1 Corinthians: "Subject"

Again, a very warm welcome. Some have just come. We do appreciate it and appreciate the effort.

Some came quite a distance. And I assure you, I do not take that for granted. It is very, very appreciated that you have come.

Now, just one or two little things, just to mention just a slight change in the order. In the will of God this afternoon, we will take up the subject of being subject or being submissive. Then we will trace.

Next, the theme of any man or every man as it is found. And then look at the word judge, finally in the third meeting, leaving the study of the word shame as it occurs in the epistle till tomorrow in the will of the Lord. So tomorrow we will look at the blots that were propagated in the assembly, tracing the frequent use of the word shame through the epistle.

And lastly, the mentions of the word love or charity in the epistle. And that will be for tomorrow. Now, the meeting before us at this time is on the subject of subjection or submission as it is seen in the epistle.

Turn first of all to chapter nine. Now, for the sake of time, we'll just read selectively here beginning at verse 19. For though I be free from all, yet have I made myself servant to all that I might gain the more.

Unto the Jews, I became a Jew that I might gain the Jews. To them under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law. To them that are as without law, being not without law to God, but under law to Christ, that I might gain them that are without law.

Verse 23, and this I do for the gospel's sake that I might be particular of with you. Know ye not that they which run in a race run all? One receiveth the prize, so run that ye may obtain. Everyone that striveth for the mastery is tempered in all things.

Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run not as uncertainly, so fight I not as one that beateth the air, but I keep under my body and bring it into subjection. There's the first, well, it's not really the first mentioned in the epistle, but the first we will look at, I bring it into subjection.

Lest by any means when I preach to others, I myself should be a castaway. Chapter 11, verse 13, but I would have you know the head of every man is Christ. The head of the woman is the man and the head of Christ is God.

Every man praying or prophesying having his head covered, dishonoreth his head. Every woman that prayeth or prophesied with her head uncovered dishonoreth her head, for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn.

But if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, for as much as he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman, but the woman of the man, neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for or an account of the man.

For this cause ought the woman to have power or the word there really is a sign of authority, a sign of subjection on her head because of the angels. Look, if you will, further in chapter 14, verse 29, let the prophets speak two or three, let the others judge. If anything be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace.

For ye may all prophesy one by one that all may learn and all may be comforted. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace as in all churches of the saints.

Let your women keep silence in the church that does not permit unto them to speak, but they are commanded to be subject under obedience as also sayeth the law. Chapter 15, verse 24, then cometh the end. This is really the end.

Then cometh the end. When he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the father, when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power, he must reign. That's a tremendous thing.

God has said he must reign. Till he hath put all things under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he sayeth all things are put under him, it is manifested that he is accepted, which did put all things under him. And when all things shall be subdued, when everything will be made subject unto him, then shall the son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all and in all.

Chapter 16 for one final section. Chapter 16 and verse 10, he mentions Timotheus and his appreciation for Timothy. In verse 12, he mentions Apollos and his understanding of Apollos' exercise.

Verse 13, watch ye stand fast in the faith. Quit you like men be strong. Let all things be done with charity.

I beseech you, brethren, you know the house of Stephanas, that it is the first fruits of Achaia and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints, that ye submit yourselves to such and to everyone that helpeth with us and laboreth. Now we trust that God will add his rich blessing to the reading of his precious word. Chaos at Corinth, nothing so displays it like the failure in subjection.

There seemed to be an every man for himself attitude. There seemed to be a lack of submission to leadership, lack of submission between the genders, lack of submission in the head covering. It seems to be right throughout the epistle the failure to know any sense of submission to God and to his word.

It certainly embodied the world's concept, doesn't it? Of freedom and of liberty. And of course the world has the idea that true liberty is the right to do what you want. But every believer knows, at least I hope everyone does, that once we who were slaves to sin, being brought into liberty for us means the freedom to do God's will, not to do our own will.

So liberty is the freedom to carry out God's will in our lives. Once we didn't have that freedom, we were totally bond slaves of sin. Now we've been brought into a liberty of freedom.

