The Beauty of Submission

Obedience is the fruit of submission; the former being the action, the latter the motivation. To understand the absence of obedience requires an honest interrogation of one’s submissiveness to the Lord.

I fear most Christians do not understand what Biblical submission is and, as a result, they suffer unnecessarily in darkness. Jesus said, “and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32). Let us cling to this fundamental Truth, always, for it is among the greatest targets set upon by the kingdom of darkness. “For the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true” (Ephesians 5:9). Given the nature of our relationship to the Lord - we are His servants - submission must be understood in order for us to enjoy the freedom, the very life, that Christ purchased for us, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1).

The Lord desires that we abide in submission the same way we abide in love and forgiveness. These are not merely transactional artifacts that God bestows upon us whenever we do this or that; these are embodiments of His own virtues that we are meant to possess. In other words, to say we may only enjoy love when it is shown to us is to shortchange love in an infinite way. To say that forgiveness may only be realized through an act of mercy is yet another grave error we temporally-minded creatures often make. Love and forgiveness are a part of the sphere of God - they are ever-present and transcendent, not transactional. Submission is the same. We find our proof in Jesus Christ, Himself, who is both God and man. “But I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father.” (John 14:31a).

Jesus is the ultimate example of a life lived impeccably inside the sphere of God. “In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:4-5). His life on Earth revealed to mankind the fruit of abiding in Truth. For the sake of this blog, let us remember that He was perfectly submissive and, therefore, obedient to His Father, “he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8b). He was also blessed beyond measure even though He was routinely abused, mistreated, and even unloved. Again, He is our prototype. He said so Himself.

Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.
Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him.
But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”
If we sum up Jesus’ life and counsel, we rightly conclude that keeping His Word (e.g., submit, obey, love, etc.) results in blessings. Freedom and peace immediately come to mind, but you can tally up as many blessings as your little heart desires! The point is that to whatever degree we reject the Biblical concept of submission, to that same degree we eject ourselves from the sphere of God, experientially, which is tantamount to saying that we miss out on the aforementioned blessings. Psalm 119 is a wonderful read on this topic. Here are a few highlights:

Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD! Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways! You have commanded your preceptsto be kept diligently.
It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.
I know, O LORD, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant.
If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life.
I hate the double-minded, but I love your law. You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.
You spurn all who go astray from your statutes, for their cunning is in vain. All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross, therefore I love your testimonies. My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.
Your testimonies are righteous forever; give me understanding that I may live.
The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever.
Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.
Believe it or not, all of that information was necessary to get you in the right frame of mind to digest what I’m now about to write. It’s critically important that you understand that when it comes to obeying God’s commands, it’s the motivation that counts (your level of submissiveness), not the transactional nature of obedience. This is the truth that will ultimately set you free. Merely following rules never results in true freedom or the life the writer of Psalm 119 referred to in v144. Allow me to reiterate:

Obedience is the fruit of submission; the former being the action, the latter the motivation.

Love and submission are intrinsically bound in the life, the Light, of Christ. In Him, also, are all things good, all blessings. Therefore, we are given certain guidance:

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.

Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
There is a four-part progression here that I’ll summarize for you. “Look carefully how you walk” (v15) piques our attention, warning us there are pitfalls in life. In order to avoid them, we must “understand what the will of the Lord is” (v17). The Lord’s will is that we “[submit] to one another out of reverence for Christ” (v21); this being the guiding principle for living with other believers. Finally, we are given an example, “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord” (v22). I’d like to focus your attention on the last two quotes because this is where I believe most Christians veer off course.

Submission never implies inferiority (Jesus Christ submits to His Father, yet they are co-equal). Submission glorifies God. Remember that. When believers submit to one another, we are revealing the fruit of the Spirit, being “filled” with Him (v18). When we abide in this godly submissiveness, we perform acts of obedience, which pleases the Lord.

Arguably, one of the most hotly contested verses in the Bible is v22. At this point, I believe the Spirit’s been given enough ammunition to make His point with you; but, just in case you need a little more help, I’ll give you two points to ponder. First, wives are commanded to submit to their husbands. This is something they are to do out of love, not under the compulsion of the husband. Some Christian husbands I’ve met do not understand this; rather, they impose an iron rule in the home, contorting the beauty of submission, which is a God-given right granted to their wives. This is precisely how resentment grows and festers, which isn’t beautiful at all. Second, is the unique direction of the wife’s submissive intent - notice that the husband is the woman’s possession in v22, “Wives, submit to your own husbands.” The Greek word translated “own” is much stronger than the simple possessive pronoun “own”; it means uniquely one’s own, private, personal. A wife submits to her husband, not because he is necessarily worthy (only one Husband is, Jesus), but because Christ is worthy and He has commanded she do so. So, this hotly contested verse, though often used as an ironclad weapon of choice by weak men who try to dominate their wives, really isn’t about the husband at all; it’s about the love a woman has for her Lord and Savior spilling over into the lap of an unworthy man. This is what makes it beautiful.

Submission is something that exists prior to any outward manifestation of obedience, as fruit. In fact, it is something God desires for us as a source of blessing. The true beauty of submission is also reserved for, and revealed through, our relationship with God. Others may benefit from our submissiveness from time to time; however, we are the ones truly blessed by abiding in it. Commandments to submit and therefore obey are never meant to be used as weapons by others.

Submission is ugly if it has to be whipped into existence. Willingness is what makes it beautiful.

The beauty of submission is that it is a privilege of ours to abide in, bringing glory to God. It also reveals our love for our Lord. With Christ’s perspective on the matter, we are set free.

Love in Christ,

Ed Collins