Article: Women in Ministry Cage Match - Piper vs. Leclaire

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Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness.I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. For Adam was formed first, then Eve; and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. -- 1Timothy 2: 11-14 (ESV)

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Let me say up front that I have always liked John Piper. He was wrong on pre-destination and cessationism but much of his exegesis was pretty spot on for many years. Then he started getting chummy with wolves and I became worried. Next he was speaking at false teacher conventions and sharing the stage with renowned hucksters from across the globe. Have no doubts about it beloved -- bad company corrupts good morals. Who we share the stage with is just as doctrinal as what we preach. Why? Because we grant access to the wolves by sharing the stage as if there was nothing wrong with them. This is one of the primary problems with Dr. Michael Brown. The Book of Titus commands us as ministers to rebuke those who do not preach the correct Gospel. The Book of Romans teaches us that disunity in the Bible comes from false teaching, not those who correctly point it out. When Francis Chan stands at IHOP and embraces Mike Bickle and claims he loves him then he also endorses his heresies, false prophecies, and false teachings. The Bible says we are either gathering people to Christ or scattering them away from Him. That said, this devotional is focused on something John Piper recently got correct. Of course when the opponents are John Piper and Jennifer Leclaire you know the fight will be stopped in the first round. The subject is the ongoing drama regarding the proper role of women in the church according to the Bible. Piper recently stated correctly that women are not to teach men. That did not sit well with Calamari Queen. Jennifer's response is short and of course unbiblical. Let us walk quickly through it:

"Here we go again. Theologian John Piper stirred up a hornet's nest by arguing women are not to teach men. Piper points to 1 Timothy 2:12 that churches should be led by a team of spiritual, humble, biblically qualified men. "If it is unbiblical to have women as pastors, how can it be biblical to have women who function in formal teaching and mentoring capacities to train and fit pastors for the very calling from which the mentors themselves are excluded?" Piper writes." -- Jennifer Leclaire

Beloved let us cut to the chase. This discussion is about rebellion, pure and simple. The Bible is enormously clear on this subject. Those who choose to ignore Scripture are forced to come up with arguments trying to ascertain Paul's emotions and state of mind when he wrote his letters, cultural change arguments, or use the fact that women are already going against the will of God as proof we should let them continue. It gives me no joy to say this either. I do not have a dog in this hunt. I have seen women preach before and many were just as good at it as men. For years I avoided writing about this subject because I have good friends and people I care about that wholeheartedly disagree with me on this and that is ok too. The issue however is not what sayeth Anthony Wade but what sayeth the Lord and He is very clear. The verse Jennifer references is indisputable beloved. It is part of the key verses for today. Let a woman learn quietly in all submissiveness. I understand that in this women's liberation world we live in that this is extremely incorrect politically. Especially recently with the empowering movements growing through the ranks of women in this country. To say that women should learn quietly in all submissiveness would be considered sexist at best by the world and probably misogynistic. Once again, are we seeking what man says or what God says? Next Paul says he does not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man. Does this statement seem vague in any sense? Is it not crystal clear? As if Paul knew (because God was writing through him He did of course) there would be sustained objections, he even provides the reasons! First is because Adam was created first! Secondly however is because it was Eve that was deceived. I know that it has become chic for pastors to rewrite Genesis and pretend Adam was somehow right there next to Eve and thus complicit in the fall but that is simply not supported by the text and this verse confirms the facts. Again, crystal clear, Adam was NOT a transgressor. Let's now move into the reasons why Jennifer disagrees with the clear teaching of Scripture:

"Yes, 1Timothy 2:12-13 says women should not teach or assume authority over a man. Others point to 1Timothy 3, which lists the qualifications for bishops and deacons as reasons not to allow women in ministry. But what do we do, then, with Deborah, a prophetess and a judge who led Israel into victorious battle when a man would not take charge?" -- Jennifer Leclaire

Jennifer hits the answer right on the head and somehow misses it completely. When a man would not take charge. Deborah is an important person in the history of Israel but she is the single representation of female leadership in the 6,000 + years of recorded biblical history. There is no question that Scripture states she was a judge and a prophetess. But beloved we must reason together. She is the outlier in Scripture, not the normative. Many have speculated that her rise to be a judge, the only female judge in the 400 years of judges, was a testimony against the men of Israel. That God had to turn to a woman to lead. I see no value in devaluing her role and her contribution to the people of God. The larger point is that in the entire canon of Scripture she is the only example of a woman in a leadership position, exercising authority over men. You cannot build doctrine upon that, especially in light of the very clear instructions that are in Scripture regarding the actual role of women.

