When I noticed that the names “John MacArthur” and “Beth Moore” were trending on Twitter, I reluctantly looked into it, because I had a feeling I already knew what was going on. I preceded to find a video (found here) in which MacArthur, a prominent Christian teacher, was discussing his opinion of Beth Moore, a Christian preacher.
I’m going to preface this by telling you a little about MacArthur and his panel of friends. They have a lot of Biblical knowledge; they say many wise things. But they will often mock and disrespect their brothers and sisters in Christ, for reasons I’m yet to understand. They tend to be keener on winning arguments than winning souls.
In the video, MacArthur is asked about Beth Moore, and he proceeds to degrade her by saying she should “go home”, and “sell jewelry on TV” instead of preaching, to which his response was met by a roar of laughter and applause from the audience.
Do I find value in getting together with a large group of people to throw fellow Christians under the bus? I do not. There are a segment of Christians who put all their energy into calling out perceived “false prophets”. (I didn’t notice that in the Great Commission). But I digress.
The subject today is women in ministry, and the question of whether or not they should be allowed to preach and teach in the church.
If someone is a sexist male chauvinist, who hates women, they will interpret the Bible through that lens. If someone is an extreme radical feminist, who hates men, they will interpret the Bible through that lens. In other words, if you believe that women are inferior to men, you will read the Bible with that inherent bias, and nothing in the Scripture will be able to change your mind.
What needs to be clear, when attempting to understand the true intention of Scripture, is that we can’t take one verse here and one verse there, and build a foundation upon that. We have to understand the context, the audience, the culture, and moreover, the Bible as a whole.
When God created humans, He gave them a command to subdue and rule over the earth. This was a command given to both the man and the woman. (Genesis 1:26-27). When God created woman out of man, He called her a “helper”, which to many would imply a subordinate. However, the word helper is the same used when describing the role of the Holy Spirit. A woman was meant to be a partner to man, not a servant. (Genesis 2:20-22)
When the fall occurred, everything became muddled. Because Eve sinned first, she was given the bulk of the curse, part of which was that she was to be subject to her husband. (Genesis 3:16). Another item to note, is that Adam named the woman Eve after the fall had occurred, and although it does signify headship of man over woman, it was post-curse, and it wasn’t given to her by God Himself. Therefore, this begs the question: should we understand the will of God based on His perfect creation, or as a result of human error?
The Old Testament does not place much value on women, which at first glance would suggest that neither does God. But the law and the prophets all lead us to the need of a savior, for a mediator, and for reconciliation to the Father, which eventually came through Jesus Christ.
Jesus, despite living in a culture where women were treated as inferior to men, managed to elevate the female status through his words and actions. In Matthew 19:8-9, he took the sole responsibility of sexual sin away from women, and established marriage to be an equal responsibility.
Jesus interacted with women, he allowed them to be in his presence, and he included them in his following, all of which had been a foreign concept up until his ministry. (Mark 5:25-34, Luke 7:36-50, John 4, John 8, Luke 10:38-42).
But, rather than looking to Jesus, those on the side of banning women from the pulpit instead look to Paul for instruction. He refers to the role of women in church in 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 and 1 Timothy 2:11-12.
On the surface, those passages are damning, but as is the case with all of Scripture, an understanding of the original language is necessary. Women during this time were uneducated, because in that culture, they weren’t permitted to learn or study. Therefore, Paul is drawing the boundaries as to when it’s appropriate to ask questions. Furthermore, Paul was addressing the problem with idle chatter in the church setting, and prohibiting disrupting the meeting, which did happen among the women at that time.
It’s easy to say at this juncture, that I’m looking too deeply into the verses as an attempt to prove my point. However, understanding the words and statements in their original language and context is not in an attempt to prove any points, but rather with the goal to be certain we have the proper understanding, as is the case with the entirety of the Bible.
John MacArthur’s view, as he stated in the video, is that women are seeking power rather than authority, which is why they are trying to dispute what these verses are saying. But I have decided to dig deeper regarding these verses, because as they are interpreted by males such as Mr. MacArthur, appear to contradict the basis of the scripture as a whole.
Let’s go further into Paul ministry. He worked with women numerous times throughout the New Testament (Acts 16, Philippians 4:2-3, Acts 18, 1 Timothy 2:12, Romans 16, Colossians 4:15). There are so many passages I haven’t even listed all of them, and at no point in these passages did Paul imply that women functioned differently than men in the work of the ministry.
Therefore, if we ignore the entirety of Paul’s life, for two verses that have a particular context, we are doing a disservice. Paul cited both men and women prophesying, and speaking in tongues and participating in the work of the gospel. (1 Corinthians 14:39). In light of God’s original plan for creation, and both the ministries of Paul and Jesus, the argument against women taking part in ministry comes across as weak.
By using the criteria cited by such individuals as MacArthur, according to 1 Timothy 3, single men should not be permitted to be in leadership roles. (By the way, some believe 1 Timothy 3:11 suggests that women were in fact allowed to be deacons).
But no matter what Biblical basis I or anyone else offers, this subject will likely never be settled. What should we do about it then? Keep in mind, that this isn’t a sin issue. Paul doesn’t end his teaching by citing that all who do not follow these practices will not inherit the kingdom of God.
So if this is the hill you’re choosing to die on, your focus is not in the right place. I do believe in the unique roles for men and women, particularly in the case of the home and the family. (Although an entirely different issue), should a woman be the senior pastor of a church? In that case, I would refer to God appointing man as the head of the household, and thus as the head of the church.
Why is it so important to make sure women can’t preach? Why does this always stick out more than virtually every other instruction given by Paul? I believe it’s yet another work of the enemy to keep the children of God bound. Women have gifts that men don’t have, and vice versa. There’s a reason the women were first at the tomb of Jesus. We have a unique sensitivity to the Spirit, and a nurturing nature, and that is extremely useful in the work of spreading the gospel message, as well as Biblical instruction.
When a soul gets to heaven, God won’t ask them whether it was a man or woman who told them about Jesus. The Bible teaches that God will pour out his Spirit upon ALL. The Great Commission is a command for every follower of Christ. John MacArthur’s lack of love, bullying nature, and disregard for a child of God is certainly not the example to follow. That said, if Beth Moore is doing something that goes against the word of God, then she will be held accountable for that.
I’ll finish with this quote from Fuller Theological Seminary:
“In conclusion, it is my deepest conviction that the full evidence of Scripture and an understanding of balance and consistency in interpretation mean that we must rethink some of our traditions and reaffirm with clarity and conviction the biblical basis for the full participation of women in the ministries of the church. The underlying biblical theology of a “new creation in Christ” in which there is “neither male and female” is a powerful affirmation of the commitment to equality in the gospel, the Church, and all of its ministries. Jesus’s inclusion of women among his disciples and witnesses, the coming of the Holy Spirit on both sons and daughters, and Paul’s inclusion of women in his circles of coworkers in the ministry all affirm the full and equal participation of both women and men in all the ministries of the gospel.”
