Failing to do so limits the vision and effectiveness of all persons. No one is to be excluded through listings of priorities, through language, or through assignment. Wholeness, which God intends for women and men, is a priority concern in kingdom relationships. Some Guiding Understandings Emerging In dealing with this issue, we must continually seek to understand more fully the total scope of biblical teaching regarding women and men functioning interdependently in the church under the lordship of Christ. We suggest eight principles to be kept in mind in our search.
Scripture is inspired and is to be personally appropriated.
We believe that the Holy Spirit speaks through the Scriptures to believers but that our understandings do involve interpretation. Open examination of Scripture, including cultural contexts during which it was shaped, assists the serious seeker to expect and be ready to accept insights not noticed before. Scripture affirms the uniqueness of maleness and femaleness, viewing both with equal value. The uniqueness of each contributes to the enrichment of the other. We need to view each other as persons first, remembering that we have value because of who we are as children of God rather than because of the functions we perform as women or men.