If you are considering commenting or sending me an e-mail objecting to the fact that I warn against certain teachers, please click here and read this article first. Your objection is most likely answered here. I won’t be publishing comments or answering emails that are answered by this article.
This article is kept continuously updated as needed.
I get lots of questions about particular authors, pastors, and Bible teachers, and whether or not I recommend them. Some of the best known can be found above at my Popular False Teachers tab. The teacher below is someone I’ve been asked about recently, so I’ve done a quick check (this is brief research, not exhaustive) on her.
Generally speaking, in order for me to recommend a teacher, speaker, or author, he or she has to meet three criteria:
a) A female teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly preach to or teach men in violation of 1 Timothy 2:12. A male teacher or pastor cannot allow women to carry out this violation of Scripture in his ministry. The pastor or teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly be living in any other sin (for example, cohabiting with her boyfriend or living as a homosexual).
b) The pastor or teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly be partnering with or frequently appearing with false teachers. This is a violation of Scripture.
c) The pastor or teacher cannot currently and unrepentantly be teaching false doctrine.
I am not very familiar with most of the teachers I’m asked about (there are so many out there!) and have not had the opportunity to examine their writings or hear them speak, so most of the “quick checking” I do involves items a and b (although in order to partner with false teachers (b) it is reasonable to assume their doctrine is acceptable to the false teacher and that they are not teaching anything that would conflict with the false teacher’s doctrine). Partnering with false teachers and women preaching to men are each sufficient biblical reasons not to follow a pastor, teacher, or author, or use his/her materials.
Just to be clear, “not recommended” is a spectrum. On one end of this spectrum are people like Nancy Leigh DeMoss Wolgemuth and Kay Arthur. These are people I would not label as false teachers because their doctrine is generally sound, but because of some red flags I’m seeing with them, you won’t find me proactively endorsing them or suggesting them as a good resource, either. There are better people you could be listening to. On the other end of the spectrum are people like Joyce Meyer and Rachel Held Evans- complete heretics whose teachings, if believed, might lead you to an eternity in Hell. Most of the teachers I review fall somewhere in the middle of this spectrum (leaning toward the latter).
If you’d like to check out some pastors and teachers I heartily recommend, click the Recommended Bible Teachers tab at the top of this page.
Jen Wilkin
Not Recommended
Jen is a women’s Bible study author, blogger, and conference speaker, and until 2023, when she left to focus on her own ministry, was on staff at The Village Church as the Executive Director of Next Gen Ministries (TVC’s ministry to “children and students ages 0–18”).
Jen’s older books and Bible study materials have a reputation for being generally doctrinally sound. I’ve published a review of Jen’s book, Women of the Word, and here is one reader’s take on her book 1 Peter: A Living Hope in Christ:
“…in the foreword Jen wrote, ‘a paraphrase, such as the NLT or The Message,* can be useful but should be regarded as a commentary rather than a translation.’ However, aside from that, I have found no other problems with the book at all. It is an eight week long study of 1 Peter based on the method of Bible study that she writes about in Women of the Word. My favorite thing about this study is that it causes us to focus on what the text is telling us about God. I love how Jen Wilkin is teaching women to study the Bible properly. I wish she would be more discerning about who and what she endorses though. There are so few women who bring us solid teaching and discernment.”
*Please see “February 2026 Update” at the end of this article. Jen Wilkin herself brought to my attention that in later editions of this book, she removed her reference to the NLT from this sentence. She did not explain why, but my guess would be (and she has thus far not corrected me) that she removed “the NLT” because The New Living Translation is considered to be a translation, and Jen mistakenly referred to it as a “paraphrase”.
The reader’s concern (and mine, too) in mentioning this quote, however, is not that Jen mistakenly called the NLT a paraphrase, but that Jen recommended The Message as an acceptable paraphrase. You need only to click on the link above to see why this is concerning.
Also in the past, Jen limited her speaking engagements and teaching to audiences of women, which is the biblical parameter for Christian women teachers. And although her website speaking engagement request form says she is a “teacher who helps women…” she has been increasingly preaching to and instructing men in recent years.
For example, Jen’s former staff position as TVC’s “Executive Director” of children’s and student ministries, depending on the exact nature of her job responsibilities, probably (I am making a reasonable inference, as TVC’s website does not explicitly say) required her to teach Scripture to, or exercise improper authority over young men in the student ministry (which includes students through age 18) and men who teach or volunteer in the student ministry. The title “Executive Director” makes it sound as though she was over the entire ministry and everyone in that ministry was under her purview.
A more recent example demonstrating Jen’s increasing rebellion against Scripture regarding the role of women in the church is the Gospel Centered Discipleship “Preaching Cohort” in which Jen is a “Coach”. She (along with the other coaches) is described as a “seasoned Bible preacher and teacher,” and will be coaching pastors “on the calling and craft of preaching”.
