EQUIP20 Picks - books chosen and reviewed for you by our EQUIP team

Is Christianity good news for women? Sharon James answers this question with a resounding ‘Yes’ in her book, God’s Design for Women.

James says that two parallel themes shape the Bible’s answer: equal dignity and significant difference. And that women are badly served when either of those truths is ignored.

While this might be ‘old news’ for some readers, this book is anything but ‘ho-hum’. James delivers a comprehensive defence, not only of the complementarian view of gender, as set out in the Bible, but of Christianity itself! James has degrees in history and theology, and she uses both those fields of study in this new and revised edition. Her list of endnotes is thorough and helpful, as is the list of ‘Further Resources’ at the end of each chapter.

A word of caution though, don’t expect a warm hug. In providing such a broad sweep of the topic, James doesn’t have time to ‘hold your hand’ – and she doesn’t pull her punches either. I found this book a prickly read… even though I’d agree with most, if not all, that James delivers. It made me realise that it’s an on-going struggle to not be conformed to the world.

And if you’re wondering if the author might be a little tone-deaf, be assured she isn’t. In fact, I think she presents a reasoned case that without Christianity, the three most dangerous words in a fallen world are – ‘It’s a girl’.

I’d recommend this book to anyone. It’s best read in small slices to allow you time to process the huge amount of information James presents in a scant 250 pages ;)

The EQUIP20 Picks will be available for a limited time online via our ministry partner, Reformers Bookshop.

http://reformers.com.au/equip?aff=6

A percentage of the sales from books bought via the above link will support our CMS missionary, M.

Meet Isobel Lin

Isobel, aka ‘The EQUIP lady’, has been the conference chair and MC for over a decade. She is married to Peter and they have three almost grown-up daughters. She is also a part-time chaplain at Moore Theological College.