Proverbs 1:8-9Pg2
Hear, my son, your father’s instruction And do not forsake your mother’s teaching;Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck.
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continued…
The art of submission is learned and practiced. It is important because as Christians, we represent the Name of Christ, but it is also important for our own safety and security.
As a wife, I am safe under the leadership of my husband. Even if he doesn’t make the right decision, I am protected under his authority, which is God’s instruction for wives (Ephesians 5:23). I am responsible to my husband, and my husband is responsible to God.
If I deviate from my husband’s authority and demand my own way apart from him, then I will pay the consequences because I have come out from under the safety of his authority.
For Our Children
It’s the same for our children. When they come out from under their parental protection and take matters into their own hands, by disregarding, disrespecting or disobeying their parents, they forfeit the protection God afforded them through their father and mother (or guardian).
As the child becomes an adult and is responsible for himself (financially and otherwise), he is then accountable to God first. It can be a very tricky thing relating to our parents as a child and then transitioning as an adult (and vice versa), but as long as we are seeking God first, He will lead us to do the right thing by our parents.
My point is this. The art of submission is critically important to learn as early in life as possible. It is important for the sake of our own salvation and our welfare.
Happiness and health are largely dependent upon two things:
· The state of our thinking
· The condition of our heart
Both of these things play a large part in our emotional and physical health. If we don’t learn and practice the art of submission, we have a great difficulty forgiving others.
Transformed Heart and Mind
When we go through life with a heart and mind full of grudges, resentments and judgments, it turns what could be a pleasing disposition into a sour one. Our thoughts and language portray the condition of our heart, and if the growing bitterness does not get cleaned out it begins to bubble up to the surface toward the physical, affecting our health.
Look again at Proverbs 1:9, the effect of listening to the instructions of our father and mother. This includes our Heavenly Father.
Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck.
The wreath on the head is a pleasing and healthy thought life. The ornaments about our neck are a tribute to a pleasing attitude in our heart, which is beautiful to God, our Father.
The sacrifices of righteousness—humility and submission—have great rewards. They are attributes of Jesus Christ, and we are made in His image. In Him we can do all things, including forgiving and submitting.
Study the Bible verses of Proverbs 1:8-9 and live in the full knowledge of the art of submission.
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