SUBMIT

I have seen it a number of times. A Christian family comes for counseling. A rebellious daughter has run away from home. While I'm learning about the problem the dad asserts that he is the head of the house. I'm beginning to get a clue. Yes, he is the head of the house, but to assert it means that he is so rigid that he isn't listening to his family.

A Christian family comes for counseling. The wife has run-up a huge amount of credit card debt that is unknown to her husband. It has become so large that it is impossible to conceal. He feels betrayed. She feels justified. 'If he would give me more money to spend we wouldn't be having this problem.'

In both cases there is a battle for control. Who is in charge here? In the first case the rebellious daughter is speaking for herself and the rest of the family about dad's rigidity. In the second case, who ever has the money has the control.

This brings me to my text, "Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything" (Ephesians 5:22-23).

The whole idea that the husband should "rule over" his wife (Genesis 3:16) came as part of the curse that God placed on His creation as a result of the fall. Prior to the fall, Adam and Eve did not relate to each other in this way. This is where the battle for control of the family began.

What is Biblical submission? What is the kind of submission that honors God? How does Biblical submission strengthen the family? Hopefully I can answer those questions in up coming posts.

Grace and Peace;
Tom