Subscribe to the Gateway PodcastWhat does Gateway Church believe about the role of men and women?
Scripture teaches that men and women are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). Paul writes in Galatians 3:28-29 “there is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free man, there is male nor female, for you are all one in Jesus Christ.” Men and women are joint heirs in Christ. All men and women in Christ have been given gifts by the Holy Spirit. We not only affirm the biblical teaching on the worth of all persons, but we also believe the Bible teaches that God created man and woman to fulfill different, but complementary, roles which are rooted in their unique, sexual identity (Gen. 2:17-25, 3:6-7). God created the man with the primary role of “servant leader.” He created woman with the primary role of “helper.” When the authors of the New Testament provided practical instructions on the roles of men and women in the church and in the home, their teaching was based on God’s design in creation. We believe that both men and women are called to use their gifts of the Holy Spirit in ways that serve in the body of Christ. Women have been blessed by our elders to participate in the life of our church and worship assembly in many ways including leading of ministries, teaching children, reading scripture, participating in the praise team, wording a prayer, serving as greeters, sharing a testimony, and passing communion. In 1 Timothy 2:12 the apostle Paul writes about roles, “But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise spiritual authority over a man, but to remain quiet.” We believe that women should not serve in roles in which they would be preaching or teaching in our worship assembly and house churches.