In the past, there have also been questions about exactly where Jen stood on the biblical role of women in the church. She presented herself -and still does- as a complementarian, stating clearly that women are not to hold the office of pastor. What she did not make clear in the past, but what has become abundantly clear in recent years, is that she is (or has developed into) what’s often called a “soft” or “narrow” complementarian. This is the belief that women can do anything men can do in the gathering of the church body except hold the office of “senior pastor” – women can preach the Sunday sermon, hold any other office in the church (for many that includes the office of elder, “associate pastor,” etc.), exercise authority over men in the church, and so on. This is unbiblical. And what’s dangerous here is that Jen doesn’t call herself a “soft/narrow” complementarian, she just calls herself a complementarian, leading Christians who haven’t kept up with her to think she holds a biblical position and practice of the role of women, when she, in fact, does not.
As an example of Jen’s murkiness on the role of women, in the video* below (~32:05), she says:
“We need [women’s] visible leadership. How visible? As visible as your church’s complementarianism allows.”
This remark is at best, unhelpful, and at worst, opens the door for women and pastors to rebel against Scripture. The biblical answer to this question (aside from the fact that the church should be far more focused on servanthood than leadership) is: Women may serve in any position in the church that does not require them to preach to, teach Scripture to, or exercise authority over men, and which does not violate any other principles of Scripture.
Whatever position on the role of women Jen may have held in the past, she is now a “soft/narrow complementarian,” which is, in reality, a functional egalitarian.
In addition to the aforementioned preaching cohort in which Jen instructs pastors, she has spoken at several co-ed conferences in recent years. Give the first 15 minutes of the video below a listen*. Despite the fact that Jen’s very first remark is that she is not teaching the Bible in this session for pastors and church planters, she almost immediately goes on to quote and allude to the opening chapters of Genesis (and later in the video, other passages) and teach on them. I would challenge you to listen to what she says and ask yourself, “If I heard a pastor give this type of instruction, would I consider it a sermon/Bible lesson?” I think most of us could easily answer, “yes”. *(Unfortunately, the full length video of Jen’s complete teaching session has been removed from the internet. The video below is an excerpt of the full length video.)
(This is also the teaching session in which Jen made her infamous remarks about menstruation helping women to understand the gospel differently from men, which is not only a private and potentially uncomfortable subject to address in public – especially for an audience of men – it’s a patently ridiculous teaching. Menstruation teaches us nothing about the gospel. The two subjects are completely unrelated. Also, aside from Jen, I’ve never heard a single woman say her period helped her better understand the shedding of Christ’s blood.)
In another instance of preaching to a co-ed audience, Jen has been featured as a speaker multiple times at The Gospel Coalition’s national conference* at least as far back as 2017. (In the opening seconds of this 2017 TGC conference session, Why It’s Good that God Is Different from Us, Jen acknowledges and welcomes the men in her audience.) TGC, as many have noted, has been on a woke / social justice trajectory for years. Jen has been featured on TGC’s site numerous times.
*Jen has also been a featured speaker at TGC’s women’s conference (TGCW), not to be confused with TGC’s national conference, which is co-ed.
Again, one of the reasons it’s especially problematic for Jen to be teaching men, or to even to seem to be teaching men, is that she openly and unashamedly wears the label of complementarian. Boldly proclaiming complementarianism while teaching men muddies the waters and confuses the women who follow her as to what the Bible truly teaches about the role of women in the church. Are there times when it is technically not a violation of Scripture for a woman to speak with men in the audience? Yes (see #7 here). But weigh the impact Jen has on the church by speaking to men against the counter-evangelicultural impact someone of her stature could have by flagrantly refusing to teach men. Which would cause more people to sit up and take notice, set a better example for Christian women, and have a more biblical influence on the church?
Another concern about Jen is that she seems to be increasingly associating and appearing with false or problematic teachers.
In 2013, Jen wrote a blog post entitled, The Next Beth Moore in which she spoke glowingly of Beth Moore, her teaching, and one of her books. She has also had several friendly and/or affirming interactions with Beth on X, and has pointed women to Beth’s writing. Jen has appeared on the IF: Gathering podcast with Jennie Allen (to discuss and promote Women of the Word), and has written a devotional for Lysa TerKeurst’s Proverbs 31 blog.
(Screenshots: 1, 2, 3 {page 1}, 4 {page 2})
During LifeWay’s 2018 Abundance conferences, Jen appeared alongside Lisa Harper, Raechel Myers, Amanda Bible Williams, Christine Caine, Jennie Allen, Kelly Minter, Whitney Capps (of Lysa TerKeurst’s Proverbs 31 Ministries), and others.
In August 2020, Jen appeared at LifeWay Women Live with Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, Jackie Hill Perry, Kelly Minter, Angie Smith, Jennifer Rothschild and Kristi McLelland.
LifeWay Women Live 2020 Speakers
Several years ago, Jen was added to LifeWay Women’s stable of Women’s “Bible” study authors including many of the aforementioned teachers and others. In addition to my normal concerns about someone yoking with false teachers (i.e. the Bible says not to, and disobeying God’s Word is a sin), I’m guessing LifeWay Women may have initially signed Jen in order to use her – that is, her reputation for being a doctrinally sound teacher and a complementarian – to lend credibility to the false teachers they promote. And, of course, Jen’s previously perceived good reputation has suffered by being associated with these false teachers.
