11: Red Wine, Narrative Hermeneutics, and Women in Luke/Acts

Welcome back!

It has been a while, hasn't it?

In this episode, Nick and Allison discuss the wide-ranging topic of women in Luke/Acts, touching on various elements of the doctrine of God, the Holy Spirit and Pentecost, how we should read narrative, and commenting on the evangelical tendency to downplay narrative in the quest for 'propositional' truths.

Allison also makes Nick (makes, hah!) drink cheap red wine in honor of a certain someone. You can infer who this might be, but we ain't telling.

Resources on the topic are vast, but the best English commentary on Luke is by Joel B. Green of Fuller Theological Seminary. A standout commentary that Nick says he reads for fun. A similarly great volume on the theology of Luke is also by Green.

Resources more relevant to the topic discussed in this episode include Gospel Women: Studies of Women Named in the Gospels by Richard Bauckham as well as his Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, which makes an appearance in this episode. For a killer article, see Nijay Gupta's excellent contribution in Priscilla Papers on Mary and The Double Message by Turid Karlsen Seim.

We hope to see you at the CBE Conference in Orlando! Blessings!

Make sure to give us an honest 5 star review on iTunes! :)

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10: Galatians 3:28 and 'Should I leave my Complementarian Church?'

Since this episode won't air on Sunday, Happy Mother's Day! In this episode, we had some fun! We went through a lot of Galatians 1-3 for context, and then worked through the parallel passages of Galatians 3:28, as well as the theology within this verse. We also spent a great deal of time answering some listener questions.

If you ever have any questions or comments, feel free to email us.

Allison wrote a killer article entitled "A Woman's 'Role' as a First-Born Son: Full Justification in Christ Leads to Full Participation." Other helpful works include Philip Payne's entire article on Galatians 3:28 (starting at p.11 in the pdf), a post by Margaret Mowczko, and a Priscilla Paper's article by Faith Martin.

Allison writes:

Besides, the earthly implications of being a son or heir and the use of common social divisions, what other reason is there to think Gal 3:28 is practically minded and not limited to a justification that is mainly in spirit? It is also evident in parallel passages. The other similar passages are Colossians 3:11 and the baptismal statement 1 Cor 12:13. Both are applied to practical issues within the church and take on some familiar themes.

“Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all” (Col 3:9-11).

 “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many” (1 Cor 12:12-14).  Clearly, unity in Christ is tied to practice.

Allison's blog post will help answer any additional questions you may have about this passage, as we could not cover every single detail. Thanks for listening! If you would like to help promote the podcast, please retweet this or share us on your social media page, and leave us a (5 star?!) review on iTunes. Thanks and God Bless!

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9: The Future of "Male Headship" with Jamin Hübner and A Response to John Piper

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Allison and I originally planned on working through Galatians 3:26-29 (and more specifically through the entire epistle) in this episode, but some interesting events have occurred in the blogosphere that demanded our response.

On April 19th, John Piper released a short 10 minute video where he responded to a questioner from the United Kingdom. The questioner asked him about the 'future of male headship' and if it was a 'lost cause.' As can be expected, Piper offered four (one? you'll get it later if you listen to our episode) complementarian reasons why he does not think male headship is a lost cause. You can read/listen to the entire thing here, and Allison and I figured this would be worth a detailed response. In order to best examine and critique Piper's comments, we had on our first guest, Dr. Jamin Hübner! Dr. Hübner is Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Associate Professor at John Witherspoon College in Rapid City, South Dakota. Dr. Hübner is a graduate of Dordt College (BA Theology), Reformed Theological Seminary (MA Religion), and the University of South Africa (ThD). He has also blogged at Christians for Biblical Equality.

Dr. Hübner's works include a book called A Case for Female Deacons (a work we have recommended before) and multiple academic articles on various aspects of the gender debate, including peer-reviewed in-depth research on the controversial "assume authority" infinitive in 1 Tim 2:12, Bible translation issues regarding the clarity of Scripture and how to translate the same infinitive in 1 Tim 2:12, and the history of the evolutionary process of complementarian exegesis. So, as you can see, we were deeply blessed to have such a scholar on our podcast! Plus, he's quite fun to chat with as well, as you will see!

The Desiring God video includes a transcript of his response to the questioner, and we invite you to read through it as we discuss in great depth why we all believe John Piper is deeply wrong about this issue. As you will see, egalitarians are not interested in merely accommodating culture. Allison, Dr. Hübner and I all came to our position through rigorous analysis of the Biblical texts and we all profess and live into our commitment to the authority of God's word. Speaking only for myself (Nick), if I thought Scripture said otherwise, I would be a committed complementarian. As such, Scripture gets to dictate my beliefs and I remain a convinced egalitarian.

