In this series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6
The second obligation that assembly-members have toward each other is submission. We must submit to one another.
For many people, the word “submission” triggers unpleasant thoughts. Evil people have used the concept of submission to justify tyranny and oppression. That is a worldly, perverse form of submission.
In the Bible, however, submission is a good thing. It is not tyrannical, it is not oppressive, and most importantly – it is not one-sided. Biblical submission is mutual. This single caveat makes Christian submission entirely unique. As we’ll see, it mirrors the life of the Trinity and it is only possible given a trinitarian worldview.
Paul tells the entire assembly to “submit to one another in the fear of God” (Ephesians 5:21). That is the general command given to all. Paul then applies that command to various relationships within the assembly: husbands and wives, parents and children, masters and servants.
Peter lays it out in the reverse order. He starts with specific relationships (i.e. elders and youth), and concludes with the general: “Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility” (1 Peter 5:5).
What does it mean to submit to one another? When you submit yourself to someone, you acknowledge them to be greater than yourself. As an assembly-member, this means that you are to view everyone in the assembly as greater than yourself. You are to put everyone else’s needs and desires and perspectives before your own. Consider the following verses:
In honor give preference to one another (Romans 12:10)
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others (Philippians 2:3-4)
At first glance, putting everyone’s interests before your own might sound depressing. “When will I get what I want?” But this command is given to everyone, which means it is mutual. While you are to put everyone before yourself, everyone else is to put you before themselves. When the assembly does this faithfully, everyone will be satisfied. No one will be disregarded or dishonored. Everyone’s needs will be met. (This will require a willingness to compromise, depending on circumstance. We will often have to meet in the middle on a particular decision or resolution. Doing so is a form of self-sacrifice, which is the way of Christ.)
For this kind of submission to work, the assembly has to be like-minded. Everyone has to get with the program. The assembly needs to be aware of this obligation and be committed to it. When Christians fail in this area – when we become selfish and domineering – conflicts will result. We are commanded to be humble, peaceable, and of one mind:
Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion (Romans 12:16)
Now may God grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus (Romans 15:5)
Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you (2 Corinthians 13:11)
Romans 14 is especially important to this topic. Paul says that we are not to dispute over “doubtful things,” such as eating preferences and the observance of special days. This means that there are secondary, non-essential beliefs and practices that Christians have liberty to hold. These would be things that are not in contradiction to God’s written revelation. These things should not be a hindrance to our fellowship, unity, and submission.
This can prove to be difficult, because so often we want to make our personal preferences the norm for everyone. We are tempted to attach moral absolutes to non-essentials and require everyone to fall in line. (That’s a human problem, by the way, not just a Christian problem.) Some churches, sadly, hold to non-essential items to the exclusion of anyone who thinks differently. That is sinful. It’s not following the command to submit to one another; it’s demanding that everyone submit to you.
Biblical submission is mutual, it’s a two-way street. For example, you must respect the preference of a Christian to be a vegetarian. But in turn, he must respect your choice to eat meat. You must not make moral judgments against one another as it pertains to food and drink. House rules, schooling methods, to vaccinate or not, to wear a Covid-19 mask or not – these hotly debated issues have the potential to cause division. We must not let them. God forbids it.
This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t talk about our differences, or pretend they don’t exist. By no means! We should be able to talk about them peacefully, agree to disagree if necessary, and not let them hinder our like-mindedness. As the famous quote goes: “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.” In fact, if you listen to the perspective of your fellow assembly-member – if you defer to them – you just might learn something. You might find your views being altered a bit, with the result that we become more similar to each other.
Don’t be set on pushing your agenda or domineering any situation or conversation. View yourself as lower than everyone else. Focus on listening, learning, and finding the good in each person. You should do that for everyone, and everyone should do that for you. Everyone has a place, everyone has a purpose, everyone has an influence. That’s the beauty of mutual submission.
As mentioned earlier, this beauty is only possible within a trinitarian worldview. For some people, mutual submission sounds like a contradiction of terms. How can two or more people equally submit to one another? Only humans made in the image of a trinitarian God can do so.
The doctrine of the Trinity states that God is a community of three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – who are equal in divinity. Each person is fully God and fully deserving of equal worship. Yet in the trinitarian life we see each person valuing the others above themselves. The Father does not glorify himself, but glorifies the Son and the Spirit. The Son doesn’t glorify himself, but glorifies the Father and the Spirit. The Spirit doesn’t glorify himself, but glorifies the Father and the Son.
This form of humility within the life of God is impossible in other religions. Singularity is supreme in a world made by a singular divine person. Submission in such a world would always be tyrannical and oppressive. But in a world made by one God in three persons, singularity and plurality are equally supreme. Both are deserving of equal honor; each make way for the other.
The concept of mutual submission originates in the life of the Christian God. When he commands us to submit to one another, he is not commanding us to do something that he doesn’t do himself. He is commanding us to be like him.
