entire Bible instructing the man to submit to the woman in any such manner. The Church's misuse of this passage in Ephesians is a gross manipulation and misrepresentation of Scripture.

The preceding text in Ephesians also refutes one of the other arguments used by today's Church; that the woman's submission and subjection is only in the home setting, and does not apply to public or church life. This passage plainly states that the woman is to submit "in everything", as the "Church does to Christ". Everything means everything, and not just some things. That would include church life! Also, her submission is compared to the Church's submission to Christ. Is there ever a time, place or situation where the Church should not be submissive to Christ? Obviously not! The Church should always be in submission to Christ, thus indicating that the woman should likewise always be in submission to her husband. Paul's additional counsel to the Corinthians, that women were to be obedient and silent "in the churches", is added proof that their submission was not limited to the home setting (1st Corinthians 14:34-38). Furthermore, the Bible states that these admonitions are the "commandments of the Lord", not mere human opinion (1st Corinthians 15:37). Contemporary church leaders are defying the commandments of our Lord Jesus Christ with their current conduct regarding this issue.

The argument regarding God's use of women prophets in the Bible, actually has nothing to do with this issue. Prophecy is one of the gifts of the Spirit listed in the Bible. Women and men can both receive gifts of the Spirit. Also, Paul is the one who wrote about these gifts in Corinthians, so he obviously was aware of God's usage of women prophets when he instructed the women to be in submission and not to have authority over men. Paul clearly did not consider it to be a contradiction for women to have access to the gift of prophecy while submitting to the leadership and authority of men at the same time.

Perhaps the most popular argument used by proponents of the ordination of women, was that Paul's instructions regarding this subject were motivated by the customs of those times, rather than by biblical principles. This argument, however, blatantly contradicts the Bible. In Paul's letter to Timothy, he gave his own reasons why women were not to teach or have authority over men; it had nothing to do with the customs in that culture. Paul cited biblical reasons. He said that it was because Adam was created before Eve; moreover, that the woman was the one who was first deceived and fell into transgression (1st Timothy 2:11-15). These are clear biblical reasons, and not customs or cultural reasons!

The final argument for the ordination of women, was that this is the twenty-first century and times have changed. However, we should not point to this day and age as a time of spiritual enlightenment and growth, but rather of spiritual and moral decline and decay! Our churches in America are spiritually dead and steeped in sin. They are ordaining "practicing homosexuals" and performing gay civil unions. Church surveys done by the "Barna Group" reveal that sinful behaviors in the American Church rival those among non-Christians. The Church divorce rate equals that in our secular society. Our nation has murdered more than forty-five million babies. These are not the days of progress, but of compromise and rebellion.

It would be appropriate for the Church to ask itself why this change, regarding the role of women in the church, did not occur until this time of general spiritual decline in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Why did it take place in the sinful Church of our day, and not in the anointed, first-century Church or the powerful, reformation Church?

If it was God's will for the New Testament Church to have leadership roles filled by both men and women, why did Jesus only choose men as His apostles? Why didn't the disciples even consider a woman when they chose a replacement for Judas in Acts, chapter one? Also, why was it only men who were ordained as "deacons" in the sixth chapter of Acts? And, why is there not one single reference to a woman apostle or elder in the entire New Testament? Moreover, when Paul listed the qualifications for being an elder, why did he just assume it would be a man, by saying he must be the "husband" of one wife? The answer is obvious. There is no biblical precedent or authorization for the ordination of women.

For a complete account of the arguments used to justify the ordination of women, and a detailed listing of the scriptures that refute these arguments, read my article titled, "Women Pastors and Elders", on my website address listed below.

I am an evangelical, non-denominational, Christian pastor. You can research other interesting and provocative topics at my website: http://www.godormen.com.

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