Submission and Freedom – God's Strategic Harmony
🔑 Key Text: 1 Peter 2:13–17
"Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human authority…"
Understanding Biblical Submission
🧭 I. Submission Is Not Weakness—It's Divine Alignment
Context & Challenge
Peter writes under Roman tyranny yet calls believers to submit not out of fear, but for the Lord's sake.
Challenge: Today, "submit" feels like a dirty word. But biblically, it's a word of strength, not surrender.
Definition
Submission means voluntary cooperation—strategic alignment under authority for a greater purpose. Yielding one's preferences to cultivate harmony, honor, and unity.
🪖 Greek word for "submit" was a military term—troops arranged under leadership for unified movement.
🔁 II. The Divine Blueprint: Trinitarian Submission
Person of the Trinity
Submits To
Purpose
God the Son (Jesus)
God the Father
To fulfill the Father's will (John 6:38)
God the Holy Spirit
God the Son
To glorify Christ (John 16:14)
Jesus: Equal Yet Submitted
Equal to the Father, yet submitted to His will—even unto death. This was not inferiority, but functional alignment.
Holy Spirit: Glorifying the Son
Equal to the Son, yet glorifies Him and empowers His mission. Submission without self-promotion.
🔹 Submission in the Trinity is joyful, purposeful, and rooted in love—not coercion.
🌍 III. Submission in Society: Living Free Under Authority
Peter's Call
Submit to human institutions for the Lord's sake—not because they're perfect, but because God is sovereign.
Freedom in Christ: We are free, but not lawless. We use our freedom to honor others and reflect Christ.
Your conduct shapes perceptions of Christ. That's why submission matters.
Peter affirms that the proper role of authorities: "to punish those who do wrong and commend those who do right." That's the ideal. However, even when reality falls short, believers are called to honor the structure. Not because it's perfect, but because God is sovereign.
🧠 Freedom without submission becomes rebellion. Submission without freedom becomes oppression. God calls us to both.
Submission in the Workplace (1 Peter 2:18-25)
Peter specifically addresses servants, telling them to submit to their masters with all respect, not only those who are kind and reasonable but also to those who are unjust and unreasonable.
Not Blind Obedience
The Bible never teaches absolute submission to any and everything that those in authority, or you are subject to.
Submission is not blind obedience: it stops where sin (abuse) (not unfairness) begins (Acts 5:29, Daniel 6:10).
"We must obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:29)
To Your Own Employer/Masters
Whether at your job, home, as a mate. (Doing something unlawful (taxes) husband want wife to sleep with other men for his viewing. Worship or violation of Christ
Enduring Undeserved Pain
The commendation is for those who endure unjust suffering, not those who endure punishment for wrongdoing. This is where a believer's true character and trust in God are revealed.
Roman Slavery vs. American Chattel Slavery
Roman Empire
Roman Empire was a slave state. Roman servitude was often economic and contractual. However, slaves could earn freedom, own property, and rise in status.
American Chattel Slavery
Colonization: American Chattel Slavery: Dehumanizing. People were treated as property—bought, sold, inherited like livestock.
Exodus 21:16 condemns this: "He who kidnaps a man and sells him… shall be put to death."
Revolt: Peter's Context
He's not endorsing oppression; he's calling believers to witness within unjust systems.
Submission is not agreement, it's alignment with God's purpose. It's never about superiority, or worth (not as smart, didn't earn. It's the way it is)
Jesus with His parents (who was greater Joseph, Mary or Jesus)
Jesus to authorities!
📖 Submission and Honor in Marriage
🔑 Key Text: 1 Peter 3:1–7
Theme: Marriage as Witness and Worship
In those times it was unthought of that a woman would have any other faith than the faith of her husband. So now should I leave, is he no longer head of our household. Am I superior because of my relationship with Christ?
🧭 I. Submission: A Divine Strategy, not a Cultural Surrender
Biblical Foundation: All believers—male and female—are under authority. First to God, then within God-ordained structures (Romans 13:1–2).
1 Corinthian 11: 3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.
Clarification: Submission is not about inferiority, silence, or abuse. It's about alignment, respect, and purposeful influence.
"Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake…" (1 Peter 2:13)
"Submit to your own husbands…" (1 Peter 3:1)
B. Submission Is Not Universal to All Men
Women are not called to submit to all men—only to their own husbands You are not to submit to all men, but just your husband. You are to the pastor, or men at work.
This covenantal relationship takes priority over other relationships (boss, parents).
💍 III. Submission in Marriage (1 Peter 3:1–6)
In context, this submission is not about inferiority, it's about influence
And it is about respect!
All believers, male and female, are under authority. We must learn to be submissive first of all to God.
📖 A. Wives: Submitting with Strength
🔹 Spiritual Truths:
"They may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives…" (v.1) Peter is writing to women saying: your conduct can win them over without a word.
That's powerful. It's not manipulation; it's ministry.
Some look for an escape close for not doing this.
Inner Beauty Over External Adornment
He emphasizes inner beauty over external adornment. "The unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit… is of great worth in God's sight."
This isn't about silencing women; it's about elevating character.
🔹 Application:
01
Win your husband (people) by conduct
02
Cultivate inner beauty over external adornment
In a culture obsessed with appearance, about exterior looks. It is about the heart's attitude. (the society was obsessed with hair: blonde imported from Germany). He is not saying don't adorn yourself, make yourself look as you want to look.
03
Focus on Character
Peter calls for depth. True beauty in God's sight is not Many women focus on their physical looks. They spend hours buying and applying makeup. They spend hours reading fashion magazines. They spend hours getting beauty treatments. They spend money on plastic surgery to improve their looks. With no interior improvements
Peter is just reminding that character outlasts cosmetics. Holiness is radiant.
