2 Corinthians 9:13

By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others,

Do we think of submission being birthed from our confession of faith?

1 Corinthians 16:7

For I do not want to see you now just in passing. I hope to spend some time with you, if the Lord permits.

It is by way of our confession that Jesus Christ becomes the Lord of our life and we submit to Him for permission to do what we want. If we do not then we have reverted back to doing things our way because we have an agenda.

We have passions which we might see as good or bad. We do those things which we are passionate about which the Lord allows because He can use us at times within that arena because others, specifically the lost, also have that passion. In most cases because we are Christians we deem them harmless.

Those friends of mine that went to college and are avid football, baseball or basketball fans might understand what I mean about harmless passions. We take the Lord with us when we partake of those activities and the occasion might arise for us to serve the Lord as faithful witnesses of His love for all mankind. Might does not mean that He will. We still need to be sensitive to His call to us in those moments.

We submit to the Lord so that where we are does not determine who we are.

1 Corinthians 15:33

Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”

The only way to avoid that is to remain loyal to the Lord that saved us from such behaviors.

Then there is the issue of subjection.

John 13:35

By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Consider this, there are many Greek words for love. Godly love, agape, is the most pure love and it is this love that Jesus is teaching to His disciples. If the world can see that we, the children of God, love one another with this perfect love, it is the love of God being demonstrated by imperfect humans.

From the viewpoint of an outsider who does not know the love of God our love might look like one or more of the other types of love. Love of family and love of friends is common in the world. We even have that love within the family of God. What sets us apart is when we open up our community to unbelievers and show them how God loves us through each other when one of our members acts out of character.

• 1 Corinthians 6:15
  Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never!
• 1 Corinthians 12:12
  One Body with Many Members
  For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
• 1 Corinthians 12:18
  But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose.
• 1 Corinthians 12:25
  that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.
• 1 Corinthians 12:27
  Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

Paul’s first epistle to Corinth is a prime example of how he reminds us who we are and how we are to act. Why does he have to remind us if we are all members of the same family?

1 Corinthians 1:11

For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers.

Families quarrel from time to time. Who is going to settle this? Paul brought the gospel to Corinth and set in place a structure for the church that begins with oversight. We are all answerable to a higher authority and when local leadership cannot resolve certain issues those who showed agape love to begin with are called back to settle their disputes. Submission is required.