Submission, Pt 1
Notes
Transcript
If you have your Bible (and I hope you do), please turn with me to 1 Peter 2. If you are able and willing, please stand with me for the reading of God’s Holy Word:
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.
May God add His blessing to the reading of His Holy Word!
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I’ve wrestled all week with this passage. I’ve been wrestling with it for a while, honestly. Part of me really likes what Peter writes, and part of me is really, really bothered by what he writes. Just the first word (one word in Greek; two in English) in verse 13:
Submit yourselves.
Nope. Don’t like that.
Submit yourselves…to every human authority, to the emperor, to governors…show proper respect to everyone…honor the emperor.
“Nah. No thanks, Pete. I don’t like the idea of submitting myself, subjecting myself to every human authority.”
The first word of verse 13 (two words in English)—Submit yourselves—does function as the heading for the next bit of 1 Peter. It’s the thought that we have to deal with here today, specifically in the context of government.
The two topics every is trained to avoid speaking about—politics and religion—are brought together here in one sermon. Hopefully it’s not as awkward as those family conversations coming up on Thanksgiving!
The real tension is not on the religion or political side; the tension here surrounds the idea of submission. We don’t naturally like the idea of submitting. Knowing this, the Holy Spirit inspired Peter to write to us, giving us the reason we submit, the goal of our submission, the way we submit, and the example we need.
Why We Submit (vv. 13-17)
Why We Submit (vv. 13-17)
As I was reading and arguing with this section of 1 Peter, some phrases started popping out and catching my attention. Even better, all of this started to make sense to my hard, non-submissive heart.
Peter writes: Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake…
Peter writes about the emperor and governors as those who are sent by Him [by God]...
Peter argues, regarding our submission saying, For it is God’s will.
We are to remember, writes Peter, to live as God’s slaves.
Finally, Peter commands us to fear God.
Do you see Peter’s reasoning? We submit for these reasons. We submit for the Lord’s sake, trusting Him. It’s God’s will that we submit. We are God’s slaves and as such we fear God.
Kids, have you ever asked your parents why you should do what they’ve asked you to do?
They tell you: “Go clean up your room.”
You ask, full-on pout: “But why?”
And what do your parents say? Dollars to donuts they say, “Because I said so!”
Whether or not we like that answer, it is sufficient reason. It’s all the justification we need. “Because I said so.”
The reasoning Peter gives to us is all the reasoning we need. In fact, it’s more than sufficient. In several different ways, with a handful of phrases, Peter gives us ample reason to submit: “Because the Lord says to.”
That’s all there is, folks. If you are a Christian, if you go by Christ’s name, then you are to do what He has asked for His sake, because He has sent the officials you’re meant to submit to, because the whole setup is God’s will, and because you’re God’s slaves who fear God.
Because of your relationship to God, you are to submit yourselves to the governing authorities. In obeying government, you carry out God’s will. This submitting yourselves is a voluntary action.
The idea that believers should be subject to governing authorities is a standard part of NT ethics:
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good,
Why do we submit to governing authorities? Because God, in His Word, tells us to, over and over.
What 1 Peter 2:13 says literally is: submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human creature.
There is no good reason why this is translated as “authority” or “institution.”
Peter immediately defines every human creature when he follows what he said with “whether to the emperor…or to governors.”
These authorities are simply called human creatures. The reason is pretty obvious. The emperor cult was popular in Asia Minor, and Christians would have felt some social pressure to participate.
Peter reminds his readers at the outset that these rulers are merely creatures. The emperor, the governors, any other earthly authority figure—these are merely creatures created by God and existing under His lordship.
The emperor is not divine; he is no god. He’s a creature created by the one and only Creator, the LORD Yahweh.
Now, believers still have a responsibility to submit to these authorities. However, our submission is not mindless. We are to submit ourselves to every human authority for the Lord’s sake—for Jesus.
He’s the reason we submit. It’s Jesus’ authority over them and us; our love for Jesus leads us to do what He says.
