Intown left the Presbyterian Church in America for the Reformed Church in America just over a year ago, partly because we wanted to move into a context where women and men could serve equally alongside each other at all levels of the church. For a church doing ministry in the 21st Century in a place like Portland this may seem like a no-brainer but as we discussed this as a church the leadership and I were insistent that we weren't changing our position to comply with cultural expectations but with the Bible itself.

We believe that the Bible provides a moral logic for the inclusion of women in the leadership of the church and that the gospel of Jesus is profoundly egalitarian. The sermon below is one of the first times that I've addressed this issue in the pulpit, and I chose to do so using perhaps the most conspicuous text that appears to work against our conviction that men and women are not only created equally in God's image but are equally called and able to serve in his church.