If I were a complementarian… CTS Defend what you don’t believe.
The truth is, whether you consider yourself a complementarian or egalitarian, in many ways if you simply follow scripture, both perspectives are going to have similar looking end results. Some might even say it is a matter of semantics particularly in regard to marriage.
The church has the distinct difference of whether or not women are viewed as able to “lead” in positions of authority within the church.
Philosophical Debate – exegesis can go either way
DEFINITIONS:
• Both sides agree that gender is ordained by God, women and men have equal value, and abuse in any relationship is a sin.

• Complementarians believe men and women complement each other in their giftings and roles but see men to be given a servant leader position by God to lead their family and church as the Head.

• Egalitarians believe women and men have equal authority in the church and marriage and would encourage interchangeable roles according to gifting


1. Men have led for all of History, Maybe that has something to do with Biblical design.
- America has become Egalitarian but not so much the rest of the world
2. Men and women are created differently. There are differences that aren’t simply anatomy
- Women and men seem to be think differently PINK - BLUE
3. Adam was made first Genesis 1:26-28
- Equal as image bearers
- Eve was an afterthought
- Story would have been written differently and better had God intended on true role equality
- He names eve which is the same thing he did with every other animal God gives him dominance over
4. Throughout the Bible the vast majority of Biblical leaders are men.
- Mariam, Deborah, Huldah, Mary Magdalene, Percilla, Phoebe, and Junia
- Why weren’t there Levitical priests that were women? (God’s ideal)
- Why weren’t there women disciples, Jesus wasn’t afraid to offend or break cultural norms

5. The Pauline Epistles (I Corinthians 11:2-16, 14:33b-35, Colossians 3:18-19, Ephesians 5:21-33, I Timothy 2:9-15 and possibly I Peter 3:1-7) all seem to plainly read that Men should and do, naturally lead the church.

- Or - Paul was simply an Egalitarian, but that was simply Paul

6. Marriage seems to have a head. When I read Ephesians 5 in English and Greek, I get the sense that the responsibilities of a man and women in marriage are unique to gender and different.
- It goes back to the way the text is written again. If the author was really trying to write that everyone is equal why talk about each one separately? Why not just use the term “husbands and wives” each and every time? It would be much better written that way if that was the intent.
- For example, Paul nowhere says, “husbands, submit to your wives, as the church submits its (wife?), Christ.” The text doesn’t seem to read both directions.

We shouldn’t make major doctrines based on minor dynamics of the text.
7. Jesus often set the Biblical record straight and doesn’t come right out and preach an egalitarian view. If Jesus meant to communicate that theory He would have made it known.