Submissiveness
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· 14 viewsBeing is not just for wives but for everyone. Men and women need to be submissive to their boss and they need to be submissive to God.
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Submissiveness
Submissiveness
Intro: In the past when I heard the topic of being submissive or subjection the main topic is women being submissive to their husbands and as important as that is submission really applies to everyone. ( read Ephesians 5:22-24 )
22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.
24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
From this verse alone we get submission in three forms, obviously we have wives be subject to your husband. Then we have the church being submissive Christ and the Church is submissive to a higher authority.
So we can take this idea of wives be submissive to their husband
All people are to be submissive to a higher authority like the government or a boss
As Christians we are submissive to God.
I once met a soldier who served in a war zone. He described how in moments of chaos, their unit would rely on the command of their higher officers, trusting in their training and strategy. This trust was a matter of life and death. He shared how this sensitive balance between obedience and instinct saved lives. Just as this soldier succumbed to higher military orders for peace and security, we too are called to submit to God’s higher authority with the same trust and reverence, especially in uncertain times.
You are to be submissive to God
You are to be submissive to higher Authority
Wives be submissive to the husband
You are to be Submissive to God
If you look around you can see that people are out of control. There is no respect to any authority. Look on the news police officers are getting harassed they cant do their job with out facing ridicule, there looked down upon and they are simply not respected. Government is the same and people try to kill presidents and false accuse them. At work the employees hold the power, there are some reason for that but if don't like anything your boss tells you to do then they threaten to quit or you don’t do it because you know that you can’t get fired because they need you. People talk back to their boss, their spouse and kids talk back to their parents. There is no respect for authority. It comes back to the foundation of that they don’t have biblical principles and were never taught respect because it required punishment and discipline.
1 Then God spoke all these words, saying,
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.
5 “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,
6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.
Being submissive to God is the foundation to being submissive in all things.
9 ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron,
You shall shatter them like earthenware.’ ”
10 Now therefore, O kings, show discernment;
Take warning, O judges of the earth.
11 Worship the Lord with reverence
And rejoice with trembling.
12 Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For His wrath may soon be kindled.
How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!
6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time,
9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?
The bible makes it clear that we as people but especially Christians we need to be submissive to God or humble ourselves to God. What is submissiveness?
Dictionary of Bible Themes 5959 submission
A humble attitude where obedience is rendered within a relationship; whether it be to God, authorities or other people at work, in the church, in marriage or in the family
To be submissive to God we need to humble ourselves, or to make ourselves low. Many times it takes times to be punished as brought out in Hebrew 12, punishment leads to obedience and the greatest example of being submissive and obedient is solders in the military.
Imagine a traveler lost in a vast desert, struggling against the elements. He comes across a shepherd who knows the way to safety. The traveler must decide whether to trust the shepherd’s guidance or continue following his own misguided instincts. By humbly submitting to the shepherd and following his lead, the traveler finds his way to safety. In life, we often face similar choices in our relationship with God, who desires our submission for our ultimate safety and peace.
7 Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom.
10 Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.
How when we subject ourselves to God that he bless us .
Picture a team in a relays race: every runner must pass the baton perfectly to their teammate. If they let pride take over, they might drop the baton and lose the race. However, when each runner submits to their role and supports one another, they often end up winning the trophy. This illustrates that our success often hinges on our willingness to submit and work together harmoniously.
Going back to obedience, obedience is required to be submissive.
10 “You shall therefore obey the Lord your God, and do His commandments and His statutes which I command you today.”
God has lot of commands that he requires from us. If we are going to be submissive we are going to do what he says and we know he has many commands on loving people, staying away from sin, and being faithful but he tells us we need to be submissive to other authority. So, being submissive to God is the foundation, If we are not submissive to Him who is the highest than how are we are going to be submissive to those who are in higher authority on earth. Two way we are being submissive to God is that we are submissive to higher authority and wives are submissive to their husband.
2. You are to be submissive to higher authority
A. Submitting to the government
1 Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.
2 Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.
3 For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same;
4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.
5 Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake.
6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing.
7 Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.
Every person is to be subject to governing authorities because the rules for our government came from. This a prime example that being submissive to governing authorities leads to being submissive to God. As Romans brought out that we are submissive when we pay taxes. Now nobody likes paying taxes but our taxes pay for many important and good things but those who don’t pay taxes will face the punishment of at least going to jail. That’s the point that if you go against authority expect judgement against you.
1 Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed,
13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority,
14 or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.
1 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,
2 for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.
Not only should we obey what they say but we should pray from them as well. The last four years were difficult times under president Biden and it was difficult sitting back watching the decisions be made that really hurt of all us. with higher taxes, inflation, higher gas prices, ect.… theses things were hard on us and we like to complain and fight the government but really we should be praying for them good or bad by that we are submitting ourselves to God and to the authority that is before us.
11 A rebellious man seeks only evil,
So a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
B. Submitting ourselves to our master or boss
18 Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable.
19 For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly.
Oh boy this verse is not my favorite! Being submissive to my master is easy when they are good and gentle but when they're unreasonable is were I struggle. This is a pride thing because I don’t like being mistreated and I start justifying myself then I get to the point were I don’t want to be submissive but rebellious. That is clearly wrong and something that I’ve been working on because I need to be submissive in all things.
5 Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ;
6 not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.
7 With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men,
8 knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.
