Tag: Women Preaching

Answering a Fool, Complementarianism, Mailbag

The Mailbag: Answering a Fool #6

Michelle Lesley

Answer a fool according to his folly,
lest he be wise in his own eyes.

Proverbs 26:5

There’s a lot of foolishness masquerading as Christianity these days. Occasionally, I get e-mails and messages showcasing this type of foolishness. It needs to be biblically corrected so these folks can stop “being wise in their own eyes,” repent, and believe and practice the truth of Scripture. From time to time, I share those e-mails in The Mailbag with a biblical corrective, not only so the e-mail writer can be admonished by Scripture, but to provide you with Scriptures and reasoning you can use if you’re ever confronted with this kind of foolishness.

To answer a fool according to his folly (or in the case of most of the foolishness addressed to me – a professing Christian acting the fool by spouting unbiblical folly) is to stand toe to toe with him and firmly and biblically address his unbiblical foolishness without backing down or letting him run roughshod over you – sometimes even mirroring his own words back to him to help him see his hypocrisy.

Some Christians think holding your ground, refusing to compromise on biblical truth, and offering correction in this way is unkind or unloving. It is not. Not if you’re going by the Bible’s definition of love rather than the world’s definition (“be nice” “accept everything” “don’t confront”), and not when you’re dealing with a pridefully stubborn person. One of the most unloving things a Christian can do is to see a professing brother or sister in biblical error and ignore it rather than trying to help that person see the truth of God’s Word. Jesus, Paul, Peter, Jude, John, Jeremiah, Isaiah, and many others, did this plenty of times in Scripture, and, often, much more stringently than I and other 21st century Christians do. Sometimes love – real, biblical love – has to be tough in order to reach someone’s heart.

You can read more in the “Answering a Fool” series here.

The following comment was left in response to last week’s Mailbag article, The Mailbag: I Have to Preach Because No Man Will Step Up. I’ve posted the comment in its entirety below, then broken down into manageable parts with my responses. Buckle up.😀

As a believer who has witnessed woman step up in communities all over the world, where no man would to share the Gospel, and lead their community towards Christ (even when their life was at risk), I would argue that she ought to continue preaching. It is one thing to flaunt a leadership position as if women are better than men (and the same would be wrong if a man claimed he was better than a woman). Because at the end of the day, the role is for the called, man or woman. If you research on missionaries of the past, hundreds of people have been saved by women. Are you claiming none of those women should have followed the great commission commanded to ALL believers in Matthew 28 and that all those lives they pointed to Christ weren’t worth it? Paul even asks in Romans 10:14-15, how people are to be saved if no one goes to share the Gospel with them.

Arguments like these are the reason we have prideful men in the Church who take roles they’re not called for and we have obedient women trying to ignore the calling God gave them in fear of judgement from their own community. I am not a feminist in any sense, but when it comes to silencing ANY believer from sharing the love and truth of Christ (man or woman) I cannot sit back and watch the Church divide itself on things that have nothing to do with salvation.

You want to discuss sin? What about the leaders that are liars, jealous, prideful, lustful, and gossipers? What about the pastors that preach love and compassion and go home to abuse their family? Because I’ve seen men and women do that in those roles. It’s not a discussion of whether it be man or woman. It should be a decision based a spirit-led calling.

More so, what is the significant of a claim like this? To bring down Christ followers from living how Jesus called us to? Because that’s all you’re doing when you rather have a community have no one leading them to Jesus over someone who isn’t afraid to obey just because they’re a woman.

As a believer who has witnessed woman (sic) step up in communities all over the world, where no man would to share the Gospel, and lead their community towards Christ (even when their life was at risk), I would argue that she ought to continue preaching. 

You can argue that, but it’s an ungodly, unbiblical, worldly argument based solely on your fleshly human desires. It is not based on Scripture, which explains God’s desires to us. If you’re a Christian, God’s Word is your authority for life and doctrine, not your opinions. If you’re a Christian, you’re a slave of Christ, and you’re not entitled to any thought, opinion, belief, position, or worldview other than your Master’s. And if you think you are, I’d be very interested to hear you argue that. 

at the end of the day, the role is for the called, man or woman.

You’re half right, here. The role of pastor, and the function of pastor (preaching) is for the called. God does the calling, and He only calls biblically qualified men through the qualifications He has enumerated in His Word. He has already told us this in Scripture, and Scripture is our authority, not some subjective, extra-biblical feeling that God is “calling” you. And again, this is your ungodly, unbiblical, worldly argument based solely on your fleshly human desires. It is not a biblical argument.

If you research on missionaries of the past

“MIssionaries of the past” (or present or future) are not our authority, or any sort of basis for making decisions or formulating doctrine. Scripture is. Directing someone to look to “missionaries of the past” is to say, “Hey, you need to look to broken, sinful human beings to figure out how to do Christianity instead of looking to Christ and His Word.”.

hundreds of people have been saved by women

Nope. Not one single, solitary person has ever been saved by a woman. Or a man. And if you think anyone ever has, you do not know the gospel. God alone is the only One who has ever saved anyone.

And honestly, using this phraseology really decreases your credibility to address this or any other biblical topic. This is not how mature Christians who know their Bibles and are equipped to engage on these topics frame things.

But if what you actually mean by “saved by women” is that people have gotten saved (by Christ) because a woman shared the gospel with them, of course that’s true, and I daresay that it’s been way more than “hundreds” of people over the last 2000 years.

But, so what? That has nothing to do with the topic at hand.

If you’re talking about women sharing the gospel with the lost, that’s called evangelism.

