Whatever !!
Ephesians 5:19-21
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
20
always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ to God, even the Father
21
and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Whatever!
--It
sounds like I'm copping an attitude but nothing is further from the
truth. Whatever! should be our response whenever God's Word
says to do something. Whatever You say, Lord.
This kind of submission doesn't
come naturally. We are all natural-born rebels with a built-in
resistance to another person's agenda. So when you can say,
Whatever, Lord, that's great evidence that God is changing you.
Submission of any variety has a
terrible reputation. And biblical submission is often high-jacked by
selfish, even cruel authoritarians who twist it for their own
purposes.
Contrary to what many people
think, submission is not just for women and children.
Romans
13:1
clearly commands that
Every person
is to be in subjection
to the governing authorities.
Ephesians
5:21 says, "Be
submissive to one another in the fear of Christ."
Mutual submission is for both sexes, every age, social status, and
employment relationship.
Submission comes down to choice.
It's not top down; it's bottom up. If you're in a role where you
need to submit--that's a choice God asks you to willingly make.
Husbands are not to demand wives to submit. Neither elders nor
Ministers are to demand that their people submit but both are to
lovingly serve and give themselves to those they lead.
Are you in a situation where you're
being unfairly treated in the name of submission? God's will is "
that by doing right you may
silence
the ignorance of foolish men"
(
1
Peter 2:15 ). That word
silence actually means "to muzzle." You might love to
muzzle some people. God's all for it but you need do it His way--do
right, trust God, wait on Him, and willingly submit as unto Him.
When we choose this attitude, we
put ourselves under God's protection. That's a great place to live.
But when you get out from under His umbrella and do it your way, you
become very vulnerable. It's only when you say Whatever, Lord,
and submit to God-placed authority as unto the Lord that God's
blessings are yours in
abundance. ( From
the Internet )