Men & Women in the Church

Lead Vocalist (Kelly)

Welcome & Announcements (Sterling)

Good morning family!

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3 announcements:

1) Members Meeting

TONIGHT at 5:30

Please bring a soup, chili, or dessert to share. The Hospitality team will supply drinks and crackers.

Introduce new members...

2) Adventure Kids

3) PBC Easter Outreach, April 23

Now please take a moment of silence to prepare your heart for worship.

Call to Worship (Psalm 138:1-3)

Prayer of Praise (Trish Figgers)

The Lord, My God, My Salvation

Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor

Prayer of Confession (Ronnie Evans), Failure to trust the Scriptures

Assurance of Pardon (Psalm 34:22)

Glorify Thy Name

A Christian's Daily Prayer

Scripture Reading (1 Timothy 2:8-3:7)

Pastoral Prayer (Sterling)

Prayer for PBC—PBC elders and deacons

Prayer for Kingdom partner—Good News Club

Prayer for US—Against addiction

Prayer for the world—Qatar*

Pray for the sermon

SERMON

START TIMER!!!

Few people have more authority and influence in a traditional Southern Baptist Church than the chairman of deacons.

In seminary I heard horror stories about deacon chairmen who fired pastors, split churches, and even forbid entry to guests based on the color of their skin.

So in 2012, when I first became a senior pastor at a very traditional Southern Baptist Church in Louisville, KY, I walked into the position with eyes wide open.

I knew the chairman of deacons had the power to make or break my ministry.

For the purposes of this story, this particular chairman of deacon’s name has been changed. At my kids’ request, we’ll call him Douglas.

My very first week as a senior pastor got off to a rocky start when Douglas resigned almost immediately after I got started.

The reason for his resignation was even more shocking: Douglas accused me of being a Bible-denying liberal.

Now I have been accused of many things through the years.

Most of the time there’s probably a measure of truth in the things I’ve been accused of. But this?

I believe the Bible is the Word of God, inspired, inerrant, infallible, authoritative, sufficient, clear, and necessary.

How could Douglas accuse me of denying the Bible?

When I asked him that question, he pointed to, what in his mind, was the smoking gun.

I had denied the Bible because I had allowed a woman to make a motion during a church business meeting.

If you’re paying attention, you might be wondering now exactly what I was wondering then: where in the world does the Bible say a woman can’t make a motion in a church business meeting?

Douglas replied by pointing me to 1 Timothy 2:12, which is part of the passage we just read a moment ago. It says:

“I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet.”

Was Douglas right? Does this passage prohibit a woman from making a motion in a church business meeting?

Does it do even more than that? Does it prohibit a woman from speaking at all in the gathered church?

And if it doesn’t mean those things, what does it mean?

Turn to 1 Timothy 2

About 30 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Apostle Paul wrote this letter to a young pastor in Ephesus named Timothy.

Paul clearly tells Timothy why he wrote this letter in 1 Timothy 3:14–15, “. . .I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God.”

That’s a crucial point to remember, because this letter isn’t about what men and women can or cannot do in society.

Douglas was at least right on that point.

This entire letter is about life in the local church.

The Big idea I hope to show you from our text is that Because men and women are equal and different, we have equal value and different responsibilities in the church.

We’ll do that by exploring...

How men and women are EQUAL in the church, and

How men and women are DIFFERENT in the church

But before we begin, let's think about how we need to respond to what we’re going to hear.

If you’re a member of this or another church, this passage is for you! Whether you’re a man or a woman, I want you to be thinking as we study our text how you need to apply these truths to your life as a member within your church family.

If you’re not a member of a local church, I want you to be challenged in this area. You’re coming across a passage that you really can’t obey unless you’re a part of a local church. That’s actually a pretty common thing in the New Testament. If you’re a follower of Jesus, you should be a member of a local church.

If you’re interested in how to move towards membership at PBC, please talk with me after the service.

Alright, let’s begin by considering...

1) How Men and Women are EQUAL in the Church

There are at least four ways men and women are equal in the church.

Let’s consider first how...

