Keep Sweet…
07/17/22
Ephesians 5:21, Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
This year Netflix released a docuseries about the polygamous (multiple wives) Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, an offshoot of mainstream Mormonism, and its current leader Warren S. Jeffs. It’s really gross (Rich Doering’s opinion). It follows the dangerous twisting of Scripture and religious adherence to promote the overwhelmingly horrific treatment of women and children. It all happens under the guise of one word: Submit.
The “prophet” had a saying for all the women and young girls in their movement.
“Keep Sweet.”
The only function of a female was to “keep sweet,” which meant attending to the needs of men, dress and act in line with the dictates of men, and bear children. That’s it. Anything outside of the bounds of submission to this system meant, shunning, or worse. “Keep sweet” was a pretty way of saying, “submit.” The series is a tough watch. Shelley and I found ourselves gasping more than a few times at the cruelty and abuse. It’s a tough watch also because of how spiritually abusive it is.
Submission is one of the most easily weaponized attributes in religious circles. There has been untold suffering at the hands of religious authorities all in the name of “submitting.” A misuse of “submission” has been used to prop up patriarchy, justify the enslavement of other humans, create caste systems and hierarchies, control people legalistically, and more.
It is unfortunate that in the hands of humanity we have taken something with so much power relationally and weaponized it. The antidote to the abuse of submission is easily seen in two words from the verse above… “one another.”
Paul goes on to relate in Ephesians 5 how this plays out in the home. But Paul wasn’t just writing a letter to nuclear families. He was writing to a church. Prior to this Paul has been speaking about what it looks like to be filled with the Spirit. All Christians who are filled with the Holy Spirit are to relate to one another with Christ-like humility and a willingness to serve. If space were available, we could dig deeper into the original language…the Greek…and we would see how various interpretations have led to all kinds of ideas about how this plays out. And to be sure, there are many opinions about how to interpret these words of Paul. We could chase all that down…or…
Sometimes, it’s good to go ahead and let Jesus be the example. It kind of clears things up at times…particularly when we muddy the waters…
In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:5-8)
It would also do us good to remember that Jesus shared some pointed words directed at those who felt the need to have others “submit” to them:
Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave–just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:25-28)
The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. (Matthew 23:11-12)
Let’s remember that in the Kingdom of God, every Christian is called to submit and love as Christ loved. (John 13:35)
-Pastor Rich