Unless the government is directing us to disobey God, we submit to them.
And yet there are people who say, “No, thanks. I don’t like the thought of that.”
Remember, this is for the Lord’s sake. We do this because it’s His will for us, His people.
Peter tells us not only to submit to them, but to do what verse 17 says.
1 Peter 2:17 (NIV)
Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.
Honor everyone. Honor the emperor.
To honor everyone, to show proper respect to everyone includes, well, everyone. Who’s left out of “everyone”? No one!
There’s no one we aren’t supposed to honor. This includes honoring the person or people you don’t really feel like honoring. Honor your enemy. Honor your critic. Honor your political opponent. Honor the president, no matter who it is.
If you struggle to hear that and practice that today, but would have been fine to hear that and put that into practice 4 years ago or 8 years ago or 20 years ago, you’ve identified a problem that most of us find deep in our hearts: picking and choosing when we do what God tells us to do.
You might say, “Well, how can I honor and respect this person when they believe this or do that or promote this or support that? There’s no way that’s what this verse means.”
Brothers and sisters, this verse actually means way more than that. Peter wrote this command from God to God’s people in a day when Nero was the emperor.
If you know anything about Nero, you know he was as wicked as they come. He was so paranoid about plots to assassinate him that he “got rid of” his stepbrother, his mother, and his wife.
Nero falsely accused the Christians in the area of starting fires across Rome. This false accusation accomplished exactly what he wanted: widespread persecution of Jesus’ followers. Christians were tortured by Nero, fed to dogs by Nero, burned alive by Nero, crucified by Nero. Peter himself would be hung upside-down on a cross by Nero.
And still the Bible says, “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor (Nero, by the way), as the supreme authority or to governors…show proper respect to everyone…honor the emperor.”
Peter writes those words while living under Emperor Nero. “Honor him,” says the Lord.
Dr. David Platt writes: “Even if you disagree strongly, vehemently with a leader’s character, choices, actions, policies, you are to honor him or her. Treat them with respect. If this command applied to God’s people in Rome then, it applies to brothers and sisters in North Korea, Sudan, and Iran today. It most certainly applies to you and me in the United States. In obedience to God, we honor everyone. Our honor should be evident, especially toward our leaders.”
Why do we submit? We submit to those in authority for the Lord’s sake. Because He tells us to. That’s all the reason we need.
The Goal of Our Submission (v. 15)
The Goal of Our Submission (v. 15)
In verse 15, we see the will of God for us is to do good in the country where we live. As the church, we are to promote good wherever we find ourselves.
For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.
The command to submit is the will of God, with the result being that Christians will silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good.
By carrying out the precepts of governments, Christians demonstrate that they are good citizens, not anarchists. In this way, believers put to death the criticisms of those who are ignorant. In this way, we silence those who insult and revile us.
This is what it looks like to put flesh and bone on the gospel. We live gospel lives wherever God places us. As we do good, it will have an impact. As we do good, it will silence foolish talk.
This is our testifying to the gospel in the social order of things. The way we live, the good that flows out of our lives speaks a strong word.
Notice, Peter writes it is God’s will that by doing good.
Doing good, not doing whatever a government orders. Peter knows better than to think that the governmental structure will always side with believers. He doesn’t envision government patting Christians on the back for their good behavior.
The point is that good behavior of Christians will minimize slanderous attacks on believers. That’s the goal of our submission.
We Submit Freely (v. 16)
We Submit Freely (v. 16)
Our submission to governing authorities, to the people in charge of our earthly governments, is to be free. We submit freely.
The word “live” is not actually there; it is supplied by translators to help the sentence read correctly. The sentence needs a verb. It’s not “live”, but rather the verb that should be supplied is “submit.”
What Peter’s getting at is that we are to submit ourselves as free people. We have been ransomed by the blood of Jesus and are no longer slaves to sin and the world.
