SUNDAY April 3, 2022
The Marriage Union
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be bitter toward them.
Colossians 3:18-19
God designed marriage. He brought a man and a woman together as one. In Genesis 2:24, it states: Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. The word joined literally means “to be glued, to cleave or adhere.” When two people marry, they are joined together before God. It is important that God remains in the center of the relationship. Both husband and wife must walk in the fear of the Lord, seeking God's will together.
A wife needs to feel secure. Her husband must be faithful to her and be sensitive to her feelings and needs. She should have no cause to doubt her husband’s love. Also, a husband must not act in a way that causes his wife to think that he is bitter towards her. Can she see love in your words and actions towards her? Understand, a wife does not have to submit to sin––she submits as is fitting in the Lord. She is not to submit to any abusive behavior. A wife will willingly and naturally submit and respect her husband if she is loved. Therefore, aim to love and protect her.
It is impossible for a husband to love his wife in his own strength. However, when a husband places God first in his life, he will be enabled by the Holy Spirit to love and care for his wife, just as Christ also loved the Church and gave Himself for her (Ephesians 5:25). Jesus becomes a perfect pattern for husbands to follow. A husband is called to be the head of the home and to lovingly lead his wife in prayer and in the Word, and to supply all the financial needs for his home.
Love and respect in a marriage go hand in hand: Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband (Ephesians 5:33). God’s plan for marriage is best.
God made the human pair in such a manner that it is natural for the husband to lead, for the wife to follow.
~William Hendriksen~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
