Women Leadership in the Church

Dr. Couch, what about the woman thing in 1 Timothy 2:12-14? ANSWER:  What about it? The Bible is clear. Women are not to be elders in churches, not to have authority or teach over men. For 2000 years the church has thoroughly understood that until the authority of Scripture was undermined and evil men starting allowing women to be "pastors."    Yes, the fault is not with the misled women but with the stupid men who allowed this to happen to the church. Men will be judged for giving up on their authority and responsibilities in the church. No writer of, say, the past thirty years and back, would argue any other position in the subject. The old Greek scholar Patrick Fairbairn on 1 Timothy 2:12-14 writes: Thus did God in the method of creation give clear testimony to the headship of man—to his right, and also his obligation, to hold directly what God says, and stand under the command of God, and to Him only; while woman, being form for his helpmate and partner, stands under command to her husband, and is called to act for God in him. And simply by inverting this relative position and calling—the helpmate assuming the place of the head or guide, and the head then yielding to her control—was the happy constitution of paradise overthrown, and everything involved in disorder and evil. In the general management of affairs man should concede to her the ascendancy, this would be wrong! She lacks and is without, by the very constitution of nature, the qualities necessary for such a task—in particular, the equability of temper, the practical shrewdness and discernment, the firm, independent, regulative judgment, which are required to carry the leaders of important spiritual things above first impressions and outside appearances and fierce conflicts to cleave unswervingly to the right. Her very nature, with the finer sensibilities and stronger impulses of her emotional and living nature—tend in a measure to disqualify her here of being a leader in the church. … It was Adam who was mainly charged with this responsibility, and who should have been, in everything relating to it, the prime agent.    Dr. Mal Couch

Women and 1 Timothy 2:12

Dr. Couch, what does the word authority mean when it is speaking of women not using such and teaching over men in 1 Timothy 2:12?

ANSWER: I am hearing of more and more Evangelical churches throwing in the towel and capitulating to the feminist agenda on 1 Timothy 2:12-15. They are given such pastoral authority not be force of hand but because of the biblical caving in of pastors, seminaries, and elder/deacon boards. They are also wrongly put on pastoral search committees which is dead wrong as well. The sheep are not supposed to select their pastors! See Titus 1. Elders are to appoint elders/pastors. They are not to be voted in by popular vote. So, many of our Evangelical churches are doing it all wrong!

The Greek word is authenteo and is in the Present Infinitive form. “They are not to be in the process of exercising continually authority.” Nor are they to be teaching, giving doctrine (proclaiming dedake), also a Present Infinitive.

They are not to be authenticating control over men in the position of church leadership. That is what the elders, the male leaders, are supposed to be doing. Authenteo is used only here in the NT. Definition: “One who governs another, exercises dominance” (Thayer). Or, “Women should not rule over men” (Balz & Schneider). “To tell a man what to do” (Jerusalem Bible). “To assume authority, give orders” (BAG). “To take in hand, to have absolute sway” (Classical Greek).

The women are equally prohibited not to teach. The Greek forms are the same with both words: Present Infinitives. “They are not to be doing these things!”

Thanks for asking.
Dr. Mal Couch

Women in the Church and Feminism

Dr. Couch, what's going on with women in the church? They seem to be buying into the feminist culture.

ANSWER:  You have it right! That is exactly what they are doing. Peter and Paul's injunctions about the blessedness of women and the important roles of woman has not changed. And, Paul's orders are not simply given in a cultural context. Paul argues for the importance and the limitations of woman from a doctrinal position not from simply a cultural position that was only applicable to his day.

   What is amazing to me is that many older Evangelical women in our churches have been infected by the culture and have joined their feminist sisters in trying to resist what the Bible is saying to them. What Peter and Paul have said is authoritative and is part of the Word of God. If Christian women are resisting, they are resisting the Lord's injunctions not simply the words of their husbands or of a pastor. On Jeremiah 44:19, Dr. Unger makes this statement about the sinful women of Israel: "When women lead, the day of doom is near."

   How much more clear can you get with 1 Peter 3:1-7 where Peter says, "Wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives" (v. 1). He calls women "the weaker vessels" which they are (v. 7), even though the cop-er-ettes and soldier-ettes think they can beat up the bad guys on the streets, or be soldiers in the trenches, which they cannot! But how dare the men who allow women and mothers in hazardous situations or combat roles just because that is what they want! My counselor wife, Dr. Lacy Couch, says the problem is that women want the authority they see men having. And, they do not like themselves as women! (Sounds something like Eve to me!)

