The First Importance

What matters most? In a sermon tackling the egalitarian vs. complementarian debate, Pastor Josh cut straight to the heart this Sunday: the gospel is the first importance — and everything else flows from there. It was equal parts theological education and passionate plea to keep the main thing the main thing.

Sunday Service Is a Celebration

Before diving into the deep end, Pastor Josh had a few words about how we gather. We've been so focused on house church that sometimes Sunday service gets treated like an afterthought. But he pushed back on that hard: Sunday service matters.

He challenged us to come early and come prayerfully. He shared how he spotted Michael and Grace praying at the back before the service started, and it reminded him of the church he grew up in — elders sitting at the front, praying before the service, creating a spiritual atmosphere.

"The theological concept of the Sunday service is a celebration of your church. I don't care what kind of week you've had. But when you come here, you have to face this resurrected Jesus."

He also made a memorable point about posture during the service. While visiting Melbourne, he observed a small Filipino church livestreaming their service. The girls were worshipping passionately during the music — but the moment the preaching started, all six of them pulled out their phones and went on Instagram.

"If I can see, God can see you too."

His plea was simple: give the Word of God a chance. You'll watch Netflix for three hours without complaint. But once a week, when the Bible is opened, that deserves your full attention. "This is actually much more entertaining than you think it is if you pay attention."

The Egalitarian vs. Complementarian Debate

Picking up from where he left off last week on 1 Corinthians 14, Pastor Josh waded into one of the most debated topics in the church: what role should women have in church leadership?

He laid out both views fairly. The egalitarian view says women can occupy any role — lead pastor, elder, bishop — based on the gifting of the Holy Spirit. The complementarian view says certain leadership offices are reserved for qualified men, while women serve in other vital roles.

He walked through the key passages on both sides:

• Egalitarian support: Galatians 3:28 ("in Christ there's no male or female"), Genesis 1:27-28 (both created in God's image), Romans 16 (women in leadership roles), Acts 2:18 (the Spirit poured on all), Judges 4-5 (Deborah as leader)
• Complementarian support: 1 Timothy 2 ("I do not permit women to teach or to assume authority over a man"), 1 Corinthians 14 (women should be silent), 1 Corinthians 11 (head covering as sign of authority)

But then he made an observation that stopped the debate in its tracks: both sides have inconsistencies. Complementarians say 1 Corinthians 11 about head coverings is contextual (nobody wears them today), but then insist 1 Timothy 2 is universal. Egalitarians dismiss difficult passages too easily without truly wrestling with them.

"Equally godly, equally knowledgeable scholars are divided into these two views. Trust me, there are no new views. That whole debate is finished. The conclusion is: we don't have a definitive answer for this. That is the conclusion, literally."

"I'm a Soft Complementarian"

Pastor Josh didn't dodge the question of where he personally stands. He's a complementarian — but a soft one.

He doesn't believe 1 Corinthians 14's instruction for women to be silent in church was meant to be a blanket rule for all time. He pointed to the undeniable contributions of women, including his own wife — whose softness and gentleness he called "a powerful presence" — and Deborah in the church, who has a gift for encouragement that he simply can't match.

"You can't restrict someone because their gender is different. And I really believe that women should be so functional in the church."

His theological foundation comes from Ephesians 5, which he called "the foundation for the whole complementarian view." He read from verse 21 onward — submit to one another, wives submit to husbands, husbands love wives as Christ loved the church — and drew out a key distinction: unity is not uniformity. We are equally created but different in function.

He got personal about marriage, sharing how his wife makes most daily decisions ("Happy wife, happy life — trust me, that should be in the Bible, but it's not"), while he steps in on the big calls. And he clarified something important: Ephesians 5 is about wives and husbands, not women and men in general.

"Women, you are not called to submit to every man out there. You are not second-grade species."

His challenge cut both ways. To men: if you're not ready to love your future wife the way Christ loved the church — with sacrifice, humility, and selflessness — don't get married. To women: if you're not ready to honor your husband's leadership, the constant conflict will be toxic for both of you.

The Gospel Is the First Importance

This is where the sermon pivoted — and where the real fire was. After spending time on the gender debate, Pastor Josh pulled us back to 1 Corinthians 15:

"I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures."

He pressed in on that word "first." Not first in sequence — first in priority. Higher than anything else. The gospel isn't just something we believe once and file away. It's the thing that should make our hearts jump every single time.

"Somehow still, this gospel makes my heart jump. He denied the crown but took the cross. It just makes my heart wonder — how can You do this for me?"

And he was blunt about the church's tendency to get distracted: are you postmillennial, amillennial, or premillennial? His response: "Have a meal, man." Are you egalitarian or complementarian — or vegetarian? He doesn't care. What he cares about is whether you know Jesus.

"Calvinists don't go to heaven. Christians go to heaven. Followers of Jesus go to heaven."

His simple formula for the Christian life: talk more about what the Bible talks more about, and talk less about what it talks less about.

He also spoke about receiving the gospel — not just hearing it, but actively opening your heart to it. God does the saving, but you need to open the door. Put down the phone. Pay attention. Have an active, receiving heart.

Challenge: What's Your First Importance?

Pastor Josh closed with an invitation that landed with weight. Career, marriage, children, church work, ministry — all good things. But if any of them becomes first in your life ahead of the gospel, you'll drift.

"All the good things that you started with good intention will be changed, will be damaged and contaminated, and actually end up hurting and dividing the church — and hurting yourself — when you lose your focus on the gospel."

His final prayer was the kind of honest, vulnerable moment that makes you stop and check your own heart: "God, give me a soft heart, tender heart, to be able to be excited about what You've done for me on the cross. My heart is too dry. My focus is lost. Take me back to the first place where I met You."

Next week, we'll finally dive into the resurrection teaching in 1 Corinthians 15. But this week, the challenge is clear: come back to the first importance. Come back to the gospel. Everything else finds its proper place from there.