But the world, of course, around us even today views submission, views subjection as a sign of weakness, as a sign of capitulating to someone and saying that they are better than I am. You just for a moment try to tell your friends of the principle of submission seen in an assembly by sisters in their silence and it's met with scorn. It's met with looks that convey to you that somehow you're living in a dinosaur age and you're just not enlightened anymore of reality.

And so the world scorns the idea of submission. The world scorns the idea of taking a place of subjection willingly. It only does it when it's forced to do it and then with tremendous resentment and tremendous bitterness and a longing to rebel.

But subjection is a truth that is taught throughout the epistle that Paul writes to the assembly at Corinth. I just think if we enjoyed nothing else but to think of the beauty, the delight, the glory that a father got from the subjection of a son, I hardly know words that convey anything so lovely as what it tells us in the Gospel of Luke. When after his parents misunderstanding him and rebuking him in front of everyone else concerning his staying behind in Jerusalem, it says concerning the Lord Jesus that he went down and was subject to them.

Now, just those few words, just those few words, dismiss any idea that somehow if I know more than you, I shouldn't be submissive to you. The perfect was submissive to the imperfect. The omniscient was subject to the limited.

The Son of God was subject to humans. Now, I think if we can have that as just a background, if we can have that just as our mentality as we approach this issue of submission, it will preserve us from thinking that somehow it is being forced into a confession that I am less worthy than you, that I am inferior to you, that I am less pleasing to God than you, that I am less important to God than you, to realize the place the Word of God gives to the great principle of submission and the honor and the glory that God gets from it. So that throughout this epistle, the Spirit of God is weaving submission in different relationships into the fabric of the epistle to teach an assembly that was marked by every man for himself and everyone rebelling against any idea of submission.

He is trying to reintroduce principles of submission. Amidst the leaven, he is pleading for lowliness. Amidst the self-promotion, he is pleading for selflessness of believers in their care one for another.

So let me then come to some of the areas in which he touches and just highlight one or two as we have about a half hour to look at things and any one of which could occupy us that time. In chapter nine, the submission enjoined upon them is personal. Personal.

And Paul gives his example. I keep under my body. I bring my body into subjection.

And we see his reasons there and how he does it. So chapter nine is personal submission. When you come to chapter 11, it is doctrinal submission.

What I mean by that is that there is a tremendous doctrine at stake in this concept of head coverings and headship that in this act of willing intelligence submission, there is tremendous doctrinal import. I think if our sisters could grasp it, and I know most of you here do, but hopefully for the sake maybe of some that have never appreciated all that is involved, we will look at chapter 11. When we come to chapter 14, it is practical and has to do with how individuals take part in an assembly gathering, those who are exercised relative to the word of God.

Chapter 14 also brings me forth the sister and her vocal. It is in the sphere of being vocal, her submission in silence as the assembly is gathered together. Chapter 16 is governmental.

Governmental. He is suggesting to these believers. There's a man, Stephanos.

He has addicted himself. He has willingly given himself to caring, serving the saints. That's the kind of man you should submit yourself to and others like him, to such as well.

So he is introducing governmental submission. And in chapter 15, which I would like to end, we have one of the most thrilling portions to my soul of the word of God, universal subjection. When for the first time in all recorded history, the entire world will be subject to one man.

And we will see what he will do with that when it is given into his hands. So with God's help then just to look at some of these, let me just say this. I can't dwell on chapter nine.

Just to clarify something in the minds of young believers, because I think any of us who have dealt with others have had chapter nine brought before us. That I can, you know, everything goes because Paul said he was all things to all men. Now, if you go back to chapter six, Paul uses similar language that he would not, let me just get it correctly so I don't mislead you.

In chapter six, he is speaking there that he will not be brought under the power of any. Meats for the belly, belly for meats. Speaking there of moral issues, morality, and the excuse they were using for immoral behavior.

And he says, I will not allow my body to be subjected to that. So in chapter six, it's got to do, the subjection of his body has to do with lust. But when you come to chapter nine, it has to do with what's legitimate.

Paul is not taking liberties in chapter nine. Paul is foregoing his liberties. Paul is saying, I have a perfect right to this, but I will not do it.

