The gospel of Jesus Christ is unquestionably pro women.
Women and men were created equal at the beginning. The new creation in Christ reconciles women and men to the egalitarian relationship they were meant to enjoy all along had it not been for the curse of patriarchy (thanks a lot patriarchy).
But how do we square this idea with the New Testament passages that talk about women submitting to men? E.g.,
“Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands” (1 Peter 3:1 NIV).
First of all, let me say there is absolutely no good reason to believe the Bible is referring to a sexual kind of submission.
Submission in this context means to accept authority, which is why the NRSV translates the verse from 1 Peter,
“Wives, in the same way, accept the authority of your husbands” (1 Peter 3:1 NRSV).
This authority is a decision-making, leadership kind of authority, part of a family hierarchy designed not by God, but Roman society.
Roman society was built on a complicated hierarchical system of status and much of the epistle of 1st Peter talks about how believers, who know they are all equal in Christ, should behave in a world of strict INequality.
At the heart of Peter’s ethic is this instruction, which he gives to everyone, men and women:
“For the Lord’s sake, accept the authority (or submit) to every human institution”… and a few verses later… “as servants of God, live as free people, only do not use your freedom for evil (or trouble, or destruction).”
1 Peter 2:13 & 16 NRSV & me
The early church was free to subvert the cultural norms of Rome by treating one another as equals, despite their societal status.
However… the mission of the church is not to go to war with society, rather to invite others (at every level of society) to join the loving, egalitarian, new creation community of Jesus-followers.
So this idea of wives playing a subservient role in the household was by no means a mandate for all time.
It was a contextual, temporary directive that demonstrated hospitality toward Roman citizens AND protected Christian women from being needlessly persecuted.
Today, society at large (in the West at least) welcomes the equality of women, so Christians here are more free than probably any other time in history to actually treat one another the way we were designed, the way it will be some day when God renews all things—when there will be no human hierarchy, when women and men live peacefully as equal partners.
Thank you for taking the time to read this reflection. We plan to post a weekly devotional and a monthly topical reflection AND we want to be as interactive as possible. Please share your thoughts and questions—we’d be thrilled to hear from you!
Justin is a pastor and innovative ministry practitioner based in Los Angeles County. He holds a Master of Arts degree in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary where he is also currently a Doctor of Ministry Candidate. For more see JustinBerkobien.com
This is *really* helpful. Thanks, Justin.