You’re conflating evangelism with pastoring and preaching. Evangelism is sharing the gospel with lost people outside the church, which all Christians are commanded to do. Pastoring and preaching is biblical instruction to saved people inside the church, which God has restricted to biblically qualified men. Evangelism and pastoring/preaching are two completely different, separate things. We have to keep our biblical categories straight.

Evangelism is a completely separate topic from what we’re talking about here, which is women “pastoring,” preaching, teaching men the Bible, and exercising authority over men in the gathering of the Body. Let’s stay on topic.

(For more information on the false conflation of evangelism and pastoring/preaching: Women Preaching the Gospel? at A Word Fitly Spoken)

Are you claiming none of those women should have followed the great commission commanded to ALL believers in Matthew 28

Not at all. All Believers are to carry out the Great Commission. Christian women have been obeying that command -without pretending to be “pastors” or preaching- for the past 2000 years. You don’t have to be a pastor or preach to share the gospel.

One of the primary ways women have historically fulfilled the Great Commission is by pouring the gospel into their children and grandchildren. (Lois and Eunice are a wonderful biblical example to us of this.) This is also why I said earlier that far more than “hundreds” have come to Christ because a woman -their mother- shared the gospel with them. It’s certainly not the only way women can share the gospel, but I feel confident that it’s the primary way.

In fact, women can share the gospel in any way except being a pastor or preaching (or violating any other Scriptures). They can even be missionaries and share the gospel with the lost – men and women – one on one or in any other way that doesn’t violate 1 Timothy 2:11-3:7, Titus 1:5-9, or any other Scripture. I have personal friends who are women who have done just that. I, myself, went on a short term mission trip many years ago and did just that.

Again, you need to learn the difference between evangelism and pastoring/preaching and stop conflating the two.

and that all those lives they pointed to Christ weren’t worth it?

Are you saying it’s only “worth it” or only fulfills the Great Commission if a woman is a “pastor” or preaches to men? Is it not “worth it” if a woman pours the gospel into her children? Shares the gospel with a girlfriend over coffee? Hands a tract to the man ahead of her in the check out line?

And again, the Christian’s measuring stick is rightly handled, in context Scripture, not a sinful human being’s subjective evaluation of whether or not something is “worth it”. You are not qualified to make a Christian argument on this or any other biblical topic until you learn and submit to the doctrine of the authority of Scripture. Right now, you’re trying to remove what you think is a speck in my eye, while the log of biblical illiteracy is protruding far out of your own.

Paul even asks in Romans 10:14-15, how people are to be saved if no one goes to share the Gospel with them.

How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? And how will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who proclaim good news of good things!”

Romans 10:14-15

He says, “How will they hear without a preacher, and how will they preach unless they are sent?”. 

You do know that God is the author of Scripture, right? And that God doesn’t contradict Himself, so His written Word doesn’t contradict itself, because God is not a liar?

God cannot (not just “does not,” but “cannot,” because He cannot lie) say something in Romans that contradicts what He says in 1 Timothy. (And not only that, Paul is the human writer of both Romans and 1 Timothy, and he’s not contradicting himself in these passages either.)

In 1 Timothy, God forbids women from pastoring, preaching, teaching the Bible to men, and holding authority over men in the gathering of the Body. So we don’t even have to read the Romans passage to know – beyond any doubt – that the Romans passage does not allow women to do those things.

Any time the Bible talks about preachers and preaching, it is talking about men. God doesn’t call or send women to preach. Women can share the gospel without preaching or being pastors.

Arguments like these are the reason we have prideful men in the Church who take roles they’re not called for 

No, ignorance of and rebellion against Scripture -which you’ve amply demonstrated in your comment- are why we have those things.

Pride is a sin for both men and women. Anyone who commits the sin of pride needs to repent.

Men “who take roles they’re not called for”. I can only assume that by this you mean “men serving as pastors who shouldn’t be pastors”. Your (or anyone else’s) worldly, fleshly feelings and opinions are not the standard by which a man is determined to be fit for (“called” to) the pastorate (that’s unbiblical judgment, and a violation of Matthew 7:1), Scripture is, primarily 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9.

and we have obedient women trying to ignore the calling God gave them in fear of judgement from their own community.

I’m sorry, but do you actually hear yourself saying this?

Women who defy God’s commands in His written Word are not obedient And they should be fearful of God’s judgment.

Christians who who rightly judge things according to properly handled Scripture are obeying Scripture. Professing Christians who argue for the defiance of Scripture and then denigrate Christians who are obeying Scripture are the ones who are unbiblically judging in violation of Matthew 7:1. 

I am not a feminist in any sense,

Yes, you are. You may not realize it, but the unbiblical position you’ve taken on this issue wouldn’t exist if it werent for feminism. So, at the very least, you are feminist in that sense. You’re holding a feminist position while claiming not to be a feminist, just like you’re claiming to be a Christian while standing in defiance of Christ and His Word.

but when it comes to silencing ANY believer from sharing the love and truth of Christ (man or woman) I cannot sit back 

I’m a woman and I’m sharing the love and truth of Christ, and you’re trying to silence me. More Matthew 7:1-5 hypocrisy. How about not “sitting back” against yourself?

If you think that women not being allowed to pastor and preach is “silencing women,” then you’re accusing God of silencing women. He is the One who issued the command, not me or any other Christian. All we’re doing is repeating what His Word has said for the last 2000 years. Your argument is with Him, not us.

and watch the Church divide itself on things that have nothing to do with salvation.

So you’d say it’s OK for homosexuals and “trans” people and rapists and child abusers to be pastors, right? To your way of thinking, those things “have nothing to do with salvation” either.

