Submission...a heavy topic to be sure! I could never begin to give my advice on this, or any topic apart from the Word of God. For me, the Lord used, and continues to use this matter of "submission" to draw me into a deeper relationship with Him.
In order to become submissive as a wife, we must first be submissive to the Lord. To try to do so any other
way would be to come in through the back door. Submission as man would define it is, "the act of yielding to power or authority, a yielding of one's will to the will of a superior without murmuring, surrender of the person and power to the control or government of another, obedience, resignation." While all this is true, we also need God's perspective on submission as laid out in His Word.
way would be to come in through the back door. Submission as man would define it is, "the act of yielding to power or authority, a yielding of one's will to the will of a superior without murmuring, surrender of the person and power to the control or government of another, obedience, resignation." While all this is true, we also need God's perspective on submission as laid out in His Word.
1 Peter 3: 1-6 has greatly ministered to my heart in this matter. "Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also WHO TRUSTED IN GOD, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands: Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement."
In case you hadn't noticed, our outward beauty fades day by day, but submission is an inward beauty that never fades. The Lord sees and places great value upon this inward beauty called submission, a meek and quiet spirit as the Bible defines it. This is what He would desire us as wives to excel in above our outward beauty. It is a tool in the hands of God to perform surgery on the heart of your husband to mold it and shape it into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ.
It is through your submission to the husband that God has placed over you that you are in reality submitting to God Himself! We need to let the character of God determine the kind of wives we will be, not the character of our husbands! By submitting first to God, we can master this completely... Submission to your husband provides a pleasant atmosphere in your home for which the Holy Spirit can do His work of conviction in the hearts of those that live there. It is a work that the devil seeks to destroy in many homes, for he does not want to see men becoming more like Christ and he most definitely does not want marriages to stay together! He is in the business of breaking up homes... That is why submission is of great value to God for His voice can't be heard when there is stubbornness and arguing and pride present. It may seem a vulnerable position for us to be in as wives, but as Sara trusted in God, you and I need to trust in God as well and not be anxious about so many things. God will honor our submissive spirits by giving back to us tenderhearted and loving husbands who have responded to the Lord's moving in their hearts. What a special calling we have in being submissive. We are laborers together with God for the good of our homes!
Don't let the devil get you to believe that you are going to lose out or get taken advantage of if you submit to your husband....he is a great deceiver. He tried in Genesis 3 to get Eve to doubt God's Word and God's way, and he will try to do the same to us as wives today!
As a young Christian, I made the mistake of marrying an unsaved man and then found myself in the position of having to submit to one who did not care about the things of God at all. So began my rough and bumpy journey into submission and a deeper understanding of who God is... What looked to be the worst road to travel has become the road that has led me closest to my Lord. Don't be afraid to travel down this road called "submission" for you will miss out greatly on knowing the God of this universe in a most intimate way! I encourage you to trust Him and lean upon His Word for the strength, understanding, and guidance that only He can give to those who truly desire to be submissive wives. Do we submit then to anything at all our husbands ask of us?
In Colossians 3:18, God lays the boundaries out for women when it comes to submission. "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord." If our husbands ask us to go against what God would clearly consider sin, then we are not to submit to this, but rather to God's Word. For instance, if your husband is asking you to watch pornography, you would decline because God clearly calls looking on the nakedness of another sin (Mt. 5:27). In this case, Acts 5:29 would be the verse to obey, "...We ought to obey God rather than men." It is a delicate subject to be sure and one that should be sought out with much
prayer!
By
prayer!
By
Pam R & S
Copyright 2009
Copyright 2009
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