For some reason, I’ve found myself asked this question twice in 3 days by quite different people. The question is very important: Some women feel drawn to study to teach others - is this wrong? What about women missionaries - surely they need to preach at some time? Can’t women take on the same roles as men in this modern world?
Many of the heroes of the Bible were women: Rahab, Deborah, Ruth, Esther, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Lydia come quickly to mind.
The story of Deborah is particularly interesting as God used this prophetess and another woman (Jael) quite powerfully, largely because the men around at the time were so spineless and faithless.
The point is, God just has different roles for men and women. We shouldn’t think that one gender is more important than the other, either to us or to God. “When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them.”
For a really helpful look into what God wants women to be, I strongly recommend the book, “God’s Design for Women“. The emphasis is on enjoying a fulfilling life as a godly woman.
Specifically on the question of whether women should preach, 1 Timothy 2 & 3 is the clearest passage to look up. Paul is writing about how to organise church (a really important point), when he says, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man”. God knows men are weak (which is why Pauls asks women to dress modestly!) but he’s given the role of teaching in church to men.
It’s not sexist to say that women shouldn’t preach, it’s just a simple obedience to what God has to say about the roles he wants men and women to fulfil.
If there’s a bloke around who can teach, he should do so. But what if there are no suitable men (e.g. tiny church, human frailty, women’s group, or even within a family where the husband has only just been converted)? I’d give two observations: (a) Paul’s “I do not permit” is in the context of public worship, and so is a guiding principle in other situations, although (b) Deborah always sits as a reminder that God can use women when there are no suitable men to be found.
