The Biblical Case against the Ordination of Women

Created: 22 Jul 2012 / Modified: 13 Nov 2013 This discussion has been raging for some time in Seventh-day Adventist circles, and even longer in other Christian denominations. The answer below has absolutely nothing to do with me or my feelings. My personal feelings to women is not whats relevant h ere, but whether or not the scriptures teach that they are to be ordained for ministry. All too often, the implication is presented that the only way to be against the ordination of women is to be against women for some reason or another. Here is what I see the Bible teaching on this subject: Every legitimate instruction we have as Christians can be found in the Bible in one of the following ways: Direct command recorded in the OT Clear principle (multiple passages) found in the OT Direct command recorded in the NT (usually based on an OT principle) Clear principle found in the NT (and based on OT principles encompassing multiple passages)

Women performed important roles in the life of Christ, including ministry. Women also performed important roles in the Bible, including leadership. Very important point: Every single time that we see a female leader in the Bible especially a religious leader one of two things has occurred. Either she has been either directly placed in that role by God with absolutely zero human intervention OR she has taken on that role of herself, and is in direct opposition to God and His people. Examples of God-selected women: Judges 4:4; Judges 4:17; 2 Kings 22:14; Luke 2:36; Acts 21:8-9 Examples of self-selected women: 1 Kings 16:31; 2 Kings 11:1

There is no record of God instructing male leaders to ordain or otherwise establish female leaders, and God most certainly had ample opportunity to do so. For that matter, the only record we have in the Bible of routine female religious leadership is that established by heathen religions or of Gods people in apostasy and we know the source of that tradition. The above is not to suggest or imply in any way that male leadership is 100% flawless. However, if we are going to say that we are led by Gods word and that we base our actions and decisions and direction on the Bible, as opposed to what passes for modern social and political enlightenment in the 21st century, then we're going to need to rely upon Gods Word for support in this issue. The Bible provides no principles or precedent that would allow Gods people to pursue the ordination of women for church leadership.

The Biblical Case Against the Ordination of Women v4 by Andrew S. Baker

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Case in point #1
God God God God ordained Moses. (Exodus 3:1-12) ordained Miriam. (Exodus 15:20) delegated the ordination of Aaron to Moses. (Exodus 28-29) did NOT delegate the ordination of Miriam to Moses.

Miriam got herself into trouble when she tried to compete with Moses role. (Numbers 12:1-10)

Case in point #2
Barak deferred to the Prophetess Deborah when he wasn't supposed to, and the glory that was supposed to go to him, was given to a woman. (Judges 4:8-9) The rebuke given to Barak in Judges 4:9 for his deference to the prophetess, shows how important God deems male headship. In deferring where he shouldnt hav e, the honor that should have gone to Barak instead went to a woman whom God chose. Directly. This talk of male headship may not seem like an "enlightened" position, but it is quite clearly God's position, based upon all of the inspired counsel that God has given to us. The leadership of the church is to reflect the leadership of the home, and it is supposed to reflect the relationship of Christ to His church. It is quite clear that the priest of the home is the father. It should be even clearer that the bridegroom of the church is Jesus. It should also be noted that neither the Bible nor Sis White ever refers to the mother as the priestess of the home. One last point: Everyone likes to throw out the fact that we are a "royal priesthood and holy nation" but that designation was first given to Israel in Exodus 19:6, just before they received the law, along with the Levitical system that restricted the leadership to a specific family within a single tribe. That didn't stop Korah from essentially saying, "Hey, we're a nation of priests, and all holy, so anyone should be able to lead..." (Numbers 16), but that didn't turn out so well for him, and I dont believe that such an approach will go well with us, either.

Summary
Every person is fit to serve God. Every person is fit for some ministry. Every ministry is valuable, but not all types and forms of ministry require ordination. Not every man is fit for a ministry that requires ordination. God has not shown us in His Word that He requires women in roles that require ordination, although He could have easily done so. (For instance, just imagine if Paul had said, "A bishop should be the spouse of one person...") Where female leadership is concerned, God chooses directly and I will accept His choice every single time it is made, just as I readily accept any leadership direction God chooses. Ordination of women, however, is a delegated activity, for which we have no guidance or precedence in scriptures, and therefore I am not able to support it. None of this is to suggest that women are inferior to men, even though some will use it to suggest just that. All it means is that God has ordained headship for man, not woman, and when God wants a woman to lead in some way, He selects them directly, and without delegating it to any man the most common examples of which would be female prophets.

The Biblical Case Against the Ordination of Women v4 by Andrew S. Baker

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