Question About Women's Role In The Church?

Question

It's so easy for men to talk about Paul's words toward women. of course, American men have NO IDEA what it's like to be limited. to be told every day, "you're not allowed to do that, you're not strong enough, God won't endorse you, because you're just a man." if they heard that it would turn their stomachs.
but women have that burden. we are encouraged to be involved in ministry, but there is always that glass ceiling we cannot break. so we get discouraged. if we're not a pastor's wife, and if we can't sing, where exactly are we supposed to fit in?
I am not saying Paul was wrong. I'm just saying ambitious women have a hard time swallowing such a bitter pill.
are there any Christians out there who can give me some comfort about this subject?
serious answers only.

Answer 1

I don't know how much comfort you can get out of this, but not every man is called to be a Pastor. Many men in the body of Christ have the gift of helps or the gift of service and they work largely unnoticed by anyone but the Lord. You seem to know the Bible fairly well, so I'm not going to go through the Scriptures with you in detail, but we all have a specific gifting(s) and calling on our lives. It's not like some man is trying to hold women down, although I'm certain that such a thing does occur when a leader is carnal and not spiritual. It is God who places us in the body of Christ were He has determined us to be. Anyone, whether they be a man or a woman, who seeks to fill a ministry that God hasn't called them to will not bear fruit in their work.

When a person takes the attitude of complaining about what God hasn't given to them they are falling into that age old trap of the Devil where even though God had given Adam and Eve every tree in the Garden to eat from except one, he got Eve to focus on what she couldn't have instead of the gracious provision that God had made for her life.

Answer 2

I am of the Christian Faith. For just over 6yrs I am 59.

I know the Word of God on this subject, as do you. I would suggest that your difficulty, at least in part, may stem from conflicts with "the world" and it preceptions of what a woman is supposed to be and knowing in your heart what God wants you to be. That saying, about the conflict between the old man nature and the new nature applies to women as well. You are in the middle of that battle.
I would, must, as a male, suggest youseek the coulcel of
godly women in this. That is not a cop out. just recognizing the reality. Men are limited in being able to councel women in certain issues...God of course is the ultimate arbitor and His Will is what should be the goal of any councel.

I can tell you this. That here are so many roles a woman can play. As a new Christian some of the best examples of the Christian Life were the Godly women I met in my new life in The Church. I was so burned by the hurts of my miss spent life and two failed marrages... it was the beautiful examples of the women of the church from young, to me, 35 to 85 and just widowed... it would take much more space than is here to tell how these examples helped me... I can tell you from observation that most congrigations would fall apart if it were not for the women of God.

God has placed man at the head of The earthly mortal church. And it is not God's Will that woman should lead man in the Preaching and teaching of The Word... But just last night a godly woman gave me very good councel in how to deal with a situation, in a way that only a woman could. Her husband then gave me the teaching I needed to carry out the responsability.

I doubted love... the witness of a loving touch from an 85 yearold woman to her husband. when she knew that it would be his last Sunday in an earthly church demonstrated true love to me. It was God's Love from Him through her to her husband....So many other examples of a womans role... not to mention all the food and goodies for the pot lucks and get togeathers... that might seem too old fashioned but it means a lot to most of us men.

Answer 3

Women may not have all of the same options as men in the different roles of a church. But there is still plenty to be done. Anyone can serve their church. There are many different kinds of ministries.

You dont have to sing or be a pastor's wife.
Organizers are needed for any kind of ministry, there are also different women ministries, and a need for women for teenage ministires and children ministries. The impact that can be made there is just as important as any other type of ministry.

The bible says a righteous woman is more precious than rubies.

Answer 4

I don't know how I feel about what positions women should and should not have. I think that approaching it from an ambitious standpoint is just wrong. That implies one's heart is toward power and status, not serving per se. It's part of the curse of Eve. God said woman would want power over a man and could not have it.

Aside from the issue of where one's heart is, I often think to myself that maybe women should be allowed to be a pastor. I don't know if that is the proper interpretation of God's will or not.

My only comforting thing that I can think of is this: wherever, however you serve within the church (children's ministry, praise team, administrative, etc.), God will reward you for doing so. Take joy in doing what you can for Him, and He will bless you.

