Christ In Marriage - VS -18 & 19Christ In Parents & Children - VS 20 & 2122 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.
24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. 25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,
26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
You see, it was never possible for Jesus to serve as a mere illustration for Paul. There is much that is good, true, and beautiful about the analogy that Paul provides. But ultimately it is not the husband's duty to love his wife that Paul finds so profound. The mystery is that Christian marriage is given the honor of illustrating the gospel itself. What guilty person separated from God could have ever hoped that the Son of God would become a human being for our sake? What offender awaiting judgment and death could have ever dreamed that another would shed his blood in his place? How many who have a real sense of how awful we are truly think we can lose our guilty stains?
The mystery is that somehow God loves us and sent his Son for us. The almost bewildering fact is that Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. And in that church are losers and failures of all sorts, including husbands.
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
2 “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise),
3 “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.”
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 5 Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.
26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,
19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,
20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
