A Question for The Gospel Coalition

There is an articulate, irenic post on the complementarian-egalitarian divide by Dan Stringer, and this set of questions at the bottom of the post brings it to a head. I’m keen on hearing from Gospel Coalition folks and we promise civility. There is a trend today that concerns me: the incursion of non-gospel items into gospel essentials, and I’d like this post by Dan to springboard into that discussion in general.

The issue is simple:

How close to the gospel is complementarianism? And I think it turns around too: How close is the gospel to egalitarianism?

In essence, here’s what I’d like to ask my brethren over at The Gospel Coalition/Desiring God/9 Marks/Sovereign Grace/Ligonier/White Horse Inn/T4G:

To what extent is complementarianism more than just a prominent feature of the New Calvinist movement, but essential to the Gospel itself?

Is adherence to complementarian theology a prerequisite for becoming “gospel-centered” or “gospel-driven?”

As someone who affirms the Nicene Creed, salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, the supreme authority/infallibility of Scripture, original sin, the existence of hell, Christ’s sinless life, his penal substitutionary atonement on our our behalf, his propitiation of God’s wrath, his bodily resurrection and his second coming but also holds to an evangelical egalitarian perspective on women in ministry leadership, have I failed to believe the Gospel?

In short, can egalitarians be gospel-centered too?

Since it is my conviction that the boundaries of historic Christian orthodoxy can (and must) include evangelicals of both the complementarian and egalitarian variety, here’s what I wish we could say to one another:

“With all due respect for your sincere desire to follow Jesus and adhere faithfully to the teachings of Scripture, I disagree with your position on this important issue. Just as I would love for you change your mind on the question of women in ministry, I’m sure you feel the same way about my stance. But because our shared belief in the Gospel is more important than our differences on secondary matters, I’m hopeful we can respectfully disagree as brothers/sisters in Christ while encouraging each other to live joyfully and faithfully in light of the good news.”

If this sounds too much like key lime pie too high up in the clouds, maybe we could just shout it across the canyon once in a while.