As a minster, weddings are just one of the things that go along with the territory.? In the process of the pre-marital counseling the discussion of the wedding vows will inevitable come up.? ??Usually when it does, there seems to always be some kind of a sly comment by the prospective bride concerning the particular phrase in the traditional wedding vows ?..to love, honor and obey?. ??Obey? she says!? ?I do love this man, but I will not promise to OBEY him.?? ?The reason for her apprehension is that in today?s world many women hold the mindset that both the husband and the wife are equal parties within the relationship. They believe that they are their own person and can make their own decisions and ?no man? has the right to rule over her for any particular reason, regardless of the situation.?? While I do agree that the man and the woman both have equal responsibilities within the marriage relationship,? the Bible is clear when it comes to the hierarchy in the relationship:
?Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 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. ? Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.?? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????? Ephesians 5:22-24
Why has this passage and concept been such a hard pill to swallow for prospective couples? In the writer?s mind there are two main reasons why this has become such an issue.? First, many couples have seen this passage abused by some men who misuse this command in their treatment of their wives.? Secondly, there seems to have been a misunderstanding of the meaning of the term ?submission?.? Both of these reasons are worthy of our consideration, but for the purpose of this article we will only address the latter.
The meaning of the word ?submission? can only be clearly understood within its context.? Within the writing of the letter Paul is not only addressing issues related to marriage, but he also uses the term to address other aspects of submission within our other relationships; such as children and their relationship with their parents,? Masters and their relationship with their slaves and then the encompassing of all other relationships with the phase ?submitting to one another? in Ephesians 5.21.
The word at its core means to ?to?subordinate; reflexively to?obey:?- be under obedience (obedient), put under, subdue unto, (be, make) subject (to, unto), be (put) in subjection (to, under), submit self unto.? (Vines Expository Dictionary).? On this level it does seem a bit harsh to have the wives ?be obedient? to their husbands, but Paul clarifies for us by providing us with an example.? He tells wives to be in submission to their husbands as the church is submissive to Christ.? Now Paul does not just pick on the wives , he adds that the husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church and gave Himself up for her.? Now you cannot understand how the wife is to submit, until one understands how the husband is to love.? When we understand that Christ loved us so much that He was willing to sacrifice His life for the sake of ours.? We see that the husband is to love his wife so much that he puts her interests and well-being in front of his own.? Jesus? presented Himself to us in humility looking for others interest over His own, by His willingness to leave Heaven and come down to earth and live in the flesh.? Paul describes this humility in Philippians 2 and also admonishes us to have the same spirit.? Therefore when we see how much Jesus loves us (the church), we submit to Him.? This submission is not viewed in a negative way, in fact it is just the opposite.?? We do not view Jesus as some slave driver cracking His whip as He? lords over us to do His eternal bidding.? We submit because we understand that He is looking out for our best interest.? As Christians we submit to the commands of Jesus because of the love that we have for Him; a love that was first illustrated to us by Him.
The same is true with the relationship of the husband and wife.? If the husband is submitting himself to the Lord and is willing to love his wife to the point of sacrificing himself for her, then submission will not be a problem.? She will gladly submit herself and obey a husband who is willing to place her needs before his own.?? The idea of submission is then viewed as a privilege rather than a chore.? The vow of submission then is simply following the example that Jesus had to His Father.? Jesus submitted His will to the will of the Father because He knew the Father was looking out for the greater good- the salvation of mankind.? The problem with our cultural misunderstanding of the vow today is that the husbands who abuse this concept do not love their wives as Christ loved the church.? The responsibility therein lies with the man and his willingness to submit to the will of God.? I believe that most women would be willing to submit to a man that has their best interests as His priority. ??So the next time you are at a wedding and you hear the bride to-be repeat those traditional vows ?to love honor and obey?, know that the vow is just as much of a responsibility of the husband as it is to the wife. ?Husbands, let?s make sure we do our best to express this kind of live to our wives. ?Wives, do your best as you submit to a husband who loves you as Christ loves the Church! ? I love the Church! Matt
Like this:
Be the first to like this.
Source: http://mattheupel.wordpress.com/2012/10/11/as-a-minster-w/
susan powell megamillions winners university of louisville louisville ky final four lotto winners mega ball winning numbers
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.