Ephesians 5:33

However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

Transcript:

Why we need to be Spirit filled

Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the LORD

Zechariah 4:6

9 Reasons we need to be Spirit filled

• We need a fresh outpouring of God’s Spirit upon our lives
• We need to be spiritually refreshed (Acts 3:19)
• We need to live in the strength of Jesus (Philippians 4:13)
• We need to be witnesses of God’s ways (Acts 1:8)
• We need to build better relationships
• We need to build stronger marriages
• We need to build stronger families
• We all need to grow in our relationship skills
• We need to work on the common graces of listening, forgiving, and serving (Ephesians 4:32)

What does it say?

• A universal command (Ephesians 5:21)

– whatever you want submission to mean you must define it in a way that it is universally applied

– to serve under, to work together for a common good

– why is our willingness to submit to one another an indicator of our relationship to Jesus?

• A particular context (Ephesians 5:22-24)

– what is the difference between submitting to one another and submitting to your own husband?

– how do you submit to the Lord?

– did you enter into your marriage understanding that your husband was the head, that you as husband are to take spiritual leadership within your home?

• An incredible comparison (Ephesians 5:25-32)

– how did Jesus love the people he met during his ministry? Compassion, healing, forgiveness, acceptance,

– what was the greatest act of love Jesus did for his church?

• A biblical conclusion (Ephesians 5:33)

What do other texts add to this passage?

1 Peter 3:1-7

What are the principles?

1. There is a huge clash between culture and the word of God

• A huge divide between what God considers normative Christian behavior and what culture says that we should experience in our relationships.

2. Marriage is a husband and wife relationship.

• It can’t be just the wife, it can’t be just the husband. It can’t be I’ll do it my way and you do it your way. It needs to be both the husband and the wife doing it God’s way.

6 Things submission is not

• It is not subservience
• It is not forced servitude
• It is not silent obedience
• It is not total control
• It is not selfish dominance
• It is not unteachable tyranny

3 Things Submission must be

• It is a spiritual action – as to the lord
• It is Christlike – as Christ loved the church
• It is visibly, actively demonstrated – give up, love, respect

How many times do we see individuals who can easily, quickly, and readily come up with several reasons that their marriage is not what it should be because of the other person? For this reason:

3. God places great responsibility upon you to fulfill your role within the relationship.

• The wife is to be
• The husband is to be

4. These principles apply no matter what spiritual condition the other spouse is in.

• Husbands love your wives as Christ – the church has not always been everything we should be
• Be subject to your own even if some do not obey the word
• Dr Carol Peters-Tanksley discusses the common problem of many women who feel unloved by their husband. “I often hear from women who are disappointed in their marriage. Their hearts are empty and sad. I also hear from men who feel like they can never do enough to make their wives happy, even if they try.”

5. The two main actions within a Christian marriage hit at the heart how to have an exceptional marriage

• Love and Respect
• Let each one love his wife – the need to sit down and ask your spouse what they need to feel loved and supported.
• Respects her husband – the need to affirm, appreciate, and never publicly berate your husband (and the same applies to husbands)

6. There are no lasting relationships – friendships, marriages, parents and children – without forgiveness.

• As Christ loved the church – love and forgiveness

As Christians we have the incredible opportunity to view marriage as a one flesh relationship where we are married to our best friend, our closest friend, our most caring friend. We get to worship together, love together, live together. We also get to live in obedience to the one who promises to bless our relationship and our lives when we willingly choose to follow his pattern and not the pattern of the world.

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