In March 2021, when Beth Moore cut ties with the Southern Baptist Convention, Jen offered this glowing farewell…
In a strange irony, in the midst of unbiblically partnering with these false teachers, in her session, The Gospel and The Future of Bible-Centered Discipleship at the 2018 Southern Baptist Convention Pre-Conference (also to a co-ed audience), Jen teaches the following…
[Biblical literacy] guards against false teaching…Basic comprehension-level mastery of the text guards against false teaching. (~30:12)
You know what our [discipleship] formula has been for the last 20 years? [We’ve said], ‘We’re going to keep making [the level of biblical teaching] lower and lower’…It is our high calling, in the face of a biblical literacy crisis, to raise the bar in an age of low expectations. (~43:40…44:39)
And yet, Jen’s level of “mastery of the text” – to the point that she is instructing people in the text and teaching them how to improve discipleship – has not sufficiently guarded her against partnering with women who are largely responsible for the bulk of false teaching aimed at women today, who don’t teach “basic comprehension-level mastery of the text,” and who have continued to lower the bar and perpetuate low expectations for biblical literacy. Jen has associated with, talked to, and listened to the teaching of these women far more than I have, I’m certain. How does she not see this?
(February 2026 UPDATE- I’ve removed a small section of this article {unrelated to the paragraph above or below} that previously appeared here. Please scroll down to the “Additional Resources” section for an explanation, and for additional extra information.)
Finally, in the same way that the influence Steven Furtick has on Lysa TerKeurst as her pastor is worrisome, I’ve seen some things over the years with Jen’s pastor, Matt Chandler, and his wife, Lauren Chandler (with whom Jen has appeared at conferences; screenshot), that have given me pause.
As a member of The Village Church, Jen is pastored by Matt, and as a ministry leader there (though no longer a staff member), she works under his direction and influence. Over the past few years, Matt has publicly praised or affirmed false teachers like Ann Voskamp, Beth Moore, and Jesus Culture. He has raised some questions about the extent of his continuationism with His notorious “pirate ship prophecy“. He allows Bethel and Israel Houghton (Joel Osteen’s former worship leader) music to be used for worship at his church. Matt allows his wife, a worship leader at TVC, to select this music, and to yoke with and be influenced by numerous false teachers. Matt and Lauren and their associations with false teachers have undoubtedly influenced Jen. Additionally, Matt’s character and personal integrity were sullied in 2022 when he had to take a leave of absence after admitting to an “inappropriate” texting relationship with another woman.
In summary, I would urge you not to follow Jen Wilkin, attend her conferences, or use her materials due to her trajectory of increasingly unbiblical teaching and behavior.
Additional Resources:
Articles on Jen Wilkin by Elizabeth Prata
Talk Back: Jen Wilkin and The Gospel Coalition at A Word Fitly Spoken
February 2026 UPDATE
Prior to February 14, 2026, this small section appeared in the above indicated area of this article:
On February 13-14 Jen Wilkin and I had an exchange on X in which she said, “I have never said the Bible whispers about sexual sin.” (see image 2 below)
I looked into it, and Jen appears to be correct. Here’s what J.D. said:
The first part of J.D.’s statement, “We ought to whisper about what the Bible whispers about and we ought to shout about what it shouts about,” was a quote of Jen. J.D. then added his own opinion, “…and the Bible appears more to whisper when it comes to sexual sin…” to the end of the quote of Jen, making it sound like the entire quote was something she said.
I apologize – to Jen and to my readers – for making this mistake, and ask your forgiveness. I hope my character speaks for itself when I assure you that this was simply a misunderstanding of an unclear statement. It was not a fabrication, nor was it done maliciously. But I am still sorry for making the mistake and for any negative consequences it resulted in for Jen or anyone else.
This point, however, was not the only thing Jen took issue with about this article, as you can see from the images in the slideshow above. Here is the original exchange. My response to Jen’s allegations is below in article format for ease of reading:
Hi Jen- I’m the author of the article, and I’m happy to correct any factual or biblical mistakes. For others reading this who’d like to follow along, Jen is saying my article on her contains “basic factual errors in it … To say nothing of something that misrepresents a fellow believer’s character and actions”.
I apologize for the length of this answer, but I wanted to address all of your concerns clearly, accurately, biblically, and citing sources:
“Comment re: the NLT is inaccurate. I have said that in ref to earlier versions (pre-2004), but haven’t said it in years.”
First, this is a quote from an email I received from a reader commenting on your book 1 Peter: A Living Hope in Christ. I introduced the quote by saying, “Jen’s older books and Bible study materials have a reputation for being generally doctrinally sound.” (I also linked to a positive review on my blog of your book Women of the Word in which I actually recommended [at that time] that my readers buy themselves a copy of it. The reader’s quote begins:
“…in the foreword Jen wrote, ‘a paraphrase, such as the NLT or The Message, can be useful but should be regarded as a commentary rather than a translation.’…”
I checked the most recent version of your book (2024 edition; sample on Amazon), of 1 Peter: A Living Hope in Christ, and you’re correct, you’ve removed the part about the NLT. The quote now says, “a paraphrase, such as The Message, can be useful but should be regarded as a commentary rather than a translation.”.
My guess is that you removed “the NLT [New Living Translation]” because it’s considered a translation, not a paraphrase. Is that correct? If not, please feel free to explain. I’m glad to add a note to the article saying that you’ve removed the phrase “the NLT” from that sentence in later editions, and if you have a link to an article or other material that explains why you removed it, I’ll be happy to add that link as well.
