Submission to God and Man
by Debbie Poer
We live in a world and a time in which submission is often seen as a dirty word. According to Dictionary.com the definition of submission is the action or fact of accepting or yielding to a superior force or to the will or authority of another person. And when we think of submission in terms of the words accepting or yielding, superior force, will and authority of another person it is easy to see why the world in our sinfulness wants no part of that. My human side wants nothing to do with submitting to another person, giving them power over me.
However, when I consider submission from God’s viewpoint and my relationship with him it takes on a totally different and more complete meaning. I like the way Adele Ahlberg Calhoun defines submission in her book Spiritual Disciplines Handbook. She defines submission in this way:
Submission that leads to growth means aligning my will and freedom with God’s will and freedom. God’s will for us includes freely submitting to each other out of love and reference for Christ.
As with all aspects of our faith, we should be committed to growing stronger and deeper in that faith. Calhoun’s definition sets the stage that submission should be about growing and being in deeper relationship with God and one another.
Jesus’ example of how he lived is the one and only reason for living in submission to one another. That is how he lived – in submission to God and submission to people around him. In washing the disciples’ feet, he was submitting to them, because he loved God. In dying on the cross he was submitting to God, aligning his will and freedom to God’s will and freedom.
With my submission to others comes freedom. When I lay down my need to always be right, submitting to another person, I am able to move on from the difficulty at hand. I’m better able to determine the importance of the issue or if I am simply acting out of my own self-will.
When I listen and am obedient to God’s instructions for my life, a huge weight is lifted, and I have greater freedom from that weight, and I grow and deepen my relationship with God. I remember years ago, when given the opportunity to work in a ministry I admired, alongside people I admired I really wanted to say yes to the job offered. However, every time I prayed about the matter it seemed I was saying yes because that is what I wanted, not because that was the direction in which God was leading me. As I left the final interview it was as if God smacked me with a resounding, “NO!” Once I put myself aside and accepted his “no” the weight of the decision-making was lifted. As it turned out only a few months later the position would have fallen apart.
Not only are we called to submit to God’s will, but we are called to submit to one another. All throughout scripture we are made aware of submitting to one another. The word submission is not often used, but we see it in other ways. Ruth submitted to Naomi (respected) and was blessed in doing so (the book of Ruth). Daniel submitted to King Nebuchadnezzar (served) and was blessed in doing so (the book of Daniel). In the New Testament wives are to submit to their husbands and husbands to their wives (mutual respect) and each will be rewarded for doing so (Colossians 3:18-24). In Ephesians 5:21 Paul truly sums up submission when he says, “Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Sometimes it is such a struggle to submit to God and to one another. My human weaknesses and self-centeredness can so easily creep in. I can be so easily distracted by the world and its definition of submission. It is at those times I try to focus on Jesus’ commitment to God when he was hanging on the cross, “Yet not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39) to bring me back into line with his will for my life. When I am struggling to be submissive in relationships with other people I am called back to Jesus and his words as he washed the disciples’ feet, “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet” (John 13:14).
For me the bottom line is – when I strive to submit to God and biblically submit to other people, I am working on becoming more like Jesus.
