my attention while I was listening
to that song. I stand upon his merit. I know
no other stand, not even where glory dwelleth, in heaven. In heaven, I'll be standing on
his merit. And I think I'll probably understand
it more clearly then than I do now. Turn back to 1 Corinthians
15. Verse 28, and when all things
shall be subdued unto him. Isn't that a delightful thought? all things shall be subdued unto
him. You see, he's able, the scripture
says, to subdue all things to himself. And when all things
shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be
subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may
be all in all. I've entitled this message, The
Submission of the Son. The Submission of the Son. Now think of this thing of submission. There is all the difference in
the world between willing submission and forced submission. They're two different things.
They're not close at all to unwillingly submit because of some show of
power that you know you'll be punished or squashed if you don't,
or willingly lovingly, joyously submitting, because it's what
you want to do. The submission of the Son. Now, Adam was unwilling to submit
to God's one command. He said, all of the trees of
the garden you may freely eat, but there's one tree you're not
to eat of. And the day you eat thereof, you'll surely die. He
had how many thousands of trees he could eat from? One tree he
couldn't. He could not submit to that one
command. And in that refusal to submit,
he plunged all of our race into a state of unwillingness to submit. We're born that way. Our natural cry is we shall not,
we will not have this man to reign over us. Cain refused to
submit to God's way of salvation. When he brought the fruit of
the ground, he knew he was called upon to bring a blood sacrifice,
but he thought, this is just as good. Does it make that much
difference as long as I bring a sacrifice? And he brings his
works, failing to submit to what God told him to do. You remember,
God said, if you do well, shall you not be accepted? But if not,
sin lieth at the door. What was it to do well? It's
to bring the sacrifice of Christ and nothing else. He said, you'll
be accepted. If not, seeing life at the door
and the first mention of sin in the scriptures is with regard
to bringing the wrong sacrifice. The Tower of Babel. We're gonna build a Tower all
the way to heaven. Now somebody says, surely they
knew that they couldn't actually build a tower all the way to
heaven. Surely they knew that. I'm sure they did, but the point
is the rebellion of this. We're not gonna wait on God.
We're gonna force our way to him and we're gonna get what
we want. Romans chapter eight, verse seven
says, the carnal mind is enmity against God. That's the mind
you were born with, that I was born with. The carnal mind, the
fleshly mind is enmity. It doesn't say it's at enmity. It says it is enmity against
God. It is not subject to the law
of God. It can't submit to the law of
God. Neither indeed can it. Turn with me to Romans 10 for
just a moment, just a few pages back. Verse one. Brethren, my heart's
desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be
saved, for I bear them record that they have a zeal of God,
but not according to knowledge, for they being ignorant of God's
righteousness. Now all you have to do to be
ignorant of God's righteousness is believe in salvation by works
in any way to any degree. If you do, if I do, I demonstrate
a complete ignorance of the character of God. Believing in works is
crime against God. Let's go on reading. For they
being ignorant of God's righteousness and going about to establish
their own righteousness have not, what? submitted themselves
unto the righteousness of God. Every act of sin has in it an
unwillingness to submit. And you know, just the word submit,
I kind of have a reaction to it. Submit! I can't stand to
be, anybody tell me what to do? And there's something about this
that, submit? But what a joyous thing it is. What a lovely thing it is. What
a beautiful thing it is when somebody submits because that's
really what they want to do. They find joy in this thing of
submission. It's a willing submission. Now I'm still on the subject,
but God is one God in three distinct persons. This is one of the great
mysteries of the scripture. Impossible to understand and
comprehend, but yet absolutely necessary to believe. God is
one God in three distinct persons. Somebody says, how can that be?
I don't know, but it's so. God is one God in three distinct
persons. God the Son and God the Holy
Spirit. Now, while the word Trinity is
not found in the Bible, it's clearly taught. It's found in
the creation story. In the beginning, God created
the heavens and the earth and the earth was without form and
void and darkness covered the face of the deep and the spirit
of God moved upon the face of the waters. God, the father,
God, the son, God said, let there be light. And there was light. The sun and the moon had not
yet been created. It would not be created into
the fourth day. This is talking about Him who
is the light of the world. When the Lord was baptized, the
Father spake from heaven. This is my beloved Son in whom
I am well pleased." There's the Father, the Son, and God the
Holy Spirit descended like a dove and abode upon the Lord Jesus
Christ. When the Lord, right before He
ascended back to heaven, when He was giving His disciples instruction
with regard to preaching the gospel, He said, baptizing them
In the name of the Father, in the name of the Son, and in the
name of God the Holy Spirit. God is one God in three distinct
persons, and one is not less God than another. God the Holy
Spirit is the sovereign spirit, the creator of the universe,
the one who controls everything. God the Son is God the Son. The absolute only King of Kings,
Lord and Lord, the blessed and only potentate, the one who controls
everything. He's God the Son. His will is
always done. God the Father is God the Father. God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Holy Spirit. And these three are one. One's not greater than the other.