So just to clarify here, the quote from your book (in which you mistakenly called the NLT a “paraphrase”) actually is accurate. You are the one who changed it in later editions, presumably to correct your error. So this is not, in fact, a “factual error”. The reader’s quote was accurate.
However, the primary concern here is not that you mistakenly called the NLT a “paraphrase” instead of a translation (if that’s why you removed the part about the NLT), or even that you recommended the NLT. The primary concern is that you recommended – and, apparently, STILL recommend- The Message, one of the worst, most grossly inaccurate “paraphrases” out there, written by Eugene Peterson, who, along with mangling the text of Scripture, wrote a cover endorsement for the heresy-laden book, “The Shack,” and said he would officiate a same sex wedding.
But you still cite The Message as an acceptable paraphrase to use. So that part is factually correct.
Your next concern was: “I am not described as a preacher on the GCD website.”
Here, you’re misquoting me and either misunderstanding or misrepresenting what the article actually says (so you’re the one guilty of a “basic factual error” in this case).
The article contains a screenshot of the GCD (Gospel Centered Discipleship) web page picturing you and describing the event, and quotes directly from that web page. This is the actual quote from my article:
“…the Gospel Centered Discipleship “Preaching Cohort” in which Jen is a “Coach”. She (along with the other coaches) is described as a “seasoned Bible preacher and teacher,” and will be coaching pastors “on the calling and craft of preaching”.
The point of these two sentences is that you will be instructing pastors on how to be better pastors/preachers, when this is unbiblical and you have no place doing so. Neither of these sentences says that GCD called you, specifically, a “preacher”. (Additionally, albeit tangentially: just from a logical perspective, why would GCD engage someone who isn’t a pastor and isn’t qualified to be a pastor to instruct pastors about being better pastors? That’s like a hospital hiring someone who isn’t a doctor and isn’t qualified to be a doctor to instruct doctors about being better doctors.)
Finally, you said, “I have never said the Bible whispers about sexual sin.”
In this instance, you’re correct. Here’s what I said in the article: “And remember when J.D. Greear, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, got himself into all kinds of hot water for saying in a sermon, “The Bible whispers about sexual sin.“? He was quoting Jen Wilkin…”
My statement was based on a misunderstanding of JD’s quote in the video of his sermon. He was quoting you when he said, “We ought to whisper about what the Bible whispers about and we ought to shout about what it shouts about,” but then added HIS OWN thought to the end of that quote, and HE stated his opinion that “the Bible appears more to whisper when it comes to sexual sin compared to it shouts about materialism and religious Pride”.
I apologize for getting that wrong. I’ll be glad to remove that small section entirely. I’ll make a note in the article, and explain publicly on social media, how I got that wrong, along with a public apology to you, both in the article and on my other social media platforms. I’m very sorry for my mistake there.
“I’ve also been clear about my complementarianism on more podcasts than I can count.”
Yes, you’ve said you’re a complementarian, but as I accurately explained in the article, you’re not using the original definition of “complementarian”. You’re using the current, twisted definition of complementarian, i.e. women can do anything in the church that men can do except hold the office of pastor. That’s what used to be called “soft complementarianism” or “narrow complementarianism” and it is functional egalitarianism. I’m not the one in “factual error” here.
Calling yourself a “complementarian” and using that twisted definition is -whether you intend it to be or not, and I’m assuming “not”- deceptive and misleading. It’s similar (I’m using this strictly as an analogy, not accusing you of heresy) to Mormons saying, “We believe in Jesus,” when the Mormon version of Jesus is very different from what Scripture says about Jesus.
Furthermore, as a Southern Baptist, I’m sure you’ve heard (as have I), our leadership say regarding women preaching to men, “The function IS the office,” meaning that a woman functioning in the role of pastor -i.e. preaching- is usurping the office of pastor, as Dr. Albert Molher explains here in refutation of the definition of “complementarianism” you espouse, namely, that “a woman ought to be able to do…or authorized to do everything a non-ordained man can do.”
“There’s an assumption of motive in several places, a tendency to sensationalize…”
This is your personal, subjective opinion, not a “factual error”.
You’ll need to specifically quote at least one of these “several places”. And I would remind you that what you characterize as “assumption of motive” the Bible would likely characterize as, “out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45) and/or “You will know them by their fruit” (Matthew 7:16,20). But until you cite a specific “assumption of motive/tendency to sensationalize” we can’t know for sure, I can’t apologize if something is, in fact, an unbiblical “assumption of motive,” or “sensationalism,” and this is an unsubstantiated accusation.
“an extremely broad use of the term “preach”
No broader than the Bible’s definition. The actual prohibition in 1 Timothy 2:12, as I’m sure you know, is against women “teaching” men. Preaching is just one form of teaching.
“I don’t expect that we would agree on the definition of preaching, but I do have one that falls well within comp boundaries.”
As evidenced by the fact that you preach to men, your definition of preaching falls well within the aforementioned current twisting of “complementarian” boundaries: functional egalitarianism, which unbiblically allows women to preach to men.
There is no definition of women preaching to men that falls within traditional complementarian boundaries because traditional complementarianism – which simply describes what the Bible says about the role of women in the church- does not allow women to preach to men.