I promise, I am saying this as gently and kindly as I possibly can, but you need to hear this, and I would not be loving you biblically if I didn’t say it:

You do not know your Bible. You don’t know what you’re talking about. And as someone who doesn’t know her Bible you are not qualified to weigh in on this issue or assume the lofty position of, “I have to proclaim this ‘truth’ for the good of the church at large.”. Talk about “pridefully taking a role you’re not called for”!

You want to discuss sin?

We are discussing sin. Women defying Scripture by pretending to be pastors, preaching, teaching the Bible to men, and exercising authority over men in the gathering of the Body is sin.

I’m standing on God’s Word and arguing against that sin, You’re standing against God’s Word and arguing for that sin.

What about the leaders that are liars, jealous, prideful, lustful, and gossipers? What about the pastors that preach love and compassion and go home to abuse their family? Because I’ve seen men and women do that in those roles.

What about it? This is a deflection and a red herring, not a biblical argument. 

This “argument” is like saying, “You want to discuss the sin of rape? What about bank robbers? What about murderers? What about kidnaping? What about lying?”. The Bible never teaches us we should ignore one sin simply because a thousand other sins exist.

All of the sins you’ve listed should be dealt with biblically and so should the sin of women defying God’s command against women “pastoring” and preaching. It’s not like we’re limited in the number of sins we can biblically address.

It’s not a discussion of whether it be man or woman.

Correct. God said it’s to be a biblically qualified man. End of discussion.

It should be a decision based a spirit-led calling.

Correct. The Holy Spirit calls only biblically qualified men, only through His breathed out written Word.

More so, what is the significant (sic) of a claim like this? To bring down Christ followers from living how Jesus called us to?

No, to bring Christ followers up to living as Jesus called us to. You’re the one pushing Christ followers away from living as Jesus called us to because you’re encouraging them to defy God’s Word.

Because that’s all you’re doing when you rather have a community have no one leading them to Jesus 

I nowhere suggested in that article that the “community” that woman is pretending to “pastor” should have no one leading them to Jesus. I even explained how she and the other women could lead people to Jesus without disobeying Scripture. 

over someone who isn’t afraid to obey just because they’re a woman.

One more time: A woman who defies Scripture by pretending to be a “pastor” IS NOT OBEYING GOD. She is sinning.

I’ve got one more thing to add, and if you’ve made it this far, I really hope you’ll stick with me and seriously consider this. People who are genuinely born again Believers – new creatures in Christ – are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and understand, embrace, submit to, love, and obey God’s written Word. But one of the fruits of false converts – people who think they’re saved, but have never truly repented and believed the gospel – is that they reject, hate, fight against, disobey, and do not understand God’s written Word.

Because you have amply demonstrated that you do not know God’s Word and because every comment you’ve made above has been a defiance of God’s Word, I fear for your eternity. I would urge and encourage you to do what 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, and examine yourself against Scripture to discover whether or not you are truly a Believer.

Repent, believe the gospel, and be set free of these unbiblical beliefs today.

Additional Resources:

Rock Your Role: Jill in the Pulpit

Counter Arguments to Egalitarianism

If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.

Complementarianism, Rock Your Role

Sinners and False Teachers: The Women Who “Pastor” and Preach

Michelle Lesley

It’s a question someone asked me a long time ago:

“Are female ‘pastors’ and preachers false teachers, or are they just sinning?”

“Whoa, Nellie! Hold up just a cotton-pickin’ minute, there!” That question is probably a little stunning if you’re a professing Christian who’s never before encountered the idea that God prohibits women from being pastors, preaching to men, teaching the Bible to men, and holding authority over men in the gathering of the Body of Christ – the church.

Sorry to have to rip that Band-Aid off. I know it stings, but He does.

We know from passages like 1 Timothy 2:11-3:7 and Titus 1:5-9 that women who do those things – and the men who allow or encourage them to – are in sin, because when God tells us not to do something, and we do it anyway, that’s sin. It’s the very definition of sin.

Women who “pastor,” preach, teach Scripture to, and hold authority over men in the gathering of the Body – and the men who allow or encourage them to do so – are in sin.

But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet.

…appoint elders in every city as I directed you, namely, if any man is beyond reproach, the husband of one wife…

1 Timothy 2:12, Titus 1:5-6 (Excerpted)

And no, that command wasn’t just Paul’s personal, human opinion, or a command that was only for the Ephesian church at that time, or because the women of that time were uneducated, or teaching false doctrine, or more easily deceived, or any of the other man-made arguments against what Scripture plainly says.

And no, it’s not OK for a woman to violate that command simply because she has her husband’s and/or pastor’s permission, or that she’s under his “authority” or “mantle” or “covering”. No one has the authority to tell someone it’s OK to do something God has said is sin. Where God says “no,” no mere mortal has the right to say “yes”.

And no, it’s not all right for a woman to preach to, or teach the Bible to men in any gathering of the Body just so long as it’s not the 11:00 a.m. worship service on Sunday morning inside a church building. God places no such exceptions on His command. The church is the gathering Body of Christ regardless of what time, which day of the week, what size the group, or which type of venue in which they meet. Christians are the church. When Christians are gathered for worship and instruction in the Word – in the worship service, in adult Bible study and Sunday School classes, in parachurch organizations, at Christian conferences, concerts, rallies, and other events – the church is gathered, and biblically qualified men are to lead and teach them.

When God clearly commands us in His written Word not to do something, Christians say, “Yes, and amen, Lord. Please help me flee as far away from that sin as I can get.” Christians do not search high and low, far and wide for any possible exception, loophole, technicality, or exemption that would allow us to put one over on God so we can continue doing what our flesh really wants to do, all the while deceiving ourselves into believing we’re not actually sinning. You might fool yourself and others, but you’ll never fool God.

