Making History

“…Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.” – 1 Peter 3.6

What sort of children are Sarah’s? They are those who “do what is right without being frightened by any fear;” in this context, they are submissive to their husbands. For the modern woman, this is a bitter pill which slides crookedly down the throat, if it slides down at all. If, however, we choose to place ourselves in the category of those who choose to submit, we can expect to face adversity, both within and outside ourselves. But it is imperative to remember that all Christians, regardless of sex, are called to submission, even when doing so results in suffering, not vainly, but in order that we may “obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled…reserved in heaven for [us]” (1 Pet.1.4).

The same Peter who wrote these words stepped out of His boat and – contrary to reason and instinct – walked on water in obedience to Christ’s bidding (Matt.14.29). Like so many before him, Peter understood that believing God means obeying Him, regardless of cost. He learned from experience that when we obey God we may be assured of two things: 1) we will suffer; 2) we will be afraid. When we choose to obey God by submitting to those in authority over us we are filled with a sense of unease. Call it anxiety, nervousness, or apprehension, the root of the emotion is the same: we are afraid.

Sarah’s life demonstrates this principle. She began her marriage by following a man who admittedly “did not know where he was going.” Twice he asked her to enter the household of King Abimelech; she went (for all we know) willingly – with no assurance as to whether she would be left unharmed. Later, weary from Hagar and Ishmael’s mocking, she did not demand that Abraham comply with her wishes and expel the pair, but insisted that God act as judge an arbiter between them. Lastly – and perhaps most tellingly – Sarah watched her only child, the son of promise, the boy for whom she had waited so many years, depart with Abraham to Mt. Moriah to offer sacrifices with only a saddled donkey and a thatch of split wood. We cannot help but wonder whether she knew what word God had spoken to Abraham to test him by commanding him to offer up Isaac as a sacrifice? Certainly, if anyone understood that submission is frightening, Sarah did!

The history of Christianity is filled with such persons, flawed persons without knowledge of the future, yet standing up against extraordinary odds, all because they believed God enough to put themselves at risk in order to obey Him. Moses stood before a hard-hearted Pharoah; Esther risked her head by entering the court of the dreaded King Ahasuerus; and David, full of passionate zeal for God, fought the giant Goliath and endured persecution under the voluble king Saul. None of these people were perfect; but all were obedient. It is worth considering that we might not know their names if they had said, ‘no’ or ‘I will not,’ to God. The landscape of biblical history would be just as variant and rich, but it would be peopled with other names and stories.

God does not need us to accomplish His purposes; but in His goodness He offers us opportunity to obey and become part of the great lineage of those who, like Sarah, “considered Him faithful who had promised” (Heb. 11.11).

Do you trust God enough to submit to the leadership of your husband? Do you believe that He is not only sovereign, but good? If you do, you will submit, not dejectedly or resignedly, but with a hopeful glimmer in your eye. You will be among those blessed few who realize that He is not out to get you, but to remake you, and in so doing make you a living part of that Great History that is, most simply, His.