I have a perfect right to that, but I won't take it. I could be allowed to do this, but I won't do it. He is foregoing his liberties, not taking liberties.

He's not setting aside the word of God with the idea, well, as long as I am reaching souls for Christ, doesn't matter what I do. I can go with the boys and have a night out on Friday night at the bar. Maybe I can slip the gospel in and that'll be a, no, no, no.

Paul's not giving that kind of a false reasoning. That somehow everything is legitimate as long as it's with the view of winning souls. Paul's saying, I am not taking liberties.

I am sacrificing my liberties for the sake of others. So please don't go to chapter nine to try to make excuses for behavior that is outside the sphere of the word of God. So chapter nine is personal, and he will seek with God's help, not to allow his body to dictate his service for God.

Chapter 11, though, is doctrinal. And let me come to that for a few minutes, if I can. I want you to notice, first of all, the order in chapter 11, because I think it is valuable to notice what is given to us.

Look at what he says in verse number three. I would have you know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. Now, did you notice the order? You notice how carefully and skillfully the Spirit of God introduces that threefold order.

Now, you be honest. If you were writing it, how would you have written it? You would have either started at the top, the head of Christ is God, the head of man is Christ, the head of the woman is the man, or you would have started the other way, woman, her head is the man, man's head is Christ, Christ's head is God. We would have either gone in ascending or descending order.

That's the way our minds work. How does the Spirit of God introduce it? Before ever he tells a woman that she has a head, he tells a man, you've got a head. Don't you forget your subject.

So he begins by reminding us that the head of every man is Christ. Okay? He just wants to just check the men in their chauvinism a bit first. Just remember, you've got a head.

Then he says to the woman, the head of the woman is the man. But then, lest she thinks somehow, well, maybe that means I'm inferior. He then balances that by saying the head of Christ is God.

So can you see how skillfully, how wisely the Spirit of God brings us together? He first of all would just warn the man, not warn the man, that's a poor word. He would just advise the man, you have a head. Before he tells him he's head of the woman, you have a head.

So you're submissive. And then he tells the woman, now, yes, he is your head. But then he says, lest you think somehow that's a place of inferiority or a place of less usefulness, the head of Christ is God.

He knew a headship. So don't you feel as though somehow you have to chafe under a headship. Even the Son of God knew a headship.

The head of Christ is God. So the order is important to notice here that he would give us. Look at the outline of what he gives, or if you will, the object lesson that he gives us in these verses, verses four, five, and six.

Every woman praying or prophesying with her head, literal, uncovered, dishonors her head figurative, the man. Okay, now get that. Because important to see that.

Every woman praying or prophesying with her head, her literal head uncovered, is dishonoring the man who is her head. And he says likewise, every man praying or prophesying with his head covered, his literal head covered, is dishonoring his head, which is Christ. So he's dealing here with the literal and the figurative.

He's introduced that for us already. And so he says in verse number six, or at the end of verse number five, if she wants to act like a man, then she should look like a man. If she wants to participate with her head uncovered, then let her be shorn and shaven.

Let her look like a man with her hair. She should have the appearance of a man. He's not saying they should, he's just showing the incongruity of what they are doing.

If she wants to be a man, she should look like a man. And so he deals with that in these passages here, giving us a view then of what is involved. What is the great objective of all of this? This head covering, head uncovered, and so on? Well, he is telling us that really, what is being declared in a company of believers is the great truth of the headship of Christ.

Christ's headship on display in a local company of believers when they are gathered together in assembly capacity. Now, he's interesting because he brings in to us observers. Now, I have to be careful.

I don't wanna say more than should be said. When he is dealing with the head covering, he doesn't talk about the neighbors. He says angels are watching.

For this cause ought a woman to be in subjection because of the angels. Why? Why angels? Why are angels introduced? Now, I know, and tremendous lessons can be learned by tracing the relationship of angels with a local church, a local company of believers, with the church's body, Ephesians 3, and 1 Peter 1, angels desiring to bend down and look into the preaching of the gospel and all, but why does he bring in angels here in chapter 11 of 1 Corinthians? Where do you find angels for the first time in your Bible? Where's the first time you read of an angel speaking, of an angel saying something? And what did the angel say? There was a woman named Hagar, and she is fleeing from a cruel, harsh mistress, master mistress, whatever you wanna call her, Sarai, and you recall she's on the way and she's found there of the angel. What does the angel say to her on that occasion? Return, submit.

