Can Women Be Pastors? | Ask A Pastor Ep. 11

Can women be pastors? It’s a question Christians have debated for generations, and one that often sparks strong opinions on both sides. In this episode of Ask A Pastor, Pastor Todd takes an honest, Scripture-centered look at one of the most discussed topics in the Church today.

Starting with Pentecost and God’s promise to pour out His Spirit on “sons and daughters,” this episode explores what the Bible says about calling, spiritual gifts, leadership, and the role of women in ministry. From Deborah, Miriam, and Huldah in the Old Testament to Priscilla, Phoebe, Anna, and Junia in the New Testament, Pastor Todd examines the many women God used to lead, teach, prophesy, and advance His kingdom.

What about the passages that seem to restrict women in ministry? How should we understand Paul’s words in 1 Timothy and 1 Corinthians? And what can we learn from the fruit of women who have faithfully served, preached, planted churches, and led others to Christ throughout church history?

Whether you agree, disagree, or are still wrestling with the question, this conversation seeks to approach the topic with biblical integrity, humility, and a desire to follow wherever God leads.

Join us as we explore what Scripture teaches about calling, gifting, and the work of the Holy Spirit—and ask an important question: If God has called someone, who are we to stand in the way?

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

What's up, everybody? So good to have you back here with us on another episode of Ask Uh Pastor. Got a got a kind of controversial one coming your way today. And here's the thing, I want to set the stage. I just want to say, no matter your uh no matter how you feel about this topic, I want you to know that we can all be friends uh at the end of this topic. Uh, but it's a it's a hot debated topic right now. Um we there is uh a major denomination that is actually voting on this very topic uh on whether or not uh they should allow this in their denomination today. Uh and and I'm I'm proud today to be part of a movement uh that supports women uh in ministry. And so if you're watching today, uh it's gonna be a it's gonna be a uh spicy topic, uh, but I'm I'm one that I I love to talk about those things and I love to talk about these things. And and the topic is can women be pastors? Can ladies be pastors? And this is one of those questions that's hotly debated in Christianity uh for a long time. Some believers say yes, some believers say no, but uh and both sides point to some very valid scriptures uh for both. Uh but uh so what do I believe? I believe myself, I believe that women can be pastors. Why? Not because culture says so, but not because it's politically correct, not because I feel pressure uh from a feminist side of the aisle, not any because of any of that, but I believe because the overall testimony of the scripture and the work of the Holy Spirit, I believe, points us to that direction. Now, before you click away, before you get mad, before you jump down in the comments, uh let me let me explain uh let me explain it to you this way. And I believe it starts with Pentecost. I believe it all starts with Pentecost. Now, I am a Pentecostal. I think we all have to start with uh Pentecostalism, and and Pentecostalism starts at Pentecost in Acts 2. Peter stands up and explains what is happening, that the Spirit, the Holy Spirit is poured out, and he even quotes the prophet Joel. Uh and Joel says in in Joel 2, 28, he says, And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy. Your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. Then Joel Joel continues in verse 29. He says, Even on male and female servants in those days I will pour out my spirit. Think about it. The defining mark of the new covenant is that God will call pour out his Holy Spirit on men and women alike. The Spirit doesn't come in a blue version, men and a pink version in women. It's the same spirit, the same power, the same calling, the same gifting. And when Peter quotes Joel in Acts 2, uh, he doesn't he says, This is that. This is what God is doing. This is Pentecost. Pentecost wasn't just about speaking in tongues, it was about the removal of barriers, removal of barriers, young and old, rich and poor, male and female. The spirit was being poured out on everyone. And that's why Paul later writes in Galatians 3, 28, he says, there's neither Jew nor Greek, nor neither slave nor free, neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Paul isn't erasing distinctions of male and female, he's declaring that access to God's promises, God's calling, and his inheritance is no longer determined by those social categories. The ground at the foot of the cross is level. We have to remember that. And if God pours out his spirit without regard to gender, we should be very careful by limiting who can use the Holy Spirit to proclaim the gospel. Because God has always called the unexpected. So let's remember uh something important. Whatever God calls someone in scripture, the calling itself is not is what call qualify the calling itself is what qualifies them. None