Written by Dawn Rutan
For a while now I’ve been thinking about that controversial word “submission.” It is often considered a dirty word by anyone who has ever felt downtrodden. I’ve wrestled with it myself at times, but I can’t avoid what Scripture commands:
- “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality” (Colossians 3:23-25 ESV).
- “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Hebrew 13:17).
- “Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands” (Ephesians 5:24).
- “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Romans 13:1).
Wives submitting to husbands is only one example out of many. In a recent sermon on James 4, Alistair Begg stated that failure to submit to one another is failure to submit to God. Sam Andreades wrote in enGendered (a book I would recommend):
“Obeying or submitting ‘as to the Lord’ is really about trusting the One who tells you to do this… [Y]ou are doing it because you are trusting God, trusting that God is in this picture, that He will take care of you and your own…” (117).
Sometimes it is hard enough just to trust that God is in control, much less to trust those He has placed in authority in any particular situation. But it seems apparent from Scripture that submission is expected. As an employee, a citizen, a church member, [and spouse if I were married] my responsibility is to submit to my leaders, knowing that they will be held accountable for their use or abuse of authority. That’s not to say that there are never occasions for civil disobedience or removal of authority, but that should be the exception to the rule.
As I’ve thought through the conflicting emotions related to submission, it seems that most of the power struggle is rooted in fear. How am I going to be hurt or what am I going to miss out on if I’m not the one in control of this decision? Andreades wrote: “People submitting in relationship are vulnerable, dependent upon the careful and righteous stewardship of the one in authority” (102). I’ll be the first to admit that the vulnerability that comes with submission can lead to painful interactions. Trust is built slowly as a relationship deepens, but it can be lost in an instant. None of us really want to be vulnerable and dependent, and yet that is a big part of God’s will for us. We are inherently dependent on Him for life, breath, daily provision, and salvation (among other things). Our relationships on earth are a mirror of that fundamental relationship, to remind us that we are designed to live in community and dependence on one another. It is also a reflection of the mutual dependence and fellowship within the Godhead.
I could raise all sorts of questions as to what submission should look like in various contexts, but I think we each need to wrestle through Scripture for ourselves. The conclusion that I have come to is that I need to trust God more fully and to ask Him for clear guidance for all the relationships in my life.
“Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is… Be filled with the Spirit… 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” (Ephesians 5:17-21).
© 2016 Dawn Rutan. The views stated may or may not reflect the beliefs of the pastor or leadership of Dulin’s Grove Church.
