Pulpit Pariahs
Each time I preach on the office of the pastor, the obligatory questions about women in leadership are always a part of the discussion. It is rare that biblical research is done first before these questions are asked. It is as if the answers are difficult to find. Rather, the noticeable absence of women in pulpits is first observed with the certain impression that something is seriously amiss. It does not seem to cross the mind that two thousand years of church history might have long ago established a pattern that has been fleshed out by countless discussions during these twenty centuries. When all these discussions are done, it is men who stand in pulpits and church leaders are men who are scripturally qualified.
We might think this matter was hashed out with intense argument before finally settling on the proper protocol in the New Testament church. This is patently wrong as there was no council that finally put a stamp on the accepted practice. The issue was settled on the sixth day of creation when God created Adam first and then took Eve from his side to be his helper. The order of creation established the authoritative preeminence of the man in the creation. This preeminence has nothing to do with intellect or natural ability (that is, beyond physiological differences). It pertains to the role each is to have in the societal order.
Lest we fail to make the correct authority connections in the establishment of the church, the apostle Paul addressed this issue in 1 Timothy 2. In verses 11 and 12, he is unmistakable concerning the subordinate nature of the woman’s position in teaching and authority. He solidifies the woman’s subjection to the man by reinforcing it in verse 13 with the created order. “For Adam was first formed then Eve.” No lengthy discussions are needed. No excuses are made because the subjection of the woman to the man has always been a principle of the created order.
To impose a new subjective standard, the contestants for women pastors must find a way to alter the most ancient of human relationship principles repeatedly emphasized throughout the scriptures. There is no motive for change except the satisfaction of a society that desires and insists upon it. They seek an elusive, unbiblical, undesirable equity that is nothing less than the shackles of sin. It is reprehensible enough to put a woman in the pulpit by twisting and ignoring the creational principle that rules men and women for the good of all society, but what of that which desecrates the divine order? Does not Christ model the godliness of the subordination we are discussing?
Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 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.” If the headship of the man over the woman is undesirable in the carnal relationship, then it is equally undesirable in the incarnational subordination of the Son to the Father. 1 Corinthians 11:3 is meaningless chatter if any of these three subordinate positions is overthrown.
All this twisting is done to satisfy the subjective feelings of women who want authority! No godly, God honoring, God fearing, respectful, holy woman would dare entertain such wicked thoughts. If she does, she disqualifies herself from the pulpit she attempts to stand in as a representative of Jesus Christ. This is a catch-22 of overwhelming proportions. No wonder our Lord had no other name for women preachers than Jezebel!
Pastor V. Mark Smith