Cheryl Schatz

NN,
You said:

As such, the idea of authority is implicit within the construction of this passage. Just as Christ’s sacrifice was not of His authority – but of His very life.

This is not true according to Philippians 2. The “normal” sacrifice talked about in Scripture is Jesus’ taking on our sin and dying for us, but Philippians makes it very clear that His act of taking on humanity was a great act of “giving up” himself for us to be just like us. This is why chapter 2 shows 2 acts of humility and a challenge to have the same humble attitude as Christ.

Philippians 2:5–8 (NASB)
5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
8 Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Notice that Paul says that Jesus “emptied Himself” to take on the form of a slave. Then at the end of His life He humbled Himself to the point of death. All of us are to have this same attitude and men are told to especially take this attitude towards their wives.

Even so as we are told to obey the authority of Christ, wives are told to submit to their husbands – “even as to the Lord.”

There is no term “authority” in Eph. 5:22. Rather wives are to do everything including submitting to their husbands to the glory of God. This has nothing whatsoever to do with the husband’s authority but rather the glory and praise of God.

Colossians 3:17 (NASB)
17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

1 Corinthians 10:31 (NASB)
31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Not because it is exacted by Christ (or the husband) but because it is right and proper to God’s ordination of the relationship.

There is no “ordination” of the relationship that adds authority to the husband to override her will. In fact when you add an authority into the mix, the free will offering of her submission is no longer free by is by compulsion. Compulsion removes free will and submission is never to be under compulsion. Paul mentions this when he writes to Philemon regarding an act of his free will consent.

Philemon 13–14 (NASB)
13 whom I wished to keep with me, so that on your behalf he might minister to me in my imprisonment for the gospel;
14 but without your consent I did not want to do anything, so that your goodness would not be, in effect, by compulsion but of your own free will.

If a husband has been given the authority to override his wife’s free will, then there would be no need for willing submission. The answer would have been easy – the man takes out his trump card and then takes what he wants and does what he wants even if there is active opposition from his wife.

The question we should all be asking at this point – is this what Christ does for His bride?