Our submission is an expression of our freedom. We submit because we are free to do so, as free slaves of God.
“Free slaves” sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? Like “Jumbo shrimp.” “Math for fun.” “Royal’s winning season.” “The Sound of Silence.”
“Free slaves” might sound like an oxymoron, but it’s not. Not in God’s economy.
Because of Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead, all who belong to Him by faith are FREE from the bondage of sin, FREE to live the life God created us to live, FREE to be His servants.
Free slaves.
The freedom we have in Christ can’t be compared to any other freedom we might have. I cringe whenever our freedom in Christ is compared in any way to any other freedom we have. Nothing compares to our freedom in Christ, our freedom to serve Christ, our freedom to submit ourselves because of Christ.
No freedom holds a candle to the freedom that comes from God.
If you don’t know this freedom, I pray you will. Every single person is born a slave to sin. Each of us is prone to go our own way. As such, every person enslaved to sin is destined for eternity apart from God.
The Good News is that God has not left us alone in our slavery. He has come to us in the person of Jesus. Jesus came to set us free. He willingly laid down His life for our sins, to pay the price once for all time. And then He rose from the grave to show, to prove He paid it all.
The only freedom worth mentioning is the freedom Jesus secures for those who belong to Him.
In Him, we are free. Free to submit to earthly government, realizing along the way we are servants of God first. Our freedom is exercised, ultimately, under the authority of God. Because of Him, we submit freely.
The Example We Need (vv. 21-25)
The Example We Need (vv. 21-25)
For the next few weeks, at some point in each week’s sermon, we are going to look at 1 Peter 2:21-25.
These verses are the central part of Peter’s argument about why Christians are to submit to governing authorities, why slaves are to submit to their masters, why husband and wife are to submit one to another.
Every act of Christian submission finds its basis in the person and example of Jesus. He is the One we follow. We submit for His sake. We submit because He submitted Himself to His Father’s perfect plan.
Jesus is our example.
Look with me:
To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. “He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
Jesus willingly submitted Himself to His Father’s will and did not retaliate at the insults of those mocking and beating Him. Jesus willingly suffered, and made no threats.
Jesus is the perfect example for us.
I love David Helm’s point: “Submission defines the Christian’s ways because being like the Savior describes the Christian’s goal.”
1 Peter 2:21-25 is the gravitational center of this part of the letter. This—the meekness and submissiveness of the LORD Jesus Christ—is the basis of all submission. He is the One we imitate. We follow in the footsteps of the Prince of Peace.
For this reason, Christian men and women gladly and voluntarily put on the garments of submission.
Jesus is our example in this. Jesus is the example we need. It’s Jesus as our example, and Jesus in us enabling us to submit.
There are four imperatives, four to-dos here in verse 17. We’ve spoken about the first and the last. The middle two are worthy of our attention.
Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.
Love the family of believers. Beyond proper respect and honor that we should show to everyone, is the love (ἀγαπᾶτε) between fellow believers.
The relationship between fellow Christians is such that it is best described in terms of family. Love the brothers and sisters. Whatever else is going on, however we behave toward outsiders, those within the family of God should have our love.
Of course, our highest calling is to fear God. This stands in stark contrast to the call to honor the emperor.
We are to honor the king/emperor/president and show him respect, but we do not fear him. Only God is to be feared; only He deserves our reverence. God alone is to be worshipped; not the emperor/king/president/prime minister. God alone. God alone determines existence and non-existence.
Fear God.
And when we fear God, and love the family of God, show respect toward everyone, and honor the emperor, we will show ourselves to be God’s people—God’s people who belong to Jesus and who look like Jesus—doing what God has commanded us to do.
What we learn here about submission is immensely practical; we know what God asks of us. We have Jesus’ example. The Holy Spirit indwells us. We ask Him for strength to do what He’s called us to do, even when it’s difficult, even when we don’t want to do it.
Because we want to honor Him. We want our lives to be lives of worship. And part of that is submission.