SUBMISSION

If there is one thing human beings absolutely detest, it is submitting to authority. Submission is an admission that "we are not all that," but that we hold an inferior place in society's "pecking order." When applying for a job, we must submit an application to someone who has the authority to hire us. When a person joins the military service, he is required to submit to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Drivers must submit to the speed limits and if driving erratically, to breathalyzer tests. We submit to the I.R.S. by paying taxes. We are required to get a license to hunt, fish, or get married. Life is filled with demands for us to submit. Most of these things are taken for granted, and we really don't think much about them; they are simply part of living in a society. Every once in a while someone will rebel, but the threat of a prison sentence keeps the vast majority of humanity in a submissive mood.

Christians, in addition to all the requirements of society, have additional requirements for submission. We are all to be submissive to God, or suffer the consequences (Heb. 12:5-14; Jam. 4:7). Christians are to be submissive to one another (Eph. 5:21). The Church is a community within society in general, and as such, is responsible to submit to society's laws (1 Pet. 2:13). And within the Church itself, there is a requirement that we submit to the elders (Heb. 13:17; 1 Pet. 5:5). Christian children are to be submissive to their parents (Eph. 6:1). Christian wives are to be submissive to their husbands (Eph. 5:24; Col. 3:18). Don't worry ladies, if your husband gets out of line, remember to Whom he answers! God has an infinite number of ways to humble the abusive husband, including civil law and the court system.

Jesus is the Creator of the Universe (Jn. 1:1-3; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:1-2). Jesus is God (Gen. 1:1; Matt. 9:1-8; Jn. 1:1, 14; 5:23). Jesus is the Son of God (Matt. 2:15; 3:17; 17:5). Jesus is our offering for sin which was already accounted for us before the foundation of the world (Jn. 17:24; Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:20; Rev. 13:8). And yet, Christ "...being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal to God, but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross" (Phil. 2:6-8). He was born in a manger (Lk. 2:7). He submitted to His human stepfather and mother (Lk. 2:51). He entered Jerusalem on a donkey instead of a majestic horse (Matt. 21:5). He allowed Himself to be beaten and crucified (dozens).

Jesus demonstrated the kind of life He wishes us to live. Perhaps the one thing that keeps us from becoming more Christ-like is the most difficult characteristic of all: submissive humility. Father, forgive us.