Page 165 - Ephesians

Fatherhood of God. My children are responsible, not to submit to
me, but to submit to the “Bible office” of father.

Father is an especially high office, because God has given it, to
reflect Himself. The Bible describes its qualifications, duties and
limitations. If there is a father, that’s a renegade, violating the
Bible office of father. Perhaps a drunkard, living in immorality and
full of violence and cruelty. You are to submit to the office, and
not to that man. Often your submission to that office, will prove to
be rebellion against the individual. This is true of all delegated
authority. It’s also true of wives and husbands.

I had an occasion where one wife called me up, “My husband
required me to go to the bar and drink with him, and the Bible said
to submit so I went.” The Bible doesn’t say that. The Bible says
to submit to the office of husband. That wasn’t the office of
husband. That, was a violation of the office of husband. She
was wrong to submit to that. She should have submitted to the
Lord.

Those are two observations. First of all, children were present.
Secondly, the expression “In the Lord”, sets the boundaries of
obedience. There’s another thing that “In the Lord” illustrates.
The verse, “Honor your father and mothers, which is the first
commandment with a promise”. Honor your father and mother
is called a commandment. Let me give a Bible illustration. Here’s
God and here’s junior. God says to junior, “Obey your parents.”
Parents say, “Turn off the light. You are wasting electricity.” That
doesn’t violate anything from the word of God, or cut across any
grain. Children are to obey their parents. They said to turn off the
light. Who are they obeying? Are they obeying their parents,
who said to turn off the light, or are they obeying God, who said
to obey your parents? It’s not the parents that said to turn off the
lights. It’s God that says to obey your parents, when they say,
“Turn off the light”. If you disobey your parents, you’ve disobeyed
God, because God is the one who told you to submit to that
delegated authority.

If I have trouble in a horizontal relationships on earth, it’s a dead
giveaway that something is wrong with my vertical relationship