One's not more God than the other. These three are one. I love the scripture with regard
to the Lord Jesus Christ. In him dwelleth all the fullness
of the Godhead in a body. In the Godhead, there is a willing
submission and subordination. Not because one is less God than
the other, but because that's what they want to do. They delight
in one another. God the Son delights in submission
to God the Father. That's what he wants to do. That's
what he delights in doing. God the Holy Spirit delights
in submitting and subordinating Himself to the Father and the
Son. The Lord tells us with regard
to the Holy Spirit, He shall not speak of Himself. Think about
that! He's God! He's the Creator! He shall not speak of Himself.
But whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak, He shall
glorify. Think of this beautiful subordination
between the Father, the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Look, well, I'm going to read
you this. In Luke chapter 2, look at the submission of the
Lord here in Luke chapter 2, verse 49, and he said unto them,
he's talking to his parents, and he said unto them, How is
it that you sought me? Was she not that I must be about
my father's business? And they understood not the same
when she spake unto them. And he went down with them and
came to Nazareth, and look at this, he was subject unto them. The God of glory was subject
to these two sinful people who were his parents. But his mother kept all these
sayings in her heart, and Jesus increased in wisdom and stature
and in favor with God and man. Now look back in our text in
verse 27. For he, God the Father, hath
put all things under his feet. Now this is a quotation from
Psalm 8. Would you turn with me to Psalm 8 for a moment? O Lord, our Lord, how excellent
is Thy name in all the earth! Who has set Thy glory above the
heavens? Out of the mouth of babes and
sucklings hast Thou ordained strength because of Thine enemies,
that Thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. When I
consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and
the stars which Thou hast ordained, what is man? that thou art mindful
of him, and the Son of man, that thou visitest him. For thou hast
made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned
him with glory and honor. Thou madest him to have dominion
over the works of thy hands. Thou hast put all things under
his feet, all sheep and oxen, yea, the beasts of the field,
the fowl of the air, the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth
through the pass of the sea. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent
is thy name in all the earth. Now, if I was reading that without
the New Testament, I wouldn't know that's talking about the
Lord Jesus Christ. I would have never known it. But the writer
to the Hebrews tells us that this is directly speaking of
Christ. And Paul uses it here to say, for he, God the Father,
hath put all things under his feet. All things means all things. All of his enemies. Yes, but everything else as well.
He's the blessed and only potentate and the Lord has put all things
under his feet. But when he saith all things
are put under him, it's manifest that he's accepted which did
put all things under him. God the Father's not under his
feet. And when all things should be
subdued unto him. This is talking about the end
time. All things are going to be subdued
to him. He reigns without arrival. All
things animate and inanimate. all matter, all men saved and
lost, all demons, all angels, all principalities and powers,
thrones, dominions, all which were made by Him and for Him,
then shall all things be brought subject to Him for this reason. And when all things shall be
subdued unto Him, then shall the Son also Himself be subject
unto Him. that put all things under him,
that God may be all in all." Now, the Lord willingly, submissively,
joyously submitted Himself to His Father. Now, I want you to
think about this. In willing submission, there
are three things involved. If I willingly submit, number
one, knowledge. Number two, love. Number three,
trust. That's what's involved in submission. Knowledge, you can't submit yourself
to someone you don't know. Love, you won't submit yourself
to someone you don't love. Trust, you cannot submit yourself
to someone you don't trust completely. Now you think of the knowledge
the son has of the father. He says, as the father knoweth
me, even so know I the father. He knew him altogether. We know him, kind of like a dog
knows its master. We know him, but we don't know
him like the son does. The son knows him altogether
and how the son loves His Father. I wish I could describe that
as it should be described, but I can't, but the love that exists
between the Father and the Son. He's the beloved Son to the Father
and the Father's the beloved Father to Him. He delights in
His Father and how He trusts His Father. You know from the
cross, He said, though He slay me, Yet will I trust him. He trusted his father altogether. And hear the words of his submission. He said, Father, if it be possible,
let this cup pass from me. And I know what, I don't wanna
say I know, I have some idea what was in that cup, my sin.
