Your Daily Devotional for October 8, 2007

 

October 8,  2007

 

 

The Fruit of Submission

by Dr. Paul Chappell

 

 

"By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you."

 

Hebrews 13:15-17

 

 

American industrialist and wealthy oil tycoon Jean Paul Getty was asked in an interview just before his death if there were anything else in life he wished he would have possessed. He answered, "I envy a happily married family."

 

Many people today are looking for a happy marriage and a loving family. As we can see in our society, they are turning to the wrong places for help. Some people read books, others watch television shows, and some seek secular counseling. Yet, God has given us the steps to have a happy marriage!

 

Over the last few days we have seen that if we desire a happy marriage, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit produces certain fruits or attributes in our lives that help us in our marriages. We have seen the fruits of joy and thankfulness. Today we will see the fruit of submission.

 

Submission is often viewed as an outdated term. With such a push on a person's rights and fighting for what is yours, submission has often been overlooked. But as we see in our verses today, God commands us to submit to our authorities and let them have rule over us.

 

Romans 12:10 says, "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another." God doesn't want us to have a spirit of competition, but one of submission. Let's see a few ways we are to have submission in our marriages.

 

First, the wife must submit to her husband. Today's society view this not as submission, but as weakness. We must not accept the mindset that submission is weakness, but that submission is obedience to God. Wives, you must submit to your husbands, not because he deserves it, but because God commands it. You are to submit to his authority as unto the Lord.

 

Second, husbands must love and yield to their wives. A wise husband looks for opportunities to yield to his wife! When we as husbands take on the idea that we are the head of the home and must therefore rule harshly, our marriage will suffer. Husbands, God set you as the head of the home, but He also requires you to love your wife and yield to her.

 

Last, both spouses must yield to the Lord. Someone once said, "Each to each other and both to the Lord." Failure comes when we don't submit to Christ. Christ is to be the head of our home and the center of our marriage. If we are not submitting to Him and seeking His help, we will not have a joyful marriage. We must make sure we are in submission to Him and His will for our lives each day.

 

Friend, are you submitting to the Lord in your marriage? Also, are you submitting and yielding to your spouse? Even in this day of self-promotion and advancement, God wants us to submit our wills to Him and to our spouses. Spend time in prayer right now and ask God to help you submit to Him and to your spouse today. As we make it a daily practice to submit our wills to Him, He will help us develop a godly and joyful marriage.

 

 

 

Daily Bible Reading

Isaiah 30-31 • Philippians 4

 

 

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