Rethinking Gender Roles in the Church: Responding to John Piper’s Complementarian Theology

Voxology

Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Society & Culture

4.7 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 4 April 2018

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

How do we engage faithfully with long-held beliefs around gender, authority, and theology in the church? Mike Erre critiques a recent article and podcast by influential Christian leader John Piper that argues for inherent male leadership based on “God-given maleness.” Drawing on scripture, historical context, and theological reflection, Mike challenges complementarian views and offers an egalitarian reading of Genesis, Paul’s household codes, and the teachings of Jesus. This episode invites listeners to consider a more empowering and biblical vision of mutuality between men and women in leadership, marriage, and the church.

Key Takeaways:
• Complementarian vs. Egalitarian Theology – A breakdown of the differences between these two frameworks and why Mike now embraces egalitarianism.
• Rethinking Genesis 1–3 – Why hierarchical readings of Adam and Eve are built more on theology than exegesis, and how mutuality better reflects God's original intent.
• Jesus as the Model – How Jesus’ treatment of women subverts patriarchal norms and reshapes leadership paradigms.
• Paul's Letters in Cultural Context – A look at Colossians, Ephesians, and 1 Peter to understand commands about gender not as eternal hierarchies, but as missionary strategies and curse reversals.
• The Dangers of Hierarchical Male Authority – Addressing studies that suggest a correlation between Calvinism, complementarian theology, and domestic abuse, and why it's time for the church to lead in a healthier direction.

Notable Quote:
"What culture needs is the church to lead the way in empowering women, because that is what Jesus did—against all cultural convention."

Guest Highlight:
Seth Eery – Makes a heartwarming appearance to lead the Pledge of Allegiance, reminding us of the hope found in the next generation.

Resources Mentioned:
• Scott McKnight’s blog “The Jesus Creed” – https://www.christianitytoday.com/scot-mcknight
• Psychology of Religion & Spirituality Study – “Religious Beliefs and Domestic Violence Myths” [DOI PDF Link]
• Genesis 1–3, Ephesians 5, Colossians 3, 1 Peter 3 – Key scriptural passages discussed.

Join the ongoing conversation on egalitarian theology, gender roles, and the call to justice in the Body of Christ. Subscribe, leave a review, and follow us on social media to help extend the Voxology family and reimagine the church’s mission in today’s world.

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Music by Timothy John Stafford
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Music in this episode by Timothy John Stafford

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, everybody. Mike here. So glad you are tuning in. For those of you who listen while you're working or in the car or trying desperately to go to sleep
0:25.0	and you find the sound of my voice to be an infallible cure for insomnia.
0:30.4	However you are listening, thank you so much for doing.
0:33.3	So we are super honored to be a part of your life.
0:36.3	Thank you for the ways that you give us feedback.
0:39.4	The ways, thank you for those that support us on Patreon.
0:44.4	That financial support is massive and there's a community growing there that I think is really cool.
0:48.9	Thank you for liking and subscribing and rating us and all those sorts of things that just
0:56.1	helps keep our, it keeps us current in the podcast world.
1:01.0	So very grateful for all of that.
1:03.1	My brothers and sisters, today, what I want to do is I want to, and I hate doing this
1:09.5	because we've done it like three or four times already
1:12.5	this year. But I feel like I want to spend a little time responding to an article that was
1:17.4	written by a guy named John Piper. And I can hear the, you know, I can hear a few of you going,
1:25.2	oh really, why do we have to do this? Why do we have to criticize other Christians?
1:29.0	And man, I get it.
1:30.2	Believe me, we've got much better things to do in the world than just criticize other
1:33.4	Christians.
1:35.3	But there are two reasons why I think this article is worth responding to.
1:38.7	Number one, it reinforces something that I think millions of American Christians believe, and I think can be quite harmful in some instances, and certainly used for harm.
1:54.0	But secondly, I think that there's this huge cultural upheaval going on in our world right now around the relationships of power between
2:02.6	men and women and the Me Too phenomenon and all that's being uncovered, brought to light,
	...

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