your sin. And he was getting ready to drink
the dregs of God's wrath in drinking up our sins and taking them into
his own body on the tree. And that's what made him sweat
great drops of blood in Gethsemane's garden. The thought of doing
that, knowing he would be separated from his father, knowing he would
have nothing but the wrath of his father, no acceptance of
his father, nothing but the disfavor and frown of his father, knowing
he would feel no What's the word? No communion
with his father. It's all gonna be cut off. And
he said, Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless,
not my will, but thine be done. He completely trusted his father
and completely submitted to the will of his father. joyously, painfully, yes, but
joyously, willingly, and lovingly. How he knew his father, how he
loved his father, how he trusted his father. And when all things, verse 28,
shall be subdued unto him, this is talking about after the resurrection.
When all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son
also Himself be subject, willingly submit himself, joyously submit
himself unto him that put all things under his feet that God
may be all in all. What does Christ is all in all
mean? First thing that comes to my
mind, He's all I have. He's all I have. He's all I want. He's all that God is. He's all
that God requires. He's all in this book. Every
verse is with regard to Him. He's all in salvation. God saves
me for His sake, only for His sake, altogether in Him. He's
all in every aspect of God's salvation. What's
election without Jesus Christ? It's harsh. But according as He hath chosen
us in Him before the foundation of the world. What is our justification? Without Christ. Why? It's impossible. I'm justified. How? By Jesus Christ putting away
my sins and Him giving me His righteousness. So I stand before
God in His perfect righteousness. I'm redeemed. How? By His blood. Being justified freely by His
grace through the redemption that's in Christ Jesus. I'm called
by His grace. I'm regenerated not because I've
responded and said I'm going to accept your offer, but because
what Christ did for me, He gave me life. Life from the dead. I'm preserved. How come? I'm
preserved in Christ Jesus. I'm glorified. I've been predestinated
to be conformed to the image of His Son. What is faith? Trusting Him only. What is repentance? Repenting of anything that's
contrary to trusting Him only. Jesus Christ is all. Aren't you thankful? All God
requires of me, He looks to His Son for. Jesus Christ is all. And He's gonna take His allness
and present it to his father that God may be all in all. Is not the willing submission
and subordination in the Godhead beautiful, founded in their knowledge,
love, and trust of one another? Now, if we know Christ, We love
him. You can't know him and not love
him. Somebody doesn't love him doesn't know him. If you know
him, it's because he's made himself known to you and you love him. You see him as altogether beautiful. There's no one that can be compared
to him. Who is like unto me? Nobody. You love him. And if you know
him, you trust him. That's exactly what Paul meant
when he said, I know whom I have believed and I am persuaded that
he is able to keep that which I've committed to him. Listen
to me, Paul trusted the salvation of his soul to Jesus Christ and
submitted to him being everything in his salvation. Do you submit
to that? lovingly, joyously, glad it's that way. Do you submit
to his word? Do you submit to everything he
says? You agree with it all? You submit to what he says about
himself? You submit to what he says about you. You're in agreement.
You're in agreement with what he says about you in yourself,
your sinfulness, your depravity. But you agree with what he says
about you in himself. You're perfect in Christ Jesus.
And there's complete agreement with that. You trust him, you
submit to what he says. We submit to Christ being all
in salvation. We love him and we trust him.
Turn to Ephesians chapter five. Ephesians chapter five. Verse 22. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own
husbands as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of
the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church. And he is
the Savior of the body. Therefore, as the church is subject
unto Christ, So let the wives be to their own husbands in everything."
The church submits to Christ in everything. We know Him. We
love Him. We trust Him. We can submit ourselves
wholly into His hands. Look at verse 21, submitting
yourselves one to another. in the fear of God. Why do we do this? Because we're
commanded to. We know Him. We love Him. And
we trust Him. Now, when the woman hears this
command, Submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the
Lord. Does this mean in any way that
the woman is in fear to the man in any way? Well, is Christ inferior to the
Father in any way? Why, you wince at the thought
of somebody even saying that. Of course He's not. He's equal
to God. He thought it not robbery to
be equal with God. And the only way you can be equal
to God is to be God. He's not like God. He is God. And He's not inferior to His
Father? Yet how willingly and joyously
And lovingly, he submitted himself to his father. And the wife is
to submit herself to her husband because Christ said to do it.
Is any other reason needed? You're not inferior to your husband.
