Jesus' brother, James, wrote long ago to the early followers of Jesus, "Submit to God."
I once counseled a man who at the age of forty had not yet married. The girl of his dreams was waiting for him, they had been dating for five years, but he would not marry her. So she was planning to move away. "I can't stay here, loving you and having you not want to marry me," she said. The man was distraught. He asked for help. When asked why he was so afraid to marry, he said that he was afraid he wouldn't be able to play golf.
Golf? What did that have to do with it? The man was afraid that he would have to give up his freedom, to put someone ahead of himself. He was afraid to submit to his wife. He was afraid to put her first, but there is no other way to have a successful marriage. We have to learn to put ourselves second.
The word to submit has taken such negative undertones. We think of it as an act of a weakling or a victim. It is a word used for abuse and oppression. But submission can also be an act of radical love, especially when it comes to God. To submit. The Greek word is hupotasso, upo means under and tasso means to place in order. Hupotasso, to place oneself under. Scholars believe it was originally a military term, meaning to place oneself under the authority of a commanding officer. The physical gesture associated with submission to God is to kneel or bow. It is a way of saying, "God, you are above me."
The disciples argued with each other about who would sit closest to Jesus in heaven. They knew that there would be a table in heaven, that they would be fed. But who would get to sit next to Jesus? Who would get the seat of honor? When Jesus asked them what they were talking about, their ambition embarrassed them and they didn't know how to answer him. "You must be like a little child to be with me," Jesus said.
When you ask God for something, what do you ask for? For health? For enough money? For a good job or home or successful business? Have you thought about what you are asking for? We all want health and success and popularity but are they really what we want? If the purpose of life is to sit near Jesus at the table, then maybe it is not good to put yourself first. Maybe you need to ask for what would make you more like a child. A child submits to the authority of the parent, it is part of the reality of childhood. A child does not always know what it best, so the parent must decide. Maybe instead of putting ourselves first, we need to follow James' advice and submit to God.
Just two weeks ago, the vicar of St. Mary's Church, Sue Carmichael, was attacked by a homeless man. I was early morning and he had come to receive some money. Damian was living in the woods. He had been drinking. Sue had known him since he was young. His mother was a drug addict. He was mentally ill. She had helped him for years. That morning, when he came in, he was holding a beer. "You don't want that," Sue said and she took the beer. And Damian went crazy.
He punched Sue in the face numerous times. Then he pushed her on her knees and held a knife to her neck. He is huge and strong. She was overpowered. But Sue said that she felt this incredible peace. She just kept saying, over and over again, "Damian, I love you. I love you. You don't want to do this."
Damian stood her up and put his big head on her shoulder and sobbed. "You have to call the police don't you?" he said. "Yes, I'm afraid that I do," she answered. Damian was taken into custody. Sue went to the ER, where she spent more time worrying about Damian than about herself. She is fighting for him to be put in a mental hospital rather than in jail. She fights for him.
Why was Sue not afraid? How was she able to trust, like a child? Well, for one thing, Sue Carmichael knows what to pray for. And she knows that her desires are not necessarily what God wants for her. So she has spent the past 30 years in Springfield ministering to the poor, the homeless, the mentally ill. She gives her money, her heart, her self. She knows what it means to be a baptized child of God. There is nothing to be afraid of. A baptized one already has everything that they could ever want.
When Damian brought her to her knees, Sue knew what it was like to be there. She did not try to get up, to fight him, to struggle. She stayed on her knees. She told him that she loved him. She trusted in the strength of God, not her own strength. She was not afraid.
In a radical act of submission, Sue was willing to die for God. She gave her whole life away.
Why are we called to give? To give is to visibly and practically put yourself under the authority of God. This pledge season, the church is going to ask you to pledge money. We ask you to do this first, before you decide all that you need and all that you want. Ask God first what He wants. Put his authority over yours. Be like a little child and ask your Father in Heaven to guide you. All the things that you want, they may not be what's best for you. Don't you know that there is so much more than just what we see before us? Don't you believe that God knows you better than you know yourself? Give, you baptized ones, and put God first in your life.
Oh, and my friend from my former parish, he did end up marrying his love. And he does play golf. But sometimes, when she needs him to be with her, he doesn't play but submits and loves her more.
