The First Vote
“Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.”
Today’s Text: 1 Corinthians 14:26-40 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
Before I say another word, I have to preface this blog by saying that I am a biblical complementarian and believe in the headship of husbands in the home. I also believe that the senior pastor of every church should be male.
This week at the SBC annual meeting, the messengers voted 75% in favor of a constitutional amendment stating that for SBC churches the office of pastor would be restricted to men. Changes to the constitution require a 66% majority vote for two consecutive years at the SBC annual meeting. Basically, this vote will come up again next year, and if 66% or more vote in favor of the amendment, then the constitution of the SBC will be updated to reflect the change.
Personally, I am saddened by the vote. I was praying that the amendment would not pass the 66% margin. But the battle is not over yet. It has to pass next year too. And I will be praying that it doesn’t pass.
Some people may wonder about my opinion on this matter, given the “crystal clear” language of passages like the one above. For sure, I believe that the word of God is inspired by the Holy Spirit, and therefore inerrant and authoritative. But as it turns out, the language of this passage is not as “crystal clear” as some people might think.
It is quite likely that Paul is urging wives not to disagree with their husbands or otherwise shame them during church gatherings (which in all likelihood would be house churches). Also, the word for “silent” means “hold your comments,” not “do not talk at all.”
That interpretation makes much more sense in the context, given that 1 Corinthians 11:5 provides guidance for women who are praying or prophesying to keep their head covering on. They can’t be completely “silent” if they are praying or prophesying.
Obviously, Paul’s guidance tells us that men and women are together in worship and that women are prophesying. The very nature of prophesying is teaching. That is to say, women must be teaching men with their prophecies.
And by the way, I did not figure those points out on my own, but they are brought up by conservative, evangelical scholars.
It’s really interesting to me that no one insists that women keep their hats or head covering on during church services, since it is “crystal clear” to everyone that the guidance about head coverings is culturally driven.
So the bottom line is that Paul is not restricting women from talking in church services, nor is he restricting women from teaching men. Paul is concerned about fostering peace between husbands and wives for the sake of their marriage and for the sake of Christian witness.
Of course, we could ask why Paul tells only the women to “hold your comments” instead of the men. Well, simply because (1) a husband’s headship in the home and church is biblical, and (2) it was a patriarchal society. In fact, there is no “law” in the Old Testament that prohibits women from speaking in religious assemblies. In other words, Paul is speaking to general practices that everyone pretty much knew about.
Everyone has seen the data that tells us that young women in particular are leaving the church. Would the young women in our churches not see such a decision as being unwise, unloving, insensitive, and/or arrogant?
Some people may argue, “Well, they are just being rebellious and disobedient to God’s word.” And sure, as a pastor, I have come across some people who would leave church at the drop of a hat. I can’t help but wonder, though. Was this really such a huge problem in the SBC churches?
Is the elevation of this issue commensurate to the problem in the SBC churches? And if not, isn’t the elevation of this issue suggesting to our young women in our churches that their gifts are not valued? If it was clearly a problem in the SBC churches that required an elevation of the issue, wouldn’t it be obvious to everyone—even to the young, faithful women of our churches?
I guess, I just can’t help feeling like this debate was sparked by a knee-jerk reaction on the part of some influential SBC leaders in response to trends that are happening outside of the SBC!
Sure, 75% of the messengers (who are mostly from white, southern churches, by the way) is a big majority. But if all the African American churches, Chinese American church, Korean American churches, etc., would have been engaged in the debate, I wonder how the vote would have turned out.
Yes, I’m frustrated. But I continue to pray. And if I am wrong about this, I’m certain that I am not going hell for it (nor is Beth Moore).
Father, You are God and sovereign over all. Help the SBC and all evangelical churches in these times of confusion. Bring clarity, Lord, not according to human fears but according to the fear of the LORD. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
