Introduction
This week I
watched Corner Gas one day and the program was highlighting the difference
between Canadians and Americans. One of the things pointed out was that as
Canadians we are nice and are willing to defer to others. It was funny when a
few days later we were in a restaurant and at the beginning of the meal the
server came around and asked what kind of beverage we wanted. When the
beverages were delivered, one person did not receive what she ordered. This was
pointed out and the server offered to bring the right beverage, but the person
deferred and accepted what she had not ordered. Apparently that is what we are
like as Canadians.
Now
sometimes people take advantage of that. You know how some lanes are closed because
of construction and everyone has to merge into one lane? Some drivers take the
lane that is closed right until it is closed and then correctly assume that
someone will let them in. When I see that happen, I feel like they are abusing people's
willingness to be nice and yet I usually submit and let them in. This is the
strange relationship we have with submission.
We live in
a country in which there is a great emphasis on charter rights and on that
basis submission is discouraged. Today if you would suggest that a wife should
submit to her husband, you would hear loud protestations, but I think you would
hear protestations if anyone was called to submit. We don't like to be told to submit,
we don't like people to have power or control over us, we rightly hate the
abuse of power and yet we often do submit to others.
As we have
looked at Ephesians we have recognized that both in response to the gift of
salvation and as a strategy of carrying out our mission in the world we are
called to imitate Jesus. We are to imitate Jesus in his holiness and we are to
imitate Jesus in his love. Today we want to look at the third and last call to
imitate Jesus in Ephesians 5:21
where we are called to imitate Jesus in his submission. This is a challenging
command and we need to understand what it means and how we are called to live
it because we do want to imitate Jesus.
I. Being Subject
A. The Call to Submission
The call to
submission is in a context. At the beginning of the chapter we were called to
be imitators of God. Submission is part of that imitation.
In 5:10 we
were told to "Carefully determine what pleases the Lord" and in 5:17
we read, "understand what the Lord wants you to do." What pleases the
Lord, what He wants us to do is to be subject to one another.
In Ephesians 5:18 we were called
to "be filled with the Spirit." Submission is part of the lifestyle
that will follow if we are filled with the Spirit.
So in that
context Ephesians 5:21
says, "submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." It is in
our relationship to Christ that we are to submit to one another. The command is
given in this verse and the reason for it is given in this verse. So although
it is a difficult thing to do and something that we need to understand carefully,
it is nevertheless an important part of our discipleship. We cannot ignore that
submission is something to which God calls us.
B. The Meaning of Submission
The key
word in this verse is "submit" but what does it mean? The Greek word
is made up of two parts. One part means “to appoint,” “to order,” with such
nuances as “to arrange,” “to determine,” “to set in place.” When added with the
other part of the word it means to arrange under or to set in place under. Barth
defines submission as, "giving way to one another." Submission is
about humility. It is the willingness to consider others better than ourselves.
Submission is about service. It is the willingness to do things for others who
have a need.
The form of
the verb indicates that submission is not something that someone forces us to
do, but something that we choose. When this verb is used of God it is usually
active because God is able to subject the whole world to Himself. He has the
power and authority to do that. When this verb is used of our relationship with
each other it is always passive and emphasizes our voluntary choice to submit
ourselves. Barth suggests that it "…describes a voluntary attitude of
giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden. He
expects this kind of subordination only of Christ and of persons who are 'in
Christ…'"
C. Christ's Model of Submission
Because of
the context of imitation of Christ and with the mention of "reverence for
Christ" we recognize that Christ is our model of submission.
This perspective
lends great power to the understanding of submission. If Jesus, who is God, the
creator of the universe chose submission as a way to function, then surely we must
also discover what submission means.
And Jesus
did indeed model submission. He submitted Himself first of all to the Father in
heaven. John 17:4
says, "I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to
do." God gave Jesus a task on earth and Jesus submitted to the Father by
doing that task. He trusted the plan of God and so was willing to complete His
work.
Earlier in
the service, we read Philippians
2:5-11 and noticed the way in which Jesus submitted Himself. In
that passage we read that he submitted Himself to "the humble position of
a slave," and to "a human being." Most remarkable of all is that
he submitted Himself to "death on a cross." Submission to death on a
cross is also mentioned in Ephesians
5:25 where the husband is called to follow the example of Christ,
who, "gave himself up." The extent of Jesus' submission is
remarkable.
As we
meditate on what Christ's submission means, we need to take note of several
things. He did not submit Himself to evil so that evil would win. One of the
great fears we have in submission is that an injustice will occur if we submit.
If we think that Jesus submitted in order to allow evil to have the upper hand
we have misunderstood what He did. In His submission He was not acquiescing to
wrong. Why then did Jesus submit? He submitted as a strategy. It was the method
he chose in order to bring about victory. Because people needed to see the
compassionate heart of the Father, Jesus could not come to this earth wielding
power and shouting loudly. He had to come manifesting humility and servanthood.
