Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Summary: “Me first” is a concept that goes back to the beginning of human history. It is the essence of our sinful nature rolled up into two words. Putting Christ first in our lives radically changes this concept, turning it upside down and inside out.
When it comes to marriage, getting along in church, putting up with people in school or at work, and even getting along with tax collectors, this verse is the answer to everything! “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Let’s “reverse engineer” what Paul is saying in this verse.
- Everything we do is out of reverence for Christ.
- Because of our reverence for Christ, we submit to “one another.”
To revere Christ is natural because of what he has done for us. Without Jesus, there is no redemption or forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1: 6-7). Without the forgiveness of sins, we are condemned to hell (Mark 16:16). Because of Christ’s forgiveness, we can look forward to life everlasting. We are alive in him (1 Corinthians 15:22).
Because we have life in Christ, we strive to live as God would have us live. And how does God want us to live?
Jesus tells us that the second Great Commandment is to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22: 39). Paul is telling us the same thing using different words.
In its simplest terms, all human relations boil down to an “either/or” condition. Either you submit to me, or I submit to you.
Some people suggest there is a third way called “egalitarianism.” Egalitarianism means that all people are equal. In this view, nobody has to submit to anybody else because everybody is the same. (Ironically, people who believe in this concept want everyone else to submit to their definition.)
Life is like a doorway, wide enough for only one person. When one person comes to the door, they walk right through. When more than one person arrives at the door, someone has to go first. If the first one through gets the best seat or the most food, then the question is, “Who gets to go first?”
Our instinct, if we do not revere Christ, is “Me first!” If somebody bigger and stronger comes along and says, “Me first!,” then we have to decide if we want to fight or let them go first.
If we revere Christ, we put our “Me first!” instinct aside. Instead, we say, “Christ first!” When we put Christ first, we see others not as competition but as God’s creation. When we serve Christ, we serve him by serving his creation. To submit to one another is to serve each other. Jesus showed us the way when he washed the disciple’s feet (John 13:14). We should go and do the same.
Application: Think about the people in your life and consider whether you submit to them or demand submission from them.
Food for Thought: How do our relationships with other people change when we put Christ first?
How do our relationships with other people change when we put Christ first?
In my experience I would have to say where there is love in your heart, love grows, and where there is discord in your heart, discord grows. Our relationships with others speak to the condition of our hearts. Walking with Christ means walking daily and continually putting Christ first in our life, including our relationships with others. There may be some people in our life that view that change as something that will cause them to lose, and if we approach that in pride or self-preservation, we we will quench the very Spirit we depend on to guide us through our walk.
Let’s say we are part of a club that meets regularly, but drinks a lot during the meetings. That drinking gives opportunity for sin to creep in. As a follower of Christ we realize that we cannot submit to Christ and participate in the drinking during these meetings. or perhaps not attend the meetings When we are asked why we don’t drink or attend anymore, our answer is important. Christ’s answer would be to speak in truth, grace, and love. It could be an opportunity to show the light of Christ in our life, or it could turn to pushing people away. That’s a delicate balance, I know. One, I would dare say, that would be impossible without looking to the Holy Spirit for guidance.
All that to say, when we put Christ first, we must continually put Him first in everything. Loving others as much as ourselves sounds simple, but it is so very hard to do in daily life. I believe that is one of the reasons we should be “be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” and to “Let every word you speak be drenched with grace and tempered with truth and clarity. For then you will be prepared to give a respectful answer to anyone who asks about your faith.” If we put Christ first in everything, people will see how that change in our life doesn’t bring them fear but hope.
Chris,
I like your illustration of what is in the heart impacting the relationships around us. The seeds we plant in our heart grow into the vines or thorns we live with each day.
When we put Christ first we will serve others as He did rather than demanding that we be served. Mark 10: 42 – 45 gives us an example of the standard that Christ gave to us. Since we are His followers we seek to serve and put others first because that is what He did. When we submit to Him we will then naturally submit to others in reverence to Him.
One of the more interesting ministries I supported students going to was one in which they served those on Cozumel who served others. These were local workers who served tourists. This group of students went in and simply served them in the name of Christ. The locals were shocked that American tourists came in to serve them. It wasn’t t supposed to work that way, but they were responsive to the loving serving and realized the difference was Christ. It had a powerful effect on both the locals and the students. The students found that submitting to others in reverence to Christ felt good and had lasting eternal benefits. That is as true here as in Cozumel.
Thank you, Rich!
The ministry you describe at Cozumel is something we can do at home as well.
Amen
09-05-2023, How do our relationships with other people change when we put Christ first?
Praise God for the power over sin given to each believer as Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit now dwells in our hearts!
Our human nature is to serve self first while Christ came to serve others. John 3:16
All believers have been crucified with Christ who now lives in each of us by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are a new creation, capable of loving the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind, as well as our neighbor as ourselves.
Galatians 2:20, Matthew 22:37-39, 1 Thessalonians 1:5
Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. All believers are given a new heart, new nature, new desires, and new power in the Spirit. These deep inward changes result in outward changes as we submit to God’s will which begins as we change inwardly by His power, and outwardly according to our choices to die to self, and grow in Christ through self-denial.
Matthew 20:28, Mark 10:45, John 13:1-17
We have been crucified with Christ, and are no longer controlled by the desires of our flesh which is dead/powerless. Christ now lives in us. This life we now live in the body, is by faith in the Son of God, who loved us and gave himself for us. So we must count ourselves dead to sin, and spiritually alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 6:11, Galatians 2:20
Putting Christ first is our calling and we will only find true peace as we respond to this calling of God and by choice allow Jesus Christ in us to minister to all those brought to us by God.
Thank you, Ron!
I love the phrase, “We are a new creation!” That is the heart of the gospel in five words. To be “born again” is to be made new, and when the new comes in, the “old self” is slowly displaced. It’s a wonderful feeling!
Yes It is, and one day we will complete and dwell fully in the presence of or God!
Ron
Amen!! 🙂