It is only the unworthy in [a man] that does not bow down to the worthy.
—Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest
In sports, positions define roles. You don’t want your defensive tackle throwing the ball. You don’t want your designated hitter pitching. And if you can help it, you don’t want your center dribbling the ball up the court. But when each player is filling his position, the team works. The division of roles frees each athlete to maximize his play.
Despite the bad press the word rule has received from the world, a man’s rule—when carried out under the overarching rule of God—is a liberating leadership for him and for those around him. The biblical concept of dominion, or rule, is neither a dictatorship nor a domination. Instead it is exercising legitimate authority under the lordship of Jesus Christ. Legitimate authority entails all that God provides for and permits a man to do—not whatever wishes or whims a man thinks he might like to do. His authority is contained by his position. Even Jesus relied on the Father for His direction, parameters, and power: “I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true” (John 7:28, niv).
Men, you are here to run God’s plays. You have been put on earth to carry out God’s agenda—not your own. As you submit your desires to God’s authority, He will purify you, realign your heart, and equip you to rule with a leadership that elevates the game of those around you.