And if your husband thinks you are, he's got problems. It's
not true. Christ willingly submitted himself
to his father. The wife is called upon to willingly
submit herself to her husband because he said to do it. And
that is enough. No other reason is needed. She knows, loves and trusts the
one who commanded her to do it. And no other reason is needed.
Turn to James chapter four. If I know who he is, and I love
him, and I trust him, it's not hard to submit, is it? It's not
hard for the new nature to submit. The old nature might kick and
scream against it, but the new nature doesn't, and greater is
he that's in you than he that's in the world. James chapter four, verse six. but he giveth more grace. And
don't miss that. He giveth more grace. You know,
the, uh, who's reading the scripture? Michael. Yeah. When you, when
you were using that word supplication, you know what the word supplication
means? It's an entreaty for his grace. It's an entreaty for his
favor. And here we have this promise.
He gives more grace. He never runs out of it. He never
stops giving it. He giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resists
the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves
therefore to God. You know what you do when you
submit yourself to God? You resist the devil. That's
how you used to be resisted, by submitting yourself to God. Turn to 1 Peter chapter 5, verse
1. The elders which are among you,
I exhort, who am also an elder and a witness of the sufferings
of Christ and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. Feed the flock of God which is
among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, not
because you're forced to and you're afraid of what'll happen
if you don't, not because it's a job, but willingly, not for
filthy lucre, but of a ready, willing mind. Neither as being
lords over God's heritage, but being examples to the flock.
And when the chief shepherd shall appear, you shall receive a crown
of glory that fadeth not away. Likewise, you younger, submit
yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one
to another, and be clothed with humility. For God resists the
proud and gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore
under the mighty hand of God. When you've got to the bottom,
go a little lower that he may exalt you in due time, casting
all your care upon him, for he careth for you. In life, Paul said in Romans 13, one,
let every soul be subject, submit to the higher powers, government
officials, the police, If you're a kid, you're a teacher, you're
a parent, God has placed these authorities in their place. Let
every soul be subject to the higher powers. The powers that
be are ordained of God. Whatever power it is, it's ordained
of God. And our call is to submit to
that authority because God ordained it. Isn't that enough of a reason
to do it? God ordained it. And, you know,
with regard to God's providence, Samuel comes up to Eli and says,
Eli says, tell me what the Lord said to you. And he didn't want
to at first. He said, tell me. He said, Lord
says he's going to kill your two sons. He said, it's the Lord. Let him
do what seemeth him good. Now the only way you'll say that
is if you actually trust who he is. Do you remember when fire
came down from heaven and devoured Aaron's sons? What did Aaron do? He held his
peace. What did David do when Shemai
was cursing him? And Abishai said, you want me
to come take his head off? David said, no. The Lord said,
curse David. Everything that happens in Providence,
we're called upon to submit willingly. It's the Lord. Let him do what
seemeth him good. Now I hope you agree, willing
submission Founded in knowledge, love, and trust is a beautiful
thing. May God give me and you the grace
to willingly, joyously submit to him and his way of salvation. You know, when we're getting
ready to take the Lord's table, what a blessing, the Lord's giving
two, ordinances, baptism, the Lord's table. What if someone
said, well, I don't think baptism is important. You're in a bad way. And someone
says with regard to the Lord's table, well, it's not that important.
I don't need to be here. You're in a bad way. This is
a, this is the ordinance of the Lord. It's an obedience to the
Lord, but here's what we're doing. We partake of the Lord's table.
We are willingly, joyously submitting to the glorious fact that everything
God requires of us, He accomplished in the life, the death, and the
resurrection of His Son. And we're doing this in remembrance
of Him. And we're, your faith is submission
to what He says. Believe me. Believe me, this
is the work of God that you believe on Him whom He has sent. And
when we take the Lord's table, it's a celebration of, we're
submitting to the fact that He's everything in our salvation.
And we like it that way, don't we? We love it that way. We would
not want it to be any other way. And may the Lord enable us to
consider that as we partake of the Lord's table. Let's pray
together. Lord, how glorious you are. One God in three persons. How
glorious is the submission of the Son to the Father. How glorious
is the submission of the Spirit to the Son. Lord, we ask that
you would truly give us this willing, joyous submission that
comes from knowing you, loving you, and trusting you. Lord, we ask that you would increase
our knowledge of you, that you increase our love for you, and
you increase our trust of you. And Lord, as we're getting ready
in obedience to your command to Remember your broken body
and shed blood, and we know that He is everything in our salvation. And Lord, we love it being that
way. Bless this time for Christ's
sake, in His name we pray, amen.