Chapter two - God chain of command

 

We have seen that leadership is not earned, or deserved, but rather it is given by someone who has a position of higher authority, and has the right to give it to others.  In this case it is God Himself, the Highest authority, Who appoints those He wants to be in a position of leadership to that position.  He has what we know as a "chain of command" which is like an organizational chart of just who receives authority from what source.  In God's chain of command He starts with the family unit, the building block of all society;

 

1 Corinthians 11:3: But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

 

God's chain of command:

 

• God The Father:

The Father, is at the top, the ultimate source of all authority. 

Joh 14:28  Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.

 

• God The Son:

He, the Father, has given the jurisdiction to Jesus to be under Him. 

Eph 1:20  Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,

Eph 1:21  Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:

 

• The husband:

And under Jesus, God has given authority to the husband to be the head of the wife and the home.

Col 3:18  Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.

 

• The wife: Christ gave authority to His disciples, (Luk 9:1), and the husband has the right to give authority to the wife in her dealing with their children,

 

• The children: the children have no authority while they are young.

 

Christian wives accept the authority of the Father, and they accept the authority of Jesus, but when it comes to accepting the authority of their husbands to be over them in God's chain of command, many rebel. Even though it is God Himself who makes this appointment. In the rejection of their husband's authority over them, they actually are rebelling against God, and they are rejecting His authority to make that appointment.

 

Eph 5:22-24 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.

 

Let's break down this verse:

 

"Wives, submit yourselves", your husband has the position of leadership in the home, given to him by the Father. Your responsibility is to allow him to lead.

 

"unto your own husbands,", this extra level of submission is just toward your own husband, and it does not extend to all men.

 

"As unto the Lord" 

 

A police officer, or a judge is appointed to represent the government of your county, state, or nation, and to enforce the laws of said government. In the same way, your husband represents God's authority.  When he tells you to do something, he is speaking with all the authority of God behind him to give you that order.  Just as Christ spoke with all the authority of the Father, so your husband has that same authority given to him by the same source. When you obey him, you obey just like you would obey the Lord giving you that order. To refuse to obey your husband is therefore sin. (see chapter seven for exceptions to this rule)

 

"For the husband is the head of the wife", this is where God's chain of command comes into play.

 

1 Corinthians 11:3: But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

1Pe 3:1  Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;

1Co 14:34  Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.

1Co 14:35  And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.

 

"Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands " This submission is illustrated by the example of Christ commanding His bride, the church. This verse is clearly stating that wives should pattern their responsibilities in marriage after the example of the church (the Bride of Christ). Can the church disobey a command from her Bridegroom without being in sin? The obvious answer would of course be no. This again, only applies to your husband, not all men.

 

Eph 1:22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,

 

Just as we look at our own fathers and form an image of God the Father, here the apostle Paul says that we can look at our wife and see an image of the church and her submission to her Bridegroom. You are a living lesson to your husband and your children on how to submit to God by how submit your husband. Do you want your husband to completely submit to Christ? He is looking at you for a living example. Your life is what the church's submission to Christ is supposed to look like to him. Do you want your husband to acknowledge that all that he has comes from God? Your husband is watching your life to see if you are giving him authority over your finances.

 

"in everything" In everything means exactly what it says, but their are a few exceptions. (see chapter seven). A broader explanation is in chapter five.

 

The reason why the wife has to submit is as a result of the curse.

 

Gen 3:16  Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

 

In summary, because Christ has given the husband the authority to be the head of his wife, as seen above, it follows that the wife will have to submit to her husband's authority, unless she willingly disobeys God's clear command.