"1) Women were foundational to the spreading of Jesus' message. Not only was "the woman at the well" the first evangelist to Samaria, and the women at the tomb the first witnesses and proclaimers of Jesus's resurrection, but Mary of Bethany was affirmed by Jesus as "doing the right thing" in "sitting at Jesus' feet." In antiquity, "sitting at the feet" literally meant "being a disciple." Even Paul, during his ministry made mention of several leading women in his salutation to the Roman Church (Romans 16). Among these were Junia the apostle and Phoebe, Paul's emissary and the translator of the letter. We also know of several house-church leaders like Chloe and Nympha (1 Corinthians 1:11, Colossians 4:15), and Priscilla, who also taught Apollos "the more accurate way" about Jesus. If women were crucial in leading Jesus's movement in the very beginning, why wouldn't they be as crucial in doing so now?" -- Kat Armas
Whenever defenders of women in leadership try to present their arguments they are forced to read things into scripture that simply are not there. Keep in mind always that they are forced to abandon two sets of clear directive passages to assume nonsense into other verses. For instance the notion that Mary of Bethany was actually a disciple. No she was not. She chose the better thing by prioritizing listening to Jesus over the distractions of this world but that does not make her a disciple. Or the notion that the woman at the well was an evangelist when she clearly was not. Yes she went back to HER town and wondered if He could be the Messiah but the word does not say she ever did anything beyond that. Now let us deal with one of the Christo-feminist favorite butcherings of the word of God -- Junias:
Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners. They are well known to the apostles, and they were in Christ before me. - Romans 16: 7 (ESV)
Junia is actually Junias, a man. Do some research and you will see the ONLY people making him a woman are trying to defend the Christo - feminist arguments. Paul even refers to both of them as kinsmen. However, even if you insist that he is a she, all this verse says is that Junias was well known to the apostles. Christo-feminists rely upon muddier translations to try and argue that "she" secretly was an apostle. Phoebe was an emissary and letter carrier and no one is arguing these are restricted by God. Here are the verses in question for Chloe and Nymphas:
For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. - 1Corinthians 1:11 (ESV)
Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. -- Colossians 4:15 (ESV)
Paul makes a reference to "Chloe's people" and those that so desperately want to disobey the directive scriptures found in the key verses today jump on this to claim she led a house church. Where in the world does it say that? It is not even remotely referred to as such. This is what Christo-feminists are forced to stoop to in order to prop up their position. They must assume things behind scriptures instead of simply obeying the key verses. Nympha by the way was Nymphas -- a man. Here is a snippet from Ellicott's Commentary:
"And Nymphas.--There is a curious variety of reading here. Some MSS. have, as in our version," the church in his house;" some, "in her house;" the best reading seems to be "in their house." The second of those readings would make the name "Nympha," instead of "Nymphas," with which the form of the original hardly agrees. The last reading (from which the common reading of our version is probably a correction) must refer, in the word "their," to Nymphas and his family. Of Nymphas we know nothing, except from this passage. He is obviously a man of importance, a centre of Church life, in the Christian community at Laodicea." -- Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers