We speak a great deal about servanthood as the fundamental characteristic of Christian conduct.

From home and family relationships, the apostolic commands widen to embrace all relationships. As Christian ministry begins in the home and expands into the church, so too does the capacity and training to treat others in ways that reflect Christlikeness.

Without reading more meaning than probably exists into workmen being worthy of their hire, or elders being worthy of double honor, nowhere in the New Testament can we identify the precedent of huge church budgets for buildings, administrative staffs, music teams, or even paid clergy.

The commands slice into our flesh in many ways. They slice uniquely and personally into my flesh at precisely the point of my rebellion and my independence. They will slice into your flesh in different ways than they do mine.

How one reads and responds to this command will almost entirely depend on where on life’s spectrum one finds oneself.

How do we define ”manage?” What does it mean to manage a household? The word is fraught with misunderstanding.

Hospitality as commanded of Christians in the New Testament does not mean throwing cocktail and dinner parties.

If it is a cliche to say that the family is under attack, it is because it is so desperately true. These are perilous times for the values that hold marriage and the family together. The assault is not primarily one of ideas, as important as that is, it is an attack against relationships.

If husbands have to recognize servanthood rather than authority as the foundation of their role, where does a wife’s half of the servanthood equation begin?

Authority and submission, as they apply to masculine and feminine roles in marriage, were among the most discussed and argued about topics consuming the evangelical church during the 1970s.