Weeks 48 & 49 – Ephesians 5:25 & 5:22

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her – Ephesians 5:25 (NIV)

Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. – Ephesians 5:22 (NIV)

Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; – Ephesians 5:25 (KJV)

Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. – Ephesians 5:22 (KJV)

Theme:  God’s Guidance for Families
This is our 2nd & 3rd week on this theme.  See previous post here:  Obey Your Parents

As we emphasized last week, the one and only God, the Creator of all things in Heaven and on Earth, the One who placed the stars in the sky and defined the very laws of physics, is the same God who designed the family.  And His designs are perfect.

Last week’s verse, Ephesians 6:1, provided God’s basic guidance for children:  obey your parents.  Our verses for weeks 48 and 49, Ephesians 5:25 and 5:22, now lay out God’s basic expectations for spouses.  Before we dive in, let’s look at the verse that precedes Ephesians 5:22-25.

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. – Ephesians 5:21 (NIV)

Unfortunately, some people get hung up on the word “submit” used throughout this passage, thinking it somehow implies one role in the family exercises domination over the others.  Ephesians 5:21 makes it clear that we’re to submit humbly to each other…it’s not a one-way street.  With that as context, verses 25 and 22 further define how husbands and wives are to submit to one another.  Husbands are to love their wives so much that they will even give up their lives for them (the ultimate form of submission), just as Christ gave his life for his church.  Wives are to submit to their husband’s leadership role in the family just as we all submit to Christ’s leadership of the church.

It’s worthy of note that, in today’s society, there are some who don’t agree with God’s design for families, and they challenge His plan for marriage, parent-child responsibilities, husband-wife relationships, etc.  Frankly, such beliefs are largely responsible for the epidemic of recent news stories regarding high profile individuals not honoring their marriage vows.  In short, those that disagree with God’s design for the family can take up their issue with the Creator when they meet with Him.  As for our family, we will serve the Lord and honor His design for the family.

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