Journal: Eikon
Volume: EIKON 06:1 (Spring 2024)
Article: A Forum The State Of Complementarianism
Author: Heath Lambert

Eikon 6.1 (Spring 2024) p. 73

A Forum
The State Of Complementarianism

Heath Lambert

Bart Barber

Todd Pruitt

Andrew Ballitch

Felix Orji

Greg Strand

Eikon 6.1 (Spring 2024) p. 74

Heath Lambert:
The State Of Complementarianism In The Southern Baptist Convention

Heath Lambert is pastor of First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, FL (SBC).

Q: What Do You Believe The Bible Teaches About God’s Design For Men And Women, Particularly In The Home And The Church? How Do You View The Relationship Between The Bible’s Teaching On The Proper Order Of The Home And The Proper Order Of The Church?

A: I believe that God made mankind in two objective genders that are revealed at birth (Genesis 1:27). I further believe that he has invested men with a role in the church and the home that is characterized by loving, sacrificial leadership (1 Timothy 2:11–15; 1 Timothy 3:1–7; Ephesians 5:25–30), and that he has invested women with a role in the home and the church that is characterized by a submissive response to this leadership (1 Timothy 2:11–15; Ephesians 5:22–24). If I understand your question correctly, my understanding between the Bible’s teaching on gender and the proper ordering of the home is that it is important and intentional. That is to say that it is not accidental that God calls men to leadership in the home and the church and that he calls women to a submissive role in the home and the church. The Bible’s teaching points to an intentionality on the part of God to create in men something that is designed for leadership and to create in women something that is designed to respond to that leadership.

Q: What Limits, If Any, Do You Believe The Bible Places On Women Serving In The Church?

A: I believe the serving opportunities of women are limited by texts like 1 Timothy 2:11–15. To state this tension explicitly, I would say that texts like that teach

Eikon 6.1 (Spring 2024) p. 75

that women are not allowed to have a governing function in the church and are not allowed to teach men doctrine. I do not think this limitation limits the ability of women to lead at all, as I think there are many leadership roles that a woman could occupy under that of, say, a pastor. I also do not believe this limita...