| Expression: |
Before I reply fully to your question, let me first support your efforts to minister as God has led you to do. You are ordained, I assume by some religious board that has authority that can be passed to you; with that ordination comes the responsibility to minister to the people under your care, according to the rules of the granting authority. You must surely be of excellent character and an able Christian leader to be given the authority over others in a Church setting.
With your heart convinced that God leads you to this ministry, and the boardʹs granting of authority to you, then if your participation is ineffective in the ministry of Godʹs Word, then the blame lies upon many, not just yours alone. But, I doubt that is the case; I have participated in many classes with you and know you to be a strong and educated worker for the Lord, with a gift with words and an apparent teaching heart.
Regardless, no matter how much I will it to be different, Scripture support for your authority position as a female minister is lacking. You suggest it is my presupposition against women in the pulpit, but it is not; rather, it is the exact opposite. I have been a Bible Teacher with Godʹs leading for over thirty years, have faced rejection, oppression, persecution, and attacks (usually by the religious side). My work for the Lord requires me to be aggressive, pithy in my writing, bold in my teaching, and supportive of folks that are rejected by most in faith positions. My presupposition is that a strong, mature Christian woman can march into Hell with a Heavenly cause, do the works of the Lord in a ministry that far surpasses the efforts of most ministries done by men, and successfully manage and lead Christians toward a stronger relationship with the Lord.
That is why I have so much difficulty with this issue. I have looked at the different traditional Scripture that keeps a woman from the pulpit, and I cannot find a way to bend Godʹs Word to the point that it nullifies the negative; I already know that there is no positive support of it. I keep hoping that in my education I will light upon something that will open my eyes to examine the issue in a way that possibly I have skewed in my interpretation. But, it never comes.
So this is the way I resolve it; since I know the Lord has expectations and gives me works to do on His behalf, and since I am confident that the Holy Spirit moves in me to do these works, I must do them regardless. Whether man accepts my works or not makes absolutely no difference to me. The Lord didnʹt tell me to receive the approval of men; rather, Iʹm just supposed to do the job He gives me to do. But, even that job is conflicted through the traditional Scripture that prohibits women according to many fundamental and conservative Christian folks.
My heart knows the expectations of Christ; those receiving the works from my hands get to choose whether to accept it or not. I am without authority. According to Scripture, I cannot have authority because that task is limited to men over other men alone according to 1 Timothy 2:12. But, there is evidence that women can serve in the church as ʺservantsʺ or ʺdeaconsʺ (Romans 16:1).
So that is my line that I have adapted. I do the works of the Lord because He gives them to me to do. I am a servant to both Him and the people that He brings me to teach. They can quite frankly, take my teachings or leave them; but, between you and me, once they have received the teachings that are moved by the Holy Spirit, they would be foolish to reject them because they are not my words but His that they wrestle with.
I wonder if many of our sisters that are given works to do in the church as leaders are not leading with the heart of servitude, rather than the heart of authority. In that case, some support can be found in Scripture. Thatʹs about as far as I can bend on this one. I often seek a new way of looking at things, and am open to any
commentaries that are grounded in the Truth of Scripture.
Regardless of my belief, you go girl. If Godʹs works are expressed through you, do not quench the Holy Spirit to please manʹs expectations. But, look at your heart and see whether your works for Him are accomplished as a servant or a master. If they are as a servant, you are not in disobedience to Godʹs Word, and any authority granted you from your ordination board is something they must deal with when the Lord asks. |