Ephesians 5:14-6:9

Commit To Submit
Submission Out Of Reverence For Christ

Ephesians 5:14-6:9 8/15/10 Shp Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF
Key verse 5:21 Delivered at U of I Champaign Urbana UBF
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
I was very thankful when Dr Sam Lee invited me to come and preach here at U of I. He not only invited me, but my whole family! Obviously he wants to uphold and support house churches. He said, “Come and spend the weekend with us. We’ll give you and your whole family a tour of Springfield and you can deliver the message on Sunday.” Wow! What a great offer! I never saw the Lincoln Museum before and it is a once in a lifetime chance to come and preach on this prestigious U of I campus. God confirmed this speaking engagement at the recent Midwest/Missouri Valley Summer Bible Conference. I got to help Mary Cowen with her house church testimony. I met Jeremiah Park. Msn Joseph was in my small group. I also got to lead a group Bible study in the same room as Dr Sam’s group. To me, these were all signs from God that I should come.

Jesus has called me and my family to serve the students of NIU. NIU is a little different than U of I. NIU has many great students and students from over ninety countries, over 25,000 in all. NIU ha many great things. But this is U of I Champaign-Urbana! This is where Illinois’ top politicians are willing to jeopardize their careers, pulling strings to get their loved ones enrolled. This is where 13 Nobel Prize winners taught. This where some our state’s top students come. What an honor to be here! Who am I and who is my family that we can serve the Lord in this way? I thank God for his grace and I thank God for your hospitality.

So let’s get into the passage. In chapter five Paul urges Christians to be imitators of God. (5:1) We can do this when we live a life of love (2) and be light in Lord. (8) In this passage Paul teaches proper Christian behavior in certain relationships. The glue that keeps all of these relationships together and producing good fruit, is submitting to one another put of reference to Christ. This is never easy, but absolutely necessary to bring glory and honor to our Lord Jesus. May Jesus’ light shine brightly as you discover the wisdom of submitting to one another out of reverence to Christ. May you find new fresh, ways that you can practice submission to those who God has put in your lives. And may you have vision that your fellowship can become like the Ephesian Church.

Part l: A Beautiful Christian Fellowship (14-18)
God formed a beautiful Christian fellowship among the Ephesians. Look at verses 14b, “…Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." The fellowship of believers are those who personally experienced the grace of God. In the past they had spent their lives sleeping in deadness of heart. But one day, Jesus, the Light Of the World, shone his light on them. They heard the word of God and woke up spiritually. They repented and were forgiven of all their sins. They crossed over from death to life. (Jn 5:24) There is more. Let’s read verses 15-18 together. “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. 18Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.’” These young believers were very sincere in living out their newly discovered faith. They were careful to study the Bible, find God’s will and obey it. They sought after God’s wisdom and lived by it. They took very opportunity to grow in Jesus’ image and share their faith. They abandoned their past hedonistic lifestyles with its drunkenness and lived a spirit filled life, a life pleasing to the Lord.
Their fellowship was a taste of heaven. Look at verses 19-20. “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Their Christian lives were joyful. They could make music in their hearts to God. They were constantly encouraging one another with hearts full of song and lips full of praise. It came naturally for they were thankful for the saving grace of Jesus. What a beautiful fellowship! There was nothing like it in the world. Can you imagine coming to their church and someone comes up to you, holds your hand and sings to you? What would you do? Sing back or join in if you knew the song I hope. People were attracted to them to learn of Jesus and hear the word of God. We all want this kind of fellowship. My long term goal is to establish a 120 flock of God with this kind of spirit at NIU. I can see that God is growing this type of fellowship here at U of I Champaign – Urbana. For example, when we were practicing our special song Andy Lee joined in the singing and his brothers gathered around us as we all sang together. It was beautiful. Great fellowship starts with a core group of people who know the grace of God.
Part ll: Submit To One Another (5:21)
This kind of fellowship is not built by following a detailed list of creeds or following a “formula” for church growth. It is formed among people who love Jesus and who long to be imitators of Christ. But there is some other missing element. In America there are Christians who love Jesus and try to love others, but this kind of fellowship is becoming very rare. In fact, church attendance is on the decline. The USA Today, last week, reports that summer youth camps are dwindling and being cancelled because youth don’t find them relevant. What is the missing ingredient that strengthens Christian relationships, builds joyful fellowship and glorifies Jesus in the world? Let’s read verse 21 all together. “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” This is the key.
Why did Paul say, “submit to one another”? Is it easy? Not really. To submit means to yield. Submitting never comes naturally, especially in America, where the motto for the state of New Hampshire is “Live Free Or Die.” It is difficult because it requires humility, love and faith. It requires humility because we need to regard others better than ourselves. It requires love because we must love others and value our relationship with them even at the cost of our pride. It requires faith because we submit out of our reverence for Christ.
We may know this in our heads, but how difficult it is to submit to one another in real life! We have differing opinions. We butt heads and foster resentful feelings in our hearts for years. But if we are going to imitate Christ’s life of love we must learn to submit. When we submit, we pray for God to be glorified and God will help us to do what is right. Submitting is not compromising your convictions. It is not wasting time. It is coming together in the name of our Lord Jesus; growing together; co-working; relationship building. It is building Christian community.
Why must we submit to one another? Look at verse 21b again. “…out of reverence for Christ.” Reverence is a feeling of profound awe and respect mingled with love. We willingly submit because we have so much awe and respect for Jesus and we love him. Who is Jesus? He is the Almighty Creator God. He enjoyed all the glory, power and majesty of the Kingdom of Heaven. Yet, for our sakes he humbled himself, came to this world and became man. He loved and served and taught about the kingdom of God. He touched lepers. He gave sight to the blind and made the lame walk. He was a friend to sinners. He raised 12 disciples to be future spiritual leaders of the world. After 3 ½ year of loving and serving and teaching, he suffered and died on the cross bringing to us forgiveness. After pouring out his life he rose from the dead to give us a living hope in the Kingdom of God. He saved us from our sins, healed us and gave us eternal life. How awesome is our God! He is worthy of all praise. It is right to revere Jesus! It is right to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Despite of all these explanation, it still may be difficult to understand what submission means. Paul gave us several examples. He talks about the relationship between husbands and wives, children and parents, masters and slaves. These relationships are chosen because they are relationships that are the bedrock of any society. They also demand commitment. We can not ignore these relationships nor walk away from them. (Though some may try.) They are also relationships that have the potential to produce great satisfaction and much glory to God, if we practice submission within them. Let’s see.
Part lll: Wives/Husbands, Children/Parents, Slaves/Masters (5:22-6:9)
First, husbands and wives. Wives must submit to their husbands. Let’s read verse 22. “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.” And also verse 24, “Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.” Note that Paul doesn’t say, “Wives submit to your husbands if you think he’s funny, rich, handsome and right.” He points out that the husband is the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church. And just as the church submits to Christ so a wife should submit to her husband as a reflection of our relationship with Jesus. A wife’s submission to her husband is also an act of faith, hope and love. She submits because she has faith that it is God’s design for the family. She has hope that when she submits to her husband’s leadership then he will grow to be a great servant of God. All of this is possible because of her reverence for Christ and her respect for her husband (24).