"What about Anna the prophetess? What about Priscilla, who traveled in ministry with her husband?" -- Jennifer Leclaire

This is one of the hollow defenses used by people who argue against what the Bible says regarding women in ministry. Remember, no one is saying women cannot have very important roles in the kingdom. The key verses only say, which is supported by other Scripture as well, that they are not to teach (which includes preaching) or exercise authority over men. Anna was a prophetess. There is nothing wrong with that as long as what she said is accurate and from the Lord; unlike Jennifer her sneaky squid spirit. A prophet merely speaks what God has said. The authority therefore is God's and not the prophet's. A tangible example is Jonah. When Jonah told Nineveh to repent it was not his authority they responded to but God's. The prophet carries no authority other than the Lord's. This is also by the way -- why they are not allowed to be wrong. God does not stutter and He does not lie. When someone utters a false prophecy they have spoken presumptuously on behalf of God. Now then; what about Priscilla? In Romans 16 she is referred to by Paul as a fellow worker in Christ. It is true that she appeared to travel with her husband. So what can we rightfully conclude hermeneutically from the short six verses in which she appears? That she was a co-laborer for Christ and that her ministry was tied to her husband. No one is arguing against either of those things. Women should serve in their ministry capacity with their husbands if possible. I imagine that should strengthen the marriage. They also should co-labor in the kingdom for Jesus Christ. Jennifer apparently cannot name more than two biblical figures so now she moves into the world, where she is clearly more comfortable:

"Look at Aimee Semple McPherson. What about Kathryn Kuhlman? How about Marilyn Hickey and Joyce Meyer? All of these women have been a blessing to the body of Christ, and they have all faced persecution from people who don't agree that they should speak and teach." -- Jennifer Leclaire

There are two major points here. The first is logical. God said do not do this. You went ahead and did it. You now conclude that because you already have done it, you should forget what God has said and continue to do it? Seriously? I have heard this unbelievably weak argument before. The issue is not whether someone has disobeyed God to some level of carnal success or not. The issue is that they have disobeyed God! The second point is look at who Leclaire holds up as shining beacons of spiritual success! Joyce Meyer has made 25 million dollars by fleecing the flock of the Lord. She routinely preaches the prosperity gospel and the word faith heresy. Some of her other wildly heretical teachings are that Jesus stopped being the Son of God, paid for our sins in hell and was born again. She actually has gone as far as to say if you do not believe that Jesus went to hell than you cannot be saved! She also has taught that we are little gods and that she is not a sinner. None of this is biblical. Marilyn Hickey also preached the prosperity gospel and word faith teacher. She used to run a scam where she would send you a dollar and then ask for it back with a "seed" offering. That is like Paula White level bad. Now the other two are before my time but I do not recall many positive things about Kathryn Kuhlman. She is adored by all of the charismatic wolves today -- not just Jennifer! She was the matriarch of the revival faith healing meetings, which is why it is no surprise that Benny Hinn is such a big fan. Semple was way before my time, so in fairness, I will not discuss her but even if she was a positive outlier that would not change point number one. God said do not do this. Oh and for the record, being beheaded for your faith is persecution. Being correctly rebuked for disobeying Scripture is not.

"Jesus certainly didn't prevent women from entering ministry, so I am unsure as to why there is so much resistance in some camps within the modern church." -- Jennifer Leclaire

This is the usual clever switcharoo. No one is saying women cannot enter ministry. They could even be prophetesses. Not as Jennifer pretends to be speaking about squids and years of "accelerated suddenlies and immediatelies." The Bible is saying however, women are not to exercise authority over, nor teach men. I might add that Jesus wrote the Bible. It is His Word. So therefore He most certainly has weighed in on this matter and has instructed us how we ought to proceed. The "camp" Jennifer is lamenting here are those people who insist on biblical truth and are not willing to compromise it.

"I would like to end the heated debate over women in ministry. There are too many examples in Scripture of women serving in leadership or other key roles for men to deny women a seat at the leadership table." -- Jennifer Leclaire

Right; because it is all about you. Right Jennifer? The gall is staggering here. Man has not denied anything -- God has! Now I understand that this offends many people who are more enamored with the way the world thinks than how God does. I do not expect anything more from someone as blatantly false as Jennifer Leclaire. She makes her living by pretending to hear from God. After that, why would a little thing like Scripture get in the way of any of your dreams? Once you have "prophesied" that you see a "sneaky squid spirit" that is stalking you why would you care to get anything right? There's a leadership table and I want my seat at it! Thankfully, she concludes:

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