A) Both men and women can become CHURCH MEMBERS.

1 Timothy 2:1–4—First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Paul begins by describing what a local church looks like. It’s a place where God’s people gather and (among other things) pray for their leaders.

This verse is one reason why we regularly prayer for our government leaders, and the leaders of other nations, even if we don’t agree with them. The local church is supposed to be a place of prayer!

Paul also describes the local church as a people marked by peace, quiet lives, godliness, and dignity.

Then he says God desires all sorts of people—not just men—to be saved and welcomed into this community of faith.

Which means also that both men and women are able to receive the signs of the New Covenant community. The ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper aren’t only available to men, but to both men and women.

If you read the New Testament, you’ll learn about all sorts of women who were included in church membership. Women like Mary, Tabitha, Rhoda, Lydia, Priscilla, Phoebe, Eudoia, Syntyche, Nympha, and many others.

Now Ladies, lest you think this is some sort of cheap consolation prize, let’s consider what it means to be a member of a local church.

Here’s what the PBC Statement of Faith says about church membership:

The church is governed by God’s Word, which teaches that elders are given to oversee the church, deacons are to serve the church, and members are to guard the church’s membership, doctrine, unity, and purity.

Elders (or pastors) are like the steering wheel of the church. We’re setting the general direction of the church in accordance with God’s Word.

Deacons are like the shock absorbers. Their job is to serve the church in such a way that things run smoothly and conflict is minimized.

By the way, that’s a bit different than how deacons function in your traditional Southern Baptist Church. In many of these churches, the deacons are the highest authority. But the Scriptures nowhere teach that a deacon holds a position of church-wide authority.

Members are like the brakes and the gas. Members can either affirm the direction the elders are going and give it the gas, or we can apply brakes and say, “slow down” or “don’t go that way.”

Which means the final earthly authority in the local church is not the elders or the deacons, but the members.

And that authority is equally given to both men and women.

MEMBERS MEETING COMMERCIAL

Men and women are equal in the church because both men and women can become church members.

Also...

B) Both men and women can REPENT & BELIEVE.

We covered this in depth a few weeks ago when we studied Galatians 3:28 and what it means to be men and women in Christ.

I told you then how nearly every other major religion in world history historically limited access to women. You can listen to that sermon to hear some specific examples.

But in Christianity, the ground at the foot of the cross has always been level.

Paul makes this clear to Timothy in. . .

1 Timothy 2:5–6—For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.

Notice, Jesus gave Himself as a ransom, not for men only, but for all who repent and believe in Him.

Women are not brought into the New Covenant by grabbing onto the coattails of their believing husbands. They are brought into the family of God when they personally repent of their sins and put their faith in Jesus.

Men and women, boys and girls, the most important question you’ll ever answer is not, what should men and women do in church? but how should I prepare for judgment day?

The Bible teaches that God is holy. He is perfect, eternal, and glorious.

And yet, our first parents Adam and Eve rebelled against this perfect and holy Creator. As a result, the curse of sin befell the entire human race. Now all of us are sinners by nature and choice. And the wages, the penalty for our sin is death and eternal separation from God.

But God, in His great love for us, sent His Son Jesus Christ to give Himself as a ransom for all. He lived a sinless life, died a sinner’s death, then rose from the dead so that whoever believes in Him can have eternal life.

Have you responded to this Good News? You can today.

Both men and women can repent and believe the Gospel.

Also...

C) Both men and women are gifted to SERVE.

After reminding them of the gospel in verses 5-6, Paul says in...

1 Timothy 2:7—For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

Paul’s ministry was unique and unrepeatable.

An Apostle was a special office in the church that only existed until the Scriptures were completed.

But Apostles weren’t the only ones who were gifted to serve the church.

Paul makes it clear that all Christians are gifted to serve the local church in...

1 Corinthians 12:4–7—Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

Notice the Holy Spirit gives all God’s people gifts to serve the church. Not just men, but women too!

Just as an aside, if you’re a member you should be asking yourself “how am I serving my church family? Am I using the gifts, skills and resources God has given me to serve His people?”