of us are qualified to go into ministry, but when God calls us, that is what qualifies us to go into ministry. Moses wasn't qualified, David wasn't qualified, Jeremiah wasn't qualified, none of the disciples were qualified to preach, but God called them to preach, and that was their credentials. The same principle applies to women. If God calls someone or responsibly, it's it's it's not to resist the calling, but to recognize it. If God puts a calling on someone's life, our job is not to resist it, but to affirm and recognize the calling. Because we have to face it, the Bible is full of women that God use. The Bible, you will find if you read the entirety of scripture, the Bible is full of a bunch of women that God used. So are we saying that God can only use them in Bible times and he can't use them now? Because one of the things that surprises me is how many women God use in the position of leadership. Consider Deborah in Judges 4. In Judges 4, 4. Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife uh Lipidoth, if I got that wrong, I'm sorry, was judging Israel at this time. Not only was she a prophetess, she was the national judge over Israel. People came to her for leadership, for wisdom, for spiritual direction. Then uh Hold Huldah, Huldah, I believe is how you say the H-U-L-D-A. Huldah in 2 Kings 22. When the book of the law was discovered, King uh Josiah officially sought Huldah for interpretation. Uh, in in 2 Kings 2, 14, there's a lot of names in this, so please do not do not crucify me on this. So uh Hilka the priest and Alinka and Anchor and uh Akbor and Shephan and Asiah went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shul Shelem and the son of Tigva. Why did I do this to myself? And the son of Haras, keeper of the wardrobe. Now she lived in Jerusalem in the second quarter, and they talked with her. Listen, in this time Jeremiah was alive, Zephaniah was alive, yet the king's representative went to a woman prophet to hear the word of the Lord. God spoke through her, and Israel listened. In Exodus 15, 20, Miriam was a prophetess who helped lead Israel. In Exodus 15, 20, it says, The Miriam, or then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took the uh tambourine in her hand and all the women and went out after her with the tambourines and dancing. In the New Testament, Anna is called a prophetess uh who proclaimed the coming Messiah. We see this in Luke 2, 36 through 38. And there was a prophetess Anna, the daughter of uh Phanul and the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four, she did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up that very hour, she began to give thanks to God and speak to him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem. Philip had four daughters who prophesied. In Acts 21:9, uh, it says he had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. Priscilla helped Apollos, one of the most influential teachers in the early church. In Acts 18 26, it says he began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard them, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. Phoebe uh was introduced as a servant or a deacon in the church, Romans 16 11. I commend you or our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church at uh uh Sin Sinchera, I believe is what that says. Paul also mentioned uh Eurotia and Sin man, all these names. Sin Sinti. I should I should probably practice these names before I go on air. But in Philippians 4 3, it says, Yes, I I ask you also, uh true companion, help these women who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together in Clement, and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life in Philippians 4 3. The Bible never presents women as spiritual spectators. They're participants, they're leaders, they're ministers, they're used by God throughout the scripture. Wherever God calls someone, he's calling, his calling is the determining factor, and it has nothing to do with gender. Because the spiritual gifts are not gendered. Here's another question: Where in the Bible does God assign spiritual gifts based upon gender? The answer is nowhere. In Romans 12, 3 through 5, it says, For by grace you have been given to me, I say to everyone among you to think of himself, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to to but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has according. For as in one body he has many members, and many members do all have the same function. So we, though many, are one body in Christ and in and individually members of another. Later on in 1 Corinthians 12, first Corinthians 12, 4 through 6, it says, Now there are a variety of gifts, but the same spirit, and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord, and there are varieties of activity, but in the same God, it's the same God who empowers them all in everyone. Ephesians 4, 11 through 12 says, and he gave both apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds, the teachers to equip the saints of the work of ministry for the building up of Christ. Uh none of these gifts lists say teaching men only, leadership, men only, pastor men only. Instead, the Holy Spirit dis distributes gifts according to the will of God. First Corinthians 12 11 says, as these are empowered by one and the same spirit, who uh approach to each one individually as he wills. If the spirit gives the gift, who are we to reject the gift bearer? That's the key. If the spirit of God gives the gift, who are we to reject? The gift giver. So, what about the difficult patches? Now let's talk about the verses that everyone brings up. Paul says, and I do not permit women to teach or to execute authority over men, rather, she is to remain silent. 