Ordered Under Christ, Secure In His Abundance
BRD REFLECTION 2026
1 Corinthians 11:1-16 and Psalm 20:1-5 (NIV)
(Lynn Lau from Finance Committee/Marketplace Ministry)
READ:
Read 1 Corinthians 11:1-16 and Psalm 20:1-5 paying special attention to the following verses:
“Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” (1 Cor 11:1)
“But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. … That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman… all things are from God.” (1 Cor 11: 3, 10-13)
“May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble!
May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! ….
May he grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans!
May we shout for joy over your salvation,…
May the Lord fulfill all your petitions!” (Psalm 20:1, 4-5)
OBSERVE:
In 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul tells us that Christ is the standard, and Paul seeks to be a guidepost pointing us to Christ. He lived his life in an open and transparent way and was willing to share his life to spur others on.
In 1 Corinthians 11:3-16, we are shown order and interdependence under God’s design. This headship is about order, not superiority or inferiority. With divine order, there is equality and mutual dependence between husband and wife.
It is probably no coincidence that Psalm 20 is paired in BRD with the passage on living under God’s divine order. When we live in God’s order of things, we see His abundance bestowed on us. Wow, He promises to answer me when I am in trouble, protect me, support me, remember me, grant me my heart’s desire and fulfill all my plans and petitions.
APPLY:
- “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ”
At my workplace, the most common question in one-to-one sessions with younger staff is about my personal journey. I ask myself if I would ask others to imitate me in my spiritual journey, and if it signposts Christ. Am I willing to invest time to share my life journey with others so that they draw encouragement and lessons for their faith?
- “..the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God”
In today’s context, it seems counter-cultural to admit that the head over me is my husband. I have no problem accepting that the head over me is Christ, but here I am reminded that there is God’s order of things. This means that in my home, my husband has the authority and responsibility to head up the household. We may debate over home matters, but ultimately, as a wife, I should recognise and support him when he makes a judgement call on the decision to be made.
DO:
As a response to this reading, I will
- Remind myself of the divine order of things, which gives us abundance. The Lord is the authority over my life. When I pray to commit troubling situations to the Lord, I will not to take them back and worry about them
- Keep in check my actions at home, remembering to submit to the authority of my husband as head of the household, to enable him to take up full headship and authority so that he flourishes under God’s divine order too
- Commit to invest time to meet with people at work to share my personal life, intentionally signposting Christ. This includes meetings and get-togethers I don’t feel like attending
PRAY:
Praise be Your name, Lord, for Your guide to a life of abundance. Thank You for being willing to be the authority and head of my life.
Help me to glorify Your name in my actions at home, at work and all aspects of my life, that I can be an imitator of Christ.