“Rather than engage with those differing definitions,”
I did “engage with those differing definitions”. I compared your so-called “complementarian” definition of preaching to men – i.e. “it’s OK for women to preach to men” – to Scripture. Scripture forbids this. Engagement over.
“she simply characterizes me as ‘preaching to men’”
I didn’t “characterize” you as preaching to men, I flat out stated a fact: You preach to men. There’s plenty of evidence of it in the article. If you’re going to preach to men why not just proudly and unashamedly say so and clearly enumerate your reasons for doing so, rather than preaching to men and then going around and saying, “I’m not really preaching to men, I’m really a complementarian.”? If it’s OK for you to preach to men, you should be able to easily back up that assertion with clear, rightly handled (2 Timothy 2:15), in context Scripture.
“and a ‘functional egalitarian’”
You are. When you function like an egalitarian by preaching to men, you’re a functional egalitarian.
“in an effort to discredit my ministry to women.”
Your “ministry to women” should be discredited because you’re teaching them to disobey Scripture. Every time you stand up and preach to men, your behavior is teaching women (and men) that if they come to a command of Scripture they don’t like (like 1 Timothy 2:12), they’re free to ignore it and disobey it. That teaching is false doctrine and a defiance of Scripture, and should, therefore, be discredited (and that’s only one of the points in the article – I’ve cited many other reasons why your ministry should be discredited).
“This is, at best, a shallow engagement with my position.”
No it isn’t. Your position is in direct conflict with the plain and clear teaching of Scripture. Concisely demonstrating that (and linking to two other articles refuting your position and explaining at length what the Bible says about the role of women in the church) is not “shallow engagement”.
“Preaching is done by a particular person in a particular context, that is, by the pastor/elder/qualified man in the Sunday gathering.”
Where does the Bible specifically say that, rightly handled and in context? Chapter and verse, please.
“My perspective is that I should be in glad submission to my elders. Here is the position paper that informs their approach:”
Christians are first and foremost to be in glad submission to Scripture, because Scripture is infallible and perfect, and elders – as your pastor, Matt Chandler, has amply demonstrated over the last several years – are not.
So if your elders are not upholding what Scripture teaches, and you are submitting to them, both you and your elders are in disobedience to Scripture, which is the standard for Christians.
Nevertheless, in the document you cited, your own elders say this:
So your own elders say that publicly preaching the Word to the gathering of the church is restricted to men.
We often have to clarify to Believers and unbelievers alike that the “church” is not the building we meet in, it’s the people – Christians. So whenever Christians are gathered for the purpose of worship, instruction in the Scriptures, etc., it is a gathering of the church, and the prohibition of women teaching men applies.
But, in any event, the document makes clear on p. 55 that this is the position of “the role of women at The Village Church.” My article doesn’t deal with you preaching at TVC, but at other gatherings of the church outside TVC, so TVC’s policy for TVC is irrelevant to those events.
“The short version [of the TVC document] is that any gathering that is not the Sunday gathering does not require to be taught by an elder.”
I didn’t see that statement or any statement similar to that in the document, but I may have missed it. What page is that on?
“That being said, my ministry is primarily to women, so mixed gatherings are pretty rare.”
1. “Rare” does not equal “not sinful”. You still need to repent of preaching to men and stop doing it.
2. It doesn’t look “rare” considering all of the instances I’ve cited in the article (and including any instances I may have missed and haven’t included).
3. It isn’t “rare,” as though you used to preach to men and no longer do. This is something you’re continuing to do and currently doing. The GCD Cohort in which you’ll be unbiblically instructing pastors started less than three weeks ago.
So, to summarize, you found one actual error of fact in this entire, lengthy article (which I apologized for and will gladly delete and explain to my audience). The remainder of the article – dealing with far more than you’ve brought up here – is correct and is not “basic factual errors” or a “misrepresentation” of your “character and actions”.
And by implying that the article, overall, consists of “basic factual errors” and “misrepresents [your] character and actions,” you have actually misrepresented my character and actions.
But all of that aside, what’s more important here is you. I care about you, and I hate to see you going down the same road that so many of your Lifeway Women compatriots – like Beth Moore, Lysa TerKeurst, Priscilla Shirer, etc. – have gone.
I have taken a moment to pray for you, and, in love, I urge you to repent of the sins of preaching to men, yoking with false teachers, and the other things I’ve cited in the article, for the glory of God, for the good of your own soul before Christ, and for the biblical discipleship of your followers.
