“Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the body of which he is the Savior. Just as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” (Ephesians 5:22-25, NRSV)
Some time ago I heard a pastor say from
the pulpit that he wouldn’t touch this subject with a 20-foot pole. The
congregation chuckled.
I did not.
I wonder how God felt when this pastor, called by God to shepherd God’s flock, I
wonder how God felt when he sidestepped an important opportunity to remind us of
God’s immutable expectations in marriage.
Christian, please listen. God’s word is His voice to
us. It is His heart to us. When we dance around truth, dilute truth, or
try to explain away truth, God’s word still and forever holds final authority
over all life and relationships.
I know Christian couples – and you probably also know of some
– couples married a short time, or a long time who, like this pastor, choose to
ignore the so-called ‘hard truths’ of Scripture.
In our culture, Feminism – which is a code word among many
feminists for “Do what is right in your own eyes” – Feminism has for two
generations encouraged – even from pulpits – God’s children to choose their own
way over God’s.
But make no mistake about this fundamental truth: “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the
word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:8)
And so, back to Ephesians 5. Here is God’s
expectation AND requirement for a God-honoring and healthy marriage: Wives respect your husbands as you respect Christ. Give
deference to your husbands as you give deference to Christ.
And husbands, God has a commandment for you too. Husbands love your
wives just as Jesus loved the church and sacrificed Himself for her.
Oh, God, help us accept and obey the hard truths of Scripture,
even when the culture scoffs and rails against them.
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