Husbands must love their wives. (25-33). Let’s read verse 25. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her….” And now verse 28. “In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.” Husbands must love their wives. This kind of love is unconditional love. A husband must be like Jesus toward his wife, even laying down his life for her. He must love her like he loves his own body. He must pray for her and make an environment for her to study the Bible, perhaps doing the housework sometimes, so that she can have some uninterrupted quiet time in the word of God. In general he must try his best to present her to Jesus as a radiant bride. When he does, his family life will be a reflection of how Jesus loves the church. Also when a wife is loved like this she will easily submit to her husband.

How is this submission on the man’s part? This kind of love does not come naturally. Usually husbands want their wives to serve them. They want to take care of their own bodies well, like going to the gym and splashing on “Old Spice” after shave. They want to make sure that they have enough “Me” time for their hobbies ignoring their wife’s tight schedule. They also keep a record of wrongs. To submit and follow Paul’s instructions requires humility. It requires sacrifice. But a Christian man must submit in this way to truly love his wife out of reverence for Christ. And they can be a little more like Jesus.

Third, children and parents. Children must also practice submission. Let’s read verses 1-3. “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2"Honor your father and mother"—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3’that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” Obey means, “to follow the commands or guidance of; to comply with or conform to. (Merriam Webster) For those who have children they will discover that it is very difficult for them to obey…even if the child wants to. They are so excited about living, that most of the time it takes several demands, with a louder and louder voice, for obedience to occur. Obedience can be forced for a while. But true obedience is born out of love. When we love someone, we can obey them from the heart. Jesus’ whole life was marked by obedience to his Father in heaven. It was because he love his Father. (Jn 17b:26b) Therefore when Paul said, “Obey your parents” he meant, “Show love to your parents by following their commands and their guidance…co-operate with them because they love you…and you should love them.”

Paul also tells children to “Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with a promise…” (2) To honor means “a showing of respect” (Merriam Webster) Most times young children honor their parents. Many honor and respect their parents throughout their life time. But sometimes kids get older and begin to see their parents’ faults and criticize them. But here Paul does not say that they should honor their parents if their parents deserve it. They should simply honor them…period. This reveals God for God honors and respects us unconditionally.

There is also a ministry application in all this teaching about parents and children. All of us have someone who either led us to Jesus or has been mentoring us to help us grow as disciples. They are like spiritual parents. Paul was a spiritual father to several people. He once referred to Timothy and Titus as his true son in the faith. (1 Tim 1:2; Titus 1:4) Paul taught them the word of God, planted God’s hope in them and discipled them. He went ahead of them, setting the example of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Paul had many sons and daughters in the faith. And they loved him. When he prayed with the elders of the Ephesus church, they cried because they knew that they would not see him again. (Acts 20:36-38) They obey Paul, honored him and co-worked together in the task of world mission. Through their submitting to Paul’s leadership out of their reverence for Christ, the Gospel spread quickly across the Roman world.

