Women Pastors? (2 of 2)

(Continued from last post)

2. Paul’s not giving permission was cultural, as he lived in a patriarchal society, where women had a low position. In other words, “that was then, this is now”. Again, Paul was not a misogynist as some have claimed. The reason he gave for disallowing a woman to teach was two-fold:

a.Adam was formed first. In other words, the creation order gave the headship to man. This was God’s design.

b. The woman (Eve) was deceived when she stepped outside of Adam’s “umbrella of protection”. There is a danger when this headship is ignored.

This male headship has nothing to do with superiority or ability:

• 1 Co 11:3 But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ. 

While God is the head of Christ, the Son is Himself God and equal to the Father in His essence. So although man is the head of a woman, both are created in the image of God and stand equal before Him.

• Gen 2:18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.” 

As you rightly pointed out, God’s design is for women to be men’s helpers. It isn’t that men are smarter or more capable, in fact often they are dumber and cause more trouble! It’s just that God chose men to the head of the family:

• Eph 5:22-24 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. ²³ For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. ²⁴ But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

And Paul taught that this male headship applies to churches as well.

3. A third objection is that pastoring is a function, not an office in the church. God had gifted women to be caring, to be leaders, and we should not stand in the way of God calling women pastors. I believe this distinction is not warranted.

The NT recognizes two offices in the church – overseers, and deacons:

• Php 1:1 Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers and deacons:
• 1 Tim 3:1-13

But notice the following:

• Acts 20:17-18 From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church. ¹⁸ And when they had come to him, he said to them, …
• Acts 20:28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.

Paul was addressing the same group in vs 18-28. So the Holy Spirit has made the elders the overseers of the church, to shepherd all the flock. The function of the office of overseer is to shepherd or pastor the flock. The terms are used interchangeably. There is no artificial distinction between the office of the elder/overseer and the function of pastoring.

4. Paul did not allow women to teach in those days because women were less educated. That’s true then, but education had never been a criterion in the NT. If it were a requirement, few of the Apostles, mostly fishermen, would qualify to be elders, which was Peter’s self-designation:

1 Pet 5:1 Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed.

5. God called women to lead in other Scriptures e.g.

Judges 4:4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time.

2 Kings 22:14 So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess, … (Also 2 Chron 34:22)

Lk 2:36 And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. …

Acts 18:26 and he (Apollos) began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

So why can’t women lead in churches? Obviously, God calls women as well as men to serve Him in various capacities, but the examples given are not elders/overseers/pastors. Is God unfair? Of course not. It is His sovereignty. He calls whoever He wills. It is just that in His design, He gave the leadership to men. For instance, can the other eleven tribes accuse God of being unfair in choosing only Levites to serve Him as priests? After all, they are equally capable. Can’t they become priests if they wanted to? No. God did not call them to that role. They can aspire to many other roles, but not priests.

There are other objections or opinions which I will not go into. But in summary, after considering relevant passages and “pro” and “con” arguments, my conclusion is that God had appointed men to be elders-overseers-pastors. In short, I believe in a complementarian view of the role of men versus women in the church. I do not subscribe to an egalitarian view in which all roles are open to both men and women. Please inform me if you find my reasoning flawed, for which I would be grateful.

Women Pastors? (1 of 2)

Q. Are women pastors biblical? Does God approve of women pastors? I feel strange and uncomfortable calling a woman “pastor”. I can accept a woman as “elder” or “deacon” as they are helpers to the church pastor, as God created Eve to be Adam’s helper. So woman’s role is as a helper, not a leader in the church. Am I outdated? 

A. The short answer is NO. There are well-known supporters on both sides, e.g. for women pastors – Dallas Willard, N.T. Wright; against – John MacArthur, John Piper, etc. My reply may upset some of my fellow pastor friends, whose denominations ordain women pastors, but I do not believe this practice is biblical. Here is why:

The primary passage in this controversial debate is:

• 1 Tim 2:12 But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.

I will analyze what this verse says, then answer some common objections.

