Jesus does not prohibit women to serve
LAST FRIDAY, an indigenous bishop called me and explained his distress that the Jamaica Baptist Union has elected a lady to be the president. He is opposed to women being the leader in the church.
By Sunday, Pastor Ralph Drollinger claimed that the Bible forbids female leadership in marriage and the church, though there is no prohibition of female leadership in commerce, state and over children. Drollinger is an influential church leader. He is a former professional basketball player. In 1996, he and his wife formed a committee in California with the expressed intention of replacing liberals with Christians. Now he is the leader of the Bible study in the Trump White House. His ministry is in 43 USA capitals and each class is led by a pastor, but none by women (Inside the White House Bible Study Group by Owen Amos). Drollinger is spreading his teaching through influential legislators who can influence Christianity worldwide.
However, nowhere in the Bible does Jesus prohibit women from having leadership role in the church. What is in the DNA of women that would make them unprepared to be qualified and fit to be a leader within the church? Nothing. What fundamental biblical principle or doctrine would women violate by having leadership role in the church? None.
To claim that Jesus only called men to be his disciples and use it as a template would be dangerous. Jesus did not call any Jamaican, Chinese or North American to be among his early disciples, but that does not exclude other nationalities. In any case, the resurrected Jesus appeared first to women. They were the first preachers of the resurrection, the most important doctrine of the Christian church.
It is paradoxical that the Roman Catholics have a high view of the Virgin Mary as the mother of God and through whom intercession can be made, but there can be no female priests or female bishops. Similarly, the Seventh-Day Adventists have Ellen G. White as a prophetess and the most cited person in sermons, but women cannot be ordained to the pastorate or lead the denomination.
RESPECT AND HONOUR
There is misunderstanding of the word ‘submit’ as used in Ephesians. There is a failure to read from verse 21 of chapter five which speaks to mutual submission of all. Therefore, submission is not about inferiority or subservience. It is more about respect and honour. It is to outdo one another in showing honour and respect. In any case, both male and female are made in the image of God and both have equal intrinsic worth and immeasurable value. If submission were a negative word, then both male and female would be disqualified from serving in leadership of the church because both are called to submit to each other and to God.
In Ephesians 5:25 it states that husbands should love their wives as Christ loved the church. Does this mean that only husbands should love and the wives do not have to love their husbands as Christ loved the church? Absolutely not.
If ordination is to set aside someone to serve God and not to lord it over others then women are not excluded. If leadership is about serving God and others, faithfully and to help in the formulation of a vision, clarify mission and motivate others to serve God and God’s people, then women are not excluded.
Let women be free to serve God wherever God chooses and in whatever ministry because the significant criteria for service are not those concerning the type of sex organs.