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I had some other issues as well that are not mentioned in this article. I am from MA so we have a high regard for intellectualism in the church. So much so that Pastors will no longer touch the issue of creation. This gave birth to the Elizabeth Warren 37 Gender phenomenon. When I vet a speaker it is very important to me how they interpret Creation and Israel. What I found most disturbing about Jens book praising the importance of the Word was that she clearly does not take Gods Word literally when it comes to creation. That effects how we view everything else in the scriptures. I would not recommend Jen Wilkin
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Hi Michelle,
I am truly thankful for your blogs. I grew up in “churches” my whole life and never questioned them until I had an issue with a medicine and I started to question my salvation, so I started to seek out God’s Word, by reading the Bible, and my local Baptist church. I was excited to hear the ladies were going to do a Bible study on Hebrews and were going to use Jen Wilkens book. I saw your blog in her and read one of hers which made me raise an eyebrow about how the women of the church has been treated by their pastors, I would need to find it again as o e of the ways was the pastor not feeling comfortable enough to be alone in a room with her as one of them, which I feel is docterinely sound and my pastor is very conscientious about this. A lot of her blogs or teaching seem to be boarderline feminist. So, I did not feel comfortable doing the Bible study, when I brought this up to my counselor, which was a lady, she did not seem to be concerned. I am very new in my walk and have been praying for a strong Christian mentor (married lady) as I am concerned about if I am being overly sensitive about the lack of concern or not. The Church is very open a out supporting all the teachers on right now media because they were screened by the SBC, which have been leaning towards “liberal Christianity”. Sorry for changing the topics. I wanted to comment and to ask if I should bring my concerns to the pastor or just seek to learn how to study the Bible on my own. I never pursues this and always settled for the canned women Bible studies offered at the churches I attended, which I am sad and upset about. I have asked for God’s forgiveness as this is only on me. Thank you for your time and sorry for the long comment and question.
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Hi there- I would recommend that you do both: learn to study straight from the text of Scripture for yourself, AND talk to your pastor about the materials the women’s Bible study group is using. I think you will find the “Bible studies” tab and the “False Teachers & Unbiblical Trends” tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page to be helpful, as well as this article: The Mailbag: How should I approach my church leaders about a false teacher they’re introducing? Hope this helps. :0)
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Can you give a source where she says she doesn’t take creation literally? I’m reading her Genesis Study now and don’t get that impression at all.
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Hello KC,
My family recently had to leave our Bible church because the pastor refused to take the women’s ministry seriously. I had several meetings with his wife who he put in charge of womens bible studies and I kept noticing her using Jen Wilkens studies, so Idid the berean thing and looked into her and came across Michelle Lesleys articles on false teachers but I also compared Jens Genesis video teachings snd dome points were fine bit once she came to the parts about man and women and rolls and Gods created order, etc, she twisted the scriptures and changed definitions and used words like sameness, oneness and image bearers and at one point in her teaching she had the audacity to say, “Gods creation was not good until woman came into the picture!” What?
She comes across to me as having a chip on her should with womens roles according to Gods word. She has alot of feminist vibes in her speech.
She came out with a message about her church changing the definition of complimentarianism to “GENEROUS complimentarianism” which is trying to find away around Gods word for her to lead and teach men. And she does. She one of the bible teachers for her church. Women AND men.
I avoid her all together. I want to learn from women who fear the Lord and His Word and teach and live out the full counsel of God.
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Hi Michelle,
Happy Friday. 🤗
Thank you for leading women well.
I believe a link in today’s “Jen Wilkin” article may lead to the incorrect source. I would really like to read the content you meant to link to. Check the eleventh paragraph where it says:
“ Are there times when it is technically not a violation of Scripture for a woman to speak with men in the audience? Yes (see #7 here).”
I would be grateful to have the correct link. Thanks so much!
In His love,
Peppi Garrett
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Hi Peppi-
Thank you so much for bringing that mistake to my attention! I’ve got the right link in there now. :0)
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I have found after many years of attending womens Bible studies that there is a common thread. Ibwould say it is emotionalism and a departire from what the Word is saying.
Ibfind we as women have a tendency to inprepret scripture as we would like not as
It is written” . When I first became a Born Again Christian
( is there any other?) I was taught directly from the scriptures in Bible classes with men and women at church. Then spending personal time searching the scriptures myself, and when I had questions which I had many as I was eagerly wanting to know these things I would ask my Pastor or his wife who mentored me.
She was a soberminded woman who raised her children in the Word and was not a gossip.
We moved and in the church we attended I went to a ladies Bible study. This was my first encounter with Beth Moore.
The study was on Paul. Her style was very eye opening to me.
Let me explain… She summarized the story of when Paul was preaching all night and a young man who was sitting in a window fell asleep after listening to Paul. Her interpretation and takeaway was: Paul was so longwinded and wordy that this man fell asleep!.. So we need to be careful about being too wordy…
Wow, I though who are you woman to judge the Apostle Paul. Needless to say, I has heard enough of her intrepretations. The church was going to do another Moore study on Jesus, and I though if she has this to say about Paul I cant bear to hear the nonsense she will spew about My Lord.
This was 20 years ago mind you and she has grifted and drifted far away. And she has many Bethites , who have risen up to her level of nonsense and Not rightly dividing the Word of God. Too many for my liking.
Why is it we have yo have a woman teaching other women?
I do mean older soberminded , chaste in their dress and conversation not gossips and obedient to their own husbands kind of ladies.
Why has the church abdicated the teaching of women to these authors????
Why are not older godfearing women in churches not teaching the younger women according to the scriptures?
Why arent we just doing a Bible study based not on a worldly aurhor be it man or woman, but
in God’ s Word? with a Strong’ s concordance and an Ungers bible dictionary to help expand on it???
Oh foolish Galations who hath bewitched you!
