The apostle Paul strongly believed in the singular gospel of the grace of Christ. Paul was deeply convicted of this truth; nevertheless, he humbly sought confirmation of his belief.
Anyone can be deceived. It is wise, therefore, to submit to those in authority over us who can confirm, or correct, our convictions. God delegates human authority, and delegated authority is tasked with the responsibility of facilitating alignment with God (Romans 13).
Jesus revealed himself to Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus. Through this encounter with Christ, Paul received a revelation of Jesus and his gospel. His understanding of the gospel developed quickly and seemed to be the clearest and most cogent of the original apostles. Paul stood firm in his understanding of the gospel though others opposed him. Nevertheless, he was humble enough to realize that he could be mistaken. He sought confirmation from the senior leaders of the first-century Christian movement though, perhaps, they had less clarity than he.
Paul’s action may seem strange to those who value autonomy—the presumption of self-reliance or independence. But autonomy is not a Christian virtue. The Christian virtue is humble interdependence with the Christian community expressed, in part, by humble submission to authority. Paul understood that God works through authority. Consequently, the proper process was to seek confirmation of his understanding of the gospel from those in authority over him.
Paul is an example worthy of emulation. We should seek confirmation of our convictions from those in authority over us. We should live with an attitude of humility, submission, and teachability, particularly toward the delegated authority in our lives.
Autonomy is a manifestation of pride that leads to failure as illustrated by King David’s son Adonijah (1 Kings 1–2). Wise people will seek confirmation of their convictions from authority figures.
Christians are called to live obedient to the will and ways of God. He expects his will to be done according to his ways, which includes living according to the virtues of humility, submission, and teachability.
Here is your business tip. Strategic planning is a process of discerning God’s will (James 4:13–17). Managers must be interdependent to be able to discern God’s will. Such managers will progressively display Christlike character and be the clearest strategic thinkers and consequently the best organizational leaders because they can discern and align with God’s will. Workers should follow the lead of those who have authority over them. They must develop their skill and ability under the tutelage of wise, godly leaders and managers. An enemy of this process is autonomy—the presumption of independence and self-commissioning. When a person acts independently, there is no humility, submission, or teachability. Such people will be vulnerable to self-deception and poor workplace performance. Executional excellence is a by-product of godly leadership and godly workers who are humble, submitted, and teachable. |
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