Far from being a 'liberal' movement, both Dr. Mimi Haddad (President of CBE) and Allison Quient have shown that egalitarianism is far more rooted in historic evangelicalism than complementarianism. Indeed, a mere perusal of the original signers of the Christians for Biblical Equality statement (a statement absolutely saturated in Holy Scripture) include influential scholars such as F.F. Bruce (who was considered the Dean of Evangelical New Testament scholarship, and is a personal hero of mine), Mimi Haddad, Gordon D. Fee, Kevin Giles, Kenneth Kantzer (formerly of TEDS), Richard Longenecker, Aida Spencer, Grant R. Osborne (of TEDS as well), David Scholer (of Fuller), Alvera Mickelson, and Philip B. Payne (who we have recommended many times!). These are giants in evangelical scholarship, and are not people dedicated to the winds of modern cultural trends.

It is also worth your time to read a bit about CBE's history:

Disturbed by the shallow biblical premise used by churches, organizations, and mission groups to exclude the gifts of women, evangelical leaders assembled in 1987 to publish their biblical perspective in a new scholarly journal, Priscilla Papers. Included in the group were Gilbert Bilezikian, W. Ward Gasque, Stanley Gundry, Gretchen Gaebelein Hull, Catherine Clark Kroeger, Jo Anne Lyon, and Roger Nicole. The group determined that a national organization was needed to provide education, support, and leadership about biblical equality.

Roger Nicole, an original signer of the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy and a deeply influential Reformed theologian, saw no issue between his very outspoken egalitarianism and his commitment to the authority of Scripture. Philip B. Payne was also an original signer of the same influential document.

Egalitarianism, as argued by all of these brothers and sisters, is grounded firmly in the authority of Holy Scripture.

This is why CBE's conferences are so important. Allison and I recorded a video promo for CBE, and if you find it helpful, please share it as well! We'd love to meet and see you in Orlando, FL this July!

We would also be deeply grateful if you would share and tweet this podcast to get the word out! Pastor John Piper is a committed Christian and his words have significant influence. Please review us on iTunes (a nice 5 star review gets you a shout out on the air!). Also follow Nick and Allison on twitter for all the tweets!

Blessings!

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8: 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, Textual Problems, and Women being Silent

Well hello, welcome to our podcast! And blog!

In this episode, we talk about the finer points of textual criticism, church fathers, and the various interpretive issues surrounding 1 Corinthians 14:34-35. We argue that the context and textual problems strongly suggest that these two verses are an interpolation.

Also, because Nick *makes* Allison drink a beer she doesn't like (at all!), Allison threatens Nick with a furious vengeance. You have the power to determine whether or not Nick suffers. Listen and find out how you must do it.

For every 5, Nick eats 1. If this does not make sense, you will need to listen and find out!

Recommended resources this week include Payne's work and Craig S. Keener's chapter in Discovering Biblical Equality. For an excellent short sermon article, see Brandon Waite.

Follow Nick and Allison on twitter, and give us 5 star reviews on iTunes! That is how we become famous and make millions of dollars. Or something.

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7: Christian Identity and Stories of Sexism

This episode is a bit different.

We get a bit personal.

Well, we also tell jokes and enjoy our time together as always!

This time, Allison and Nick tell us about their egalitarian wedding, including some interesting details that often get left aside. Nick gives us a glimpse into the theology of John Wesley and Allison talks about Paul and Adam for book corner.

Then it is off to the races. Allison gives us a lot of insight into her experiences in seminary as a woman, and offers a lot of practical advice for women struggling in ministry or an academic environment.

Some helpful material from Priscilla Papers is Adam Omelianchuk's article, on "The Logic of Equality." Also worthy of your time is Jeanne William's article on "Christlike Responses to a Hierarchical World: Lessons from Bold Women."

In Christ,

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6: 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, Beanboozled, and "Headship"

Well, this is the first episode of the New Year.

Not much else to say about that, especially given what has happened in the news.

Downer.

Oh well. Anyway.

In this episode, we tackle Paul's most difficult passage, a passage that has kept a lot of Pauline exegetes scratching their heads. Allison coerced Nick into trying a jelly bean or three, and it did not end well. At all. For either of them.

Recommended resources include Philip Payne's article on 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, Alan Padgett's article on the same passage, Heather Gorman's article on 'origin stories,' and Gordon Fee's commentary. It goes without saying that Payne's book is stellar and you should pick that one up.

Follow both Nick and Allison on Twitter! Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, and give us 5 stars! Please? We can only rise if others share, subscribe and review. If you give us a 5 star review (a 5 star review that is nice and not mean), you get a shout out. Guaranteed. Also, check out Christians for Biblical Equality's conference!

There. I'm good with this.

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5: 1 Corinthians 7, Marriage, Authority and Sexual Ethics

Well Happy New Year!