Christians do not search for any possible exception, loophole, technicality, or exemption that would allow us to continue doing what our flesh *really* wants to do, while deceiving ourselves into believing we’re not actually sinning.

Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’
and do not do what I say?

Luke 6:46

So, yes, without a doubt, women who become “pastors,” preach to men, teach the Scriptures to, or exercise authority over men in the gathering of the Body – and the men who allow or encourage them to do so – are sinning.

And a pastor who allows a woman to do so is not only sinning, he is also biblically disqualified – either temporarily or permanently – from pastoral ministry thrice over, because he is failing to hold to the trustworthy Word as taught, he is failing to give instruction in sound doctrine that only biblically qualified men may fill these roles in the church, and he is failing to rebuke the woman who is contradicting the sound doctrine of the biblical roles of men and women.

He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

Titus 1:9

So, violating God’s command against women “pastoring” and preaching is a sin, but does it make the woman who does so a false teacher? After all, if a woman committed adultery, or became a homosexual, or even killed someone, we would say she was sinning, but we wouldn’t call her a false teacher, would we?

Well, we might, in a sense, if she continued openly and unrepentantly doing those things while simultaneously claiming to be a Christian – and not just a Christian, but a Christian leader for people to look up to, learn from, and follow.

We would say that her behavior and example are lying to everyone and teaching the false doctrine that adultery, homosexuality, and murder are not sins, and that someone can be a Christian – even a good Christian leader – while openly, unrepentantly, and continuously committing these sins.

Further, her behavior and example are teaching everyone who sees her that if you come to a command of Scripture that you don’t like, it’s perfectly fine to disobey or ignore it.

Try to imagine your pastor standing in the pulpit on Sunday morning and saying, “Good morning, church! While you’re getting your Bibles out, I’d just like to let you know that if you come across a command of Scripture you don’t like, you are free to disobey or ignore it. In fact, doing whatever that command tells you not to do isn’t even a sin! Do it all you like! You’ll still be a Christian in good standing with God and with this church!”.

How long do you think it would take before your elders and/or deacons bodily hauled your so-called “pastor” out of the pulpit and firmly planted his posterior out on the curb?

If you go to any sort of halfway decent church, I’m guessing they’d get to the platform and lay hands on him before all the words were even out of his mouth.

And yet this is what happens every time a woman inserts herself into the role of pastor, or stands up before a co-ed gathering of adult Christians to preach or teach. The words may not be coming out of her mouth, but her behavior is actively teaching everyone in that local church or Christian gathering that…

  • a woman “pastoring” or preaching to men isn’t a sin (this isn’t only false doctrine, she’s also lying)
  • a woman can be a Christian – even a good Christian leader – while openly, unrepentantly, and continuously sinning by “pastoring” or preaching to men
  • if you come across a command of Scripture you don’t like, you are free to disobey or ignore it.

Why is it wrong for a (male) pastor to say these things verbally, but perfectly permissible for a female “pastor” or preacher to say these same things through her behavior and example?

Why is it wrong for a (male) pastor to say these things verbally, but perfectly permissible for a female “pastor” or preacher to say these same things through her behavior and example?

It’s not.

And this is just one more example of the wheels falling off of egalitarianism. Egalitarian. That word means “equal”. It means that women should be treated equally with men.

Well, what’s good for the gander is good for the goose. If a (male) pastor would be rebuked and dismissed for teaching such abominable false doctrine and lies about God and His Word, in an egalitarian world, a female “pastor” or preacher should be rebuked and dismissed for doing so, as well. You can’t have it both ways, e-gals. Either men and women are to be held to exactly the same standard, treated exactly the same, or they’re not.

Women “pastoring,” preaching, teaching the Bible to, and holding authority over men in the church has become a huge, complicated, sinful mess. Fortunately, the solution is clear cut: repent and obey Scripture.

For women, that means turning away from the pulpit and turning around to discover the joy awaiting them as they robustly fill out the crucial role of women in the church: discipling younger women, teaching children, serving and giving in any number of wonderful ways which don’t require them to do what Scripture has forbidden.

For men and pastors, that means being men of God, stepping up to fill those roles only men may fill, teaching the sound doctrine of the roles of men and women in the church, and rebuking those who contradict that sound doctrine.

When women and men turn from the sin and false doctrine of women taking on the roles God has restricted to men, the church will be healthier and everyone, including God, will be happier.

Additional Resources:

Rock Your Role: Jill in the Pulpit? (1 Timothy 2:11-12)

The Mailbag: Counter Arguments to Egalitarianism

Rock Your Role FAQs

Rock Your Role (all articles)

Christian women, Complementarianism, Holidays (Other)

The Mother of All Rebellions: Having a Woman Preach on Mother’s Day

Michelle Lesley

Originally published May 10, 2019

When you gaze out across the landscape of the visible church through an earthly, superficial lens, you’ve got to scratch your head and wonder, “Has evangelicalism lost its ever-lovin’ mind?”.

And the answer is to take off those inch-deep dollar store glasses, fire up the electron microscope of Scripture, look long and deep into God’s Word, and reply to yourself, “Of course it has, silly rabbit. What did you expect?”. The Bible is perfectly clear about these things and why they happen.