That is why he chose submission as the strategy. Because God wanted to gain
victory over sin and death, Jesus submitted to death in order to conquer the
enemy. Neufeld calls Jesus a "self-sacrificing reconciler." Because
God has all power and was able to raise Jesus from the dead, the enemy did not
win and the strategy of submission resulted in a victory that could be gained
in no other way. Barth says, "There is a difference between brutal
subjugation which denies, breaks or obliterates the will of the subjected
party, and the way in which Jesus Christ meets and treats sinners in order to
save them."
When Jesus
hung on the cross those who were around mocked Him. The thief mocked Him as
being no better than he. The Jewish religious leaders mocked Him, believing
that they had gained the upper hand and that the submission of Jesus to their
will demonstrated His weakness. To all concerned at that point, submission looked
like failure, but in the end, that was not the case. God's resurrection power
changed what looked like loss into victory. The submission of Jesus became not
loss, but the means to victory. Ephesians
5:26 speaks about the strategy of Jesus to give Himself up in
order to accomplish a purpose. His purpose was to create a pure church, a body
of people who follow Him and look like Him. The method He used to do so was
submission to being human and submission to death.
So we see
the powerful presentation of how Christ models submission in all these
different ways. Since He has chosen submission as His way of living and doing
His work, surely we must listen carefully and try to understand what it means
for us to imitate the submission of Christ.
II. The Details
Christ is
our model and we are called to submit to Christ. The command is given in 5:21.
What is interesting is that the word "be subject" appears in vs. 21,
but not in verse 22. When we read our English Bibles, we would not know that
because they supply the word "be subject" in almost every translation,
yet it is not there in the original Greek. A direct translation of these two
verses would be, "Be subject to one another in the fear of Christ, the
wife to her own husband as to the Lord." The reason this is important is
because the call to submit is the heading of the entire section that follows.
The New Living Translation gives us some idea of this when it says, "And
further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. For wives, this
means…" and then in verse 25 it says, "…For husbands, this
means…"
Submission
is something we are all called to do, but what are the details of that
submission? First of all, we are called to be subject to one another in the
church. Then, as we read on in Ephesians we notice that this matter of
submission has implications in the most intimate and most daily relationships
in life. Submission must be practiced in the relationship between husband and
wife, between parents and children and between slaves and masters. So let's
think about what that submission looks like in each situation.
Barth
affirms this way of thinking when he says, "The single imperative of vs.
21…anticipates all that Paul is about to say not only to wives, children and
slaves, but also to husbands, fathers, and masters, about the specific respect
they owe because of Christ to those with whom they live together either by
choice, or by birth or by historical circumstances."
A. One Another
The phrase "to
one another" in verse 21 tells us that submission is to be the method of
living in all our relationships to one another in the church. To even say that
and for someone who is in leadership in the church to say that is very
difficult. So often power has been abused in the church. The church has a
terrible record. The martyrdom of our Anabaptist forefathers, the Inquisition,
residential schools, shunning and church discipline have all given numerous
examples of situations in which churches expected that people would submit but
it became an abuse of power. So how does the church teach submission in such a
context?
The church
can continue to teach submission only because it is "in the fear of the
Lord." As we talk about submission, we recognize that we submit first of
all to God. If we trust Him, we are able to submit to His way of doing things.
It is also
critical to recognize that submission can never be forced. Submission is a
voluntary choice that we make in regards to one another, not something that the
church or anyone else forces on someone.
What are
the implications of this kind of submission in the life of the church?
Many years
ago when this congregation was talking about buying the church on William and
Juno, my great-grandfather was in leadership in the church. The way I heard the
story is that he was not in favor of purchasing that building. The issue was
debated and the decision was made to purchase the building. At that point, even
though he had voted against it, my great-grandfather supported the decision.
That is one of the practical examples of submission which has influenced me from
the stories in my family.
A week ago
a member of our church who has moved and is beginning to attend another church,
came to talk to me about the transition he is making. He was concerned about how
he could remain a member, support Portage
Avenue
When
planning the work of the church, things sometimes take a long time to process.
Those in leadership sometimes get impatient and choose rather to go ahead of
the church on the assumption that it is easier to get forgiveness than
permission. I have always been uncomfortable with that strategy and it would be
an example of not being willing to submit.
One of the
things which is quite common today is to treat the church as another consumer
product. If we don't like what is happening, we just go to another church or if
the church is involved in some program which we don't agree with, we refuse to
support it. In my understanding of this command to submit, the way to handle
these things is to engage with the body, since we are members of one another.
When an issue is being discussed, we should fully engage in the debate about
whether or not we will do it. When the church agrees with a proposal, then it
is up to us to find a way to support it. That also is submission. It means that
we trust the guidance of the Spirit through the functioning of the church body.
We could think of many
other examples and I suppose, all kinds of objections, but somehow we have to
deal with this command because submission is important. Neufeld says, "This
is one realm in which the church’s redemptive difference should show itself
most dramatically."
B. Wives
In the
verses which follow, Paul lists some of the most practical and intimate life
situations. To speak of submission as a theory is fine and to talk about it in
relationships in the church is important, but our imitation of Christ will be
most significantly lived out in those relationships that require dealing with
real, day to day issues.
The first
of these relationships is that between husband and wife. The first person
addressed is the wife. If we are faithful to the whole text we have to say that
in the matter of following Christ, each wife must choose for herself how
imitating the submission of Christ works in her relationship with her husband. The
headship of the husband mentioned here is difficult to understand with the
negative history of abuse of power that has often happened. What was Paul's
intent in saying this? Headship can mean several things. It can mean having
authority or it can mean taking the lead or taking the initiative. What is the
intention here? Several things are certain about this command. It is not a
command regarding women in general to men in general. The submission spoken of
here refers to wives to their husbands alone. Another thing which only makes
sense in the context is that the mention of headship does not mean that the
husband is given authority to demand submission from his wife. We must keep in
tune with what is happening in this whole passage and insist that submission is
the choice of each wife and it is in regard to her relationship to Christ that
she must choose how she will live imitating Him. Barth says, "Only the Lord
Jesus Christ is the source, standard, and motivation of a woman's
subordination."
C. Husbands
For
husbands, submission means loving their wives. We have often spent so much time
on wives being subject to their husbands or the headship of the husband that we
have missed the full power of the submission expected of the husband. Lest we
miss it, this passage is very clear that the husband is also required to submit
to the wife. The model for the husbands submission is none other than Christ
Himself of whom it is said that "He gave up his life for her(the
church)." If that isn't submission I don't know what is. I personally
believe that the mention of the headship of the husband means that he must take
the initiative in submission, he must be the first one to practice submission
by making sure that he is willing to lay down his life for his wife and to do
those things that will allow her to be the best person, the best follower of
Christ and the most honored one in his life. If husbands are not living self
sacrificing love in relationship to their wives, I believe they have not
understood what this passage means. Yet, just as with submission of "one
another" and the submission of the wife, this is also a call to voluntary
submission. So the question for husbands is, "How will you sacrifice your
life for your wife?" Barth says, true love is "self-giving, not
devouring; creative, not analytical; passionate in the sense of uplifting –
rather than condescending, compassionate." Neufeld says, "A husband’s
love finds expression in the liberation, not of himself, but of his spouse.
D. Children/Parents/Slaves/Masters
I won't take much time on the rest of the
relationships because I think we get the idea. Each person, in the station in
life in which they find themselves must answer the question. "How will I
imitate the submission of Christ?"
The text tells us that for children this means
obedience to parents. the promise is that if they live this out, it will go
well for them.
For parents it means not provoking children to anger.
This should warn all parents that there is no place for the abuse of power in
their relationship to their children, but rather doing all they can to raise
them in the Lord. Neufeld says, "As terse as this is, the word provoke covers all the types of abuse of
power committed by people whose culture has given them unquestioned authority."
He also says, "In short, fathers are to behave toward their children as
fellow members of a covenant community that is marked by mutual subordination, but also by mutual and joint accountability
before God..."
For slaves this means serving God by serving their
masters. They are not to be eye-pleasers, but God pleasers. All service is to
be done for God. We should also note that if this pertains to slaves, surely it
pertains even more to every person is free, but who works for another.
For masters, this means remembering that they are all
under the judgment of God. The phrase, "in the same way" suggests
that the hierarchy we often assume between masters and slaves does not exist in
the eyes of God. If you are a manager, what does it mean to imitate the
submission of Christ as you manage your employees?
Conclusion
When we had
been married for one year we participated in the Northern Missionary Training Camp
which was a program of Northern Canada Evangelical Mission. We hadn't been
there very long before we were taught the phrase which we would be expected to
say in every situation in which we were asked to do something. We were taught
to respond, "I shall be glad to." Were we being forced to submit? We
didn't look at it that way. We had come in obedience to Christ and our
intention was to serve Christ and so the idea of willingly serving in those
areas in which we were asked to serve was exactly what we wanted to do. This has
been a lesson I have remembered ever since and have tried to live.
When it
comes down to it, submission is first of all an attitude of submission to
Christ. Then it is an attitude of humility in relationship to one another and
an attitude of servanthood.
Neufeld
quotes a poem that I think concludes it nicely:
Gather
us in—the rich and the haughty,
gather
us in—the proud and the strong.
Give
us a heart so meek and so lowly,
give us the courage to enter the song.
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