Mark Driscoll's Gender Teachings (Newsletter #77)

The now disgraced Mark Driscoll was once one of America's hottest "bad boy" pastors. His church had 14,000 attendees, and he had a massive following on social media.

Although his empire imploded in a cascade of scandals a few years back, it's still worth looking at his teachings on gender because stripped of his provocative style, the content is actually pretty similar to what other complementarians (those who assert men are the head of the home and that only men can be pastors) teach even today.

Driscoll's complementarianism can be summed up as: The husband is the head of the home, but what that means is his primary life mission is sacrificing for and serving his wife and kids. He is probably doing a very bad job of this, deserves stern rebuke, and needs to repent. What authority he has should be used to give things to his wife. He is to defer to his wife’s wishes for anything that is not a major life issue. If there’s a conflict on a major issue, he is to try to avoid making the decision if he can, and only do so as a last resort. If his wife is unhappy about that decision, or anything else, she can appeal to the elders of the church to override her husband. She should make sure not to be too submissive to him.

Driscoll sermon Men and Marriage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jacWAsOK0w

Driscoll's "How Dare You!" Rant: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkaeAkJO0w8

Newsletter #28: The Anti-Marriage Message of American Pastors: https://www.aaronrenn.com/p/newsletter-28-the-anti-marriage-message

Newsletter #3: The History of the Church and Men: https://www.aaronrenn.com/p/newsletter-3-the-history-of-the-church