Key Issue #1:
Men and women are equal in value and dignity.
Key Issue #2:
Men and women have different roles in marriage as part of the created order.
Ten reasons showing male headship before the Fall:
The order: Adam was created first, then Eve. (Genesis 2:7; 18-23)
The representation: Adam, not Eve, had a special role in representing the human race. (1 Corinthians 15:22)
The naming of woman: Adam named Eve. (Genesis 2:23)
The naming of the human race: God named the human race “Man.” (Genesis 5:1-2)
The primary accountability: God spoke to Adam first after the Fall. (Genesis 3:9)
The purpose: Eve was created as a helpful for Adam, not Adam as a helper for Eve. (Genesis 2:18)
The conflict: The curse brought a distortion of previous roles, not the introduction of new roles. (Genesis 3:16; Genesis 4:7)
The restoration: Salvation in Christ reaffirms the creation order. (Colossians 3:18-19)
The mystery: Marriage from the beginning of creation was a picture of the relationship between Christ and the church. (Ephesians 5:31)
The parallel with the Trinity: The equality, differences, and unity between men and women reflect the equality, differences and unity in the Trinity. (1 Corinthians 11:3)
Some egalitarian objections to male headship in marriage:
- Galatians 3:28 abolishes role distinctions in marriage.
- “Mutual submission” in Ephesians 5:21 nullifies male authority in marriage.
- In “the husband is the head of the wife” (Eph. 5:23) “head” means “source,” not “person in authority.”
Summary of Key Issue #2: Men and women have different roles in marriage as a part of the created order.
Key Issue #3:
The equality and differences between men and women reflect the equality and differences in the Trinity. (1 Corinthians 11:3)
Other Scripture passages on the Father’s role of leadership and authority with respect to the Son:
Ephesians 1:4
Romans 8:29
John 3:16
John 1:3
Hebrews 1:2
1 Corinthians 8:6
Romans 8:34
1 Corinthians 15:28
The idea of headship and submission never began, it has existed eternally in the very being of God.
Key Issue #4:
Egalitarianism does not advance on the strength of exegetical arguments.
How does egalitarianism advance?
- Through incorrect interpretation of Scripture
- Through reading into Scripture things that aren’t there
- Through incorrect assumptions about meanings of words in the Bible
- Through incorrect assumptions about the history of the ancient world
- Through methods of interpretation that reject the authority of Scripture and lead toward liberalism
- Through rejecting Scripture as our authority and deciding on the basis of personal experience or inclination
- Through suppression of information
Egalitarianism has two significant allies:
- Much of the secular culture
- Christian leaders who are complementarian but who lack courage to teach on it or take a stand
Note Acts 20:26-27: “Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all of you, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.”
Expectations
The egalitarian position will continue to harm many people, but it will not win.
Matthew 16:18: “I will build my church”
Ephesians 5:27: “so that he might present the church to himself I splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
© Crossway Books. Taken from Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood by Wayne Grudem and John Piper. Used with permission. www.ReviveOurHearts.com