From whether we should ordain women to whether they should ever be on a Sunday morning platform, there’s a lot of debate in the Church today about what a woman can and can’t do in Christian leadership. And that’s been the case for a long time.
The Bible has a lot to say about the role of women in the Church, but how to understand those verses is often highly contested. We discuss all that in a previous episode of the podcast.
So on this episode, rather than diving into a theological discussion about complementarity and egalitarianism, we’re going to take a look at the women leaders we meet in the New Testament. What did they do? What were their contributions to the early church? What was their legacy?
This is a fun conversation, where we talk about some really well known New Testament women, as well as a few that you may not have heard about. In our discussion, we explore the lives and leadership of the following New Testament women.
- Mary, the mother of Jesus
- Mary and Martha of Bethany
- Mary Magdalene
- Priscilla
- Lydia
- Phoebe
- Junia
- Chloe
- Lois and Eunice
- Euodia and Syntche
REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE
“The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth” by Beth Allison Barr
QUOTES FROM THIS EPISODE
Oftentimes, when we see women leading in the biblical text, we see them as the exception rather than the rule. But we shouldn't. Share on X
Hitching complementarian theology to biblical inerrancy itself is a strange power move that has long existed within evangelicalism. Share on X
Mary the mother of Jesus was a respected figure in the early movement of the Church--not just because she gave birth to Jesus, but because she was a recognized leader within the movement. Share on X
Mary of Bethany proved that women have just as much a seat at the table as men when it comes to being followers of Jesus. Share on X
It was Martha's theological conversation with Jesus that set the stage for us to see Jesus declare himself the resurrection and the life. Share on X
It was women who were the first proclaimers of the gospel. Share on X
What are the far-reaching implications of the resurrected Jesus revealing himself to women and letting them be the first to carry that message? Share on X
The first person to ever lead an expositional bible study on the book of Romans was a woman. Share on X
Parents, both mother and father, are called to raise their kids in the way of the Lord and to impact the next generation. Share on X
We'll never know exactly how many women were leading in the days of the early church, but the New Testament gives us glimpses into the fact that they played a huge role. Share on X
