Paul writes, ‘I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of the woman, and God is the head of Christ.’ There is an order to how God operates. Just as Christ was submitted to God, husbands are supposed to be submitted to Christ, and wives are supposed to be submitted to godly husbands. Note the words, ‘the man is the head of the woman’ - not all women. This arrangement doesn’t apply in the workplace or in other relationships. When we fail to honour God’s structure, Satan can enter our homes just as he entered the first home in Eden.
‘Submission’ is an unpopular word today. But when we understand it from a biblical perspective, we see that it’s a positive force to accomplish good, not a negative force to subject women to an inferior status. The Greek word for submission, hupotasso, means to willingly place oneself under the authority of another. It doesn’t involve coercion, but rather a willingness to take who and what God made you, and submit it to the authority of another. In the husband’s case, to God, and in the wife’s case, to God and to her husband. Paul writes, ‘Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her’ (Ephesians 5:25 NIV 2011 Edition).
When a husband loves his wife that way, and gives himself to her, she will gladly submit to his leadership in the home. It’s her husband’s love and protection that releases her into the fullness of her God-given potential.
Luke 17:1-19, Ps 91-93
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