Exhibit A: The trend in recent years to invite a woman to preach the Sunday morning sermon in church, to the whole congregation (including men) just because it’s Mother’s Day. Not a brief personal testimony, the sermon. This isn’t anything brand new. Lisa Harper has done it at Max Lucado’s church. Christine Caine has done it. Lisa Bevere has done it. Lysa TerKeurst has done it. Priscilla Shirer has done it. And a host of other famous and unfamous women at famous and unfamous churches have been doing it for years, even at churches that normally obey Scripture and don’t let women preach.

This year (2019), Beth Moore has caused quite the stir by hiding in plain sight the fact that she will be preaching the sermon “doing Mother’s Day” this coming Sunday, presumably at the Tomball, Texas, campus of the church she attends (founded and pastored by her son-in-law Curtis Jones1) Bayou City Fellowship:

I say “hiding in plain sight” because she has given enough of an impression here that she is preaching the sermon to test the waters and see what the reaction will be, but has worded her tweet vaguely enough that if she meets too much resistance she can still decide to back out of preaching, give a brief word of biblically appropriate Mother’s Day greeting or encouragement to the ladies at another point during the service, and come back and claim with wide-eyed innocence that that’s what she meant all along by saying she was “doing” Mother’s Day. (Someone asked Beth point blank, in a subsequent tweet if Beth’s tweet meant that she would be preaching the Sunday service and Beth did not answer her. If she’s not, why not just say so? And if she is and isn’t ashamed of it, why not just say so?)

I say “presumably” at BCF-Tomball because, even though she publicizes specific details about time and place with other speaking engagements, she has not mentioned (at least not anywhere I can find as of the time I’m writing this) the specific church she’s preaching at on Sunday, and the church hasn’t mentioned on their website that she’ll be the guest preacher. Additionally, unlike other speaking engagements Beth does, this speaking engagement is not listed on the calendar of events at her website and she hasn’t mentioned it (other than the tweet above) on social media. With all this “open secrecy” I will be surprised if the video or audio of her sermon is posted on YouTube and/or the church website.

Why all this cloak and dagger about the highest profile woman in the Southern Baptist Convention2, possibly in the entirety of evangelicalism, preaching the Mother’s Day sermon?

Because she knows it’s unbiblical. Because we know it’s unbiblical. And it doesn’t take an electron microscope to see it. It’s right there, in black and white, jumping off the pages of Scripture:

I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. 1 Timothy 2:12

It couldn’t be more clear. And for pastors who ought to know better to either fall prey to or intentionally perpetuate the serpentine seduction of “Did God really say you can’t preach?”, using Mother’s Day as an excuse to induce a woman to sin by having her deliver the sermon is a slap in the face – to God, to the church, and to women.

Using Mother’s Day as an excuse to induce a woman to sin by having her deliver the sermon is a slap in the face – to God, to the church, and to women.

What do his actions say to God? “I don’t like Your way and I won’t submit to it. I don’t trust that Your way is right regardless of what the world says. I’ll do what’s right in my own eyes.” It’s the lesson his church learns from his actions as well.

But why is inviting a woman to preach an affront to Christian women? Take a stroll down to verse 15 of 1 Timothy 2:

Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.

Not only does the pastor who invites a woman to preach adulterate the role God has set aside specifically for men, he also denigrates one of the good and holy roles God has specifically and intentionally set aside for women: the role of literal, and spiritual, mother.

Eve shattered God’s perfect, unique design for women by allowing herself to be seduced into rebellion. But are we daughters of Eve forever doomed to bear the shame and guilt of her sin, never to have a role in building the Kingdom? Pariahs, to be shunned and shut out of God’s plan? No, praise God! Through the cross, the good works Christ has ordained for Christian women to do – including mothering our own children and being spiritual mothers to our daughters in the faith – redeem the prestige of women. Mothering, in every sense in which God intended it, raises the role of women back to its rightful place in God’s plan.

And we don’t need men – especially men who are supposed to be rightly leading God’s people – to come along and entice us to mess that all up again.

But that’s exactly what’s happening.

When a pastor invites a woman to sin by taking over the pulpit, he drags her and the women of his church right back to post-Fall Eden. He trashes the rank and repute of our God-given high and holy role of mother and implicitly says Being a woman isn’t good enough. You have to steal the role of men to be valued and esteemed. 

When a pastor invites a woman to sin by taking over the pulpit, he implicitly says, “Being a woman isn’t good enough. You have to steal the role of men to be valued and esteemed.”

Ladies, he’s wrong.

We don’t need to be second rate imitations of men in order to “count”. We need to be first rate, full throttle, take it to the limit women of God. God loves us and values us so much more than to give men a special and amazing role and leave us without an equally special and amazing, yet totally distinct, role. The God who spoke the universe into existence and planned out an unparalleled purpose for every single plant, animal, bacterium, and every other atom of the cosmos, did not leave the queen of His creation roleless. He did not bring us into being only to toddle along after the Hairy Ones trying to copy their every move. How unloving of God, and devaluing to women, would that be? Why would you want to act like a man when God blessed you with the gift of being a woman?

If, by God’s good Providence, you’ve “stumbled across” this article and you’re a woman who has been invited to preach, I plead with you: don’t buy the lie. Say no. Your Savior has a whole treasure chest of good works for you to do as a woman. You are worth infinitely more to Him as the woman He created you to be than you are to the world, or a worldly church, as a cheap knock-off of a man.

The practice of denigrating women, devaluing our God-given role, disobeying God, and darkening the understanding of the church by inviting women to sinfully take the pulpit must stop in the house of God.

Let us be the mothers our own children need, raising up a godly seed unto the Lord. Let us be the spiritual mothers longed for by younger women in the faith, daughters orphaned by Christian women who have abandoned them to take on the role of men. The practice of denigrating women, devaluing our God-given role, disobeying God, and darkening the understanding of the church by inviting women to sinfully take the pulpit must stop in the house of God and be replaced by strong godly women, unafraid and unashamed to flourish in the precious role our Lord has blessed us with.

Especially on Mother’s Day.

Updates to this article:

1Curtis Jones (Beth Moore’s son-in-law) resigned his pastorate at BCF in July 2020.

2Beth Moore has left the Southern Baptist Convention and is now attending an Anglican church where – surprise, surprise – she preaches from time to time.

Additional Resources:

Rock Your Role

Beth Moore vs. Owen Strahan on WWUTT Podcast
(Related links):
•Michelle Lesley’s Twitter thread on Beth’s Sunday sermon preaching
•Beth Moore’s Twitter response to Midwestern Seminary professor Owen
Strahan’s article on biblical complementarianism

Divine Order in a Chaotic Age: On Women Preaching by Owen Strahan

Mailbag

The Mailbag: Top 10 FAQs

Michelle Lesley

Originally published September 7, 2020

I get lots of great questions, and sometimes, they’re the same questions from lots of different people. So I thought today it would be fun, instead of answering just one person’s question, to answer lots of people’s questions. Here are the top 10 Mailbag questions readers most frequently ask:

1.

“Do you know anything about [Christian pastor/teacher/author] or his/her materials? Is s/he doctrinally sound?”

The best way to find out if I’ve written anything on a particular teacher is to put her name (make sure you spell it correctly) into the search bar, which is located at the bottom of every page of the blog. You can also check the Popular False Teachers & Unbiblical Trends tab and the Recommended Bible Teachers tab (in the blue menu bar at the top of this page) to see if the teacher’s name is located there.

If you need answers on a certain teacher right away, and I haven’t written anything about her, you will need to do the research yourself, which is a skill every Christian needs to hone anyway. (You should never just take my, or anybody else’s, word for it that a particular teacher is or isn’t trustworthy.) In case you need a little help getting started, I’ve described how I do my research, complete with some quick litmus tests and shortcuts in my article Is She a False Teacher? 7 Steps to Figuring It Out on Your Own. 

If I haven’t written an article about a teacher you see as problematic who’s reaching a wide audience, you’re welcome to send me her name along with any links you may have to her unbiblical teaching or behavior. If I get enough questions about a particular teacher, I’ll probably write an article on her.

2.

“Can you recommend a good
women’s/children’s/teens/particular topic Bible study?”

No. On principle, I do not recommend what I call “canned” (book, workbook, DVD, etc.) Bible studies- not even doctrinally sound ones. The church has become so utterly dependent on books and materials written by others that the majority of evangelicals have no idea how to simply pick up the Bible and study or teach straight from the text of Scripture. I may be the only one to stand against that tide, but I’m standing against it. We need to, as a general practice, cut out the middleman and get back to learning and teaching straight from the Bible itself.

If studying or teaching directly from Scripture is new to you, I would encourage you to check out the Bible Studies tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page, which explains more about my philosophy of Bible study and provides numerous resources to help you learn how to study or teach the Bible itself.

One of the resources you’ll find is all of the Bible studies I’ve written. They are all free, all suitable for individual and group use, and you are welcome to print out as many copies as you need. My studies are learn-by-doing “training wheels” that teach you: how to study/teach the Bible in a systematic way, the kinds of things you should be noticing in the text, the kinds of questions you should be asking of the text, and how the various parts of the Bible fit together to tell God’s grand story of redemption through Christ. Work through a study or two. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be ready to unbolt those training wheels and study or teach on your own without needing to rely on anyone else’s materials any more – including mine.

Here are a few additional resources:

The Mailbag: Can you recommend a good Bible study for women/teens/kids?

The Mailbag: “We need to stop relying on canned studies,” doesn’t mean, “We need to rely on doctrinally sound canned studies.”

McBible Study and the Famine of God’s Word

3.

“You shouldn’t be warning against [popular false teacher]
for [X,Y,Z] reason!”

Sorry, but that’s not what the Bible says. The question isn’t, “Why am I warning against them?”. The question is, “Why aren’t you?”

Answering the Opposition- Responses to the Most Frequently Raised Discernment Objections

4.

I’m trying to find a doctrinally sound church. Can you help me?

It is my delight to help my brothers and sisters find a solid church. Please check out the Searching for a new church? tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page.

If you’re newly saved and/or coming out of the New Apostolic Reformation, prosperity gospel, New Age, Catholicism, Mormonism, etc., I would strongly recommend reading through all of the resources in the “What to look for in a church” section of that tab before beginning your search for an actual church. You need to know what makes a church doctrinally sound (or not), and those resources can help.

Notice that there are multiple church search engines at the top of that tab. If you don’t find something in your area at the first search engine, go to the next one, and keep going until you’ve exhausted all of them.

Keep in mind that doctrinally sound churches are becoming scarcer and scarcer. You may have to drive longer than you’d like to get to one. It may not meet all your preferences. You might have to try a different denomination than you’re used to. The most doctrinally sound church you can find within achievable driving distance may have a few biblical “warts” (for example: a generally solid preaching/teaching church but the women’s ministry uses materials by false teachers). It is possible that God may put you in that less than perfect church to sanctify you, or for you to help bring about biblical change.