Answer 5

www.moodyministries.com has a book by Dr. Erwin Lutzer and his wife, Rebecca Lutzer entitled Jesus, Lover of a Woman's Soul - I have just read it and it's amazing what God truly wants from a woman - it's well worth reading and in prayer you will find what it is God wants from you - there's lots out here to be done - he has personally called me to be an encourager - which is quite an awesome job! Many churches recognize it as a Benevolence ministry, but it's far more than that!! The joy that fills my soul each time I send a note or a card, make a visit because this is what God has asked me to do, is so rich and so bountiful, that I can't imagine any woman, having sought God to give her an assignment would feel she is left to swallow a bitter pill! Keep praying, your ambitions may not be God's desires for you and that is the conflict of bitterness you actually taste. I'm not being condemning and please don't take me to be doing so, I hope I'm encouraging you to step back in faith and say, wait a minute, I'm not limited - God doesn't limit us - so what is it He wants in me to honor and glorify him?

Answer 6

There are many women involved in or even leading successful and powerful ministries. Patrica King is one of them, a prophetess with much fruit. And her husband seems to live in HER shadow!!!! Joyce Meyers is a brilliant teacher!!
I reccomend reading about women in the bible such as Esther and Ruth, maybe think outside denominational wals and look into other parts of the world where women maybe aren't so limited in the church. God definitely has a place for women in his Kingdom, why else would he have created them? I've heard that "God got it right with Eve" and it's true.

Answer 7

I guess I don't understand what it is that you feel ambitious women can't do in the church, or how you could feel that the role women play is valuable than that of men. How many of the men who lead services, ministries, hold positions of authority, etc., were taught as children by men - very, very, few. Most kids don't even have any direct spiritual teaching or guidance from men until they reach jr. high or high school and believe me the foundation that got them that far had to have already been firmly laid - by who - most likey a woman. Women's responsibiilties in the church may be different but not less significant.

Answer 8

I've been around the country and in churches all of my life, but I've never once attended a church where there was a shortage of ministry opportunities. What ministry opportunities are gender-limited in the more traditionalist churches? Senior Pastor? Elder? There are typically as many ministry opportunities as there are members in a local congregation. In the nineteenth century women became more prominently involved in churches when they engaged in ministries related to prayer and evangelism. Have you considered trying these?

Answer 9

Uh, have you READ Judges 4-5?
have you ever heard of: Joyce, Meyers, Paula White, Juanita Bynum Weeks, or Marilyn Hickey, or her daughter Sarah? How about Gloria Copeland?

If not, check their websites...
http://www.kcm.org -Kenneth and Gloria Copeland
http://www.mhm.org -Marilyn Hickey and her daughter Sarah
http://www.http://www.nosheets.com/- Juanita BynumWeeks
http://www.paulawhite.org/- self evident
http://http://www.joycemeyer.org/cgi-bin/home.plx?page=home&page_ref=Nav§ion_id=NA
Joyce Meyer is my favorite, she's not a pastor's wife, nor does she sing. Juanita Bynum started her ministry before she got married.
here's one more....
http://www.kimberlydaniels.com/ - she IS the pastor!, And she's an apostle!
and get yourself a Strong's concordance. It will help you in reading the Bible. The New testament was originally written in Greek- and in Acts, especially you will see where Paul talks about a few women who were LEADERS in the growing discipleship...
the translators couldn't hang with that, ane we've been arguing about that kind of thing ever since.
Remeber that if women weren't all that important, we wouldn't have such spiritual warfare against us! Genesis tells us that God made man and woman joint heirs of the kingdom of God.
In Epheisans Paul also said that men shouldn't mistreat their wives, if they did, THEIR OWN PRAYERS would be hindered...
press on honey. press on.

Answer 10

As a Christian woman, your job is to keep house, make babies, and stay quiet in church. You are not to have authority over men, so you can't be in the ministry. What Christian man wants a woman telling him what to do? You are not to ask questions in church, but must ask your husband. You are to obey your husband in all things, be submissive, meek, and modest at all times. Hey, I don't make the rules, your Bible does. If you don't like them, then quit believing what some flaky misogynist wrote in a book full of ancient myths. If you have an ambition, go for it! Do you really think you'll burn in hell for ignoring the Bible? ALL Christians ignore some parts of it, so why not you?