Often we get caught up on what women can’t do in the life of the church, instead of looking at all the things women can do and must do in the church!

Here’s a simple rule: unless the Bible prohibits a woman from a particular kind of ministry in the church, we should gladly open the door for her to do that ministry if she has the desire and gifting to do so.

Somebody might reply, “What about a woman being a deacon”?

If a deacon is functioning like deacons traditionally functioned in many Baptist churches—as a position of overall authority in the church—I would say no. But that’s not what a deacon is in the Bible, and it’s not the way a deacon functions at PBC.

If you’ve been at PBC for awhile, you know this is not the first time we’ve talked about this issue.

I discussed it with the search team in 2016 before I became your pastor.

We studied it in 2018 as we examined what the Bible says about elders and deacons.

And again in 2021 as the elders considered leading the church to recognize female deacons.

The elders agreed on a statement regarding female deacons that was presented at a Members Meeting in December 2021.

You can find a copy of that statement in your bulletins.

But after hearing from some of our members, we decided not to vote on that statement. Our convictions have not changed, but we believed the unity of the church was more important than a title.

So we currently have females doing deacon-like work, we screen them and vote on them in the same way we do with deacons, we just call them coordinators instead of deacons.

Now PBC, I love you dearly. And I remain deeply committed to our unity.

Yet I am a bit troubled by our compromise.

At best it’s silly. Why would you call a position “deacon” if a man does it but “coordinator” if a woman does the exact same thing?

At worst it’s committing the sin of partiality, which the Bible condemns in James 2. It’s treating one group of people different from another without biblical grounds to do so.

I long for and pray for the day when we are ready to lean into these convictions about women serving as deacons.

Not because I’m woke or a feminist or a Bible-denying liberal. I think most of you know me better than that.

But because I want our church to only draw lines where God’s Word draws lines.

I want us to be a church where women are celebrated and recognized in every way the Bible authorizes us to do so.

And yet, all the pastors remain committed to the unity of PBC. Although this issue is important, it is not more important than our unity as a church. My prayer is that in time the PBC members will agree with this statement and use their authority as members to move us in this direction.

Whether or not you agree with me about female deacons, I hope you do agree God has gifted women to serve and we should recognize and equip them to serve however and wherever Scripture permits.

Men and women are equal in the church because both men and women are gifted to serve.

Finally...

D) Both men and women are tempted to SIN.

Until Jesus comes and makes us perfect, both men and women will be tempted to sin in the church.

Which means both men and women need to be corrected by the Scriptures.

But notice that even though we’re equally tempted to sin, we are often tempted in different ways.

We see a glimpse of that in...

1 Timothy 2:8–10—I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling; likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works.

The men in Paul’s day were more tempted to abandon prayer in the church. I think that’s still true today.

Now notice, Paul is not saying that only men should pray in church.

1 Corinthians 11:5 makes it clear that women were expected to pray in church gatherings, which is one reason we encourage them to pray here at PBC.

Paul is addressing a temptation that men have to avoid praying with God’s people.

So Paul says, men, you need to pray!

The men in Paul’s day were also more tempted to anger and aggression. I think that’s still true today.

We may be pretty good at masking our anger in public on Sundays, but it surfaces throughout the week at our job, on the highway, or with our family.

Men, to paraphrase John Owen, be killing your anger or your anger will be killing you.

The women in Paul’s day were more tempted to dress inappropriately in the church. I think that’s still true today.

As a general rule, women are more likely to be tempted to dress extravagantly or immodestly.

Paul is not telling women to dress in frumpy, unattractive clothing. But he is saying not to dress in a way that draws unhealthy attention.

This would include not dressing in a way that invites attention to body parts that are meant to be kept private. One reason for that is because as a general rule, men are more likely to be tempted by what they see.

That doesn’t mean that a woman is responsible for a man’s temptation to lust. He’s responsible for his own sin! But ladies, you can help your brothers by being conscience of how you dress.

Because both men and women are tempted to sin, and those temptations are often gender-specific, we need God’s Word and God’s people to regularly confront us and call us to repentance when we sin.

