Twin City church of Christ Blog
“Apr 26, 2024 - We All Submit”
Categories: 2024 Reading DevotionalsWe All Submit
Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:2-10
This is a challenging text for a number of reasons: the exact nature of the covering is not clear, the role of broader culture in determining what is disgraceful is not fully explained, and the text itself can be confusing. Paul appears to be addressing women who are praying or prophesying in a way that does not show proper respect for the divine order. “Now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them to you. But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God”(1 Cor 11:2-3). The word “wife” is “woman,” which can mean either wife or unmarried woman. Paul contends that there are unique roles and layers of submission in God’s service—and that these must be respected.
The way Paul wants this order respected is through a covering. “Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head, but every wife who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it is the same as if her head were shaven”(1 Cor 11:4-5). Two of his comments about this covering seem, in my judgment, to relate to the contemporary culture: “it is the same as if her head were shaven”(v. 5) and “since it is disgraceful for a wife to cut off her hair or shave her head”(v. 6). Paul’s emphasis on the covering is all about submission and order. He wants it to remain clear that women are in submission, even as they pray and prophesy.
I find it interesting that even in such a difficult text, there is an expectation that all of us submit. There is no shame in such submission. Jesus submits to the Father. Men submit to Jesus. Women submit to men. And in many ways men submit to women as well (see Eph 5:21). If we are going to live as Christians, we must embrace the fact that “you are not your own”(1 Cor 6:19) and that this will mean surrendering our will to God and to others—no matter our gender.
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One Thing to Think About: Why does the idea of submission bother us?
One Thing to Pray For: A heart to yield to Jesus—and to others