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I was referred first to this article and have spent the last few hours reading many of your articles and ones you link to as sources. I am feeling so confused and yet, vindicated, if that’s the proper word to use. I have participated in and read many books by the most popular women’s Bible study teachers. I have recently, over the past year or so, begin to ‘feel a check in my spirit” about them and their theology. I appreciate very much your well researched opinion and admission of little knowledge of some of them. Your honesty gives you credibility.
My first question is (and I feel like I have many now as my eyes are being opened) with regard to the following quote, I am not understanding fully the line that reads “may…require her to teach Scripture to, or exercise improper authority over young men in the student ministry…” Is the “improper influence” you are referring to the fact that she is not their mother or only because of the Bibles instruction for women not to teach men? I’m probably overthinking it completely but I would love your thoughts. I am a mom of 2 girls and three boys and just wonder how old is too old for boys to be taught the Bible by a woman, especially is that woman is not their mom.
‘For example, Jen’s staff position as TVC’s “Executive Director” of children’s and student ministries, depending on the exact nature of her job responsibilities, may (I am making a reasonable inference, as TVC’s website does not explicitly say) require her to teach Scripture to, or exercise improper authority over young men in the student ministry (which includes students through age 18) and men who teach or volunteer in the student ministry. The title “Executive Director” makes it sound as though she is over the entire ministry and everyone in that ministry is under her purview.‘
Thank you so much for your insight.
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Hi Stephanie- Super questions! I’m so encouraged to hear that God is working in your heart and life, and opening your eyes to some of these things!
I am not understanding fully the line that reads “may…require her to teach Scripture to, or exercise improper authority over young men in the student ministry…” Is the “improper influence” you are referring to the fact that she is not their mother or only because of the Bibles instruction for women not to teach men?
(Just to clarify, it’s “improper authority“, not “influence”. I don’t want someone reading this to twist your words.) It is due to the Bible’s prohibition regarding women teaching men, not because she isn’t their mother. If you will click on the words “to teach Scripture to, or exercise improper authority over,” in the article, that will take you to another article I wrote on 1 Timothy 2:11-12 a while back, which explains this prohibition in more depth in case you’re not familiar with it. (And no, you are not overthinking this. :0)
I think you will find this article (click here) helpful. I address women teaching their sons and women teaching youth boys at church in #12 and 13.
You may also find helpful the other articles in my Rock Your Role (click here) series and my complementarianism (click here) articles.
Those resources will probably answer most of your questions, but if you think of any others, please feel free to ask. :0)
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I appreciate your heart for making sure that women are being taught biblically sound doctrine. Your site has been helpful to me, and I have definitely been challenged to better research the authors of the books I choose to read. With that said, it saddens me to see Jen Wilkins on your list, and I truly believe she does not belong there. I have done three of her books in church Bible studies. I am currently going through her Genesis study, and her teaching is spot on. She is going through the book verse by verse using the ESV translation. Her love for the Lord, and her dedication to accurately teaching his Word to women is evident. The case against her seems a bit thin, and I am concerned that your site will turn people away from books that could benefit them in their study of God’s word. You can certainly choose to not recommend, her but she most definitively does not belong on a list with Caine and Meyer even if there is a red asterisk.
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I genuinely do not understand the backlash against the menstruation comments. Creation instructs us, does it not? A womb that does not produce fruit is not ‘being fruitful and multiplying.’ It sheds its blood and has a fresh start with a new hope of fertility; of bearing fruit as designed. It’s not a perfect metaphor, but I do see validity in comparing that to the life of God’s people. When his bride acts faithfully and in certain cooperation with the Spirit, fruit is the outcome. If not, repentance should follow. In the OT, that did look like the shedding of blood for remission of sin with a subsequent fresh start. She wasn’t claiming a perfect metaphor, but rather was pointing out a tie in between God’s created order and what a woman experiences. And to say it in the room full of men (who are certainly mature enough, as adult men, to understand how a woman’s body works…that’s not dirty) was done for a specific effect. I think she achieved her desired effect with that example. I hear and understand your well-supported concerns in other area and those concerns do give me pause about her, I just think the ‘shedding of blood for the remission of sin’ metaphor is actually helpful and doesn’t lend valid support for ‘canceling’ this teacher.
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Hi Kelly- It’s not “canceling”. That’s a worldly term and perspective. The biblical perspective is that this is a Scriptural admonition to avoid (Romans 16:17-18) someone who is damaging the church by not properly handling or obeying God’s Word and who shouldn’t be teaching. Had this unfortunate and poor choice of “metaphor” been the only issue with Jen, this article wouldn’t exist. Everyone goofs every now and then. The main reason I included it is because there was such a hullaballoo over it when it happened, that if I hadn’t included it, it would have been an obvious error of omission to everyone who knew about it. (Kind of like writing an article on McDonald’s and failing to mention that they serve french fries.) However, the remainder of the issues with Jen, which are far weightier, are certainly a more than sufficient basis on which to advise women and churches to steer clear of her.
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Strangely enough, I have heard a woman speak about menstruation and the Gospel before. This particular woman was speaking to a group of homeschooling moms. I can’t remember exactly what she said as it was a few years ago now, but she somehow compared it to death and life. I thought it was odd at the time.
Also, thanks for the warning about Ann Voskamp. I read her book(One Thousand Gifts) years ago. I will watch out for things by her in the future.
