Women In Leadership (Part I)

Series Launch: Women in Leadership

• New Testament series beginning, following 4+ years through the Old Testament

• Series title: “Freedom and Authority: Women in Leadership and Gender Identity in the Church”

• Framed as neither progressive/feminist nor politically conservative: goal is alignment with scripture

• Driven by 8-year personal journey; Ken acknowledges he may still amend views

• God’s big-picture reason: raising a “last days army” that needs men and women both on the battlefield

Erin’s Opening Reflection

• Initially unenthusiastic when Ken proposed the series: most women are just trying to survive daily life, not seeking more responsibility

• Story from Afghanistan: Afghan women who loved their burqas prompted reflection on how easy it is to stay “hidden”

• Core challenge from the Lord: do you really believe Jesus is coming back? Live in full abandonment, not comfort or complacency

• Framing: not about women taking anything, but about being willing to receive what the Holy Spirit wants to give

• Prayed over women in the room; added a separate prayer for godly marriages for single women

Ken’s Theological Position

• Two camps defined:

  • Egalitarian: women unrestricted in all church roles

  • Complementarian: women restricted in some areas

• Ken’s landed position, drawn from Antioch movement’s position paper:

  • Women can demonstrate every spiritual gift and hold any leadership role: teacher, pastor, elder, international team leader

  • Church is best understood as a family, not corporation, so a male senior leader aligns with the family leadership structure found in Ephesians

• Mentors and influences cited:

  • Ray Mayhew (80 years old): egalitarian, deep scriptural depth

  • Taylor Foster (M.Div.): “soft egalitarian,” freedom in all roles except possibly senior leader

  • Pastor in Omaha: recommended the book “Beyond Sex Roles”,  

• Book recommendations for the New Testament series: two volumes by Blomberg, “Jesus and the Gospels” and “From Pentecost to Patmos”

Historical Bias and Week 2 Preview

• Greek and Roman foundations shaped deeply negative views of women:

  • Aristotle: women as “deformed male,” naturally inferior

  • Romans: compared unchecked women to wild animals

  • Rabbinic tradition: “burn the Torah before delivering it to a woman”

  • Church fathers (Tertullian, Aquinas, Calvin): women “defective,” “inferior in rank”

• Declaration of Independence declared all men equal in 1776; women couldn’t vote until 1920 (144 years later)

• Key question posed for reflection: when interpreting scripture on this issue, are we starting from a clean slate, or from centuries of inherited bias?

• Next week: Jesus’s early sermon and how he engaged women in that cultural context

Next Steps

• Submit questions for the live Q&A series finale Email hello@tribeomaha.com with questions or topics not covered in the series.