Submission Paves the Way to Victory

1 Peter 2:13a (NKJV) - Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake…
 
The middle letter of sin is “I”, and our own rebellion and stubbornness is the problem keeping us from biblical submission. Right after prophetically describing how Jesus would be punished for our sins (Isaiah 53:3-5), verse 6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray. Everyone has turned to his own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." In other words, we've all done our own thing and what we want to do. We've wandered and strayed, and our waywardness is why we need Jesus.
 
The Bible continually refers to people as sheep (Psalm 23:1-4 and John 21:15-16), and it’s not a compliment. Sheep wander. If they stayed in line, you wouldn't need a shepherd. A shepherd's always bringing the sheep back together and back to safety. If they stayed where they needed to be, they wouldn’t need a shepherd. Jesus is our Shepherd (1 Peter 5:1-4).  
 
This sinful stubbornness, pride and rebellion has been around since before humanity existed. Isaiah 14:12-15 records an encounter between God and Lucifer, a created angelic being who would become Satan:
 
Isaiah 14:12–15 (NKJV)
12 “How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, You who weakened the nations!
13 For you have said in your heart: ‘I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will also sit on the mount of the congregation On the farthest sides of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.’
15 Yet you shall be brought down to Sheol, To the lowest depths of the Pit.
 
God had entrusted Lucifer (who would later be called Satan) with a certain authority and domain. Instead of being content with that status in heaven, Satan overstepped his bounds. He made five bold declarations, essentially saying, “I will rise to the highest heights, I will be just like God, and I will elevate my throne.” But God responded by saying, “No, you will actually fall to the earth.”
 
Jesus describes what He saw during this moment when He says in Luke 10:18, “…I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” Jesus then tells His disciples that He is giving them authority over Satan and the forces of darkness in the next verse: “Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.”
 
Submission to God is related to victory over the devil. James 4:7 says, “Submit therefore to God, resist the devil and he will flee.” Christians love to talk about the authority that we have over Satan. “Greater is He that's in us than he that's in the world” (see 1 John 4:4). It is true that Satan has no power nor dominion over the life of the child of God. We, as Christians, do not have to fear the devil. We have power and authority over Satan in the name of Jesus and through the power of His blood. We have the angels of heaven who are fighting our battles. We don't have to be afraid of the devil, that's for sure. However, we cannot separate “resist the devil and he will flee” from “submit therefore to God” We must first submit ourselves to God, then we're in a position to resist the devil and he will flee. Submission paves the way to victory.
 
Even in a society that made it difficult to be a Christian, Peter said to "submit to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake" (or, because we are Christians). Often, we think we're submitting when we're just in agreement. We say, "I usually submit, but this time I can't go along with what my boss is telling me" or "I can't follow this new speed limit." What we're really saying is that all those other times, we've just been agreeing. But now, when we have a real chance to submit to authority, we're rejecting it. That's the stubbornness of our pride and sinfulness.
 
There's another example of this with King Saul. God anointed Saul as king through Samuel the prophet. However, even as king, Saul was expected to follow God's commands as delivered by Samuel.
 
In 1 Samuel 15, God instructed Samuel to tell Saul to attack a group offensive to God and destroy everything, including animals. But Saul disobeyed, deciding to keep some animals, claiming he intended to sacrifice them to God. This disobedience led God to reject Saul as king.
 
Samuel confronted Saul, saying, "What is this bleating of sheep that I hear?" Saul's partial obedience was unacceptable. Samuel stated, "To obey is better than sacrifice." In 1 Samuel 15:23, Samuel tells Saul, "Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you from being king."
 
We would never touch witchcraft as Christians, and we shouldn’t because it’s satanic. Samuel says that Saul’s rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and his stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. He does not say that Saul rejected Samuel’s directive, but rather God’s. He says, “Because you have rejected the word of the Lord…” The principle here is that God has established human institutions, and we are to submit to them. Samuel was the prophet, and God spoke to Saul through Samuel. Therefore, Saul did not disobey Samuel – he disobeyed God.
 
This same kind of stubbornness and rebellion prevails in today’s society. Teachers are striving to manage their classrooms while children and parents refuse to submit to them. The kids and parents are telling the teachers how to lead or manage their classes. When a teacher tries to correct an unruly child and sends him or her to the principal’s office, soon parents are demanding their child not be treated that way. Generally speaking, these types of parents have no respect for the authority. They are rebellious parents raising rebellious children.
 
Another example can be seen when coaches are working with kids and parents in youth sports. A congregant of mine witnessed a coach teaching 8-year-old ballplayers. He said to one of them,
 
“You understand that even if you perform well, if the team loses, we’ve all lost, right?”
 
“Yes, coach, I understand.”
 
The coach continued, "You understand this isn't an individual sport; it's a team sport."
 
"Yes, coach, I do."
 
"You understand that sometimes I'll need to pull you out and put someone else in?"
 
"Yes, coach."
 
"And you know it's important to support the team and not act like a brat if you're on the bench, right?"
 
"Yes, coach."
 
The coach finished by saying, “Now, I need you to explain all that to your grandma, who’s right over there.”
 
This kind of rebelliousness towards all forms of human authority starts with parents (or maybe grandparents, too), and goes down to the children. God’s Word teaches that believers are to have a spirit of submissiveness toward parents, teachers, coaches, employers, pastors and government. Sinful stubbornness is the problem with society, but God’s children should be different as we "submit to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake" (1 Peter 2:13). Submission paves the way to victory.
 
“Dear God, You ordered our world to have structures of authority. I may not always agree with them, but I pray that I will show Jesus to others by how I submit to those who are over me – at home, at work, at school, or in society. I trust You that You know best. Thank You for conforming me into the likeness of Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, amen.”