In this post today, I will present what is the truth from God’s Word dealing with the topic of female pastors (females being in positions of authority in the church). Are females called to be pastors, bishops or reverends? Scripture is our authority and sound doctrine. The scriptures show that God does not call women to be pastors or hold any position that usurps authority over men. God is not a male chauvinist, instead the Lord desire is to protect His church from the entering in of deception.
Let’s begin in Genesis 2:
Ge 2:7-25 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
We can clearly see here that the man was formed first in verse 7. Then in verses 16-17, the Lord God gives Adam the command of what trees he can eat from and what tree he cannot eat of. Here the spiritual responsibility is being handed off onto Adam, the man. Verses later by God the woman is created as help meet for the man. Does this suggest that she has authority over him as a help meet? No, because we see Adam calling Eve woman using the naming authority God had given to him. In Chapter 3 of Genesis the responsibility for giving Eve the command of God, Adam did. Remember the scripture shows Adam receiving the command in Genesis 2 and Eve showing she had knowledge of God's command in Genesis 3. When Adam had sinned, note that Yahweh does not go to the one who was deceived first (Genesis 3:11). The Lord looks to Adam, who is the spiritual head of the marriage and the one with authority. God Almighty questions Adam on his obedience to the command given to him.
If a woman is called to be a pastor, she holds then a position of authority over men. The bible clearly states that in the church, this is not to be so. Men are to be in the authority positions:
1Ti 2:12-14 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
Some would say, well that was what Paul allowed. Thanks be to God for the Holy Spirit having him to explain the scriptures from Genesis. He refers to that since Adam, being created first, the authority was given to man by God. God desired men to be in authority, that’s the way our Lord chose it to be.
Many objections come into this clearly stated truth in scripture of men and authority offices in the church. I have heard the following:
-Well what about Deborah, Anna, and so on? (These women were not in the church usurping authority over men. Deborah was a judge, not a pastor. Anna was a prophetess covered under the head leadership authority of men. She is mentioned serving God by fasting and praying night and day (Luke 2:36-37) In that there is no dominion over a man being observed. And all throughout the bible, you will see this.)
-The reason Paul said women are to be silent is because historically women were uneducated. Times are different now. The scriptures Numbers 23:19, Malachi 3:6, and Hebrews 13:8, show the Lord Jesus Christ does not change. Times and changes in the way man does things does not change Holy Word of God. A person’s education doesn’t determine whether they should be an apostle etc, if so, then the disciples of Christ should not be apostles at all (Acts 4:13).
Let’s begin in Genesis 2:
Ge 2:7-25 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.
We can clearly see here that the man was formed first in verse 7. Then in verses 16-17, the Lord God gives Adam the command of what trees he can eat from and what tree he cannot eat of. Here the spiritual responsibility is being handed off onto Adam, the man. Verses later by God the woman is created as help meet for the man. Does this suggest that she has authority over him as a help meet? No, because we see Adam calling Eve woman using the naming authority God had given to him. In Chapter 3 of Genesis the responsibility for giving Eve the command of God, Adam did. Remember the scripture shows Adam receiving the command in Genesis 2 and Eve showing she had knowledge of God's command in Genesis 3. When Adam had sinned, note that Yahweh does not go to the one who was deceived first (Genesis 3:11). The Lord looks to Adam, who is the spiritual head of the marriage and the one with authority. God Almighty questions Adam on his obedience to the command given to him.
If a woman is called to be a pastor, she holds then a position of authority over men. The bible clearly states that in the church, this is not to be so. Men are to be in the authority positions:
1Ti 2:12-14 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
Some would say, well that was what Paul allowed. Thanks be to God for the Holy Spirit having him to explain the scriptures from Genesis. He refers to that since Adam, being created first, the authority was given to man by God. God desired men to be in authority, that’s the way our Lord chose it to be.
Many objections come into this clearly stated truth in scripture of men and authority offices in the church. I have heard the following:
-Well what about Deborah, Anna, and so on? (These women were not in the church usurping authority over men. Deborah was a judge, not a pastor. Anna was a prophetess covered under the head leadership authority of men. She is mentioned serving God by fasting and praying night and day (Luke 2:36-37) In that there is no dominion over a man being observed. And all throughout the bible, you will see this.)
-The reason Paul said women are to be silent is because historically women were uneducated. Times are different now. The scriptures Numbers 23:19, Malachi 3:6, and Hebrews 13:8, show the Lord Jesus Christ does not change. Times and changes in the way man does things does not change Holy Word of God. A person’s education doesn’t determine whether they should be an apostle etc, if so, then the disciples of Christ should not be apostles at all (Acts 4:13).
