“Yes, Dear”

This phrase was common when I was growing up. 

During parties, I would hear the grown-ups joke about a husband being henpecked, or “under the saya [skirt]” in Filipino. In those days, machismo was in vogue—the father was the boss and the mother was to do his bidding. 

After all, the Bible specifies in Ephesians 5:24, “As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything.” 

  
Otherwise, the man of the house would be labeled, “Yes, dear.” 

Then the feminism movement (the advocacy of women's rights for the equality of the sexes) gained popularity and the word “submit” is now being omitted in many wedding vows. “Yes, dear” is extinct.  

Obedience or submission, however, cannot and should not be ignored. As believers, we are called to a life of obedience. Submission of wives to husbands as in the verse above and Colossians 3:18 remains unchanged. 

“Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do.” (Ephesians 6:1 NLT) 

Even Jesus showed obedience: “. . . he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross." (Philippians 2:8) 

Jesus also reminds us, “If you love me, obey my commandments." (John 14:15)

 
There’s a promised reward for obedience, “If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the world.” (Deuteronomy 28:1) 

Lest it be forgotten, from Genesis to Revelation, the Bible emphasizes obedience. In the Ten Commandments, obedience to God is of prime importance.