In this episode, Nick and Allison discuss Paul's most neglected treatise on marriage. We discuss sexual ethics, divorce, authority in marriage, and Allison tries a beer. Spoiler: she does not like it. At all. Don't worry, Nick will finally find a beer for her!

[No he won't]

Recommended resources include Ronald W. Pierce's article in Priscilla Papers. You can find it here. It is the best treatment of the text thus far. For academic articles on Priscilla Papers and their archives, see here. Christians for Biblical Equality and the Junia Project are great resources!

Follow us on twitter (Nick and Allison) and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes (just search 'split frame of reference'). If you leave us a 5 star review, we will thank you on the podcast! Plus, it helps get our message out!

Blessings, and Happy New Years!

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4: Ephesians 5:18-33, Mutual Submission, and the Mystery of Marriage

This one was fun!

Allison and I talked about Ephesians 5:18-33 and how we interpret this passage! Rather than enforcing a hierarchy within marriage, we conclude that marriage is not about men or women having final authority in the relationship, but rather that Paul believed in mutual submission.

Allison walks us through vv.18-24 and the grammar and syntax therein, and Nick concludes the section on vv.25-33 which focuses on husbands. Examining the context is always important and the nature of "imitation of God and Christ" in 5:1-2 forms a foundation on which mutual submission is built.

Subscribe! Share! Follow us in iTunes and Twitter (Nick and Allison). For some excellent work, see Christians for Biblical Equality and the Junia Project as well!

For academic resources, see Philip B. Payne and Cynthia Long Westfall's book, Paul and Gender: Reclaiming the Apostle's Vision for Men and Women in Christ.

If you want to help fund Allison's PhD program in Systematic Theology, please consider giving at her Go Fund Me.

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3: 1 Timothy 3, Women Leaders and a Response to John MacArthur

Well, here it is! I must say Allison and I are getting pretty good at this!

In this episode, we tackle 1 Tim. 3:1-13 and show that it cannot be used in isolation, nor can it be used to exclude women from the office of 'elder' and 'deacon/minister.' We also respond to two main comments by Pastor John MacArthur, and refute his arguments for a male leadership interpretation of this passage. Since MacArthur agrees with us about women deacons (although we do not know how this works out in practice in his church), we did not respond to his comments on women deacons.

Rather than being an exclusion of women from either office, 1 Tim. 3:1-13 affirms women's desire to "aspire for these offices in conjunction with God's gifts and God's call in their lives.

For resources on this topic, particularly the issue of women deacons in Rom. 16:1-2, 1 Tim. 3:11 and church history, see the work of Jamin Hübner's A Case for Female Deacons (Eugene: Wipf & Stock, 2015).

For a modern and compact commentary that is concerned with the dominant masculine translations of 1 Tim. 3:1-13, see Aida Spencer's 1 Timothy (Eugene: Cascade, 2013).

Subscribe to us on iTunes and give us a (5 star?) review! Follow Nick and Allison on twitter!

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2: An Egalitarian Reading of 1 Timothy 2:11-15

Well, this is the big one.

In most debates in evangelicalism, this is the proof text where most of the fighting begins.

For further evidence in support of Nick's argument about the conjunction οὐδέ, see Philip B. Payne's article or just buy his book where he spends over 100 pages on 1 Timothy 2. It is worth your time. For a review, see J.W. Wartick (a former complementarian) and Paul D. Adams (who wrote a 34 page review!)--both of whom Nick counts as friends and fellow theology nerds.

This text is indeed complex, but God has given us his word to interpret. Because of this, we have concluded that Paul does not restrict women because of this text. Rather, they are prohibited from domineering or "assuming authority" over another person, and this means no one ought to do these things to another person in the body of Christ.

We hope you enjoy.

For further resources on 1 Tim. 2:12, see Jamin Hübner and Jamin Hübner, and pick up a copy of Cynthia Westfall's stellar work, and Payne's work as well.

Subscribe to us on iTunes and give us a (5 star?) review! Follow Nick and Allison on twitter!

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1: Introducing Gender Theology

Well, here we are.

In our inaugural episode, we talk about some of our journey into becoming egalitarians, as well as introducing "book corner" and Allison's research interest: theological interpretation of scripture! So we talk about hermeneutics, Paul and the Gift by John Barclay, our individual stories, and how some assumptions may play into one's exegesis of the Bible.

How's that for a hook?

This is the first time we've done a podcast together. If we are honest, we aren't the best at this. Nick toiled away for a while trying to fix some of the audio issues, and it sounds okay as of now. But, we have now figured out what to improve upon for next time.

We are totally beginners at this. Not at theology or anything like that, but at recording something together! Thanks for listening! Please share if you enjoy, or if you hate this and want to give us traffic, post it on your super conservative blog and give us what for.

Please don't ... but if you must ... that's fine.

Subscribe to us in iTunes and give us a (5 star?) review! Follow Nick and Allison on twitter!

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