Submit, yeah. Why would angels be interested in people submitting? Perhaps, perhaps it's because they looked on once when there were a group of angels led by Satan who kept not their first estate. They refused to submit.

They rebelled. And the angels that kept not their first estate rebelled against God and you know the rest of the story. And now angels are looking on an assembly of gathered believers together and amazed that here upon earth there are individuals who willingly, intelligently, voluntarily take a place of submission to display in a gathered company the great truth of the headship of Christ.

I think that's precious. I think that's tremendous. To think that you, dear sister, and you may think I don't preach.

Yes, you do preach. You preach eloquently. You preach volumes.

You preach something that no one else can preach. You can look anywhere else in the world and you know the only place that the headship of Christ is proclaimed is at a local company of gathered believers where our sisters are attired as they are with covered heads. I think that's incredible.

You preach what no one else can preach. So please don't think that somehow your silence is limiting you in your ability to express divine truth. You are expressing truth.

In fact, I've never had the privilege, our brother Murray here has, I haven't, never had the privilege of seeing an assembly planted and started. But I would wonder from 1 Corinthians 11 if you could start an assembly without women. Would you be giving full expression to all the truth of the word of God if there were no sisters in an assembly? I don't know.

I wonder about that. Some might say the uncovered head of the man expresses it and that's true, but there is something especially precious about our sisters willingly, intelligently taking the place they take. Because you know what you're doing really is you are not only proclaiming that Christ is head.

Another whole line through the book of 1 Corinthians is to look at how the future is impacting the present. How future glory is having an influence upon the present in the behavior of these believers. You are giving expression now to what is going to be displayed throughout a millennial age when the Lord Jesus is head over all things and that headship is displayed for everyone to see.

You know where it's seen today? You know where there's a little fore view, a little preview of what is going to come? A local assembly where sisters are covered intelligently, willingly, submissively, owning his headship, bowing to his headship, delighting to display his headship for all to see. So please do not take the idea of a covered head as a sign of repression, a sign of inferiority, anything of that nature, but rather take it as an opportunity to preach truth that is uniquely yours to present to angels who are looking on in wonder and awe at what is happening in a local company of believers. So let me leave that for this cause ought a woman, we'll have to leave that for now.

Let me just come to two or three other things. Let's jump to chapter 16 as time is moving quickly. Let me talk about governmental submission.

One of the, and I would be very, very happy to get input from my brethren today on this. One of the great unanswered questions about the epistle to Corinthians that I have, we rightly come to first Corinthians and call it the charter of the church, the church epistles, where we come to for instruction about local assemblies. And yet, and yet there's no mention of oversight as you go through these chapters, is there? He never addresses the elders.

He never tells the elders to fix problems. Unlike the letters of John to the seven churches, he doesn't address any responsible element to bring about adjustment and to bring about change. He's addressing the entire assembly.

Now it may be, it may be that the problem was that the leadership in the assembly, if it did exist, was really where the problem was. It may be that they were the chief perpetrators of all the difficulties in the assembly. I'm not sure about that, but nevertheless, when he finally comes to the end of the epistle to chapter 16, he begins to reintroduce leadership into God's assembly.

And he points out a man who has been serving the saints. And he says, that's the kind of man to submit yourselves to. Now, I don't think Paul is going around pointing out overseers in Corinth at this stage of the game.

But I do think he is directing the saints towards those with whom they can have confidence and to whom they can look to for guidance and leadership. So I want you just to look at this for just a moment. I want you to look at the context, first of all, in which he is encouraging submission.

Did you notice what precedes, what precedes his call to look to men like Stephanas and others as leaders. He says in chapter 16, there in the verse preceding in verse number 13, watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit ye like men, be strong. And then he says, be submissive.