1 Corinthians 2, 12. And the women should keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak but to be in submission. 1 Corinthians 4 34. Those verse, those, those are real verses, which we shouldn't ignore. But here's the challenge. If Paul meant women could never teach, lead, speak, prophesy, or exercise many ministry authority anywhere, then Paul would be contradicting both the rest of scripture and in even his own ministry. Because the same Paul acknowledges women praying and prophesying publicly in 1 Corinthians 11 5. Every wife who prays or prophesies. The same Paul commands women as co-workers in ministry. The same Paul praises women who labored alongside him in the gospel. The same Paul entrusted ministry responsibilities to women. So clearly, something contextually is happening in both of those passages. Most scholars believe Paul was addressing specific problems in specific churches, not issuing universal bans on women in ministry for all places and for all times. When you interpret difficult passages in light of the whole Bible, the picture becomes more clear. These restrictive texts are the exception, not the rule. Paul is speaking in these letters to particular issues that are going on in particular churches. He is not assigning this to the whole of the body of Christ. The empowering texts are the pattern, the empowering text that the Bible continues uh uh over and over and over again to uh to empower women. But there's another use case. What about Junior? What about Junia? One of the verses that often gets overlooked in Romans 6 says, Paul writes, Paul, remember the same guy that was saying women couldn't do this. Paul, Romans 16 7 says, Great uh Anchorodis, man, I should really read these words. Anchorodis and Junia, my kinsmen and fellow prisoners, they are known to the apostles, and they are uh in Christ before me. Many early church leaders understood that Junia to be a woman and a highly respected leader in the early church. Even among those who debate the exact meaning of this verse, uh, one thing is is undeniable. Paul repeatedly commends women and co-workers, fellow laborers, servants, and ministry partners. The the canonical the caricature of Paul is as anti-women simply does not fit the evidence. Simply, if you say that that Paul was against women, you see over and over and over again that Paul empowers women to do the work of the gospel. So, what's the fruit of the matter? What the fruit matters because ultimately, when you look at the fruit, uh the Bible tells us in ministry we are to look at the fruit of those that are um of those that are who are ministering. And one of the things Pentecostals have always done and done it well is pay attention to what the Holy Spirit is doing. So when the early Pentecostal movement exploded, women are preaching, planning churches, leading ministry, and winning people to Christ. And the fruit was undeniable. People were being saved, lives were being transformed, churches were growing, missionaries were being sent. Some of the greatest missionaries in our movement are women. The gospel was being advanced. The question became difficult is God, if God is clearly blessing their ministry, who are we to say He did not call them? Jesus said in Matthew 7:16, you will recognize them by their fruits. Our groups gathered from thorough grapes gathered from thornbushes or figs from thistles. Not by their gender, but by their fruit. I've personally seen women preach powerful sermons, lead churches effectively, disciples, believe her faithfully, pray, and heaven came down, win people for Jesus, counseling hurting families, and shepherding God's people with wisdom and compassion. When God calls and gifts someone, I don't think it's our job to tell him that he picked the wrong person to do it. So why does this matter? Why, why today am I choosing to die on the hill of this theological bait? It's because this is this isn't just a theological debate, it's about obedience. Imagine being a woman who who who knows God has called her. Imagine being a woman who knows God has called her and they reside in a denomination or a movement that they can't. You know he speaks, you know he's speaking to you, you know he's gifted you, you know he's opened this door, you know people are being pacted, but someone tells you God can use for almost anything, just not as a pastor. Listen, God can give you those gifts and powers and almost anything, but not to be a pastor. I think we should be very cautious about placing limits where God has not. The kingdom of God needs every gift