Colossians 3:11-25 – Submission
The Bible is not just a book of doctrine or history, or a manual to tell us how to conduct the affairs of the church; it is all that, but it is also a very practical book to tell us how we should live our personal and family lives in a way that will please God.
The women’s liberation movement that began in the middle of the twentieth century has done precisely the opposite of what it was intended to do! A movement that was meant to liberate or free women has, in fact enslaved them by seeking to reverse the order that God ordained in his wisdom for men and women. Feminists loathe the very idea that a woman should, in any circumstances, be submissive to a man. They have changed the wedding vows to remove the idea of the obedience of a wife to her husband. Yet this is precisely what the apostle Paul is requiring from Christian wives because ‘this is fitting in the Lord’.
The Biblical submission of a wife to her husband should never be seen as oppressive, but is patterned on the submission of the believer to Christ Eph. 5:24. It recognises that God has placed headship in the man Eph. 5:23 and, as he has the duty, under God to rule, so she is to give loving submission to that authority.
That does not mean that the woman is inferior to the man in any sense. Men and women are saved in the same way, they have the same access to the Word and prayer, they have equal value in the sight of God and have essential roles to play in the life of the church, albeit different ones from those committed to men.
The authority of a husband over his wife, however, is not absolute. A husband, who asks his wife to do that which is unbiblical or sinful, can and must be disobeyed Acts 5:29.
Questions
- What are practical ways in which the submission of a godly wife could be seen?
Prayer Points
- Pray that Christians would honour God in their marriages.
- Use prayer points from your congregation.
- Pray for family matters.