Making a case for women in leadership
- Thread starter Blain
- Start date
-
Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.
If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!
To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
This is a good topic, but perhaps the subtitle should be "Making a case for leadership as servanthood"
(Matt. 20:25-28, 23:1-12, cf. 18:3-4).
Paul is talking about a husband. Surrounding context indicates family teaching.
Why are the so-called "women can't pastor" scriptures written to the churches in Corinth, Ephesus, & to Timothy?
Corinth was known for its worship of Aphrodite, while Ephesus was famous for the cult of Artemis (also known as Diana). Both goddesses had temples dedicated to them and were revered by the local populations. Since these temples dominated the cities, the roles of men & women were reversed. So when these people were saved, they brought their idolatrous habits into the church with them. Thus Paul's teachings specifically to them.
What about Timothy, then? Timothy was chosen by Paul to be over all the house-churches of Ephesus, so he had to be instructed on how to specifically minister to them.
Corinth was known for its worship of Aphrodite, while Ephesus was famous for the cult of Artemis (also known as Diana). Both goddesses had temples dedicated to them and were revered by the local populations. Since these temples dominated the cities, the roles of men & women were reversed. So when these people were saved, they brought their idolatrous habits into the church with them. Thus Paul's teachings specifically to them.
What about Timothy, then? Timothy was chosen by Paul to be over all the house-churches of Ephesus, so he had to be instructed on how to specifically minister to them.
It is the "temperament" of the person that is the consideration for whether they will be effective at their jobs, people within a certain gender with a certain temperament will be fine others not so much.
There are also many female nurse who are also not good caregivers, they do not have the right temperament.
You need to check the Greek.
A surface level understanding of the words in scripture is usually the problem.
I was quite troubled many years back about how certain verses were being used to the extreme such that
women could not discuss scripture with a man but had to sit and listen, then I did the deep dive and I learned how the words were translated did not give the truest sense of the meaning of the words when compared to how they were used in other texts of that time period.
Thanks, sincerely. Some of the details warrant follow-up, but the theme is consistent with things I have read.
well then it would stand to reason that cc is in fact a church as the church is not a building it is the body we may not be together in person but we are still a church
This issue always gets conflated with a Western idea of what leadership and authority looks like. In the typical modern church setting, after Constantine and Rome corrupted it, there are positions of leadership with no antecedent in the scriptures. Even in the structure of the meetings, many things go on that cannot be found in Biblical church history. The structured life of someone called out by God (church) is much simpler than what is practiced today.
Not ALL Churches. In the 1860s the Salvation Army needed preachers prepared to preach temperance in London's East End. They had almost no financial support, and the alcohol industry was paying alcoholics (the Skeleton Army") to physically attack temperance teachers.
Several Salvationists were killed. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skeleton_Army
The Salvation Army started to use woman preachers, and women filled with the Holy Spirit knowledgeable in the Word stepped up and filled the ranks of preachers in the Salvation Army.
The Salvation Army ended its flyers advertising these preaching events "Come, drunk or sober".
Sisters in Christ; pray! And if the Holy Spirit guides you, come on over.
Correct me if I am wrong but the bible has a role "Overseer", but no role of Priest in the NT. And as I see it the role of Bishop has evolved out of the unbiblical role of Priest. If we are to be biblically correct, there are zero 'intermediaries' between the Believer and God.
While all Christians have direct access to the Father, God has put some in positions over the flock for the edification of all. Peter is a good example...feed my sheep.
IMHO the shepherd is not 'over' the flock. The good shepherd leads the flock with his voice.
And the good shepherd never lives in a palace, nor is a 'prince' of the Church....
Constantine sure did a job on us....
God, I miss Peter. God, please send us a shepherd like Peter the fisherman.
Peter was an overseer of the flock. It was a position of authority within the church. Every local body of believers should have at least one overseer.
As far as a palace or a title, who cares? Do they fulfill their appointed task is all that matters.
Commissioners of the Salvation Army live in ordinary homes and drive ordinary cars.
Commissioners of the Salvation Army work in ordinary offices and fulfill their appointed task as Overseer.
A retired Commissioner (btw-female) attends my church and sits amongst the other Believers.
When I have time, I should invite her to have a coffee after church. I might have to book as there is a line for that.
Her position matters to you, not to me. Only that her appointment is divine.
Basically I am pointing to the hypocrisy of those who criticise the election of female overseers as unbiblical, but who would defend the unbiblical practices of our "shepherds" somehow "feeding the lambs" while living like Princes in Palaces...
Personally, I am 100% confident looking Jesus in the eye and saying I accepted the administrative authority of that humble woman because I believed that the Holy Spirit was moving powerfully within her. So, help me God!
Last edited: