OPINION (Charisma) – Beth Moore made the case that women can and should be able to preach in church during a Twitter altercation this week. She also condemned widespread hypocrisy, misogyny and power abuse within the largest Protestant denomination in the United States. The controversy began when Moore admitted on Twitter that she was preaching the Mother’s Day sermon at an unidentified Southern Baptist Church. Several theologians issued rebukes of any SBC church that would allow a woman to preach to men. One such theologian was Owen Strachan, director of the Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, who published the blog post “Divine Order in a Chaotic Age: On Women Preaching” Wednesday on Patheos. In it, he wrote:
“Women have much to contribute to the life of the local church and the work of the kingdom. In terms of ministry and Christian testimony, women are free, gloriously free, to evangelize, witness to the glory of God in the secular workplace, and serve on the mission field (ideally on teams populated by men who can serve as pastors). Yet we cannot miss this: the scriptural focus on feminine domesticity means that the church joyfully promotes “homemaking” as a glorious call of God. Whatever a secular culture says, the Lord loves motherhood, wifely submission to a husband “in everything” (Ephesians 5:24), family-building, and the training of children to know Christ. Whether a woman is called to marriage or singleness, women should not preach or offer public teaching in the gathered worship service in local churches. The call to local church leadership is not dependent upon gifting or talent; it is based on the creation order of Almighty God. For a woman to teach and preach to adult men is to defy God’s Word and God’s design. Elders must not allow such a sinful practice; to do so is to bring the church body into disobedience against God.” CONTINUE