Now, please, please notice the link. Submission is never from a point of weakness. He doesn't say, you boys are just so weak and helpless and blind.

You better submit yourselves to the people who can really help you. You're in desperate shape. He doesn't do that.

He says, quit yourselves like men, be strong. And he says, you strong men, you submit. So submission is not from a point of weakness, but from a point of strength.

It's not that somehow, you're just so weak and helpless that you got to look to somebody. No, no, no. He says, submit yourselves from a point of strength.

Stand responsible for yourselves. And manly behavior means I will carry out the word of God. I will submit.

So the first thing to notice then is the context. This is not, again, not a matter of weakness and helplessness, but rather a matter that God is instituting here through Paul, the concept of leadership. But I want you to notice also then the concept of leadership, not just the context, but the concept.

To whom does he point as a potential leader, as a potential man to look to, to submit to? Someone who's serving the people of God. Not someone who is bossing, not someone who is ruling, as we would use the word in our vernacular. But he says, they have addicted, willingly given himself over to serving the saints.

So what I learned from that is that leadership in God's mind is primarily a matter of serving the people of God. That's different from concepts the world has, isn't it? The Lord Jesus Christ said that himself. He said, in the world, he says, they that exercise lordship, they expect people to serve them.

But he says, ye? Not so. Not so with you. Whoever would be your leader, let him serve, even as the Son of Man.

So that leadership involves, at its core, serving the needs of others, serving the welfare of others, sacrificing for the welfare and the blessing of another. And so he brings us here to this concept of leadership. And then he tells us, he gives us insight into the heart of a leader by showing us how he deals with other men.

What does he do with the Timothy? He commends Timothy. He's a man that appreciates others. He's a man that can look for something in others to find, to commend, and to encourage.

And that's something that leaders do. They look for that in others that they can commend and encourage and fan the flames in another person's life. He commends them.

He has consideration for an Apollos. He doesn't rule Apollos. I really wanted.

The word is strong. He longed for Apollos to come to Corinth, but it was not Apollos's mind at this time. Apollos did not feel it was the will of God, and Paul will not rule another man.

Paul was like that. Paul said, I could have come to Corinth with a rod. I could have come and demanded submission to truth.

But he said, that would not have helped you to stand. He says, by faith you stand. I will not rule your faith.

I will serve it. He says, I don't rule another man. I will long for him to be here, but I have to leave that with God.

He learned that great truth. As far as the saints, he expresses confidence in them. As far as a Stephanus, he confirms him and encourages the believers to seek to submit to such character of men.

So we see, then, the concept of leadership. And then Paul gives here this command that you submit yourself. I would take it that God never envisions a company of believers who are without a leader.

I shouldn't say that. Without leadership. God never envisions a group of believers without leadership.

And here Paul is, again, introducing into the assembly this great concept of leadership. But now, let me just mention something, because there can be a misunderstanding of the concept of leadership and of submission in God's assembly. A leader should be approachable.

That means if you have a concern in your assembly, that means if you have a burden that something isn't being done, or something should be done, or something's being done improperly. As a young believer, what is your responsibility? Does submission mean that I dare not say anything? Does submission mean that you just grit your teeth, and you just wait till your day comes, and then you're going to set the record straight? Is that submission? Could I suggest to you that that is as far from submission as an in-your-face rebellion and challenge is? As being part of a fellowship that we already spoke about this morning, bearing responsibility for the welfare of that fellowship, if you have a concern about a direction, about a need, about a problem that is not being addressed according to the word of God, I would take it that it's your responsibility to go to the oversight in a respectful manner, to bring before them the word of God that you have seen, and then to leave it there. Not to get on the phone and start rallying the troops behind you, not to be quietly teaching it yourself and waiting until you can get enough people behind you to have an open split, but if you see something with the word of God that is not being carried out, then it is your responsibility to go to the oversight with that truth, with the word of God in your hand, and in a respectful and humble way to mention your concern and to leave it with them before God.

