Leadership Is Male

by David Pawson

Book by Pawson, J. David

Genres: Leadership, Faith, Christianity, Church

127 pages, Hardcover

First published August 4, 1988

Reviews

[Fiery · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book David Pawson highlights the Bible verdict about is it proper women to be put in positions of leadership over men. This issue seems a bit obsolete in the current era of feminism, but the Bible is clear about the gender of leadership. Reading is interesting and I learned some new things. This book is first published in 1988, but sounds very actual today. In fact there is a postscript that corrects some details in the first publication and adds a conclusion which the original book lacks. Due to this postscript I give a five star review.

Even though I would recommend this book, it reads as a short outline which requires an additional investigation by the reader on the Bible texts. Since today's feminist pressure is great each Bible verse should be investigated as close to the original language as possible. Author has other books about Isaiah , Galatians, Mark, etc. that are good example for a future expanded edition of this book.

I read the Kindle edition. ASIN: B0055X0FCU

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wasn't a popular book then and it certainly won't be today, but the relevance of this topic is crucial in churches today. Read this with an open mind and an open heart. You will see Mr. Pawson's earnestness and that he is furthest thing from a domineering, overbearing male. Quite the opposite. He addresses this with sound biblical texts, analysis, and consistency.

[Eli · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good survey of the Biblical teaching on male leadership.

[James Pereira · Rating 5 out of 5]

“To dismiss texts simply because we may disagree with them or because we find it difficult to fit them into our hermeneutical scheme is to be similarly guilty of fraudulently handling Scripture.”

About the book
Leadership Is Male, as the title suggests, is Pawson making the case from Scripture that biblical leadership is male — and that this has less to do with culture and more to do with how God ordains it in the Bible.

Pawson argues we can’t base our whole understanding of Christian leadership on the Gospels alone any more than we can base the idea of salvation only on the man saved at the cross. It’s a short book that works through the Old Testament (patriarchy), the pattern of twelve disciples, and then the Pauline and Petrine letters to make a case for male leadership biblically.

Experience reading the book
This has been a challenging read for me — challenging because of how radical the implications can be for church life and how I’ll view leadership in future.

Reading it didn’t take long, but meditating on the material and sitting with it did. Pawson’s arguments stuck with me and made me re-check the Bible for myself.

“The shortage of men on the mission field, the unavailability of men to do pastoral work in Korea, the dearth of strong men in English churches — none of these can ‘justify’ the use of women in leadership. Indeed, it is an insult to women to use them only because men are not available, with the implication of their redundancy if and when men were available! It is not a historical issue. (It’s not about culture and church history). — The church(es) can be wrong; the Bible, rightly interpreted, cannot be.”

Many times while reading I felt deeply unsettled — because I started checking what I’ve accepted around me (in workplace leadership, in churches) against Scripture.

“A pragmatic age is more concerned with the question: Does it work? than: Is it right? In Christian jargon the pragmatist asks: Is it blessed? That God has blessed women’s leadership cannot be denied; that this proves it is ‘right’ may be debated.”

What makes the book compelling
Pawson reasons from Scripture — verse by verse — and the book is full of careful exegetical discussion that stirs the debate. What I found compelling was having to cross-check his claims against my Bible and being surprised at several of the textual patterns he highlights.

If you start cherry-picking Scripture to suit preferences, your whole foundation is at risk. Pawson forces you to take Scripture seriously and consistently.

Things that make this a good read
Two things stood out: Pawson’s tone and his method. His tone is humble and measured — he doesn’t sound condescending. He reasons, pleads, and points to patterns rather than shouting conclusions.

His method is straightforward: from the pattern of the twelve, to the recurring reference to the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob), to careful handling of Pauline passages (notably 1 Timothy 2:11–15) and Peter’s letters. He treats Galatians 3:28 with respect and thoroughly examines the feminist defense, weighing it against creation-order arguments.

In short, it feels balanced: he covers potential objections and seeks to be fair.

Overall
In conclusion, I’ll say this about the book: it will challenge your assumptions about what you think you know about leadership and about the inherent infallibility of Scripture. Either way, it’s a decision you’ll have to make in your walk with God.

I’ve been sold on the idea of leadership being male, especially given the headship argument in 1 Corinthians 11 — but I’ll leave this book for you to consider the issue yourself.

⭐5 stars for me!

Anyways — cheers, I’ll catch you later. Here are Pawson’s questions to probe while you study 1 Timothy 2:11–15:

“Let the reader think through this recent claim that Paul prohibited women from teaching only because of their educational disadvantages in his own day. The following questions will soon bring to mind:

- Why doesn’t Paul explicitly give this as the reason?

