Last writing we were looking at this quote from Alan Redpath:
“The essence of sin is arrogance; the essence of salvation is submission.”
Too often when people are told to submit, it is not for Godly purposes. This is why when we consider submission, we should ask ourselves a few questions:
WHAT does submission mean?
WHO are we submitting to?
WHY are we submitting?
I found this online definition of submission: “The voluntary act of yielding one’s will, rights, or desires to a higher authority out of love and reverence for God.”
Please note that submission should always be voluntary. When submission is demanded, it is unhealthy.
God loves us. Since He loves us, He wants what is best for us. He created us. He wants to have a vibrant and alive relationship and fellowship with us. He is good. He is caring. He gives us breath. He is the first One we should want to submit our lives to.
Knowing who God is helps us to decide to submit to Him.
I know that God’s will is best, so I want to submit to His will.
I know He cares about my rights, so I’m willing to yield my rights as He guides me.
I know God’s desires for me, His plans for me are good, so giving up my desires for His desires makes sense.
I do all of this because He is the highest authority! It is always for my benefit to submit to God.
True relationships with God are built on love and reverence for Him. He is always worthy of our love and respect!
I submit to God because His Word provides me with sufficient knowledge of who He is, what He desires, and how He has shown me His love. He has shown His love through sending His Son Jesus Christ to pay the debt for my sins. What greater act could reveal how much our God loves us?
God is worthy of our submission.
God will not abuse our submission.
God will bless our submission.
There are so many reasons why we can trust ourselves into the hands of our loving God.
Got Questions, an online site, has an article on Biblical submission, entitled: “What is the definition of submission?”. This is a quote from that article:
“The key to understanding biblical submission is two other words: authority and role. For Christians, biblical submission starts with arranging one’s life under the will and direction of God. We surrender to God’s choices and defer to His will. Submission to God is a just, rational response when we recognize, in humble gratitude, His supreme authority (Hebrews 6:13), goodness (Matthew 19:17), and love (1 John 3:1). God created us in His image (Genesis 1:26–27), and that alone establishes His authority over us. We submit to God willingly, in faith that He knows what’s best for us (Isaiah 48:17). We submit in gratitude, knowing He has rescued us from hell and forgiven our sin (John 3:16–17; Romans 6:23). We submit in confidence, knowing He has planned a unique mission for each of us before time began (Psalm 139:16; Ephesians 1:4; 2 Timothy 1:9).”
The following are the verses indicated in the above quote:
Hebrews 6:13: “When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself,”
Matthew 19:17: “”Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
1 John 3:1: “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.”
Genesis 1:26: “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
Isaiah 48:17: “This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.”
John 3:16-17: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Psalm 139:16: “Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
Ephesians 1:4: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.”
2 Timothy 1:9: “He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time,”
Don’t allow an unbiblical experience of submission keep you from submitting to Christ. He loves you and wants you to trust Him, following Him because you believe in Him. One day we will see Him in person. Until we see Jesus, we live by faith.
God will never let us down. I can testify to this. The people whose accounts are recorded in Scripture also testify to trusting Him, and submitting to Him as the best way of living.
If you have had a bad experience in submitting to someone and it is keeping you from trusting God, I’d be glad to discuss this with you. Please contact me at: ButGodCares@gmail.com.
Living for Jesus, Donna
P.S. If this has helped you, please share it with others!
Note: If the verses for Bible references do not appear when you hover over them, go directly to the website, and they should appear for you. Also, please remember to look at the full context of the verses by reading the complete passage.
Copyright 2026 Donna Shappy All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other – without the prior permission of the author.