Submission

Submission is a complicated topic. We don’t like it because it implies the removal of freedom. Also, submission has a nasty history. It can be used, and has been used, to abuse women and children, to justify slavery, to oppress workers, to promote dictatorial authority, etc. Many people are just uncomfortable with the word. (In places where suffering is rife, like Africa, even theologians do not like the word submission because it can lead to the justification of oppression.)

Also, to submit is not easy. Like the Israelites, the people of God, we are a stiff-necked people (Exo 32:9; 33:3, 5; 34:9; Deut 9:6; 10:16; 31:27; 2 Kings 17:14; 2 Chron 30:8;  Neh 9:16, 17; Jer 7:26; 17:23; 19:15). Stephen’s words are descriptions that apply to us: “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit!” (Acts 7:51). We are creatures that are prone to self-will. In the words of William Ernest Henley in his famous poem Invictus (some lines removed):

I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.

But we have to preach about submission, because the Bible has many passages dedicated to it. It is a crucial and important aspect of the Christian teaching. But we don’t have a choice but to preach about submission, because the Bible teaches it. We are called to submit to God (James 4:7), to others in our relationships (Eph 5:21; introduction to Christian marriage, 5:22-33; instruction to children and parents, 6:1-4; slaves and masters, 6:5-9), to civil authorities (Rom 13:1), and to our pastors (1 Cor 16:15-16; 1 Pet 5:5).

To submit is basically to surrender one’s will to another’s authority. It does not mean demeaning one’s self or being made less than one is. It just means you are accepting who we truly are: as finite and weak creatures. So why do we need to submit? It is because on our own we are not smart enough, we are not strong enough, we are not great enough.

We recognize the authority that is greater than us. We do not fight or oppose someone we know is greater than us (He>I; cf John 14:28; 1 John 4:4). The problem is that we are prone to assert ourselves even in the face of someone we must admit is greater than us. We can be like this with God. We do not recognize His authority over us and question His wisdom. We think we know better than Him. We think we are the Lord and our personal opinions are better. We want to be God’s adviser about how we should live our lives.

We also do not realize who we are in His presence. And we act as if we are high and mighty, like unsinkable Titanics or unbending poles or unbreakable walls. This is in contrast to the attitude of bible characters. In the presence of God, Abraham said: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty?” (Gen 18:27-28). David, the man of God’s own heart could not but affirm his own worthlessness (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22): “Have mercy on me O God… wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin” (Psa 51:1-2). Isaiah could not but confess his sinfulness: “I am a man of unclean lips” (Isa 1:5). This is the same with Peter who confessed to Jesus upon seeing Him: “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8). We cannot boast anything to God. When He asks us to submit, we do not have the tiniest right to refuse. Paul said: “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought” (Rom 12:3).

The recognition of authority is applicable in all our relationships. In particular, children must submit to their parents (Eph 6:1; Col 3:20), and members should submit to their pastors (1 Cor 16:15-16; 1 Pet 5:5).

Let me illustrate what not surrendering is. My wife is way better than me with directions. I can easily get lost when I am driving. But even with this realization, it is hard for me to submit to my wife’s advice. No matter how she instructs me, I do not believe she knows what she is saying when we are travelling. I did not recognize her authority. And because of my arrogance, we have repeatedly got lost. My failure to submit caused us time and led us to anger and frustrations. In human relations, if no one wants to submit, we will end up fighting. This is why even in husband and wife relations, one has to be under: understanding.

In submitting to God, three things are important:

a. We must surrender our own will: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).

b. We must surrender our own desires: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps 37:4). It is letting go of our desires and to follow the desires of God. This is not easy. It demands a large sacrifice, the sacrifice of freedom.

c. We must surrender our own wisdom: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶ in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” (Prov 3:5-6).

Why is it very hard to submit even if we know that we are surrendering ourselves to a generous, compassionate, merciful God? (Ps 23:1-6). It should be easier for us to submit ourselves to God who really cares for us (1 Pet 2:7). We know that God can be trusted, and yet we do not submit. We carry the concept of a loving God around with us in our back pocket as a comforting presence but in reality we have bought into our society’s lie that we can make it on our own. God is not a back pocket God. He is not a convenient power that we can pull out when we mess up and need Daddy to fix it. He asks us to trust Him and let Him be our guide.

The key to understanding submission is Jesus Christ. He exemplified submission, humility, and obedience throughout His life. Philippians 2:5-8 is appropriate here:

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

⁶ Who, being in very nature God,
    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
⁷ rather, he made himself nothing
    by taking the very nature of a servant,
    being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!

There is no greater picture of submission than Jesus Christ. Although He was God, He humbled Himself. He did not consider equality with God, even though He could have used it for His own advantage. He could have annihilated everyone who opposed Him and told terrible rumors and judgments about Him. He could have snapped the necks of his opponents like twisting a tiny twig. He could have given then terrifying diseases. And yet, as Isaiah said, “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth” (Isa 53:7).

Jesus Christ submitted to the Father, even if it meant death. In the Philippines, we have not suffered for Christ to the point of shedding blood (Heb 12:4). When I went to Vietnam, it was my first time to be face-to-face with Christians who were persecuted. Several of my students experienced literal beating. One of them had his property taken by the government. One of them went missing for many days, with his family worried; he was arrested and beaten repeatedly. And yet, after all these experienced they had, they were still studying and preparing to be pastors. 

Like Jesus Christ, and like the Vietnamese pastors, we must be willing to surrender our lives, our future, and everything to God.