Elder Team
Providing the Spiritual Oversight of Grace Church
What We Believe
Guide to Rich Conversations
Women in Leadership
Scripture Interpretation Tools
What We Believe
Guide to Rich Conversations
Women in Leadership
Posture of Approach & Intent
As Elders of Grace church, we strive to walk humbly before our God. We have the daunting responsibility of guiding on all spiritual issues at Grace. As we approach each issue, our posture is bended knee, bowed head and open hands. We take our responsibility prayerfully and seriously. We view scripture as God’s word and truth. The non-negotiable is the saving work of Christ on the cross. He said, “it is finished”, and we believe that through his sacrifice, we are in a restored relationship with God. We are then challenged to seek His face and His will in our lives. We have kept our statement of “Who We Are” in mind. We don’t claim to know God’s will without a shadow of a doubt. However, as fallen men and women, we seek God. We submit these principles to you as our conclusion of where God is leading Grace Church.
Posture of Scriptural Interpretation
As Elders of Grace Church, we believe the way in which we approach and consider scripture is of paramount importance. Our unity and ability to fruitfully collaborate on exploring important issues in a rapidly changing world must begin and end with God’s revelation in the Bible (1).
A willingness to submit to the power and inerrancy of Scripture and at the same time dig deeply for the larger revelation of God’s intent is a challenging process. We speak of the ‘Word of God’ as never-changing and yet, its application and impact on our lives is ever evolving and deepening. As believers, we age, change, grow and joyfully re-experience the Living nature of God’s Word (2)(3)
Position Principle(s)
WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP
- July 1, 2024 Current Position Principle(s):
- We believe God equips and calls the right human beings (regardless of gender) as servant leaders in His Church
BACKGROUND
- Key Considerations
- The role of gender in the Church is not an issue of Salvation
- Salvation is a free gift and cannot be earned by what you do, Salvation is a relationship between you and the redeeming work of Jesus Christ and is based upon your belief that you are not enough and need a Savior. (1)
- God is “For Us” (2)
- God knows none are perfect, and yet He [God] moves to create the “best”. The Elder Team of Grace Church will never get it “perfectly correct” (and neither will you)
- We are “Imperfect People” – We all have fallen short of the Glory of God (3)
- Grace Church is getting the best thoughts of the Elder Team in 2024, but we believe God will continue to reveal His will to us as we better seek to follow His ways. (4)
- Jesus worked to demonstrate humanity is equal in creation and gender is an important component of the revelation of God
- Jesus selected twelve males as named Apostles to integrate with society (5), and
- Jesus counter-culturally elevated females into society to address the inequality which existed during His time
- Jesus publicly recognized women for demonstrated faith (6)
- Jesus accepted both male and female at his feet (disciples) during teaching (7)
- After the twelve had abandoned Jesus during the crucifixion, the women come first to the tomb and carry the Good News of the resurrection to the rest of the world (8)
- This is not an issue about Feminism and Chauvinism
- Service, not domination, is the core tenet of leadership according to Jesus (9)
- Servant Leadership is a race to the bottom10 and leadership in God’s Church should be exemplified by humility and selflessness
- The original and redemptive creation places humanity in alignment with God, not a specific gender (11)
- Some of our texts exist because the original authors needed to address specific cultural issues arising at the intersection of Followers of Jesus (the Way) and society.
- It is very important to examine scripture in the context of the location, customs and potential current societal implications impacting the recipients of the letter
- While we can learn from the overarching principles of Paul’s epistles which are repeated as themes in other texts, we must remember that Paul wasn’t writing every word to us. Addressing his first century audience in context as well as our twenty-first context would be an impossible task
- Other References:
- The Making of Biblical Womanhood : How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth. Brazos Press, a Division of Baker Publishing Group, 2021.
- 50 Crucial Questions: An Overview of Central Concerns About Manhood and Womanhood (Piper and Grudem)
- Women’s Service in the Church: The Biblical Basis. Wright, Dr. N. T. Symposium, ‘Men, Women and the Church’ St John’s College, Durham, September 4, 2004
- Women in Church Leadership – a Series of Study Papers
- The role of gender in the Church is not an issue of Salvation
- Colossians 1: 19-23
- Romans 8:31
- Romans 3:23
- Matthew 7:7-8
- Luke 6:12-16
- Matthew 9:20-22
- Luke 10:38-42
- John 20:1-18
- John 13:1-7
- Luke 22:24-27
- Galations 3:26-29