What does it mean to love your wife? Paul deals with that in Ephesians 5 Quick Hit! 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her Remember love is an action verb – it is not a feeling. If I love my wife, then I will put her needs and wants ahead of my own. As husbands we have a responsibility to care for our wives just as Christ cares for the church. We are to provide for our wives. The roof we have over our head and the food we have in our bellies is the responsibility of us husbands to provide. Our wives may earn more than us, but it is still our responsibility to provide. We are to lead our wives spiritually. We are to be the leaders in the home. We are to ensure that our family is committed to Christ and we are to ensure that our family is growing in Christ. Failures in these two areas – providing and spiritual guidance – fall back to the man. This is God’s plan. So men, man up and fulfill your God given role to lead. Want to dive deeper, read on. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. Meaning – Jesus gave sacrificially for the church. And, He continues to meet the needs of the church today. Jesus provides spiritual food through the Word of God and He provides guidance to the leaders in the church through the Holy Spirit. So in the same way, men are responsible for providing for their wives. They are responsible for providing food and shelter for their family. As I mentioned above, it may well be that the wife makes more money than then man. It still is the responsibility of the man to provide food and shelter. I am not saying this is not a team effort, all I am saying is that if there is a failure, it is on the husband. The husband is to guide the family into spiritual growth. He is to ensure that his family is committed to Christ and he is to ensure that they are in the Word every day and growing. Men are to love their wives like they love their own body. No matter how flabby and out of shape we might be, we men will admire our body in the mirror. The same way we love and care for our own body is how we should care for our wives. Application – As I mentioned in the video, my wife loves seafood. If I want to score points with my wife, then all I have to do is say, “Honey, want to go to Copeland’s?” Now I must admit, this is not a one way street in our house. My wife cannot stand bar-b-que. She endures it because she loves me as well. But my point is this, the things that are important to me should take second place to the wants and needs of my wife. Guys, here is one that you may not feel very comfortable with. Your wife needs you to put her needs first in spiritual matters. You need to make sure you wife is getting fed spiritually and that she is in a place where she can grow. This might take you stepping outside of your comfort zone, but believe me, if your wife is a growing Believer, it makes your whole house happier and a more peaceful. Please share this devotional so your friends can be challenged as well. Hope you have a great day. https://youtube/watch?v=mZepIHPzZYg&list=UU9K4c9lX6yhnfMUGGuh1mFw&index=1
Posted on: Tue, 02 Sep 2014 10:34:24 +0000