Trouble Submitting?

Creation is an act of self-revelation on the part of God. As the apostle writes, God’s “invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made” (Romans 1:20). As God is a living person and not an inanimate thing, we should expect that creation consists of more than atoms and impersonal forces. Inherent in the reality that he has spoken into being are principles, concepts, ways of living. Of foundational importance is the principle of authority. 

Authority is woven into all that God has made and is a principle present in the Ten Commandments. At the head of the “first table” of the Commands is the authority of God: “You shall have no other gods.” At the head of the “second” is the authority of one human being over another: “Honor your father and your mother.” To not accept authority as a settled reality is to live in an alternative universe. Unfortunately, rebellion is in the heart of the human, the fruit of which is glaringly evident all around us and within us.

Despite our natural tendency to rebel, humans must learn to accept and be grateful for authority. And the place God has designed for us to grasp this foundational principle is the home. The Fifth command directs us to hold in honor our parents. John Calvin notes that, biblically, this entails reverence, obedience, and gratitude. That is, we are to deeply respect our parents, submit to their authority, and return the kindness shown to us by providing for them when the need arises.

Getting this primary human relationship right set us up for all of our human relationships. It is intended to shape us into people who will love neighbor as self. The call for godly leadership on the part of parents and ready honor on the part of children teaches, among other things, responsibility, humility, sacrifice, generosity, patience, love, justice, mercy and forgiveness. It’s not difficult to see why Moses teaches that heeding the Fifth Commandment results in long life and prosperity (Deuteronomy 5:16).

Authority is inescapable in the universe God has made. And while it’s the case that humanity’s inherent rebellion has led to some tragic parenting, resulting in wounded souls and broken hearts, we cannot afford to neglect the Commandment’s principle. To do so invites destruction, not just to families and the individuals involved, but to whole communities (see Deuteronomy 21:21). Our goal is to steward authority well so that accepting it proves a delight.

A Wise Master Builder

In the opening greeting of Paul’s letter to Titus, as a wise master builder he implicitly lays the foundation for the central issues he addresses in this short letter: authority and truth. By describing himself as “a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ,” and stating that his preaching ministry is a task “entrusted” to him “by the command of God our Savior,” he establishes the authority by which he will insist that his “child in a common faith” act with dispatch to put “what remained into order” on the island of Crete. Additionally, when he says that his calling is for “the sake of the faith of God's elect and their knowledge of the truth” he asserts the standard by which false teachers will judged and the people of God will be protected.

Authority and truth are two inescapable realities that are hard for human beings to accept. We have challenged them from the beginning and, as a result, have been forever plagued by the fallout (see Genesis 3). That this is true for all humanity is evident from an even cursory look at history. That the church has also fallen prey is evident from the fact that falsehood always finds a hearing, creating havoc. Why should this be except that even those within the church are hesitant to accept God’s full and final authority in our lives? John Stott asks, “In the final analysis this is the big question for the church: is there such a thing as divine revelation? Do we concede that truth, having been revealed by God, ipso facto has authority over us? Are we ready to submit to it, that is, to him, in humble faith and obedience? Or are we brash enough to behave like unruly children and reject God’s authority?”

Jesus warned that “false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect” (Mark 13:22). We can appreciate, then, the wisdom of Paul to minister as boldly as he does for “the sake of the faith of the elect and their knowledge of the truth.” He knows that without embracing the twin realities of divine authority and truth the people of God leave themselves open to deception and to suffer the attendant consequences.

Willing Obedience

Obedience is ________ .

How do you fill in the blank? Difficult? Necessary? Detestable? How about enjoyable? Given our innate rebelliousness, ‘joyful’ does not likely spring to mind. We have a hard time with obedience. There’s something deep within us that does not like being told what to do, at least without an avenue of appeal.

On the one hand, the inclination to disobey can be a good thing. It helps people resist the despotic behavior of power hungry men. Shiphrah and Puah, for example, two Hebrew midwives who ignored Pharaoh’s murderous orders are rewarded by God for their disobedience (Exodus 1:15-21). And the underground resistance movements of World War 2 did much to undermine Nazi Germany’s efforts to subjugate the continent. Not obeying can be good when what is being required is immoral.

But our relationship with God’s authority is another matter. He has set the terms of our existence and it is the case that there is no avenue of appeal when it comes to God’s laws. But unlike the self-promoting and self-protecting laws of tyrants, his are given out of love. In fact, his call to obedience is a call to joy. He knows what we were made for and how we can best experience the fullness of our humanity. So, why do human beings have such a problem with yielding to God’s rule? It’s the innate rebelliousness alluded to above. Even when blessing is promised for obedience and punishment for disobedience, we are unwilling to obey.

The situation changes, however, when, by faith, we are brought into union with Christ. Our lack of obedience has been filled up with Christ’s obedience and we possess a new relationship with God. Now, the fruit of salvation is ours for the harvesting. As a bonus, we are not on our own to pursue the expected obedience. We are told that God is at work in us changing our desires to conform to his desires and supplying the power we need to walk in his will. As Paul exhorts his beloved friends in Philippi: “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (2:12-13). Perhaps this is part of what delights Paul when at the very beginning of his letter he writes,  “I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” (1:3-5). He knows the joy that’s in store for them as they pursue the will of God together. 

Obedience is ________. How do you fill in the blank? By God's grace you can say, 'joyful.'