Women Can Serve in Church Leadership

Refuting the False Teaching that Women Cannot Serve in Church Leadership

Introduction

Some teach that although men and women are equal in worth before God, women cannot serve in roles of authority within the church, such as apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, elders, or deacons. They cite passages such as 1 Timothy 2:11–15, 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, 1 Peter 5, and 1 Corinthians 14 to restrict women.

This teaching misinterprets Scripture, takes passages out of their historical and cultural context, and directly contradicts the larger biblical witness. The Word of God, rightly divided, shows that women were called, commissioned, and empowered by God to serve in every area of ministry leadership.

1. The Biblical Witness of Women in Leadership

The Scriptures themselves prove that women exercised spiritual authority:

Deborah – prophetess and judge who ruled Israel and commanded men (Judges 4–5).

Huldah – prophetess who instructed priests and King Josiah (2 Kings 22:14–20).

Priscilla – co-taught Apollos, a learned man, in correct doctrine (Acts 18:24–26).

Phoebe – called a diakonos (deacon) and prostatis (leader/patron) of many, entrusted with Paul’s letter to Rome (Romans 16:1–2).

Junia – named among the apostles, “outstanding” in their number (Romans 16:7).

Philip’s daughters – prophetesses (Acts 21:9).

Mary Magdalene – commissioned by Jesus to announce His resurrection to the apostles (John 20:17–18).

If God’s Word forbade women from authority, then these examples would be violations of His will. Instead, they confirm that God Himself raises women as leaders.

2. Refuting Misused Scriptures

a) 1 Timothy 2:11–15

Paul’s restriction is local, not universal. The Greek word for “authority” (authentein) means to dominate or usurp, not the normal term for godly leadership (exousia).

The context of 1 Timothy is false teaching in Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3–7). Women there were uneducated; Paul commands, “Let them learn” (v. 11) – revolutionary permission at the time.

Paul’s reference to Eve shows the danger of deception through lack of knowledge, not a permanent ban on women teaching.

Correct division: Paul temporarily restricts disruptive or deceived women in Ephesus, not all women in all churches.

b) 1 Corinthians 14:34–35

If this meant total silence, it would contradict 1 Corinthians 11:5, where Paul permits women to pray and prophesy publicly.

The command to be “silent” refers to disruptive questioning, not ministry. Women in Corinth, often seated apart from men, were likely interrupting to ask questions. Paul directs them to learn respectfully.

Correct division: This is about orderly worship, not forbidding women from ministry.

c) 1 Timothy 3:1–13 & Titus 1:5–9

The phrase “husband of one wife” is an idiom meaning “faithful in marriage.” Paul uses the same construction for widows (“wife of one husband” – 1 Tim 5:9). That phrase obviously doesn’t exclude women.

Since Phoebe is explicitly called a deacon (Rom 16:1) and Junia an apostle (Rom 16:7), Paul cannot mean to bar women from these offices.

Correct division: These passages set moral standards for leaders, not gender restrictions.

d) 1 Peter 5:2–3

Peter’s instructions to elders do not specify men only.

The NT consistently teaches that all believers—male and female—are “a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6).

Correct division: Eldership is about shepherding faithfully, not excluding women.

3. The Gospel Principle: No Male or Female in Christ

Galatians 3:28 – “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Joel 2:28–29 / Acts 2:17–18 – God pours His Spirit on sons and daughters, male and female servants, and they will prophesy.

Spiritual gifts are given without regard to gender (1 Corinthians 12:7–11).

To deny women the exercise of their gifts is to quench the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19).

4. The Danger of Misogynistic Interpretation

When men use Scripture to silence women contrary to the examples and commands of God’s Word, they:

Contradict the Spirit who gifts both men and women.

Deny the authority of God in calling female leaders.

Exalt cultural prejudice above the revealed will of God.

Such teaching is not biblical complementarity but misogyny disguised as theology.

Conclusion

The teaching that women cannot serve as pastors, apostles, teachers, elders, or deacons is a distortion of Scripture. The Bible, rightly divided, reveals:

Women have always held spiritual authority in God’s people.

Paul’s restrictions were local, temporary, and corrective—not universal.

The Spirit equips both men and women for every role in the fivefold ministry.

Therefore, any doctrine that forbids women from leadership in the church is false teaching, inconsistent with the whole counsel of God.

> “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy…” (Acts 2:17).