And if they never move on it, you have carried out your responsibility. And the other side of that is leaders need to be approachable. I would, if it ever came, and I say this honestly, if it ever came that the believers in my assembly, the assembly with which I'm associated with and with which I have some responsibility, if they ever felt they could not come to me or to the oversight because we would chop their heads off, we would put them down, we would tell them off, I would hope I would recognize I am no longer fit for leadership, being approachable, appreciating the concerns and the burdens of others, even if they happen to be wrong, but appreciating their concern, where they're coming from, listening, letting them talk.

And if I can bring the word of God to bear upon their concern, fine. If not, then we pray about it and leave it there. But leadership means being approachable as well as serving the needs of the saints in every sphere.

So ecclesiastical submission, let me come to chapter 15 and universal submission. Again, as I said, I can hardly find any place in the word of God that is so thrilling to read as what we have read in chapter 15. It begins, doesn't it, with the decree of the sovereign.

He must reign. All the movements of nations, all the might of monarchs, all the machinations of Satan, none of that will frustrate this sovereign decree. He must reign.

God is going to bring back his son to reign in a coming day. Tremendous thought that this sad, blighted world, this world that is reeling under the effects of its sin and rebellion against God, this world that is literally groaning and travailing in pain, this world will one day know the righteous rule of the one it rejected, the decree of the sovereign. This tells us of the defeat of every foe, doesn't it? The last enemy destroyed is death.

Every foe put down. Every voice quieted. Every storm stilled.

Every enemy vanquished. And the last foe, death. What a tremendous thing that death will meet its death in the reign of this wondrous sovereign.

The defeat of every foe, the destruction of death, wonderful thought for all. But it brings us to what I have called the dream of all men. Do you know what has powered, I was going to say maniacs, literally maniacs, sovereigns and rulers and czars and generals throughout history? This elusive dream that someday into their hands would come universal sway, to be able to rule, not just some petty kingdom, not just some group of Confederate states, but to think of a dream of a Napoleon or an Alexander to rule the world.

And here is the first and only man into whose hand is put absolute rule, absolute sway, into one hand. The only hand that could be trusted to hold it all for God. Into his hand is put universal sway, universal dominion, everything subjected to the sun in that coming day.

Now just think of the moment. If you let your imagination go for just a moment, think of what any human being would do if he were given the whole world into his hand. Everything, absolutely everything, no outpost to his dominion, no limits to it, no frontiers to conquer, all in his hands.

You know what this sovereign does with it? He takes it, brings it back to the father, gives it to him. Then says, shall the son also himself be subject unto him. Why? That God may be all in all.

In other words, what I learned from 1 Corinthians 15 is that that submission is going to lead to an eternal, unending bliss, security, eternal everything that we want. Because there was one man who was submissive, didn't hold it for himself, delivered it back. So that God could fill everything and fill everyone.

So that submission becomes the key to eternal blessing. Now let me just bring that back, if I can. That tremendous principle that I wish I could express better.

Submission in every sphere is what brings blessing. Chapter 9, personal submission. Paul says, I keep under my body, I bring it into subjection.

Why? That is the pathway to blessing and usefulness for God. Chapter 11, doctrinal submission, the submission of the sister. That's where she finds her greatest usefulness.

That's where she is able to eloquently express truth that no one else can express. Chapter 14, we didn't touch on it, the spirits of the prophets subject the prophets. Where is a man going to be able to find his sphere of usefulness in serving God? Of course, here it is the idea of prophesying or ministering.

It's in a sphere of submission, not being a maverick or a misfit, not being a lone ranger going his own way, but in submission, in appreciation for others. And the silence of the sister, expressing it as well. And that's governmental in chapter 16, the blessing of the assembly, those who are serving, those who are being served.

God is introducing us to this tremendous principle that the pathway to blessing, the pathway to usefulness, the pathway to honor is the pathway of submission, wherever he introduces it, in whatever sphere I am to be. That becomes God's avenue to how I can be brought to my ultimate usefulness for God. May the Lord help us then to appreciate that submission in God's assembly is not a matter of something I have to grit my teeth and grudgingly give into, but it is God's avenue for me to rise to the very highest level of usefulness and honor for him that I possibly could as a result of carrying out his word.

May the Lord help us and encourage us, shall we pray.