operating, every calling fulfilled, every spirit-empowered believer serving where God has called them, men and women together, advancing the gospel. So I've said all this to say this. So can women be pastors? My answer is yes. Not because culture has changed, not because God has changed, the same God who called Deborah, Marion, Halol, Anna, Priscilla, Phoebe, and countless women throughout church history is still calling women today. If my daughter came to me and said, Dad, I believe God has called me to go preach the gospel, my first response is, uh, let me figure out. My first response wouldn't be, let me figure out why you can't. My first response would be, let's discern that's calling. Let's discern God's calling. And I would empower her to walk in the gospel. And listen, guys, this has become far more personal to me because now I have a daughter and I believe that this daughter has a big calling on her life. And if one day my daughter comes to me and says, I believe God's called me to be a pastor, I'm not gonna say, keep listening, honey, women can't be pastors. No, if God has called her, who am I to limit her? Because my job is to help her fulfill it. The question isn't whether women are capable, the question is whether God calls women. And when I read the scripture from Genesis to Revelation, study church history, and look at the fruit of spirit-filled ministry, my answer is yes. It is a resounding yes. God calls women, God gifts women, God uses women, and the church is stronger when we celebrate every person God has called. And at the end of the day, my question isn't can women be pastor? The question is, is if God has called her, who are we to stand in the way? If God has called her, who are we to to stand in her way? And I want to encourage you today. This is, you know, I tried to stick to my notes because this is a very uh this is a very polarizing topic, but I'm gonna kind of speak off the cup here. And this is just me, Pastor Todd, talking. Obviously, you're tuning in to ask a pastor, you know that. Um, but you know, I would urge my ministry calling colleagues today who are um who are voting on such a um such a delicate matter, let's not be the one to limit the calling of God on somebody's life just because of gender, just because of something, you know, what God calls, let's not stand in the way. And so, you know, I want to encourage you today, if you look at the whole of scripture, the whole of scripture says that God has called women to be powerful forces for the Lord. And I want to encourage you today to not limit someone based upon gender, not limit someone based upon uh certain certain things, and just see the call of God on someone's life and help them walk in it. Because I think what you'll see if you'll do your research is the churches that are growing today, the churches that are growing the fastest, are propping up women to do the work of the Lord because we are seeing fruit in that. Uh, I have a bunch of women on my staff and they are powerful forces for the Lord. Uh, and if one day uh I suddenly said, nope, women can't be in ministry, um, my church would shut down. Uh, and many churches would shut down. Uh, and many churches that are voting against having women pastors would shut down as well. Uh, the problem is uh we just we we just take a few uh scriptures and misinterpret them. So I just want to encourage you today. Um, I truly believe that women can be pastors. I truly believe uh that they can be called by God just the same way that I as a man can as well. So I want to encourage you, prop up women in ministry, empower them. And you know what really helps women in ministry is when men speak against other men who are putting women down in ministry. And I like I said at the beginning of the show, I'm so excited that I'm a part of a movement that props up women to be in ministry and empowers them to do so. So thanks for joining me today uh on Ask a Pastor. I know that was a more spicy topic than usual, um, but I I think it was needed considering what is going on in the world today. Thank you all who've reached out to me and encouraged me uh for doing the show. You you're also very kind and I uh I appreciate all the all the kind words. Uh, but drop a comment uh of a question that you want. If you aren't subscribed to us on any podcasting platforms or YouTube, wherever you watch this, subscribe, share it with your friends, help us grow the show. Uh when you grow the show, you're helping the message of God get out to a lot of people. One of our number one listen to episodes is Is God Real? Uh, people are out there, they're searching. So share shows like this with people out there because you never know. Somebody might get saved just simply because of a podcast like this. Uh but as always, if you're not a part of a local church, get of a part of a local church. If you're near the Cleveland area, come join us at Hope Church uh in Cleburn. We also have a church in Meridian. Meridian meets at 10 30. Cleaver meets at 9 30 and 11. We'd love to be a part of have you a part of either campus. But hey, thanks for joining us today, and we'll see you next time on Ask a Pastor.