Thankfully, men and women have equal value in the church.

But because men and women are equal and different, we must also consider...

2) How Men and Women are DIFFERENT in the Church

In 1 Timothy 2:11-15, we learn the one way men and women are called to live differently in the church.

But before we examine the text, you need to know these are some of the most hotly debated verses in the New Testament in the last fifty years.

As one example of the scope of this debate, consider this massive volume Women in the Church now in its 3rd edition. Its 400 pages are exclusively devoted to interpreting and applying these verses.

Since the advent of feminism, there has been basically Three Main Approaches to 1 Timothy 2:11-15:

SHOW TABLE

Critical feminist—The Bible is traditionalist. Its patriarchalism oppresses women; the Bible is wrong.

Evangelical feminist—The Bible is feminist. Its egalitarianism liberates women; the Bible is right.

Evangelical traditionalist—The Bible is traditionalist. Its advocacy of loving leadership lets women thrive; the Bible is right.

As quoted in Robert W. Yarbrough, The Letters to Timothy and Titus. [1]

Which view is correct?

We can easily rule out the Critical Feminist position because we believe the Bible is the Word of God. It is without error. It cannot be wrong.

Which leads to either a feminist or a traditionalist position.

While there are many Jesus-loving, Bible-believing Christians who embrace the Evangelical Feminist position, at PBC we believe it is a grave error that seriously mishandles the Word of God.

Here’s why the evangelical feminist position can be so dangerous: the way you have to interpret these verses to support evangelical feminism is the exact same way that liberals interpret the Bible in support of committed same-sex relationships.

It’s no surprise, then, that most of the churches and denominations that embraced evangelical feminism in the 60s, 70s, and 80s were embracing the LGBTQ+ agenda in the 90s and 2000s.

It’s not a slippery slope argument if the slippery slope is real.

Alright, let’s consider verses 11-15 from the evangelical traditionalist perspective—often called complementarianism.

I think it will help if we break down these verses into two sections.

In verses 11-12 we learn about One Restriction and...

In verses 13-14 we learn Three Reasons for that restriction.

Let’s first examine the Bible’s...

A) One RESTRICTION for women in the church

1 Timothy 2:11—Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness.

First, I want you to notice that Paul encourages women to learn.

Ladies, we do not want you to be ignorant or uneducated. We want you to devote your life to understanding the deep things of God. It is good for you to be involved in Bible studies, discipleship groups, and seminary classes where you can learn God’s Word.

In the gospels, Jesus repeatedly takes time to to teach women. Why? Because He wants women to be learners!

But why does Paul say they must learn quietly with all submissiveness?

In his helpful commentary, Robert Yarbrough says, “The call then is not for total verbal silence from women, but for them to exhibit a peaceful and gentle attitude in their task of learning.” [2]

Now, of course, this is something that both men and women are commanded to do.

But just as Paul commands men to pray in church in verse 8 (even though women should too), he commands women to learn quietly and submissively in church (even though men should too).

But there is a sense in which a woman’s quiet and submissive learning is a bit different than a man’s. Because sometimes a man is the one teaching the gathered church, while a woman must not. That’s the point Paul makes beginning in....

1 Timothy 2:12—I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet.

It is widely agreed that this is the most controversial verse in 1 Timothy, and perhaps in the entire New Testament.

It’ll help if we zoom in on a few of the words Paul uses here.

First, Paul says a woman shouldn’t teach.

What does he mean by teach?

Once again, we need to interpret Scripture with Scripture.

When we do, we learn that this doesn’t mean women cannot teach at all.

Titus 2:3-4—Older women likewise . . . are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children

So obviously it’s appropriate for women to teach other women.

2 Timothy 3:14—. . . continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it.

If you look at 2 Timothy 1:5, you’ll discover that Timothy learned the Scriptures from his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice.

So obviously it’s appropriate for a women to teach children.

In the book of Acts, we learn about a preacher named Apollos, who was taught by a woman and her husband.

Acts 18:26—[Apollos] began to speak 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 obviously it’s appropriate for a woman to teach a man—even something like theology—in certain contexts.