Sometimes people e-mail me asking if I can help them find a church. Your best bet is really to use all of the resources at the “Searching for a new church” tab. I want to reassure you that, unlike Walmart, I don’t have any churches in the back store room that haven’t been stocked yet. With the exception of a handful of churches my readers have recommended that I haven’t had a chance to vet yet, everything I have is out on the shelves at that tab. :0) (I would also encourage everyone reading this – if you attend a doctrinally sound church, click the link above and see if your church is listed on at least one of the three most popular church search engines: Founders, G3, and/or Master’s Seminary church search engines. If not, talk to your pastor about submitting your church’s information to one or more of these so people can find you! You are also welcome to submit your church for inclusion on my Reader Recommended Churches list, but that list doesn’t reach nearly as many people as the aforementioned other three do.)

If you’ve made a good faith effort at the “Searching…” tab and have exhausted all of the resources there, and you still can’t find a passable church within achievable driving distance, you have two options (one of which is not giving up on church and staying home): move to an area that has a solid, established church, or look into church planting.

If you’re considering moving for a church, do everything in your power to make sure that church is solid and is going to stay that way. Find out about their history. Watch their worship services online regularly for a few months. Set up a Zoom call with the pastor or elders, explain your situation, and “interview them”. Don’t be shy to ask any, and as many questions as you need to. You’re picking up your entire life and moving based on what they say. Churches are apostatizing at an alarming rate. The last thing you want to do is move somewhere for a church you thought was sound, only to have it take a turn toward sin or false doctrine six months after you get there.

Personally, I think church planting is the preferable option for at least two reasons. First, you don’t have to go through the hassle, logistics (“Will I be able to find a job in this new place?”), and emotional upheaval of leaving family and friends behind that comes with moving. Second, if you’re in an area where you can’t find a good church, neither can any of your neighbors. You could be the person God uses to bring a solid church to an area without a gospel witness. How amazing would that be? Pick up the phone or fire up your email and start contacting the church planting organizations listed. Explain your dilemma. Ask for their help. If none of the church planting organizations can help, contact the nearest doctrinally sound church, explain things to the pastor, and ask about his church planting a church in your area.

5.

(I’m combining two questions here because the answers to both, and the resources for both, are similar and overlap.)

The leadership at my church is kicking off a new Bible study using materials by a false teacher. What should I do?

It breaks my heart that this is, indeed, a frequently asked question. Please see my article The Mailbag: How should I approach my church leaders about a false teacher they’re introducing?.

My friend is following a false teacher. How can I help her see this? 

Here are some resources that can help:

Words with Friends: How to contend with loved ones – at A Word Fitly Spoken (many additional resources linked here)

Words With Friends by Amy Spreeman

Clinging to the Golden Calf: 7 Godly Responses When Someone Says You’re Following a False Teacher 

6.

My church uses …
or
I’m looking for a new church,
and I found one that’s really sound, except they use…
Bethel / Jesus Culture / Hillsong / Elevation music
or other music from heretical sources.
What should I do?

Please see my article The Mailbag: How should I approach my church leaders about a false teacher they’re introducing?. You can find information about Bethel, et al at the Popular False Teachers & Unbiblical Trends tab in the blue menu bar at the top of this page. Some other resources that may be helpful:

Why Your Church Should Stop Playing Bethel, Hillsong, Elevation and Jesus Culture

The Mailbag: False Doctrine in Contemporary Christian Music

7.

Whaddaya mean women can’t preach to men? Of course they can!

Again, sorry, but that’s not what the Bible says. I would strongly encourage you to read all of the articles in my Rock Your Role series, which examines the Scriptures dealing with the role of women in the church. (Remember, for Christians, God’s Word is our authority, not our feelings, opinions, and preferences.) I would suggest starting with these:

Jill in the Pulpit

Oh No She Di-int! Priscilla Didn’t Preach, Deborah Didn’t Dominate, and Esther Wasn’t an Egalitarian

Rock Your Role FAQs

The Mailbag: Counter Arguments to Egalitarianism

8.

Why isn’t Teacher X listed at your Popular False Teachers tab?
Does the fact that she’s not listed mean she’s doctrinally sound?
Why isn’t Teacher Y listed at your Recommended Bible Teachers tab? Does the fact that she’s not listed mean she’s a false teacher?

Please understand that these are not comprehensive lists of every false teacher or doctrinally sound teacher in existence. There are thousands of both, so that would be impossible. Also, don’t jump to conclusions about any teacher who’s not on the list. The absence of a particular teacher’s name on either list says nothing definitive about whether or not I would recommend that teacher.

The articles I’ve written about false teachers have mainly been in response to readers inquiring about them. In other words, if you don’t see a particular teacher’s name on the list, it’s probably because I haven’t been asked about her, I’ve been asked about her but haven’t had time to get to it yet, or for one of the reasons below.

The teachers on the recommended teachers list are those I’ve personally listened to or read at enough length that I feel comfortable endorsing them. Most of the teachers on the list trend toward being Calvinistic/Reformed and cessationist because I believe this is the most biblically correct view of Scripture, and because, in my experience, those of these persuasions are generally more discerning about associating with false teachers, and more expository in their teaching. (Of course there are some non-Calvinist/Reformed pastors and teachers who are stellar in these areas. I’ve had the privilege of knowing a few personally.)

There are a few other reasons you might not see someone’s name on either the false teachers or the recommended teachers lists:

• My articles on false teachers are nearly always about teachers: who are well known (thus the “Popular” in “Popular False Teachers”), who women in my particular audience – average American evangelical women – are most likely to follow, and whose materials are being used in those average American evangelical women’s churches. It takes multiple hours of research to vet teachers, and I have to invest those hours into the teachers who are deceiving the greatest numbers women in my audience.

