Why I am positively for men in Christian leadership

Male leadership cannot be an inherently bad thing because the man, Christ Jesus, is head of the church (Col 1:18). His self-giving, servant hearted leadership is not of this world precisely because it does not subjugate others (Matt 20:25). That repressive and subjugating disposition is a curse of the fall more specific to men than women (Gen 3:16) - world history readily confirms this. Thus a woman is not so obviously the candidate to evidence one powerful work of Christ who is able to transform men who ‘rule’ into men who ‘lay down their lives’ in servant-hearted leadership. Jesus himself desired to evidence his handiwork and duly appointed 12 male Apostles to do so, whilst defying so many other patriarchal conventions of his day. When men lead like Christ, in distinction to the way men lead in the world, the weak are made strong, the timid are made brave and those most estranged are welcomed in. When they fail, and lead as the world leads, it is no wonder women feel so called to step up and do better, which they so frequently may do. But we must not lose hope, there should be repentance and critical reflection but there must also be a renewed determination to try again by the grace of God. It is not about denying opportunities to women nor is it an exercise to restrict their influence in the life of the church. It is more positively a statement of the gospel that Jesus has conquered that domineering sin that has emanated from the heart of men since the first Adam; a sin which cannot be stopped with legislation and continues to cause so much misery in the world today.

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