Search — Theology Explorer

complementarianism elder qualifications missionaries vs apostles

Complementarian views on women apostles

Mike summarizes the complementarian positions on the question.

apostolic authority apostolos

Apostle must mean highest leadership for egalitarian argument to work

Mike emphasizes a key logical requirement of the egalitarian argument.

Romans 16:7 apostolos Romans 16:7 semantic range

The word apostolos has a range of meanings in Greek

Mike explains the semantic range of 'apostle' as groundwork for the next argument.

Romans 16:7 Junia Romans 16:7 apostolic office

Majority of scholars who affirm Junia as apostle think she was not highest-rank apostle

Mike makes a crucial distinction within the scholarly consensus.

Romans 16:7 Philip Payne apostolos Romans 16:7

Option 2: Junia as missionary/church planter (lower sense of apostle)

Mike explores the second option for interpreting Junia's apostleship.

Philip Payne authority in ministry Great Commission

Payne's claim that Junia had 'authority as ministers of the gospel' is vague

Mike responds to Payne's claim about authority.

Acts 2 Linda Belleville Junia Pentecost

Linda Belleville thinks Junia was a missionary saved at Pentecost

Mike cites another egalitarian scholar's view.

soft complementarianism Two Views on Women in Ministry Craig Blomberg

Craig Blomberg's soft complementarian view: missionaries with temporary authority

Mike presents Blomberg's nuanced position from Two Views on Women in Ministry.

co-workers in Paul women in missions Paul's missionary teams

Women were missionaries in the early church; 'co-workers' means missionary partners

Mike affirms women's roles in early church missions.

Junia Tom Schreiner women's ministry

Tom Schreiner's view: Junia as missionary focused on women's ministry

Mike introduces Schreiner's nuanced addition to the discussion.

women's ministry ancient gender roles missionary partnerships

Ancient gender-separated society created distinct need for female missionaries

Mike develops the historical-cultural argument for gender-specific ministry.

Romans 16:7 Acts 2 Linda Belleville Junia Romans 16:7

Mike's conclusion assuming Junia was an apostle: she was a missionary, not highest-rank

Mike summarizes his 'fallback' position if Junia was indeed an apostle.

Romans 16:7 Junia women's ministry Romans 16:7

Mike's conclusion: Junia was probably not an apostle; if she was, she was a missionary

Mike states his overall conclusion on the Junia question.

1 Corinthians Mary Magdalene apostolic office apostolic commission

The office of apostle involves more than witnessing the resurrection

Mike distinguishes the office of apostle from mere witness.

Genesis 1-3 Genesis 1-3 pre-fall role differences extra-biblical assumptions

Series recap: Videos 1-2 summary

Mike reviews the previous videos in the Women in Ministry series.

eldership sonship status marriage submission

The whole debate hinges on how far 'sonship status' can be stretched

Mike identifies the crux of the disagreement.

Ephesians 5 marriage submission inheritance practices Ephesians 5

Did NT Christians still practice primogeniture? Wives submitting to husbands?

Mike tests the egalitarian logic against practical NT realities.

1 Corinthians 7 Ephesians 5 1 Corinthians 7 Cynthia Long Westfall Ephesians 5

Four problems with Westfall's 'representing Christ in any function' argument

Mike systematically lists objections to the bridge Westfall has built.

1 Peter 3:1-7 1 Peter 3:1-7 Sarah Abraham

1 Peter 3 proves full heirship status with continued role distinctions

Mike uses 1 Peter 3 as a decisive counter-example to the egalitarian reading.

1 Corinthians 11 Ephesians 5 1 Corinthians 11 Ephesians 5 contextual argument

Bible study argument introduced: Paul's context in 1 Corinthians 11 and Ephesians does not imply authority

Mike introduces the third egalitarian argument — the contextual/exegetical claim.

Ephesians 5:22-24 submission mutual submission Ronald Pierce

Pierce and Groothuis strangely ignore Ephesians 5:22-24, which explicitly links headship with submission

Mike points out that egalitarian authors skip the most relevant passage.

Ephesians 5:22-24 submission Ephesians 5:22-24 hupotasso

Ephesians 5:22-24 explicitly uses 'submit' and 'be subject to' in the context of headship

Mike reads the full Ephesians 5 passage that egalitarians skip.

Ephesians 5:21 mutual submission Ephesians 5:21 household codes

Egalitarian rescue: 'mutual submission' from Ephesians 5:21 — to be addressed in the next video

Mike previews the mutual submission argument he will tackle later.

kephale semantic range metaphorical meanings

Metaphorical meanings of kephale: literal, headlong, whole person, extremity, prominent part, conclusion, authority

Mike catalogs all the possible metaphorical meanings of kephale.

kephale Wayne Grudem LSJ (Liddell-Scott-Jones)

Peter Glare, editor of the LSJ, writes to Grudem agreeing with his conclusions — 'the supposed sense source of course does not exist'

Mike presents the dramatic climax of the lexical argument — the LSJ's own editor sides with Grudem.

submission to Scripture cultural pressure closing prayer

Closing prayer: submission to God's word on marriage and church roles regardless of cultural pressure

Mike closes with prayer emphasizing trust in Scripture above cultural norms.

egalitarianism mutual submission cultural accommodation

Three main egalitarian arguments against husband authority in marriage

Mike outlines the egalitarian case before presenting his own view.

submission definition hypotasso

What submission does NOT mean: clarifying common misunderstandings

Mike preemptively addresses caricatures of the complementarian position on submission.

headship submission definition head-body analogy

What submission DOES mean according to Mike Winger

Mike provides his positive definition of submission.

1 Peter 3:1-7 1 Peter 3:1-7 hypotasso ESV translation

Teaching through 1 Peter 3:1-7 - wives told to be subject to husbands

Mike reads and begins teaching through the first main passage.

1 Peter 3:1 1 Peter 3:1 evangelism Lee Strobel

Submission in 1 Peter is not exclusively for evangelism of unsaved husbands

Mike argues against reducing wifely submission to an evangelism strategy.

1 Peter 3:3-5 1 Peter 3:3-5 gentle and quiet spirit holy women of old

Submission as character quality, not just cultural convenience

Mike draws out additional reasons from 1 Peter 3 that submission is about inner character.

1 Peter 3:5-6 Genesis 18:12 Sarah Abraham 1 Peter 3:5-6

Sarah obeying Abraham as an example that rules out purely evangelistic interpretation

Mike argues the Sarah example confirms submission is a general godly pattern, not culturally bound.

Sarah obedience in marriage Western individualism

Submission involves a 'sense of obeying' but not micromanagement obedience

Mike nuances what Sarah's obedience looked like practically.

1 Peter 3:1 patriarchalism 1 Peter 3:1 scope of submission

Submission is limited to 'your own husband,' not all men

Mike distinguishes complementarianism from patriarchalism.

1 Peter 3:7 weaker vessel 1 Peter 3:7 co-heirs

1 Peter 3:7 -- Instructions to husbands: understanding, honor, and equal inheritance

Mike presents the husband's obligations that balance the wife's submission.

Colossians 3:18-19 hypotasso Colossians 3:18-19 as is fitting in the Lord

Colossians 3:18-19 -- wives submit, husbands love and don't be harsh

Mike teaches through the second main passage.

Titus 2:5 Titus 2:5 training younger women word of God not reviled

Titus 2:5 -- older women to train younger women to be submissive to husbands

Mike covers the first supplemental passage.

Ephesians 5:21-24 headship Christ and church analogy Ephesians 5:21-24

Ephesians 5:21-24 -- instructions to wives including headship analogy

Mike teaches through the major passage on marriage.

1 Corinthians 7 Proverbs 1:8 1 Corinthians 7 wife's authority Proverbs 1:8

Wife has real authority: over home, children, and can make demands on husband

Mike addresses whether complementarianism denies all authority to the wife.

1 Samuel 25 limits of submission Abigail 1 Samuel 25

Can a wife reject her husband's decisions? Yes, in certain situations

Mike addresses limits of wifely submission.

husband's authority limits Jesus on divorce women's religious education

Conclusions: husband's authority is real but limited compared to cultural expectations

Mike draws broader conclusions before the egalitarian rebuttal section.

1 Timothy 3:4-5 mutually exclusive callings abuse prevention 1 Timothy 3:4-5

Callings are mutually exclusive: husband never told to MAKE wife submit

Mike identifies a key structural feature of the NT marriage instructions.

1 Peter 3:1-7 Discovering Biblical Equality 1 Peter 3:1-7 Peter Davids

Peter Davids' egalitarian view of 1 Peter 3: submission is only for evangelism

Mike begins the egalitarian rebuttal section with Peter Davids from 'Discovering Biblical Equality.'

Genesis 18:12 Sarah Genesis 18:12 Peter Davids

Davids claims Peter references the Testament of Abraham, not Genesis, for Sarah

Mike examines and refutes Davids' argument about the Sarah reference.

Genesis 21:12 Genesis 16:2 Craig Keener Genesis 21:12 Genesis 16:2

Craig Keener's addition: Abraham also 'obeys' Sarah (Genesis 16:2, 21:12)

Mike examines Keener's argument for mutual submission in the Abraham-Sarah relationship.