Submission! A term that in our era makes teeth grind, and yet submission is desired by God. When He mentions it, is He referring to crushing, servitude, oppression? Of course not! Submission according to God goes beyond the act of obedience; it primarily involves the heart of the person submitting.

An employee at their workplace may fulfill a task assigned by their superior. If the action is done with a joyful heart, it is done in an attitude of submission.

On the other hand, if the same employee performs the same action while cursing their superior in their heart, they may have obeyed, but in an attitude of total insubmission. In summary, submission is a good thing because everything God has made is good. It helps to govern the order that God desires to implement in this world (1 Corinthians 14:33).

The negative image that humanity has of submission must be restored. Ruth acted according to Naomi’s instructions in a disposition of submission. At no point in the texts does Ruth seem to have an internal conversation different from the actions she takes or her convictions. When we submit, we agree to be under cover and obey a divine ordinance.

“For the Lord’s sake, submit yourselves to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.” 1 Peter 2:13-14

Contrary to what one might believe, the benefit of submission is always in favor of the one who submits.

In the household, the Lord recommends that the wife be submissive. Women, we must understand that submission is a power that God gives us to exercise our influence. During a show, a woman asked me the common question: But what is submission? I replied that being submissive to one’s husband means putting oneself under his mission, that is, serving alongside him and working so that our couple reaches the destination planned by God.

This text is an excerpt from the book “Ruth – The Unexpected One” written by Ps. Modestine CASTANOU.

We invite you to read the following article “The Right of Redemption: From Poverty to Nobility“.