Memorize: Christ’s example for marriage
Key Verses: 3, 4, 8, 15-16, 19, 21, 33
Paul starts this chapter by saying that we need to follow God’s example and give ourselves up. This involves the way we live. Instead of feeding our sinful nature with activities that feed our selfishness, we ought to be serving Him. There are things we should not do as Jesus-followers. Just because we are free from sin does not mean we are free to sin. And the consequences for living selfishly are catastrophic: we can be excluded from our new inheritance. It is obvious that these false teachers who have infiltrated the church there in Ephesus are teaching that freedom in Christ means they can do whatever they want, that sin no longer has consequences. Paul blasts them.
As believers we become light in Him. So wherever we go, His light will shine, exposing things others want hidden. This light also shines in our lives, so we are encouraged, even commanded to eliminate the dark things in our lives, the sins that reflect our old nature rather than our new inheritance. When we engage in sinful practices we are wasting our limited time here on earth.
One of the time-wasters is alcohol. When we drink for a buzz, however sight, we exclude the Spirit. Alcohol robs the Spirit of space when we are under the alcohol’s influence. Enjoying the joy of the Spirit’s presence is a much better feeling than any alcohol induced buzz. No one ever died from driving under the influence of the Spirit. But many a fight has ended violently when alcohol had reign.
Submission to one another means we must give up our selfish attitudes and actions. We must regard the other’s needs as greater than our own. Notice that the roles and responsibilities of husband and wife are different. That is because we each have our own challenges to this submission process. Men generally have a problem loving their wives. We are usually too harsh, not recognizing that they need a gentle spirit and touch from us. We tend to treat them like a man, rough and tumble.
Women tend to not respect their husbands, to treat them like a sister, rather than like their husbands. Men need to feel like their wives recognize their God-given authority in the home. When men feel disrespected, they lose their desire to be gentle. When women feel unloved they lose their desire to be respectful. Each has a different need, and each needs to respond to the other in terms of that need, not in terms of what they themselves need.
And remember, this illustration about husbands and wives teaches us something about the intimacy and relationships within the Godhead. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are all equal, and yet they fulfill different roles in our redemption, in salvation history, in eternity.
The Arnold Journey 