Daily Meditations on the Bible
Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.
Summary: Since at least the days of Queen Vashti and King Xerxes, there has been trouble between husbands and wives. Paul embarks on a bit of marriage counseling in this passage.
Continue reading “Ephesians 5:22 – The Heart of the Home”
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Summary: Weddings are an exciting time. They mark a point in life where everything changes. My prayer for the two people getting married today is that this change opens the door to an abundance of blessings from God.
Continue reading “Ephesians 5: 21 — A Marriage Blessing”
Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives…
Peter has instructed wives and now turns his attention to the husbands. He begins, “… in the same way….” In the same way as what?
To find the answer, we have to go back to Chapter 3, verse 1. Peter writes, “Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands.” Wait a minute. In the same way as — what?
If we go back to Chapter 2, verse 21, we read: “To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.”
Continue reading “1 Peter 3:7 (a) — The Cost of New”
… so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.
Why would anyone want to submit to God? Mmmm…. because God is the creator of the universe and everything in it? Because when our body dies our spirit remains? Because God is the one who determines whether our spirit is with Him for eternity or tossed into the burning lake of fire? I guess that would be a good reason to submit to God.
And what does God want from us? He wants our love above all else and that we should love others as ourselves. (Matthew 22: 35-40) Oh, and he wants us to “go and make disciples.” (Matthew 28: 16-20)
Continue reading “1 Peter 3:1(b)-2 — Without Words”
… love the family of believers …
Peter’s theme is submission. He wants us to “submit … for the Lord’s sake.” We are to put ourselves under others in importance. By doing this we lift others up. They become more important in our eyes.
This feels counter-intuitive to our egos. The part of us that stands apart from God does not want to submit. We glory in our independence and our power. We enjoy taking control of our lives and living large. At least as long as things go well.
Continue reading “1 Peter 2:17 (b) — Family Love”