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I have been reading most of Jen Wilkin’s “In His Image”, 2018. I find a problem on pp. 66-67 “Seeking to Justify Ourselves” section.
The writer is defining a person who has “patterns of denying or minimizing our sins”… “scorekeeping” etc., as a person who is a believer. The writer seems to be unaware that such a person is most likely not a believer. I find the rest of the book to be rather emotional and watered-down. I do not find any educational credentials of this author. She does have a talent for writing. [Just letting you know what I have seen here. I am disturbed that a women’s bible study group recommends this book.]
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Thanks so much for sharing, Gail. :0)
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This morning I had coffee with a sister in Christ and mentioned Jen Wilkins who came and led a 2-day conference for women at my church in early 2022.
I attended that conference, as a newer Christian (less than 5 years) and was excited as I hadn’t been to a women’s event before. The first day I loved what she had to say and learned a lot. It was exciting. The second day not so much. As another commenter said here, I had a check in my spirit. I felt like she was trying to entertain us and stir up our emotions, which reminded me of my very brief exploration of Beth Moore (who I could tell almost instantly wasn’t good for me).
Aside from her strident tone, Mrs. Wilkins said for anyone who was longing for Jesus’ return in the Rapture to “stop it right now!” She was a over the top about it. Yes, I realize there are people who have thrown in the towel and are sitting on a mountain top, singing hymns and praying for His coming. But He told us to watch for His return, and a crown of righteousness will be given for Believers who are longing for His return. Jen Wilkins scolded anyone who was taking part in that longing, she really went on a mini rant. It was disturbing and stirred me to check into her more thoroughly. What I found, here and on other sites, caused me to be so grateful that the Holy Spirit was warning me when I got that check in my spirit.
The whole reason Jen Wilkins came up is that I explained I am leaving the church we attend for one where the Pastor sees wolves, male or female, from a mile away. My present church brings speakers like Jen Wilkin, John Piper, and Al Moehler in. They recommended a book by Tim Keller for our spring reading series. And there are other issues as well (heavy fund raising for a mega campus because we are growing rapidly). Ahem, growth in the form of prestige, power and money are not usually a blessing from the Lord. And I’ve decided that if I have more discernment than they do, I need to make a change.
As a woman, I don’t WANT to be the watchMAN even with a strong gift of discernment. I don’t believe women should be more astute to the wiles of Satan than the leading men in the church; especially the Senior Pastor, who should carry that weight.
In general I avoid women teachers. I prefer to be taught by men, preached to by men, and led by men. It feels safer to me. I know a lot of women aren’t comfortable with men because of abuse issues etc. (I have that in my past as well) so I don’t fault them for it if that is how they are being fed. But there are strong, faithful, trustworthy men online and in some churches who can be trusted and that is what I am drawn toward.
Thank you for this article Michelle!
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You’re welcome, Robin. Thanks for sharing. :0)
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First time visitor to your site. Appreciated the comments section very much. I’ve been a Christian for many decades (saved in the 80’s), and have seen many teachers come, and go. I’ve learned that the greatest teachers are the faithful women that God has brought my way, who have been proven by their fidelity to their husbands, and children. Who have weathered storms, and remain loyal to their God! Their quite examples have taught me the most.
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i came to this site because i was alarmed when my church decided to study revelation with jen wilkins. i believe in a pretribulation rapture, which she does not address in revelation 4-5 . it is completely an allegorical study. i have studied revelation with wonderful pastors like dr.andy woods from suarland bible church ,j.d.farag, jan markell, tom hughes ,amir tsarfarti, and gary hamrick to name a few. she doesnt mention a 1.000 year millennial reign when God fullfills his covenant with Israel. i was searching if jen wilkins was a replacement theology person or what. i believe after the rapture God deals with Israel again as described Daniel , i am confused how to handle this at my church, the study begins in september, i am thinking of discussing it with my pastor and if they proceed to just sit this one out, i do not want to cause problems but several people know me as the one who studies end times prophesies and it would be hard to hear this book just allegorized away. any thoughts would be appreciated.
we have done jen study on abide and genesis and i was ok with them as i perfer to study verse by verse.
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Hi Heidi- We all have different areas of theology that interest us. Mine is discernment. Yours seems like it might be eschatology. But we have to be careful to keep that special area of interest balanced with all the other areas of theology. I would encourage you to remember that eschatology is an issue on which various doctrinally sound Christians can have different views and still be within biblical orthodoxy. It is not an issue we should divide over or judge other Christians’ doctrinal soundness over (unless they have a heretical eschatology, like, “Jesus already came / isn’t coming back,” or “Here’s the exact date Jesus is coming back.”).
Your church should not be using Jen Wilkins’ studies, but not because of her eschatology (whatever that may be). They shouldn’t be using her studies because her teaching and behavior is in conflict with clear Scripture as explained in the article.. If her eschatology was identical to yours, she would still be unbiblical in all the ways described above and still to be avoided. That’s the objection you should bring to your church leaders.
Here is a resource that may help when you approach them.
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Wow. This is exactly how I feel about doing her Revelation study! I have done studies with Andy Woods too and don’t think I can stomach an allegorical approach such as Jen’s. I also wouldn’t feel right about supporting her false theology by buying her book. I think I will have to sit this one out also!
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