-The good ole Galatians 3:28, there’s no male or female in Christ. We must first understand that Chapter 3 of Galatians is dealing with the Judaizers false teaching that obeying the law is what must be done to stay in Jesus Christ. The scripture is in no way referring to authority of an office, the Word is speaking on being one by the Spirit. To make it plain, my wife and I can work for the IRS. We are literally then considered employees of the IRS, not female or male, just employees. In this we are one because we work for the IRS. But our positions are different. I may be a manager, and my wife a programmer. Two different positions, but both are employees of the same employer. The same is with Christ Jesus. We are the same in His Spirit, but a man’s role is different from that of a female.. (Romans 12:4-5, 1 Corinthians 12)
While there are more arguments, one thing I’ve noticed gets swept under the rug. There is this desire some women have today to be in the male position. Because of men’s failure to stand up and lead today, some women may feel it necessary to step up and take charge. It can be seen in marriage, and we definitely see it in the pulpit. Some desire so much to be heads of churches, they’re willing to say that God told them this. Look, if Jesus Christ has spoken this to you, then why does it not agree with the scripture? Find one scripture where a woman is called by the Lord to be an apostle, a priest, a pastor or a bishop. The problem is you will not find this. The true desire of some of these women are to be in the male’s role. Let’s look at scripture:
Isaiah 3:12 As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths
Re 2:20-22 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.
We know that Isaiah 3:12 is speaking to Israel and Revelation 2:20-22, the Lord Jesus Christ is speaking to the church of Thyatira. Taking a close look you in either case God is not pleased with the women being authority roles. The failure of male leadership brought about women to take charge, and open the door to destruction. Both scriptures indicate that a women in authoritative positions led to err and destruction behaviors. He gave us the representation in Ephesians 5:23-33 of how Christ and the church should be. The role of the male is seen as protector and sanctifier. This is a good thing that the Lord chose. There are some woman that could do the job a man in Christ does. But, the Lord has not designed His church to be this way. Ladies, do as much in you to learn in quietness, not desiring the man’s responsibilities (1 Timothy 2:11). Men, let us stand up for truth and righteousness. Why did God say through Paul:
1Co 11:3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
The Greek word used for head is kephalē. This word used in the scripture metaphorically refers to authority or direction of God. It is God’s direction that a man be a pastor. Men, let us begin to desire to be responsible of the spiritual edification of our women. Take a look at this:
1Ti 3:1 This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.
If a “man” desires the office, he desires a good work. That is clear enough. Not a woman. God is not changing the scriptures to fit that a woman can desire this and that’s a good thing. No, women Christ has called you to proclaim the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Peter 3:15) and to teach other women (Titus 2:3-5). There is no biblical restriction on women teaching children as well. We must accept that the scriptures teach that positions of authority in the church are to be served by men. Women, you are not left out. God has made it this way, and in Him we should rejoice. Let us stop chasing after being in the spotlight, or up in the pulpit. Let us run after Christ Jesus our Lord, and His holiness and righteousness. God bless you all
While there are more arguments, one thing I’ve noticed gets swept under the rug. There is this desire some women have today to be in the male position. Because of men’s failure to stand up and lead today, some women may feel it necessary to step up and take charge. It can be seen in marriage, and we definitely see it in the pulpit. Some desire so much to be heads of churches, they’re willing to say that God told them this. Look, if Jesus Christ has spoken this to you, then why does it not agree with the scripture? Find one scripture where a woman is called by the Lord to be an apostle, a priest, a pastor or a bishop. The problem is you will not find this. The true desire of some of these women are to be in the male’s role. Let’s look at scripture:
Isaiah 3:12 As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths
Re 2:20-22 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols. And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.
We know that Isaiah 3:12 is speaking to Israel and Revelation 2:20-22, the Lord Jesus Christ is speaking to the church of Thyatira. Taking a close look you in either case God is not pleased with the women being authority roles. The failure of male leadership brought about women to take charge, and open the door to destruction. Both scriptures indicate that a women in authoritative positions led to err and destruction behaviors. He gave us the representation in Ephesians 5:23-33 of how Christ and the church should be. The role of the male is seen as protector and sanctifier. This is a good thing that the Lord chose. There are some woman that could do the job a man in Christ does. But, the Lord has not designed His church to be this way. Ladies, do as much in you to learn in quietness, not desiring the man’s responsibilities (1 Timothy 2:11). Men, let us stand up for truth and righteousness. Why did God say through Paul:
1Co 11:3 But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
The Greek word used for head is kephalē. This word used in the scripture metaphorically refers to authority or direction of God. It is God’s direction that a man be a pastor. Men, let us begin to desire to be responsible of the spiritual edification of our women. Take a look at this:
1Ti 3:1 This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.
If a “man” desires the office, he desires a good work. That is clear enough. Not a woman. God is not changing the scriptures to fit that a woman can desire this and that’s a good thing. No, women Christ has called you to proclaim the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Peter 3:15) and to teach other women (Titus 2:3-5). There is no biblical restriction on women teaching children as well. We must accept that the scriptures teach that positions of authority in the church are to be served by men. Women, you are not left out. God has made it this way, and in Him we should rejoice. Let us stop chasing after being in the spotlight, or up in the pulpit. Let us run after Christ Jesus our Lord, and His holiness and righteousness. God bless you all
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