04
Trust God's Covering
Trust God's covering, like Sarah did, who honored Abraham and walked in faith. Peter then points to Sarah as an example of respectful strength. She honored Abraham, but she also walked in faith. (he was flawed)
Submission in Scripture is
"The unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit… is of great worth in God's sight." (v.4)
📖 Husbands: Dwelling with Wisdom (1 Peter 3:7)
Then Peter turns to husbands: "Be considerate… treat them with respect… as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life." That's mutuality. Husbands are called to honor, understand, and protect.
Men are to learn how to be a good leader of your family. Loving her like Christ loved the church. Dwelling with her in wisdom.
Know her emotionally, spiritually, and practically.
Honor her as a co-heir of grace.
Protect her dignity. Nurture her gifts.
Lead with empathy, not ego.
🔸 Dwelling with Understanding Means: Song: "Treat her like a lady"
Peter warns that failure to do so can hinder their prayers. That's sobering. Headship is not domination—it's sacrificial understanding.
Your prayers are hindered if you dishonor your wife.
Marriage is not just relational, it's spiritual.
"Treat them with respect… so that nothing will hinder your prayers." (v.7)
Marriage is not just relational. It's spiritual.
How do you dwell with wisdom?
This passage calls both spouses to humility, honor, and holiness.
Marriage is a mirror of the gospel.
When husbands and wives live this way, their relationship becomes a witness to the world.
🎻 Lesson: Sausa Lessons): both partners move in rhythm, not competing, but complementing. That's biblical marriage.
Submission and honor are not chains, they're choreography.
🪞 V. Marriage Is a Mirror of the Gospel
"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." (Ephesians 5:21)
Submission and honor are not chains, they're choreography.
📖 1 Peter 3:8–12 – Unity, Compassion, Humility!
Bless Instead of Retaliate
Theme: Community Conduct and Spiritual Maturity
Peter now addresses the broader church: "Finally, all of you…"
This is a call to unity. He lists five traits: like-mindedness, sympathy, love, compassion, and humility. These are not optional, they're essential. They form the relational fabric of a healthy church. Ephesians 4:3
Unity doesn't mean uniformity, it means harmony. Like instruments in an orchestra, each believer plays a different part, but the same song.
Sympathy
Sympathy means entering someone else's pain.
Love
Love means choosing connection over convenience.
Compassion
Compassion means feeling deeply.
Humility
Humility means putting others first.
Then Peter gives a radical command:
"Do not repay evil with evil… but with blessing."
That's countercultural. In a world of retaliation, Peter calls for redemption. Blessing those who hurt you is not weakness, it's warfare. It disarms the enemy and honors God.
Golden rules of believers: do unto others as you would have them…
He quotes Psalm 34 to reinforce the point: those who love life must guard their tongue, turn from evil, and pursue peace. That's spiritual maturity.
Your words matter.
Your reactions matter.
Your pursuit of peace matters.
Peter says the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their prayer. That's intimacy and omniscience:
What is God's omniscience? knowing and seeing all:
Omniscience: God is all-knowing (and all seeing), possessing perfect and complete knowledge of all things past, present, and future. This includes knowing every detail of our lives, our thoughts, and even our hairs, as well as all possible events.
When you walk in unity and humility, heaven listens.
EX: Ever check out a Rowing Team they are in perfect sync. If one person fights the rhythm, the boat veers off course.
That's the church. Unity isn't just nice, it's necessary.
Blessing others, even enemies keeps the boat moving forward.
📖 1 Peter 3:13–17 – Be Ready to Give a Reason for Your Hope
Theme: Evangelism Through Integrity and Clarity
Peter now turns to the theme of witness.
"Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?"
He's not promising immunity—he's pointing to influence.
When you live with integrity, even opposition loses its sting.
This portrays the readiness sharing your faith.
When Christ is Lord in your heart, your life becomes a platform for His glory.
When: "Always be prepared to give an answer… for the hope that you have."
This is not about winning arguments—it's about sharing hope.
Your story matters.
Your reason matters.
Your tone matters.
***Do this with gentleness and respect." That's crucial.
When you speak with humility, people listen. When you speak with hostility, they shut down.
Keep a clear conscience, so that those who slander you may be ashamed of their behavior. People cannot intimidate you, or steal your credibility when you have a clear conscience!
That's integrity.
Be a lighthouse in a storm.
It doesn't shout—it shines. It saves! That's evangelism.
Be ready.
Be gentle.
Be clear.
Let your life provoke the question, and your words provide the answer.
📖 1 Peter 3:18–22 – Christ Suffered Once for Sins: Victorious Over Death
Theme: Suffering, Substitution, and Triumph
Peter closes the chapter with a theological crescendo. "Christ suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God." That's the gospel in one sentence.
Substitution
He took your place
Sacrifice
He took your pain.
Reconciliation
He bridged your peace
Jesus didn't just suffer; He suffered for you.
He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. That's resurrection power.
Peter then references Christ preaching to "spirits in prison." This is a debated passage, but the core truth is clear: Jesus triumphed over death and declared victory.
Peter connects this to Noah and the ark—eight people saved through water. He then says, "This water symbolizes baptism… not the removal of dirt… but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God."
What is baptism?
Peter closes this chapter with Exaltation:
This reminds believers that suffering is not the end, it's just sometimes part of the path to glory.
We follow in His footsteps:
Our suffering has purpose.
Our baptism has power.
Our Savior has victory.
Image a courtroom where the guilty are sentenced, until the Judge steps down and takes the punishment Himself.
That's substitution.
That's the cross.
That's the resurrection, the reversal of the verdict.
Live with Unity. Witness with Integrity. Trust in Victory.