“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Ephesians 5:21
So much of life seems to be transactional. By that, I mean we get one thing when we give up or do something else. The grocery store is a great example, even though it’s an expensive one now. We put all the groceries in the cart, head to the checkout, scan all the items, and then pay for them. The key part, and the one that must take place if you want to leave the store with the groceries, is the last part—the paying. It’s transactional since the groceries are worth something, and you’re trading the money for the food and other things.
In our verse for today, there’s a profound lack of transaction, even though there is a cause and effect relationship going on. Out of reverence for Christ, our Lord and Savior, we submit to one another. Submitting to God can be fairly simple when we come to worship or serve in ministry or spend time praying every morning, but submitting to our loved ones is harder. This becomes especially difficult when we disagree with someone else or we don’t see eye-to-eye. If emotions or a sense of justice are involved, it becomes even more difficult to submit to someone else. Yet, Paul makes it a command: submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Paul gives this command to the church. The “other” to which we are to submit is another believer or a group of believers. We don’t always like to do that, but we are called to submit to one another mutually, in love, and out of reverence for Christ. Why? Because Jesus submitted to the Father’s will, went to the cross willingly, died for our sins, and took every punishment for our sin. Praise God! Because Jesus submitted, we are called to submit to each other in love, and because we are loved by, and love, Christ Jesus. In the Northeast Conference, the vision we have is to start with a servant’s heart and then submit to each other for the sake of the kingdom of God and for Jesus.
What would the church and the world become if we submitted to each other like this—out of reverence for Christ? It would be filled with love. Seems fitting for this week, especially, I think. So, where is God calling you right now to submit to someone else in pure love without any need to get anything in return? Go and do that today, friends.
~Steve