What about those who feel that they just can’t obey and honor their parents? Paul says, “obey your parents in the Lord.” Obeying your parents in the lord can mean two things. It could mean that you should obey them as long as they don’t tell you to deny Jesus. But it can also mean that when it is hard to love and honor your parents, then you should take deeper root in Jesus and Jesus will help you.

Parents are also called to submit to the truth of God in raising their children. Let’s read verse 4. “4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” “Exasperate” was a very difficult word for me. This means to irritate or annoy; to excite the anger of. (Miriam Webster) I am afraid that I exasperate my kids too often. I need to repent and learn this lesson well. The fact is that children are very sensitive. They are easily brought to tears. When they don’t understand why they are being disciplined, they get angry. Parents can make unreasonable demands not based on the truth of God, but rather on their impatience, anger, judgmental feelings or human expectations. They also can make their kids angry by living according to the principle, “do as I say but not as I do.” This would make anyone angry.

To not exasperate children does not mean to just be their buddy and let them grow like weeds. Look at verse 4b, “…instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” A father should do his best to direct, guide and discipline his children so they may be successful, happy and hopefully disciples of Jesus. I think of Abraham in Genesis 18:18-19. It reads, “Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him." Abraham directed his children to keep the way of the Lord through his practical example. All those under his care saw his life of faith and his sincere spiritual struggle and they were influenced by him. I think that the best way to bring our children up in the training and instruction of the Lord is first show them lots of love, but also to have 1:1 Bible study with them, even from a young age. Make sure the kids see us praying, serving, creating Bible material, having Bible students come to our home, etc. When a parent’s lifestyle is one of submission to Christ, then the children will not become exacerbated, but rather may become willing co-workers in the work of God, even when demands are made on them.

When parents submit like this, then they reveal Jesus. We are God’s children, but does Jesus irritate and provoke us? No. He is very patient with us. Through his word and his Spirit he teaches us. He goes on ahead of us to show us the way. (Jn 10:4) He is by our side for our entire lifetime helping is to grow spiritually. This is Jesus. Let’s pray that we may reveal Jesus through our relationships with our children. Let us pray that we can have happy homes with love marked by submission to one another.

Third, slaves are called to submit to their masters. Look at verses 5-8, “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.” In the Roman world slavery was a part of life. In some Roman cities, two thirds of the population were slaves. Many of the early Christian converts were from the slave class. In regards to a slave’s attitude to his master, Paul uses the expressions “just as you would obey Christ,” and “doing the will of God from your heart,” and “as if you were serving the Lord.” In order to submit in this way, they needed to repent of bitter feelings and embrace a humble, obedient spirit.

But in our modern western society there are no slaves, (except for Visa slaves). Then what do these words mean to us? Well, there are relationships that Christians find themselves in where this principle may apply. What at about the employee/boss relationship? Employees should respect their bosses and with sincerity of heart, work hard as you would work for Christ. Don’t steal from your employers and give them an honest day’s work. What about the student/professor relationship? Students, obey your professors with respect and sincerity of heart. Listen attentively, take notes, do your homework on time with a scholarly attitude. Grow under his/her mentorship just as you would study under Christ. What about athlete/coach relationship? Athletes, respect and obey your coaches. Go to open gym. Always give 110%. Be there for all practices and games. Be an encouragement. When we find ourselves in a slave/master situation, instead of being bitter and turning and running, we must make each interaction a lesson in living before the Lord. Even though our employers may not recognize us, and our professors may fail to see our effort, or our coaches may keep us on the sidelines, and our Visa Masters may keep us in perpetual debt, Paul promises “the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does.” (8a) We must live before God and do our best to please Jesus.

There are a few chosen ones whom God has placed in the master position. How does Paul call them to submit? Look at verse 9. “And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.” Masters were to treat their slaves with respect for God is the Master of all. Today, all people in positions of power and authority must remember that they have been chosen to lead, equip and inspire those under their authority to help them work hard, live for the glory of God, and bear much fruit in their lives. One day they will have to give account to the One who is over them in heaven.

In this passage we discovered that in order to have a healthy and joyful Christian community, we need to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Submission is never easy, for it takes great humility but when we submit to our fellow believers, the peace of heaven can become manifest among us and Jesus can be revealed vividly through our humble submission. Whatever situation you may find yourself in, a husband, a wife, a child or a parent, a slave or a master, there are clear ways that God is calling you to practice. Do so …and be filled with vision that our Christian communities at NIU and U Of I Champaign Urbana can become like the Ephesian church.

Let’s read our key verse together. Verse 5:21, ““Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” And not lets read out motto, nice and loud….COMMIT TO SUBMIT.