   Husbands are to be kind to their wives "and grant them honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life" (v. 7b). They are to protect their wives. They are not to mistreat their wives, or any other believer, and "not return evil for evil, or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing" (v. 8). Paul wants women to dress modestly and "wear" before others good works, "as befits women making a claim to godliness" (1 Tim. 2:9-11) and receive "instruction with entire submissiveness" (v. 11). He bans women from teaching or exercising authority over men and, they are to remain in quietness (v. 12). The reason: Adam has the primacy and Eve was very much deceived though Adam was not, as described in the temptation account in Genesis. Adam is the greatest sinner but Eve was emotionally deceived, thus Paul does not want women to be in a leadership position! (vv. 13-14).

   Period, period, period! There is nothing more to say!

   Believers can be seduced by the world; they can buy into the culture, and be fooled into being politically correct. (I need to make a correction on that statement.) Women are not fooled as with blindness. Their will is captured by the culture and they know exactly what they are doing. They want what they want when they want it!

   Women today are ruling in many of their churches by the yak, yak, through their elder or deacon husbands at home. And the men come to church and make decisions based on what their wives want. "Yes, dear, yes dear!"

   For a woman to obey her husband as Sarah did (1 Pet. 3:6), is not slavery, it actually is protection! And it is following the instructions of the Lord not her husband! This entire subject is a spiritual issue not simply doing something because this is what the husband wants! On the flip side, men are also to be kind and loving to their wives. They are to lift them up and be honoring. A cruel or thoughtless husband brings woe upon his family! Men are to be leaders and not wimps at home, at church, and elsewhere.

   Thanks for asking.
   Dr. Mal Couch

What Can Women Say in Church?

Dr. Couch, is the Bible saying that women are not to say anything in the church, when it says that must be silent?

ANSWER:  Paul's main concern is that he does not want women, who can be more emotionally wired, to be in charge of the teaching and leading in the congregations. He wants male leadership in the churches. By their spirituality, women can have a great influence over their husbands and over children. Read 1 Timothy 2:9-15. The apostle commends women for their good works. "Rather by means of good works, as befits women making a claim to godliness. Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness" (vv. 10-11).

  Feminist claim that Paul's words only fit that culture but this is not so. Paul argues for male leadership on the basis of the primacy of Adam. What he says is applicable throughout the entire period of the dispensation of the church."For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve" (v. 13). Adam was deceived but Eve was "quite deceived" (v. 14). Paul says that the woman is to receive instruction "quietly" (v. 11). The Greek word is heesukia. It means "to be unemotional," "to be quiet in the sense of being emotionally controlled," to not be animated, not simply to be silent. He repeats this idea in verse 14.

  Paul seems to be repeating this thought in 1 Corinthians 14:35-36. He says the woman is to "keep silent" (v. 34). He uses the Greek word sigao from the Greek word siagon, meaning jaw-bone. She is not to be slapping the jaw, flapping the mouth! She is not to be dominating the conversation, just going blah, blah, blah! So I do not think Paul is saying she cannot speak at all but she is not to dominate in the discussion. You have to put this word together with his thought that she is "not to be speaking" in the rest of the two verses. Paul wants his readers to "get it." He adds, "But if anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized" (v. 38). To conclude: women can converse in the church service but they are not to emotionally dominate the conversation or become overly excitable.

I hope this helps, and, thanks for asking.

Dr. Mal Couch

Philosophy of Feminism

Dr. Couch, a lot of younger educated Evangelical women seem to have bought into the philosophy of feminism. How do we address that with them? ANSWER:  You are correct, and I have addressed this issue from time to time on this web. Many are unfortunately brainwashed by the culture and don't even know it. They think that to have worth they must have a profession. To care for and raise the children is no longer a calling and a great responsibility. Nor do a lot of women see themselves as a "help and support" to their husbands, as Genesis mandates. I know that there can be occasions when a woman may have to work (though some will disagree with me on that), still the Word of God points to the high calling of wife and mother, and puts this before anything else in the area of responsibility.    The Bible seems to assume that even in Paul's day, women were tempted to short change their womanly calling of wife and mother. There are qualities and characteristics that are given to women which are priceless, and the Scriptures spell them out. Women, especially younger women, have to be taught these things. And how a woman presents herself is not simply a cultural mandate, it is a spiritual calling.    Those of you who are reading this need to ponder: What would happen if I mentioned this Q&A to my wife? More than likely she would fight you (or with Paul and me), again, because she has been brainwashed! My counselor wife, Dr. Lacy Couch, has a theory that comes from years of experience counseling women. Many women do not like themselves in their role as a woman. Many women think that what a man does is more glamorous and exciting, so they want to do manly things and hang around in the company of men. They want to be "one of the guys." Too, some simply want to show that they can do some of the things that men have traditionally done just to show that they are equal to the same task. They have joined the sisterhood just to make a point.    Every Christian woman needs to read what Paul says about her position as a Christian woman. She needs to ask, "Do these qualities characterize me?" A woman needs to read 1 Timothy 2:9-15; Titus 2:1-8. Many passages of Scripture address what men are to be like but these two passages especially are aimed at women. If your wife resists, she is not treating the Word of God as authoritative and applicable to her as a woman, wife, and mother.    Thanks for asking.    Dr. Mal Couch

Women as Leaders

Dr. Couch, I hear a lot today about women being leaders. Does the Bible confirm this idea?

ANSWER: Feminist driven women today will drag out the story of Deborah from the book of Judges to try to prove that they should be pastor(ettes) and leader(ettes), but that argument will not fly. While it was true that there was a dearth of men who were spiritually qualified, the fact of her taking the role of a judge is an exception in Scripture and not the norm.

She was not a military leader as some try to claim. Barak was her general who led the armies in combat. He was a bit weak kneed in that he wanted her to go with him for spiritual support to fight and defeat Sisera (Judges 4:7-9).

The rule is that male leadership is meant to guide the churches, but I see more and more Bible schools and seminaries having conferences to train women in "leadership." Our military schools claim they are training women to be military leaders, but the elephant in the living room that no one speaks about, is that women cannot really lead men. It takes men to lead men! The Pentagon lies to us and tells us they are not putting women in combat positions but the reality is they are! Women are trained as jet fighter pilots, etc. I heard one misguided military girl say, "I feel it is my duty to defend my country!" Wrong! It is her duty to raise godly children and make a wonderful warm home for family spiritual training. It is the duty of the men to defend both home and hearth!

In Scripture, young men are told to "be subject to your elders" (1 Pet. 5:5). Young men are wild horses and need the firm guidance of older men as roll models and as those who exercise their authority in reigning in the waywardness of the young.

As long as the churches follow the dictates of the culture and what is politically correct, spiritual failure will only increase in the life of the Evangelical community.

Thanks for asking.
Dr. Mal Couch

Feminism Rules Our Society?

Dr. Couch, it seems as if feminism now rules our society, and in fact, the entire Western world. How did this happen? 

 

   Feminism always raises its ugly head when the Bible is trashed by the culture. During the French Revolution (circa. 1770s) France proclaimed itself gender neutral. Everyone called each other "citizen." In the French Congress, equality among the sexes ruled in decision making. They even formed female army brigades, though this did not last over several months. The women soon wanted to go home and the idea of women "soldier-ettes" was abandoned. The French Revolution was the first attempt at a form of Communism.

    The Russian Revolution also pushed forward female equality. Everyone was called "comrades." There were some women thrust forward in combat roles during World War II but the girls were so mauled in combat that this experiment soon died. The Russians stopped calling for women in combat after the war. And, around the 1980s, there was a revolt of the women of Russia because of the "equality" push. They went home by the thousands, abandoning their equality jobs for home and motherhood.

    In America, with the 1960 and 1970 cultural (communist-like) revolution, our nation went into a form of madness! Whatever a girl wanted to do, she could not be held back. So we went to the idea of police-etts, fireman-etts, combat soldier-etts. Secular psychology ruled. Whatever gave the women self-fulfillment and self-actualization, the government made us do. I can remember when the phone companies were forced to call for women volunteers to be pole climbers. They had to have a quota or the companies would be fined. The cultural revolution changed the language. Remember, whoever controls the language controls the culture.

    Besides the fact that the importance of women at home is destroyed, other issues come to play. Women have qualities that the society, and the home, really need. For example, (1) Women are more emotional—this is ideal for promoting love and raising children. (2) You don’t put your women and mothers in harms way in combat positions. (3) You don’t demean women by throwing them into the rough and tumble world of male crudeness.

    It is an unchanging fact, recognized by the army, that physically women are on the average a foot shorter than men, have fifty percent less strength and upper body strength, have about fifty percent less stamina. Only about twenty percent of women can do physically what a man can. But never mind! When the nation falls into a lack of reality, and away from biblical truth, these facts are ignored. 

    I asked my wife, Dr. Lacy Couch, who has counseled for over twenty years why women would want to abandon their homes for the job market, go into the military, push themselves into more work roles that are traditionally male oriented. She pondered this question for years but just recently came up with the answer, based on her long-time experience in working with women. She said, "They don’t like themselves as women!" I think she is right. Also, they want to prove something. I remember my wife talking with a 110 lb. Christian girl who wanted to become a police-ette. Lacy concluded to join the police force this was not really in her heart but she had been brainwashed that she had to prove something! 

    Women in America have been told that home-making is demeaning, raising children is a waste of time, but there is something more. Often women enjoy the "male" attention they can get in the work world. They have been brainwashed from the first grade all the way through college that they have to be something else besides a woman! 

    For Christian women, in my opinion, this entire problem is a spiritual one. A Christian woman is not a waste in God’s plans. She sets both a moral and practical example for her children. By bringing about the blessings of a warm and peaceful home, she does more for her husband than she can imagine.

    The apostle Paul sets forth what is precious about the role of a Christian woman. He puts forth practical ideas that are also spiritual in nature. He writes, "I want a women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modesty and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments; but rather by means of good works, as befits women making a claim to godliness" (1 Tim. 2:9-10).

    Paul is not mentioning dress or jewelry because this is the way prostitutes dressed but because he did not want Christian women to be "showy" or ostentatious in their dress. A woman can dress stylishly but still avoid attracting too much attention to herself. The apostle Peter also wants a woman to have a gentle and quiet spirit; she is not to be loud, pushy, harsh, and crude (1 Pet. 3:4).

    Many women today want to compete with the men. They abandon their homes, their children, for the rough and tumble work world. They think this is what they are supposed to do to uphold "the sisterhood" of women. They think they would be considered "less than" if they give themselves to their home. This of course is just the opposite of what the Lord wants. Young women are "to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be dishonored" (Titus 2:5).

    On the issue of pushing women into more and more combat roles in the military I suggest a fairly new book that is a "must" read: Men, Women & War, Martin Van Creveld (Cassel & Co., 2001). I was impressed that the author opened his book with Proverbs 11:16: "A gracious woman retains honor."

Thanks for asking.

Dr. Mal Couch

What About Feminism?

Dr. Couch, what do you think of Wayne Grudem’s book Evangelical Feminism published by Multnomah? 

 

    I believe it is the classic on the subject. It is a revision and expansion on an original work. The full title is Evangelical Feminism & Biblical Truth. It is almost impossible to challenge the 800+ page book that is full of exegesis and facts. But remember the blinded Evangelical women of America do not want the "facts"! They are brainwashed by secular education and our state run universities to believe what they want to believe. Feminism pampers their egos and makes them want to be like men! They think this gives them purpose and fulfillment. It just makes them weirdoes! Do you think little girls growing up say, "Oh, I can’t wait to be a jet fighter pilot when I get grown!" Of course not.

    This tells us that people (especially women) are emotionally driven, never mind the biblical facts and injunctions by the apostle Paul. And it tell us how little smarts these women have. They know little of what the Bible teaches by sound exegesis and full context!

    Remember, whoever controls the language of a nation controls the nation. They have changed the words of our culture to make us accept feminism! Here are some samples:

Used to say Waitress Fireman Policeman Cockpit Gunman/Gunwoman Stewardess

Now Say Server Fire fighter Police officer Flight deck Shooter Flight attendant

The Facts Waitress Fire lady Police lady Cockpit Gunman/Gunwoman Woman stewardess

    We know why the language has been changed. Can you imagine calling the police when the bad guy is breaking into your house and the operator says, "Oh yes, we’ll send right out a police lady to your home!" Everyone hearing that would cringe!

   You get the point. Thanks for asking, 

    Dr. Mal Couch