• I don’t tend to write articles on teachers who are so blatantly heretical and/or are so well known for being heretical that it should be obvious (unless I feel there’s some compelling reason to do so). This is why you won’t see, for example, Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, or Nadia Bolz-Weber on the false teachers list. Kenneth and Benny are fairly well known for being prosperity gospel heretics, and a 30 second Google search should make it obvious to most Christians who aren’t already familiar with her that Nadia is a liberal heretic. And, again, your average American evangelical woman isn’t following people like this, and her church isn’t using their materials.

• Normally, I don’t write about contemporary teachers who are dead, especially if they’re not particularly popular with my demographic. This is why you don’t see names like Mother Teresa or David Wilkerson on the list.

9.

I have a dire and complicated family/marriage/church situation,
can you help me?
Can you mentor/disciple me?

I deeply wish I could answer “yes” to all of these inquiries. I’m a helper. I want to help people. But I also know that in most of these situations, I’m not the right person for the job. So my answer to these inquiries has to be “no”. I cannot engage in counseling or discipling/mentoring relationships via e-mail.

The first reason for this is that my primary duty before the Lord is to care for my husband, children, and grandchildren, to manage my household, and to be a faithful church member. That takes a lot of time and energy. And if you’ve ever read my e-mail policy, you know I don’t even have time to answer most of the e-mails I receive, let alone the time that’s required to properly disciple, mentor, or counsel someone through a difficult circumstance.

But the second reason I’m not the right person for the job is that all of these are the job of the local church. It’s not right for me to get between you and your pastor when you need counsel or between you and an older sister at your church when you need to be discipled. You need someone who can walk with you, face to face, for the long haul, through these situations. Relying on me would be cheating yourself out of connecting with the person at your church who could be there for you the best and help you the most.

And, finally, especially in dire counseling situations such as abuse, extreme marital problems, or complex issues at church, I’m not familiar with the laws and resources in your area, I’m only hearing your side of the story, I’m not getting all of the details, etc. Your pastor or an older sister at church is there. They can better help you navigate the intricacies of the situation and provide you with more effective solutions than I can.

10.

I’d love to come hear you speak in person.
When will you be speaking in my area?

As soon as someone sets up an event and invites me! I am delighted to speak anywhere I’m invited and that can host me.

The best way to be sure you’ll be able to make it to one of my conferences or events is to set one up at your church (or in conjunction with another local church(es)) or parachurch organization. I know that probably sounds daunting, but I’ve spoken at lots of small churches with limited resources, and it might not be as difficult as you think! I’ve also provided lots of helpful hints and resources at my Speaking Engagements tab (in the blue menu bar at the top of this page) so you don’t have to break the bank or re-invent the wheel.

The second best way to keep up to date on whether or not I’ll be speaking in your area is twofold:

  1. Go to my Speaking Engagements tab and scroll all the way to the end of the page where it says “202- Calendar”. I list all of my upcoming speaking engagements there, along with where they’re located and registration information.
  2. Subscribe to my blog via email. From time to time, I’ll create an article listing all of my upcoming events, their dates, locations, and registration information.

Hope to see you soon at an event near you!

If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.

Discernment

Lifeway Women

Michelle Lesley

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 some research 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.

In some cases, I am not very familiar with 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 research 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.

Lifeway Women
Not Recommended

Lifeway Women is the women’s division of Lifeway Christian Resources, an entity of the Southern Baptist Convention. Lifeway Christian Resources is an online store selling Christian books, Bible studies, and other materials for use by churches and individual Christians. Lifeway Women, as the name implies, not only sells books and other materials created specifically for women, it is also the platform for Lifeway’s women’s conferences, online Bible studies, a podcast, blog articles, women’s ministry resources and women’s leadership resources.

Lifeway’s current stable of women’s Bible study authors and conference speakers includes…

Lifeway Women’s prototypical women’s author and speaker – the type of woman they recruit to write Bible studies, create resources, and speak at their women’s conferences – preaches to men, partners with false teachers, and teaches false doctrine. Some of them are also woke, such as Jackie Hill Perry and Elizabeth Woodson. At least one of them – Kristi McLelland – held the office of “Teaching Pastor” at her church at the time Lifeway Women signed her (and continues to preach there regularly). Until quite recently, Rebecca McLaughlin – who identifies as a “same sex attracted Christian” – was also one of Lifeway Women’s platformed authors (her articles and other media are still posted and her books are still for sale, but she’s no longer listed under “Lifeway Women Authors”).

I haven’t researched and written about all of Lifeway Women’s authors and speakers, but I’ve written about enough of them to see that they all fit the template. Here are the current Lifeway Women authors and speakers I’ve written about, explaining the biblical issues with each:

Christine Caine

Whitney Capps
(Whitney works for Proverbs 31 Ministries)

Lauren Chandler

Tara-Leigh Cobble

Karen Ehman

Lisa Harper

Katie McCoy

Kristi McLelland

Kelly Minter

Beth Moore

Raechel Myers

Jackie Hill Perry

Jennifer Rothschild

Priscilla Shirer

Ruth Chou Simons

Angie Smith

Lysa TerKeurst

Jen Wilkin

Amanda Bible Williams

Elizabeth Woodson

As I said, these all fit the template of the prototypical teacher Lifeway Women recruits for their stable of authors and speakers. There’s no reason to believe that the remaining speakers and authors don’t fit the same template. At the very least, they’ve demonstrated a disqualifying lack of discernment by signing on with Lifeway Women and affiliating with the false teachers listed above.

So, although it pains me to say this as a lifelong Southern Baptist, if you need a quick way to rule out materials or events you’re vetting without doing hours of research on someone you’re not familiar with, I would recommend avoiding any author, speaker, or conference promoted by Lifeway Women.