Mary J. Evans examines the Old and New Testament texts, as well as the cultural and religious attitudes which together shaped the early church's ideas about women's roles. 160 pages, paper

What does the Bible say about the value of women? Does the Bible teach that women are as valuable as men or does it portray them as somehow more flawed, more suspect, or weak and easily deceived? Beginning from Genesis and working all the way through the storyline of the Bible, Worthy demonstrates the significant and yes, even surprising, ways that God has used women to accomplish His kingdom goals. Because, like men, they are created in His image, their lives reflect and declare His worth. Worthy will enable and encourage both men and women to embrace this true and lofty vision of God's creation, plan, and their value in His eyes. Bestselling author Elyse Fitzpatrick and pastor Eric Schumacher together invite women to embrace a transformative and empowering view of their Maker, themselves, and the church. But this isn't only a book for women. It is also a book for men, especially leaders, who want to grow in their understanding of God's perspective on women, people who normally make up the majority of their congregations; men who might be wondering if they've missed something amid the abuse scandals that are rocking the church. Might the headlines they're reading today about abuse have their roots in a denigration of the value and worth of women? Worthy: Celebrating the Value of Women will help every reader see the value, place, and calling of women through study questions and a "Digging Deeper" section that will help men and women discover how to cherish, value, and honor one another for God's glory.

Do women and men have different intellectual, spiritual, moral, or emotional capacities? Over the centuries, women have read and interpreted the story of Eve, scrutinizing the details of the text to discern God's word for them. Biblical scholar Amanda Benckhuysen traces the history of women's interpretation of Genesis 1-3, allowing the voices of women to speak of Eve's story and its implications for life today.

In this twelve-session small group Bible study, Twelve Women of the Bible, Lysa TerKuerst, Elisa Morgan, Jeanne Stevens and other leaders look at the spiritual lessons learned from twelve biblical women and what they mean for your life today. You'll discover lessons from each of these women that will help you persevere through the circumstances you are facing today. Learn how to: Apply biblical lessons to their own modern-day struggles Live through their failures as well as successes Draw near to God in a world filled with trials Find lasting contentment Overcome rejection and insecurity This Participant Guide features discussion questions, background information on each character, space to write down thoughts, a helpful Leader's Guide, and much more. Sessions include: Eve: Finding Lasting Contentment in the Truth (Lysa TerKeurst) Rebekah: Breaking Free of Feminine Stereotypes (Jonalyn Fincher) Leah: Overcoming Rejection and Insecurity (Naomi Zacharias) Hannah: Surrendering in Waiting (Amena Brown) Abigail: Dealing with Confrontation in Relationships Gomer: Learning to Accept Unconditional Love (Jeanne Stevens) Mary, Mother of Jesus: Moving from Comfort to Courage (Jeanne Stevens) Mary Magdalene: Transforming from Outcast to Follower (Jonalyn Fincher) Mary of Bethany: Putting Our Faith into Action (Elisa Morgan) Martha: Finding Our Identity in Jesus (Amena Brown) The Woman at the Well: Turning Our Messes into Messages (Lysa TerKuerst) The Syrophoenician Woman: Approaching God with Persistency and Boldness (Naomi Zacharias) Designed for use with the Twelve Women of the Bible DVD 9780310691624 (sold separately).

This first-rate biblical and theological study offers an accessible examination of the key texts of Scripture pertinent to understanding female roles, affirming full equality of the sexes in family and church. The third edition has been revised throughout. Gilbert Bilezikian avoids using scholarly jargon and complex argumentation in the main text of the book to encourage readers to interact with the biblical research. The aim is for nonspecialized readers to be able to follow his discussion step-by-step, evaluate arguments, consider alternative views, and arrive at independent conclusions. The study guide format of the book is designed for either individual investigation or group work. Pastors, church leaders, students, and those interested in issues relating to gender and church life will value this classic work on the egalitarian viewpoint.

Join biblical culturalist Krisi McLelland as she takes you back to Jesus' first-century world, explaining the historical and cultural climate of His day. This 7-session Bible study is a look at several of Jesus' interactions with women.

This commentary edited by Catherine Clark Kroeger and Mary Evans is an attempt to answer the question, What happens when we look at Scripture through women's eyes? New and helpful insights from an international team of scholars show how Scripture is relevant to women and men alike, making it a wonderful complement to other commentaries.

Kevin Giles has been writing on women in the Bible for over forty years. In this book, What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women, he gives the most comprehensive account to date of the competing conclusions to this question and the issues surrounding it. To understand the bitter and divisive debate among evangelicals over the status and ministry of women, it needs to be understood that those who since 1990 have called themselves "complementarians" argue that in creation before the fall God set the man over the woman. Thus, the leadership of the man and the subordination of the woman in the home, the church, and wherever possible in the world (the whole creation) is the God-given ideal that is pleasing to God. It is this "theology" that Kevin Giles deconstructs and shows to be without a biblical foundation. Giles shows that he is fully conversant with the complementarian position and yet is unpersuaded by it. He sees it as an appeal to the Bible to preserve male privilege, similar to the appeals to the Bible to validate slavery and Apartheid; appeals to the Bible made by some of the best Reformed and evangelical biblical scholars, and now seen to be special pleading. Carefully studying the limited number of texts on which complementarians predicate their theology of the sexes, Giles finds not one of them actually teaches what complementarians claim. Furthermore, complementarians too often ignore the texts that are very difficult for them. In this book the ordination of women gets only passing mention. The constant focus is on whether or not the Bible subordinates women to men as an abiding theological principle.