What Is the Role of Women in Church Leadership?
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Recently, the Southern Baptist Convention decided to remove Saddleback Church, one of its largest congregations, from its membership. The church is in California and was founded by popular pastor and author Rick Warren. The reason behind this ousting was based on Pastor Rick’s decision to ordain three women to serve as pastors within the church. Couple this with prominent speaker and Bible study teacher Beth Moore deciding to leave the denomination in 2021, and it has brought into the daylight a debate that has been happening for many years now.
What is the role of women in church leadership?
There are two sides to this debate and your answer to this question largely boils down to how you interpret Scripture. Since most people are fairly dug in on this issue on both sides, I don’t know if my contribution will sway your opinion one way or the other. I do want to ask some questions about this topic that may at least open the doors to healthy conversation around this subject.
Let’s View the Subject of Women in Church Leadership from the Right Perspective
As we consider this question, there is one thing that needs to be said that I don’t hear said enough. Disagreeing about this question is not a reason for division in the church. Typically, those who say women should not be in leadership are the ones who are the most divisive over this question. Some have even called out well respected Christian leaders, and labeled them false teachers, because they have allowed women to preach in their pulpits. I believe that goes too far, especially when there is legitimate debate over this issue.
Regardless of how you feel about this question, it has no determination on your salvation. For this reason, even if you have a different opinion, it should not drive a wedge between you and your fellow believers in Christ. If it does, then that creates a bigger problem than whether a woman should be in church leadership.
Were Women Used in Leadership in the Bible?
The argument for or against women in leadership is a New Testament argument. When you investigate the New Testament, women were used in important leadership roles. You also see that Jesus and Paul validated the worth of women in ministry, which was counter to the culture of that day. Here are four examples:
In John 4, Jesus sits at a well with a Samaritan woman. Not only did Jews and Samaritans hate each other, it was improper for a Jewish man to have a private conversation with a woman, let alone a Samaritan woman. However, the result of that conversation led to this woman being an evangelist and telling everyone in her town about Jesus. The Bible states that many became believers, and that all was spearheaded by a woman.
In John 20, the first person Jesus appeared to after he had risen was Mary Magdalene. She was the first eyewitness to the resurrected Jesus, and he instructed her to go and tell the disciples. What is amazing about this is that women were not allowed to testify in a Jewish court of law, and were deemed unreliable witnesses. Yet Jesus used a woman eyewitness to declare to the other disciples that he had risen.
In Acts 16, we learn of Lydia, who was a prominent businesswoman in the city of Philippi. Paul finds her and a group of women at the place of prayer and speaks to them. Lydia is converted, along with her household, and she became a leader and founder of the Philippian church.
In Acts 18, Priscilla and Aquilla, a husband-and-wife team who traveled in ministry with Paul, were used to explain the Scriptures to Apollos, who was a learned man from Alexandria.
These are just a few examples where we see women sharing the gospel, starting churches, and participating in discipleship. Also, in Paul’s letters, he would refer to women who helped or co-labored with him in ministry.
Does Having Women in Church Leadership Hurt the Testimony of the Church?
Clearly we see from the New Testament that women helped to build the church. I believe we do the church a disservice when we don’t recognize the gifting God has given to women in the church. We know all gifts are given for the building up of the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:7) and Paul encourages us to use the gifts God has given (Rom. 12:6-8). Just as Jesus and Paul validated women and recognized their contributions to the building of his kingdom, we should do the same.
With the birth of the church in Acts, it has always been God’s intention to use women in various capacities within the church.
“In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy” (Acts 2:17-18).
Is the Issue of Women in Church Leadership about the Scripture, or How We Have Applied It?
The debate over women in church leadership stems primarily from a few passages in the New Testament. Here are two that are commonly referred to:
“Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church” (1 Corinthians 14:34-45).
“A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet” (1 Timothy 2:11-12).
My desire here is not to deliver exegesis or commentary on these verses. My goal here is to ask a question. As I have stated, there are two sides to this debate. The question I have is this. Is the issue the interpretation of the Scripture, or the application of it?
Has the church validated and uplifted women, or has the church taken a more authoritarian view and devalued the importance of women in ministry? I say this because so many of the writings and opinions that believe women should not be in leadership at some point become apologetic. In just about every case I have read, at some point they declare that Paul is not being chauvinistic. Maybe that is part of the problem. Could it be that we have approached this Scripture from an authoritarian viewpoint and have left grace out of the equation?
For the record, I believe in the order God has established. Christ is the head of the church and man is the head of the home. However, when you consider the passages declaring husbands as the head of the home, there is no sense of domineering authoritarianism. There is a sense of a sacrificial love that cares for his wife. This emphasizes and increases a woman’s worth and does not devalue it. I wonder if this application has been missing, as we consider women in church leadership.
Final Thought
As I conclude this article, I realize I have either confirmed what some of you already believe or I have annoyed those who don’t agree. I have probably not swayed an opinion because I wasn’t really trying to. I will reiterate, even if you disagree, we should not divide over this question. We should always take the humble approach as we try to understand from Scripture God’s intention for the church. This intention includes the question of women in church leadership.
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