The task of reaching the lost with the gospel though is a God given role to every single born again believer, male and female without exception. Allow me to expand!
The original great commission given by Jesus Christ was to his disciples which were his church when he was on Earth! Christ was the head of that church, he taught them the Word, they prayed together, sang psalms, he sent them out two by two soul-winning, he reproved rebuked and exhorted them…all the hallmarks of what a great new testament church should be was present in Jesus Christ’s ministry to the disciples.
Some of his last parting words to his disciples, before he ascended up to the Father is what we commonly know today as the great commission.
“Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.” ~ Mark 16 v15
Now we know that Christ is the head of every single scriptural church today.
This truth is made crystal clear in the beautiful picture of marriage.
“……..Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church; and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject into Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing………..” ~ Ephesians 5 v22-24
Much like how every good marriage is a picture of Christ and the church, the same with every scriptural church....Christ is the head of that church and the pastor is known as the under-shepherd to the one Great Shepherd Jesus Christ.
So the command to preach the Gospel to every creature is to every single scriptural church standing today and ever will stand.
Churches are made up of mixed multitudes of people both male and female, if ever a church hopes to reach as many people as they can with the Gospel then it’s going to take the combined efforts of all believers not just men.
We read in the book of Acts 1 how there were gathered about 120 believers! Many who were women and it states so within the context.
These are the same believers who were filled with the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 who went out and got about 3000 people saved.
This was a fulfilment of the prophet Joel’s words when he said “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out my of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants hand handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy” explained by Peter in the Acts 2 narrative
3000 people could only be saved with the combined efforts of all the believers working together being filled with the Holy Spirit. God is no respecter of persons he will use both men or women to save the lost, all he needs is a willing vessel.
Remember the Samaritan woman in John 4? When she was saved by Christ, she went out with the good news and got other people saved.
I believe in women preachers (not behind the pulpit preaching! God forbid) but out there in the harvest where the labourers are so few! In the highways and hedges and door to door with the news of glad tidings.
We read many times in Paul’s writings how he wanted the women that laboured with him in the Gospel to be looked after, he praised the efforts of god fearing women like Phebe, Priscilla, Mary, Julia, Chloe, Euodias, Syntyche, Eunice and Lois etc who helped him and who were bold enough to open their mouths and give people the Gospel.
God is not restricted by numbers or whether your male or female, he is though restricted when believers make excuses and are not willing to put in the work or the time for the Gospel.
The magnitude of winning the lost is a lifetimes work, a work that is so important, that it should be impressed on every believers heart.
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