First, the context of 1 Tim 2:12. The broader context is First Timothy chapter 2, about instructions on worship: (1) Prayer for all people (1 Tim 2:1-7), and (2) Men and women in the church (1 Tim 2:8-15). So this passage is about public worship in church, not in a private setting.

The immediate context is:

• 1 Tim 2:11 Let a woman learn in silence with all submission. 
• 1 Tim 2:13-14 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. ¹⁴ And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived fell into transgression.

So verses 11 and 12 prohibit a woman to teach and rule over men, which are part of a pastor’s job, and instead to learn in silence and submit to authority.

Now teaching and leading/overseeing are two of the main functions of pastors or overseers:

• Eph 4:11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
• 1 Tim 3:2 An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
• 2 Tim 2:2 The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
• Titus 1:6, 9 namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. … holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.

Pastor-teachers are the Lord’s gift to His church. It is a dual function, as these gifted people equip His people for works of service by leading and teaching them (Eph 4:12). Pastors are shepherds called by the Lord to lead, care for, teach, and protect His flock. They are the overseers, the ones charged with the oversight of the affairs of His church. Among other qualifications, they must be the husband of one wife i.e. men, and able to teach. For succession, Paul instructed Timothy to choose faithful men able to teach others. When he directed Titus to appoint elders, he gave him the same criteria: choose those men who are the husband of one wife and able to exhort in sound doctrine, i.e. teach, among other qualifications.

Some object to this instruction. Here is their argument and why I disagree with them: Paul’s disallowance applies only to the situation in Ephesus where Timothy was the pastor i.e., it was a local condition; it does not apply now. Ephesus was indeed the seat of the temple of the goddess Artemis (Latin Diana, Acts 19), with its pagan practice of women priestesses. Some Ephesians, even after they became Christians, may have followed this practice to allow women pastors. But there is simply no mention of Artemis at all in 1^st or 2^nd Timothy. That was not the reason Paul cited. Besides, Paul left Titus in Crete to appoint elders in every city (Titus 1:5), and it’s the same “men able to teach”. It was not a local situation unique to Ephesus.

(To be continued)

Noah’s Chores?

Q. Is it possible that Noah and his family would have needed to perform routine maintenance on the Ark during their 40 days and 40 nights even though God gave them specific instructions on how to build it?

A. I believe it is not only possible but inevitable that Noah’s family had to do chores in the ark, which would include feeding the animals and waste disposal. The reason is that they lived in the ark not 40 days, but over 370 days, and not all animals hibernate. Even those who hibernate do so only in the winter months, not over a year.

The time Noah stayed in the ark can be calculated as follows:

• Gen 7:1,4 Then the Lord said to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in this time. … For after seven more days, I will send rain on the earth forty days and forty nights; and I will blot out from the face of the land every living thing that I have made.”
• Gen 7:11-12 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep burst open, and the floodgates of the sky were opened. ¹² The rain fell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights.
• Gen 8:13-18Now it came about in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first of the month, the water was dried up from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the surface of the ground was dried up. ¹⁴ In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry. ¹⁵ Then God spoke to Noah, saying, ¹⁶ “Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁷ Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you, birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may breed abundantly on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” ¹⁸ So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. 

So Noah entered the ark 7 days before the rain. The rain started on Noah’s 600^th year, the second month, on the 17^th day. They left the ark on Noah’s 601^st year, the second month, on the 27^th day. A Jewish year based on the lunar calendar has 353-355 days, depending on whether the 8^th and 9^th months of the ecclesiastical year has 29 or 30 days. So they spent:

7 days + 1 year (a minimum of 353 days) + 10 days (from 17^th to 27^th)

= a minimum of 370 days in the ark. Even if they bring young animals into the ark to save space, they need to be fed and the waste disposed of during this long period. The ark is not a boat with sails and steering mechanisms to be maintained. It is more like a floating zoo. So it’s not a matter of architectural instructions on how to build the ark to eliminate maintenance, but feeding and sanitation.