Really the main reason I need to be submissive to my boss especially when they are unreasonable is because I’m a slave a Christ and I want to please God more than anything. I want to be submissive to God by being submissive to my boss. We don’t want to please our bosses by eyeservice, essentially were we do just enough to make it look like we did what we are told, we don’t want to have a fake attitude either but we should do what we are told with a whole heart and have a good attitude with it.
22 Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord.
23 Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men,
24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.
9 Urge bondslaves to be subject to their own masters in everything, to be well-pleasing, not argumentative,
10 not pilfering, but showing all good faith so that they will adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect.
Then this is big one for me as well and that is not be argumentative this applies to everyone, wives, kids, and employees. Whatever is said do it do argue with a person about it. We need to sometimes let situations determine the results. If it doesn’t work out than let that be on the person who made the decision. Let God handle the situation, if works in the favor of the boss than, that's why hes the boss and if not let him take responsibility for it. Lets be good people who do what they are told.
C. Child obey and honor your parents
12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you.
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
2 Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise),
3 so that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth.
20 Children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing to the Lord.
Children obey your parents, kids think that they know everything and know whats best but they don’t they. They don’t have the wisdom and knowledge as a parent does. Example
Imagine a young boy, Timmy, who struggles with his homework. His father patiently explains the concepts and guides him step-by-step. One day, Timmy decides to ignore his father’s advice, believing he knows better. He ends up failing the assignment. Through this hypothetical scenario, we understand that obedience to parents is often rooted in their experience and wisdom. Just like Timmy, we too can benefit greatly from listening to those who care for us and have our best interests at heart.
Then all of need to honor our parents because they took care of us and they are parents who deserve respect even if we are in our 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, ect.… God wants us to respect our parents all times. Parents are important to all of us and they won’t live forever but should enjoy them while we have them. Yes, even our in-law parents.
D. Respect our elders
5 You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
Be subject to our elders, older people need help and they can’t do everything like a young person can. we need to humble ourselves and help them and again a older person has wisdom and more knowledge and we need to respect their commands and humble ourselves to do so.
Imagine a young boy, full of boldness, trying to teach his grandfather how to use a smartphone. The boy is frustrated as he insists, 'Grandpa, you should just swipe left!' But the grandfather smiles and says, 'Son, I’ve been swiping logs for years, the phone is just a new log!' It’s a humorous reminder that sometimes, listening to our elders can teach us lessons we didn’t know we needed!
A young chef believes he knows everything about cooking and creates his own recipes without guidance. One day he invites a renowned older chef to taste his creations. The older chef takes one bite and politely suggests a pinch of salt. Ironically, the dish turns from bland to heavenly with just a sprinkle! This illustrates how being humble and considering the input of those more experienced can transform our endeavors.
3. Wives be Submissive to your Husband
This topic right here could be a sermon of it own because when I think of women be submissive to the husband I think that this plays apart of the husband being a leader as well and needing to make decisions.
18 Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.
24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.
These two verses here are fading away in our churches, families, and society. Its sad that no matter where you go, husbands tell the younger men that the wife is in control. You get this idea from Hollywood, lack of leadership in the home, lack of respect for men, and really a lack of respect for God. Its horrible even in a joking tone that a women leads the home and she is the one to always be pleased. Don’t mistake my words because men need to love their wives but men need to be leaders and not the wives. ( Now i was going to make a joke that my listens to me 50% than 45% of the time, i don't think it will be the best and my wife does listen to me and respect me ). I go to work and I tell my bosses that I’m boss at home and they look at me like yeah right we know who is charge. Several times I’ve told them I’m in charge you can even ask my wife she will say I’m in charge. My big boss has realized with my religious back ground that I am in charge.
1 Peter 3:1-2 5-6
1 In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives,
2 as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior.
5 For in this way in former times the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands;
6 just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.
Wives who have a husband who are not Christians still need to be submissive. The bible say that through your good deeds they can see what is good and come to Christ. This is for all because men get caught up in work and other things and we can start slipping away but the wives can be there to help us stay on solid ground
In many ancient cultures, from Roman to Jewish traditions, wives were expected to be submissive to their husbands. This was not merely a cultural norm but was often seen as a divine mandate. This perspective can be understood as positioning the husband as a protector and provider, fostering a partnership where each role is vital for the family's well-being. Submission is not about inferiority but about mutual respect and love, aligning with God's design for marriage.
Remember marriage is a partnership but there still need to be a leader to make decisions but also protect his family
In a light-hearted story from history, George Washington was known for consulting his wife, Martha, on his decisions. Once, he joked, 'My Cabinet might give me advice, but Martha gives me wisdom!' It showcases that while he held the position as leader, he valued her opinion deeply, reinforcing the importance of mutual respect in a marriage.
Just like I’ve brought out with the other ones but wives you are being submissive to God when you are submissive to your husband
4 so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children,
5 to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored.
Conclusion:
Being Submissive is not easy because we let pride get in the way of our lives. We need to humble ourselves to God but also to men with a higher Authority. We need to be Obedient even when we don’t like what is asked of us to do and we need to do it with a good attitude. When we are submissive to the authority that is around us we are being Submissive to God.
21 “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’
At the end of time I want God to tell me Well done good and faithful servant you obeyed, you did what I said and you were faithful go and enjoy the reward for the things you have done. As we go from here lets be the servants of God who are obedient workers who do their best everyday because we want to please God in all that we do
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