I remember hearing the word “submit” for the first time at church. That word made me cringe. I thought, “Submit to authority?” The thought of being subject to or submitting to someone was not how I was raised and not in my nature. In my mind, this meant that someone else had the upper hand and that I was giving it to them. I am much better now than I was initially. But, I still have some growing to do in terms of submission, especially because God expects it of me and calls me to it. “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” Romans 13:1.
In times such as these, submission to authorities is even more unpalatable to the majority. We sometimes want to cry out, “Submit to authorities?!?!”
But scripture doesn’t say that we can pick and choose when we are going to submit. It just says that we are to do so. God placed the authorities over us. Therefore, we are to submit to them. We see that in our main verse, Romans 13:1.
We don’t have to like what our authorities ask us to do. Nor, do we have to understand why they ask us to do things. And we don’t have to want to do what they have asked. But we do have to submit.
Of course, there is an exception. God would not ask us to submit to authorities who would require us to do something contrary to His own command(s). We submit to God’s authority first and man’s second. And if man asks something of us that is sin, we are not to do it. But, apart from being sin against God, it is not for us to reason why. It is for us to submit and leave the results to God.
Jesus was our perfect example of submission. He submitted to the authorities placed over Him (and His Heavenly Father) all the way to the cross.
But there are also two women who were powerful in their submission to God and a good example of resisting a sinful authority named Shiprah and Puah. These are two women that even Bible scholars pause for a moment to remember.
We find Shiphrah and Puah, ever so briefly, in Exodus 1. In this chapter, a new king has taken control of Egypt and he was fearful of the number of Hebrews (Israelites). He did awful things to try and control their population, but the worse he treated them, the more they increased in number. So, he called two midwives, assigned to assist in the delivery of the Hebrew babies, to murder every Hebrew baby boy who was born. “16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” Exodus 1:16.
But, then we read verse 17 which tells us that these two women feared God more than they feared the king. “The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.” These women didn’t say, “Should we submit to authority?” They knew that they were to submit to God. So, they peacefully and quietly opposed the king and submitted to God.
Now, when the king found out, he summoned them and asked why they had been disobedient. The women lied and said that the Hebrew women were giving birth so quickly that they couldn’t get there in time (paraphrasing here 🙂 ).
God blessed the obedience of these two women. “So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.” Exodus 1:20-21.
The king did not cease his plan to kill all the Hebrew babies. But God had already accomplished His plan. Those two women had preserved the life of Moses who became the leader of God’s chosen people.
Moses was an incredible prophet who literally stood in the presence of God and spoke with Him. In fact, according to the scriptures, He was the greatest prophet in Israel… ever. “And there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face,” Deuteronomy 34:10.
So, God used the bravery and submission (to Him) of these two women to assist in securing the life of Moses. He also used them to be an example to us.
We do not see that these women were opposing the king in any other realm. But when asked to sin and to personally commit murder, they submitted to God instead.
And that should be our example. Unless we are being required by the authorities placed over us to sin, SUBMIT!
God is sovereign. Only He knows for what purpose he placed our specific authorities over us. And, who are we to question God!? ““Woe to him who strives with him who formed him, a pot among earthen pots! Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’ or ‘Your work has no handles’?” Isaiah 45:9.
God will have His way. But will we submit? Will we submit to God and, through His command, the authorities placed over us as well? “13 Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.” 1 Peter 2:13-14.
In a world where submission is a dirty word — a world in which we have very little respect for the authorities placed over us — how much more is God glorified when we do? We are called to submit to that authority but only when it doesn’t contradict God’s. Shiphrah and Puah were not only submissive, they were brave. We would do well to follow their example.
Father God, we praise you that even the authorities over us were placed there by your hand. We praise you that your ways are higher than ours and that we can trust you with the outcome of our submission. Father, we thank you for the example of Shiphrah and Puah .
Lord, please forgive us when we lack respect for the authorities that are placed over us. You were the perfect example of submission. And we desire to follow after you. Forgive us for the way in which this robs you of glory and honor and questions your sovereignty. Holy Spirit, convict us and lead us in submission. If an authority asks us to sin, lead us in the way of honoring God and bravely submitting to Him. Father, be glorified in us and our submission to both the authorities over us and You. Let us question the authorities over us, only when they are in conflict with you. And, where your authority is concerned, let us never say, “Submit to Authority?”.
If you do not know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior and if (like I used to be) submission is a dirty word to you, please pray the prayer on our Life Preserver page (https://forgiven-n-loved.com/life-preserver/). God wouldn’t ask you to do something that wasn’t for your own good. He loves you and wants good things for you. God blessed Shiphrah and Puah for their submission. And, He will bless us when we submit as well. This prayer is the first submission to God, that every follower of Christ must do. We come to have a personal relationship with God, through this prayer.
Please pray and, once you have, reach out to me at admin@Forgiven-N-Loved.com and let me know. I’d love to be in prayer with and for you.
Luv Ya!