Colossians 3:16—Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

So obviously it’s appropriate for men and women to teach and admonish one another in the local church.

So what kind of teaching should a woman not do?

The answer becomes clearer when we look at the word authority in verse 12...

Paul says a woman shouldn’t exercise authority over a man.

Once again, I do not think Paul is making a universal statement here.

I don’t think Paul is saying no woman can ever have authority over any man.

If that were true, you couldn’t have a female boss, or pull over when it’s a female police officer, or submit to a female politician.

I think it’s best to view this is a particular kind of authority.

And we can observe what kind of authority Paul’s referring to by examining another passage that talks about both teaching and authority.

1 Timothy 5:17—Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.

It’s clear from this verse that elders are called to teach and exercise authority in the church.

So what does Paul mean when he says a woman shouldn’t teach or exercise authority over a man? He’s saying that a woman cannot function as an elder.

Now I worded that sentence very carefully, because some would like to say a woman cannot be an elder, but she can preach or teach in church under the authority of the elders.

But notice, Paul doesn’t prohibit a woman from merely holding the office, but functioning as someone who holds the office.

This is the one thing that a woman cannot do in the life of the church.

Paul doesn’t prohibit women from being deacons.

Or from making a motion in a church business meeting.

Or from talking in church.

The one prohibition for a woman in the local church is that she must not function as a pastor or elder.

But why? Let’s examine now the...

B) Three REASONS for this restriction

An evangelical feminist will look at verse 12 and argue the reason Paul restricted women from functioning as elders had something to do with the historical context in Ephesus.

Maybe women weren’t allowed to teach because they weren’t able to be educated.

Or maybe these women couldn’t teach because they were teaching false doctrine.

Or maybe they couldn’t exercise authority because they were usurping authority from men without authorization from the church.

The problem with all these interpretations is that Paul doesn’t list any of those things as reasons for the restriction.

Instead, Paul lists three reasons for his restriction and every single one of them is rooted in God’s design for men and women in the book of Genesis.

The first reason a woman shouldn’t function as a pastor is because...

i) God uniquely designed men to lead

1 Timothy 2:13—For Adam was formed first, then Eve

Paul’s point is not that first is best. If that were true than God would have created humanity before anything else, since we alone are made in the image of God.

His point is there is something in the order of creation that tells us about the purpose for creation.

God created man first to be the sacrificial head. Then he created woman to be the submissive helper.

This doesn’t mean, ladies, that you shouldn’t lead anywhere. Many of you are phenomenal leaders and we want you to lead in all the areas that God allows.

But God wants qualified men to serve as pastors because those created to be sacrificial leaders at home should also be sacrificial leaders in the church.

The second reason a woman shouldn’t function as a pastor is because...

ii) Ignoring God’s design leads to destruction

1 Timothy 2:14—and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.

Now we have to think really carefully here, because this verse is very easily misunderstood.

Some have wrongly taught based on this verse that women are more gullible or prone to theological error. But if that were true, why would Paul elsewhere tell women to teach other women? You would have gullible people teaching gullible people!

Paul is not saying Adam wasn’t deceived at all. But he’s saying Adam wasn’t the one who was approached by the snake.

And he’s not saying that only the woman became a transgressor, because both Adam and Eve ate the fruit and sinned against God.

He’s saying sin entered the world when God’s design for humanity was ignored.

GOD’S DESIGN SLIDE

God’s plan was for Adam to submit to His authority, for Adam to lead Eve, and together both Adam and Eve would rule over the animals.

But when sin entered the world a snake told the woman what to do, who then led her husband into sin against the authority of God. The whole thing got flipped upside-down!

If that’s what happened when we ignore God’s plan for men and women, we better stick to God’s design when it comes to leadership in the church.

Here’s another way to think about this point...

In her latest book, Rosaria Butterfield basically says that God calls men to be pastors, not because men are so good, but because men are capable of such evil.

Think about the darkest evils in human history. Murder, genocide, rape, abuse, war. Who are usually the perpetrators of massive, catastrophic evil? Men!

Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Pol Pot, Nero, Mao Zedong, Kim John Un, Osama bin Laden.

But who usually stood up to these villains? Men!

Masculine strength is capable of great evil, and God usually brings about the defeat of that great evil with godly, sacrificial, masculine strength.

We need strong, godly, brave, courageous, dedicated, sacrificial men to serve as pastors so they can stand against the evil of strong, godless, aggressive, abusive, men.

The final reason a woman shouldn’t function as a pastor is because...

iii) God’s unique design for women is glorious

People are sometimes offended by what the Bible says a woman must not do. But don’t forget there’s something the Bibles says a man cannot do. This isn’t politically correct, but it is undeniably, categorically, universally true: a man cannot bear children. No matter what surgeries he has, no matter how he identifies, no matter what the culture calls him, it is an impossibility.

The glorious gift of childbearing is part of God’s unique design for women!

1 Timothy 2:15—Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.

What in the world does that mean?

Paul certainly doesn’t mean a woman earns salvation by having babies.

Sometimes when Scripture uses that word “saved” it’s not talking about the moment an individual becomes a Christian, but the process of a Christian growing in holiness. This is what the Bible sometimes calls sanctification.

Paul does something similar in…

1 Timothy 4:16—Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.

Paul doesn’t mean that Timothy will earn salvation by watching his life and teaching. But by watching his life and teaching he and his hearers will grow in holiness.

So here’s my loose paraphrase of 1 Timothy 2:15—“When women are faithful to live according to God’s design, they will grow in holiness as long as they continue believing and following Jesus.”

Does this mean that I have to give birth to kids to grow in holiness? Or that I would be more holy if I did have a baby? What about women who cannot have children? Does this mean they are somehow less than?

Absolutely not!

SHOW SYNECHDOCHE SLIDE

Paul is using a figure of speech called Synechdoche where the part represents the whole.

For example, if you said “check out my new wheels” you’re not referring to only the wheels on your car, but the wheels represent the entire car.

Or if a ship captain says “all hands on deck,” he’s not asking for the hands to be chopped off and thrown onto the deck, but the hands of his crew represent the crew members themselves.

When Paul talks about childbearing he is using the clearest, most unique attribute of womanhood (something only a woman can do!) as an example that stands for the entire thing.

Childbearing is a way you live out your design as a woman, but it is certainly not the only way.

Paul’s point is that you will grow in holiness as you’re faithful to follow Jesus while embracing your womanhood. And for that reason a woman should not function as a pastor.

Because men and women are equal and different, we have equal value and different responsibilities in the church.

After Douglas told me he believed 1 Timothy 2:12 prohibited a woman from making motions at a church business meeting, I carefully walked through the passage with him.

I did my best in a few minutes to explain to him what I believed that verse means.

And Douglas’ reply was probably the most shocking thing he said to me. He said, “that’s your interpretation.”

I gently but firmly replied, “No Douglas, that’s not merely my interpretation. It’s what the Bible means. It’s what the author intended. And it’s what Christians have understood these verses to mean for nearly two thousand years.

I didn’t convince Douglas that day, but I do hope to convince you of one crucial truth.

Whether you agree with what I’ve taught here today or not, we cannot merely dismiss interpretations we don’t like out of hand.

Let us do the hard and painful work of diving deep into the text to understand what it says, then humbly submit to it.

So if you remain unconvinced, allow me to make one final appeal:

Consider Jesus.

He loved, honored, and valued women in ways that were absolutely unheard of in His day.

He healed them, taught them, encouraged them, and invited them to follow Him.

And yet, no women were called by Jesus to be Apostles. Why is that?

Is it because Jesus was too afraid to disrupt the status quo?

Is it because Jesus knew society just wasn’t ready for it yet?

Or is it because, like an elder, an Apostle is a ministry of teaching and Jesus knew it would violate God’s design for men and women?

Then ask yourself this: am I willing to trust Jesus, even when it’s hard? And believe that what He chooses is right and good?

I pray, with God’s help, that you will.

Prayer of Thanksgiving

Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus

Benediction (2 Corinthians 13:11)