- Was this as true in Gentile society as in Jewish?

- Were there no educated ladies? (Lydia? Priscilla?)

- Did Paul forbid uneducated men to teach?

- Weren’t most Christian men uneducated? (1 Cor 1:26)

- Didn’t Timothy get his knowledge of Scripture from his mother and grandmother? (2 Tim 1:5; 3:15)

- Why does Paul appeal to Genesis 2 and 3? How does this fit in with his other teaching? (1 Cor 14:34)

- Does it apply to uneducated women (or men) today?

It will become apparent that Paul’s prohibition relates to gender, not ignorance; and that this is based on creation, not culture. Above all, the reader will probably conclude that a gift for ‘teaching’ Christians requires spiritual rather than intellectual qualifications and is often quite unrelated to academic ability or opportunity.”

[Jordywales · Rating 2 out of 5]

Leadership is Male by David Pawson is a book where the author the late J. David Pawson discusses how the man is meant to lead in the house and in general as we are commanded to do by God.

The book uses Pawson's musings, bible verses and analogies on male leadership and what he believes God calls men to do.

The book is unlike Pawson's lectures is very dry. Some of it at times often comes across as opinion than actual bible truths. I actually love Pawson's sermons which is a huge shame here.

Read this work if you like Pawson's lectures, are christian or want to start a male bible study or something. If youre not religious or christian and want to understand how christianity affects males or male christian roles id check this out too but with a grain of salt either way.

2/5 it was okay.

[Ming Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and simple, covering Creation, patriarchy in the Old Testament, Christ's actions in the New Testament, and Paul and Peter's teaching. There were some parts that could have been clearer: for instance, Pawson describes man and woman's horizontal inequality yet vertical equality (i.e. they are both made in the image of God but the wife is subordinated to her husband and they have different functions) as a "paradox", which is a misattribution of the term by my lights. There are also odd sections on judging contemporary revelation (Pawson describes himself as a "charismatic evangelical"), but Pawson' view seems fairly sane insofar as he says to judge revelation by Scripture.

A good introduction to issues of egalitarianism.

[Wickham Clayton · Rating 1 out of 5]

This ended up in my collection from the bookshop discards of a very old collection. I couldn’t throw it away until I’d read it, and I do fully intend to throw it away as fewer copies would be doing the world a favour.

It’s bad research (very little of the author’s work is shown), it’s bad philosophy, it’s bad theory, it’s bad theology. It starts on as many false premises as it has claims. Big gaps are missing in the “so what” and “if this fails then…?” categories.

It’s a terrible book and I fully intend to purify it before destroying. The only thing that strikes me, though not surprised me, is the fact that it had multiple reprints.

Avoid, avoid, avoid this.

[Roy Samuel]

Needed for the church and the cultural climate today.
There's nothing in the book that is not backed up by solid research and biblical references.
Highly recommended.

[Cristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy valioso - con un prefacio de Elisabeth Elliot.

[Jess Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vu le nombre de pages on est pas avec une étude approfondie mais une présentation de principes généraux.

Néanmoins ça reste une bonne base pour commencer le sujet.

[Petrus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Bible teacher should read this.

[Unspokenbeet · Rating 5 out of 5]

exegetical and structured well

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very concise read, excellent overview of a much debated topic and it's presented in a very gracious manner

[Justin Denlinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a time where demonic forces are trying to invert and subvert everything beautiful, true, and good, we are given quietly this small book. It is a kindly but unabashed breath of fresh, sane air in a world suffocating on its own insanity.

Pawson doesn’t sacrifice accessibility in order to appeal to the learned, nor scholarship to please the unlearned. He doesn’t pander to the masses by compromising biblical truth so that he can be popular and make more money.
Unlike most of the modern yes-men who write on the topic, Pawson doesn’t try to negotiate the text to be compatible with the feminist, post-Christian zeitgeist.
Rather than judging the Bible by cultural norms, he does exactly the opposite - as should a sincere Christian thinker.

He patiently explains what the Bible says, and though that should be conclusive for the Christian, he generously goes on to explain some of the philosophical possibilities behind God’s system of gender hierarchy.

Over all, a book every Christian should own and read, especially those in leadership.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great primer to fuller works on the subject

[Beniamin · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author makes a few valid biblical points but they seem dispersed and I didn t see a congruent case built. The book is quite small for such a topic, the author should insist more on some of the good ideas he pointed out.