Submission

     A man once asked the following question: "Should a minister be in submission to Christ or to the church?"
     "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened," Paul writes in Ephesians 1:18-23, "so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.
     "These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.
     "And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fulness of Him who fills all in all."
     Obviously, every Christian is in submission to Christ.  So the question should be changed to ask: "Should a minister be in submission to only Christ or to Christ plus the church?"
     As strange as it may sound, the answer is, "both."  A minister should be in submission to Christ only and to every other Christian.
     In Acts chapter 4 the Jewish rulers arrest the Apostles and warn them to stop speaking and teaching about Jesus.
     "But Peter and John answered and said to them, 'Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking what we have seen and heard.'"
     As soon as the Apostles are released, they return to their preaching.  So they are arrested again.
     "'We gave you strict orders not to continue teaching in this name,'" Acts 5:28-29 records, "'and, behold, you have filled Jerusalem  with your teaching, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us.'
     "But Peter and the apostles answered and said, 'We must obey God rather than men.'"
     Paul discusses the role of a minister in 1 Thessalonians 1:3-4.
     "For our exhortation does not come from error or impurity or by way of deceit;" Paul writes, "but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men but God who examines our hearts."
     "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead and by His appearing and His kingdom:" Paul instructs in 2 Timothy 4:1-5, "preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.
     "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn aside to myths.
     "But you be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."
     We must add one thing here.  We read what Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 2:3-4.  But he has more to say beginning in verse 7.
     "But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children.
     "For you recall, brethren," he continues with verse 9, "our labor and hardship, how working night and day so as not to be a burden to any of you, we proclaimed to you the gospel of God."
     The passage in 2 Timothy 4 is preceded by these words in chapter 2 verse 10, "For this reason I endure all things for the sake of those who are chosen, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory."
     "And the Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome," Paul adds in verses 24-25, "but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition; if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth."
     An evangelist should be in submission to Christ only, but that does not give him a right to "Lord it over" others.  His position is one of serving, not of ruling.

     But what about the other half of the answer?  How is an evangelist in submission to every other Christian?
     "Let every person be in submission to the governing authorities," Romans 13:1 commands.  This passage goes on to point out the importance of obeying civil authority.  Since an evangelist is a person, this instruction applies to him.  Other verses that make the same point include Titus 3:1 and 1 Peter 2:13-17.
     "Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect," 1 Peter 2:18 states, "not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable."
     People no longer have slaves.  But most of us are employees.  The relationship between employers and employees would follow the same guidelines.  Evangelists are employees.  Other Scriptures with the same idea are Ephesians 6:5-8, Colossians 3:22-25, 1 Timothy 6:1-2 and Titus 2:9-10.
     According to 1 Peter 5:5, Christians are to be subject to the elders of their congregation.  Evangelists are members of a local congregation.
     As you are undoubtedly beginning to see, this is not just a question about evangelists.  It is a question that applies to all Christians.  And it's not hard to see that Christianity is a religion of submission.
     Ephesians 6:1-3 and Colossians 3:20 say that children are to be in submission to their parents.
     According to Ephesians 5:22-24, wives are to be in submission to their husbands.
     As Christians, we are subject to the government, to employers and to the elders.  Children are in submission to their parents and wives to their husbands.
     But the list doesn't stop here.  Submission means to submit to the authority of someone.  But what if we change the definition a little?  What if we define submission as placing the interests of another above our own?
     "Husbands, love your wives," Ephesians 5:25 urges, "just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her."
     The husband is the head of the family.  But he is expected to put the interest of his wife above his own.  So, in a sense, his will is placed in submission to that of his wife.
     "And, fathers," Ephesians 6:4 says, "do not provoke your children to anger; but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord."
     "Fathers, do not exasperate your children,that they may not lose heart," is the way it is worded in Colossians 3:21.
     What about the employer/employee relationship?  We have mentioned the advice given to servants in Ephesians 6:5-8.  Verse nine turns to the employers.
     "And, masters, do the same things to them," it says, "knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him."
     This is repeated in Colossians 4:1
     In short, we are to be in submission to each other.
     "And be subject to one another in the fear of Christ," Ephesians 5:21 states.
     "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit," Philippians 2:3-4 teaches, "but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
     This passage goes on to describe the perfect example of this attitude: Jesus Christ Himself.  Take time to read the second chapter of Philippians.
     Sure, this all sounds a little foolish.  But it is only foolishness for those who are perishing, as we learn in the first chapter of 1 Corinthians.
     So, an evangelist should be in submission only to Christ.  The same is true about any Christian.  And all are expected to be in submission to each other.  How can both be true?
     When we are dealing with doctrine, we are responsible only to the Lord.  When we are dealing with attitudes, we are responsible to all.  After all, we cannot be in submission to Christ if we don't submit to each other, since this is one of His commandments.  Look at Colossians 3:12-17, 1 Peter 2:19-24 and 5:5, James 2:8-13, and 4:7-12 and Romans 15:1-9 and you will find this to be true.
     One more thing.  We cannot really deal with this question without looking at Galatians 5:13-26.  Look at Galatians 5:13-26 for yourself.  Then you will realize that the question is not really "Who must I serve?"  It is, "Who can I serve."
     "For though I am free from all men," Paul points out in 1 Corinthians 9:19, "I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win the more."  Look at this passage and verses 32-33 of the next chapter to see how Paul felt about serving others.
     How about you?  First of all, are you serving only God when it comes to doctrine?  And are you serving others?  Paul could serve because he was free.  This freedom came from obeying God.  So the two answers are not really contradictions at all.  They go hand-in-hand.
     Know the truth and it will set you free...free to be a servant of others.

Unless otherwise noted, "Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE(R), (C) Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission."