How Your Submission to Your Husband Reflects Your Relationship with God

Jan 2

3 min read

Submission is a topic that often sparks debate and misunderstanding, especially within the context of marriage. Yet, when viewed through the lens of Scripture, it becomes a beautiful act of trust, humility, and reverence for God. As a wife, your willingness to submit to your husband is not just about honoring him—it’s a direct reflection of your relationship with God.

Understanding Biblical Submission

Ephesians 5:22-24 says, “Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.”

Biblical submission is not about inferiority or losing your voice. It is about willingly placing yourself under the leadership of your husband, trusting that God has established him as the head of your family. Submission is ultimately an act of obedience to God, rooted in faith that His design for marriage is perfect and good.

Submission Mirrors Your Trust in God

1. Trusting God’s Design for Marriage

When you submit to your husband, you are expressing trust in God’s plan for marriage. By honoring your husband’s leadership, you acknowledge that God has placed him in this role as a reflection of Christ’s leadership over the Church. Your submission says, “Lord, I trust Your wisdom and Your order.”

2. Demonstrating Humility and Reverence

Submission requires humility—choosing to set aside pride and selfishness to serve your husband and your marriage. In doing so, you reflect the humility Christ demonstrated when He submitted to the will of the Father. Your submission is an act of reverence, not only to your husband but ultimately to God.

3. Relying on God’s Strength

Submission can be challenging, especially during seasons of disagreement or difficulty. These moments require reliance on God for strength, wisdom, and grace. When you lean on God to help you submit with love and respect, you deepen your dependence on Him and grow spiritually.

Submission Reflects Christ’s Love

Just as Christ submitted to the Father’s will—even to the point of death on the cross (Philippians 2:8)—your submission to your husband mirrors Christ’s sacrificial love. Submission is an opportunity to show unconditional love, honor, and respect, reflecting the way the Church is called to submit to Christ.

Colossians 3:18 reminds us, “Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.” This means that submission is not about blind obedience but a loving and intentional act that honors both God and your husband.

What Submission Is Not

It’s important to clarify what biblical submission is not:

• Submission is not enabling sin. If your husband leads in a way that contradicts God’s Word, your ultimate allegiance is to God.

• Submission is not silence. You are still called to speak the truth in love and share your wisdom as a helper to your husband.

• Submission is not about control or dominance. True biblical leadership from your husband involves loving, sacrificial leadership that mirrors Christ’s love for the Church.

Practical Ways to Reflect Submission in Your Marriage

1. Pray for Your Husband

Cover your husband in prayer daily, asking God to guide him as the leader of your family. Prayer fosters unity and helps you align your heart with God’s will.

2. Respect His Role

Show respect for your husband’s decisions, even when you don’t agree, and communicate your thoughts with love and humility.

3. Encourage and Support Him

Be your husband’s greatest cheerleader. Encourage him in his faith, career, and role as a husband and father.

4. Seek God’s Guidance

Spend time in God’s Word to understand His design for marriage and to cultivate a submissive heart that honors both your husband and the Lord.

Submission Leads to Freedom

The world may view submission as restrictive, but in God’s design, submission leads to freedom. When you submit to your husband as unto the Lord, you experience the peace and joy that come from trusting God’s plan. Submission aligns your heart with God’s will, strengthens your marriage, and serves as a testimony of faith to those around you.

Final Thoughts

Your submission to your husband is a direct reflection of your relationship with God. It’s an act of faith, obedience, and love that glorifies God and strengthens your marriage. By embracing biblical submission, you honor not only your husband but also the Lord, who designed marriage as a beautiful reflection of Christ’s relationship with the Church.