S = Ephesians 5:20-33
25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.”
“…giving thanks always and for everything to God the
Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to
one another out of reverence for Christ.
22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to
the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as
Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now
as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to
their husbands.25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.”
O = Whenever I read a difficult passage from the Bible I look for
internal key to interpretation. In this passage there is such a key in verses 32-33.
We see that Paul uses the imagery of human marriage, the most intimate of
relationships to reveal something about how Christ loves the Church…yet at the
same time we need to apply what it reveals about Christ to our marriages. Note
that the submission of the wife to her own husband is within the larger context
of the mutual submission of v.21 sourced in reverence for Christ. Why does the
church submit to Christ? Because he has poured his love out into our hearts by
the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5) and proved that love by doing what was best for us
at great cost to himself. I remember I once preached a sermon based on this
text that was paradoxically entitled, “Love your wife unselfishly…it is the
most selfish thing you can do!” The challenge within marriage if for wives to
respond to their husbands love with trust and respect; while the challenge to
the husband is to love his wife as he loves, feeds, and cares for his own body
and then kicking it up a notch to follow the example of Christ. I did a Word
cloud using the text of this passage and can readily see words used most often.
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A = How should I respond to Christ’s love for me? I should surrender my claims to live any longer for myself. I will respond by opening up to the Spirit’s work in my life, no longer hiding myself in fear and pride, offering myself to be washed, nourished, and cherished as I need to be. My Creator/Redeemer knows what I truly need! I choose to distance myself from him no longer and I repent of my past hardness of heart. As I am captivated by his love it will change me from the inside out. And the added blessing of this spiritual relationship with Christ is then I get to turn to my spouse and do exactly the same thing!
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A = How should I respond to Christ’s love for me? I should surrender my claims to live any longer for myself. I will respond by opening up to the Spirit’s work in my life, no longer hiding myself in fear and pride, offering myself to be washed, nourished, and cherished as I need to be. My Creator/Redeemer knows what I truly need! I choose to distance myself from him no longer and I repent of my past hardness of heart. As I am captivated by his love it will change me from the inside out. And the added blessing of this spiritual relationship with Christ is then I get to turn to my spouse and do exactly the same thing!
P = O Lord, may I
grow to understand and respond to your love for me in the fullest possible
sense from this day forward. May I neither hide myself nor harden my heart
towards you (nor my spouse). Lord I ask that when I fail you would forgive me
and never let me wander off the path on my own, and Lord in our marriages I
pray you would melt hard hearts, heal wounds, reconciling husbands and wives
just as miraculously as you have reconciled us to yourself. And Lord, may
others be able to see you more clearly as a result. Amen.
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