I do not have a problem with the Great Commission Rick. I have a problem with heretics like you butchering it for your own carnal lusts. You see, what Rick Warren is doing here is what I call theological sleight of hand. We are not talking about the Great Commission. We are talking about women serving in authoritative positions over men within church structure. Let me spell it out for you:
Women are to "go"
Women are to Make disciples
Women are to baptize
Woman are to teach
Women are NOT to hold positions of authority over men within the organized church system
Wait a minute preacher, what do you mean teach? Ahh, therein lies the rub. Rick conveniently leaves off the context of what Jesus was speaking about - "teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you." Teaching who? THEM. Well, who is them? In this context it is obviously speaking about the people you have baptized. Jesus is not speaking about widespread teaching ministries within the organized church structure. He is speaking about individual discipleship outside of the church structure. We know this because the first command is Go! The charge of making disciples is of all nations! To use the Great Commission to dismiss the clear directive scriptures found in the key verses is hermeneutically criminal.
"A passage in Acts 2 also helped Warren change his thinking: "The second thing that changed my mind was the day of Pentecost," Warren said. "A few things happened that day. We know women were in the Upper Room. We know women were filled with the Holy Spirit. We know that women were preaching in languages other people couldn't understand."' - Rick Warren
Once again, apples and oranges from the master of biblical manipulation. I agree women were probably in the Upper Room. I agree they were probably filled with the Holy Ghost because there is no prohibition against that! They were NOT however preaching in other languages. Yes, the spirit enabled supernatural tongues so everyone heard them in their own native tongue but the only thing they were telling them according to the scriptures were the "mighty works of God." Testifying yes, preaching, no. How can we be sure? Because Peter then goes and preaches the first sermon of the church! Pentecost was a fantastic day in our faith but it still occurred decades before God would write the key verses, where He quite clearly prohibits women from teaching with authority over men in His church.
"A third verse of evidence for women in church authority came in John 20:17, when Jesus told Mary Magdalene to tell the disciples about His resurrection, and that Jesus "chose her to be the first preacher of the gospel." Warren said that during his studies, he looked at more than 300 commentaries on those verses and came to the conclusion that "everyone gets to preach and everyone gets to prophesy." "The people who don't like that ignore those verses," Warren said. "John MacArthur doesn't' even cover that verse, he just skips over it. Jesus told a woman to deliver the message to men." Indeed, Warren now supports women becoming pastors." - Charisma News
