And subject yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ. Ephesians 5:21
“And so, let our whole body be healthy in Christ Jesus, and let each person be subject to his neighbor in accordance with the gracious gift he has received. Let the one who is strong take care of the week; and let the weak show due respect to the strong. Let the wealthy provide what is needed to the poor, and let the poor offer thanks to God, since He has given him someone to supply his need. Let the one who is wise show forth wisdom not through words but through good deeds.”
Clement of Rome (A.D. 35-99) in his Second Letter to the Corinthians 38:1-2a.
For the body of Christ to be healthy, we must use the gift or play the part God has designed for each of us to play, and we all need to subject ourselves to one another.
It does not look like this in the world. The poor are subject to the rich. The weak are subject to the strong. Even many Christians follow these social and cultural patterns.
But keen followers of Jesus notice that He did not Lord over us, though He could have, but took a posture of a servant. He became poor so we might become rich. We get to follow His example.
When we do this, we don’t lose our place with God or position in society, but actually find our place and our purpose. Subjecting ourselves to others and sharing is the pathway to healthy living.
On a personal note, we praise God that Ellie is a healthy baby. We pray she grows in wisdom and stature and favor with God and man. It was a joy and privilege to hold her last night.
And the report from Cleveland is that my sister’s surgery was successful. In removing the tumor, they got everything and the prognosis is good for a full recovery. God has good deeds left for Heather to do!