The Character of Christ: Submission
What does submission mean when you're equal with God?
It's a question that cuts to the heart of who Jesus is. We live in a world that equates submission with weakness, where yielding is seen as losing. Yet when we look at Jesus Christ, we discover something radically different. Submission isn't about being overpowered—it's about being so secure in who you are that you can willingly yield to another. For Jesus, submission to the Father was the very means by which He accomplished our redemption.
A Life of Yielding
Jesus made it abundantly clear throughout His ministry: "I can do nothing by Myself." Think about that. The One through whom all things were created, the One who held all authority, declared His complete dependence on the Father. He could only do what He saw the Father doing. He spoke only what He heard the Father saying. His will was perfectly aligned with the Father's will because He chose to submit Himself entirely.
This wasn't forced compliance. Jesus wasn't coerced into submission by a stronger power. He was and is fully God, equal with the Father in every way. Yet He chose, deliberately and continuously, to yield His own will, His own plans, His own preferences, to the Father's purposes. That's the heart of true submission—it flows from love, not from weakness.
Remaining in the Vine
Jesus used the image of a vine and branches to illustrate this beautiful relationship of submission. "Remain in me," He said, "and I will remain in you. Apart from me you can do nothing." Just as branches cannot bear fruit unless they remain connected to the vine, drawing all their life and nourishment from it, so Jesus remained perfectly connected to the Father.
This wasn't a passive connection. It was an active, continuous abiding. Jesus stayed aligned with the Father's leading, trusted in the Father's timing, and submitted to the Father's methods—even when those methods led through suffering. He didn't break away to pursue His own agenda. He didn't insist on His own way. He abided, yielded, and submitted.
The Ultimate Act
Gethsemane shows us submission in its most powerful form. Jesus, facing the horror of the cross, prayed for the cup to pass. Yet even in His anguish, even in His honest plea for another way, He ended with those words that define His life: "Not my will, but Yours be done." That's submission at the deepest level—choosing what God wants over what you want, even when the cost is unbearable.
The cross itself was Jesus' final act of submission. He yielded up His Spirit. He entrusted Himself to the Father's plan, believing that submission to death would bring life to the world. And He was right.
The Pattern for Us
Here's what matters: the same submission that marked Christ's relationship with the Father is meant to mark ours. God calls us to yield, to abide, to remain in Him rather than insisting on our own path. This isn't about losing ourselves—it's about finding who we truly are in perfect alignment with His purposes.
God positions us in situations where submission becomes the choice. Will we yield to His leading, even when it contradicts our plans? Will we remain in Him, even when we're tempted to strike out on our own? Will we trust that His way is always better than ours?
Submission isn't weakness. It's the strength to say, "Not my will, but Yours."
For His Name's Sake
C. L. J. Dryden
Shalom
Next Steps
Reflect: Where in your life are you resisting God's leading? Is there an area where you're holding tightly to your own plans, your own timeline, your own way of doing things? Consider what it would look like to truly yield that area to God. What fears or desires are keeping you from saying, "Not my will, but Yours"?
Pray: Father, Your Son Jesus showed us what perfect submission looks like—not weakness but willing surrender born from love and trust. Forgive me for the times I've insisted on my own way, for the moments I've refused to yield to Your leading. Help me to abide in You like a branch in the vine, trusting that Your plans are better than mine. Give me the courage to submit every area of my life to Your purposes. Make me submissive like Jesus. For Your glory alone. Amen.
Act: This week, identify one specific area where you've been resisting God's direction. It might be a decision you're forcing in your own strength, a relationship you're trying to control, or a dream you're pursuing outside of His timing. Practice submission by consciously releasing control and asking God to lead. Journal about what happens when you choose to yield rather than push forward in your own strength.
