A NEWSLETTER FOR THE MEMBERS OF THE GREENWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST

VOLUME 2 NO. 41                                        November 27, 2005

WIVES SUBMIT TO YOUR HUSBANDS!

STEVE NIEMEIER

This statement by Paul in Ephesians 5:22 in one that about all husbands have memorized and just about all wives shutter at.  Husbands believe their wives should be “servants” to them and wives believe their husbands should be more considerate and responsive to them.

Whether we like it or not God has placed women in the role that He wants them in.  I Corinthians 11:3 states that the head of woman is man.  This of course was ordained from the very beginning (Genesis 3:16).  Man was appointed as head of the wife (Epesians 5:22-24; Colossians 3:18).  “Head” means “supreme, chief, prominent” according to Thayer page 345.  This is in comparison to Christ and the church.  Headship implies leadership and since men are to be the head they must lead and the wife must follow according to God's word.  We need to remember that a man is to lead as God would have him to lead (see last week's bulletin).

Wives are to be a blessing in the home and by following God's will they can be such a blessing.  The old statement “If momma ain't happy then nobody is happy” is not a complimentary statement to a wife and mother.  Proverbs 21:19 states: “Better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and angry woman.”  The home is to be a happy and joyous place where all the inhabitants are striving to follow the Lord.

Just because a wife is to submit to the husband does not mean that she is inferior to the husband.  Submit means “to yield to or arrange under another.”  A wife then must be a helper to the husband who is to treat her with dignity, respect, love and gentleness.

A wife must show reverence to her husband.  This is respect and honor according to Ephesians 5:33.  Remember the respect that Sarah had for Abraham (I Peter 3:6).  We must remember that wives have been given that commandment and must follow it just as the men are to follow the commnadment to love their wives just as Christ loved the church.  When both parties do this then the relationship is as it should be.

Our society has tried and tried to get around the passage found in Titus 2:5 about a woman being the keeper at home or a homemaker.  This is from God and we can not “substitute” another rule.  Proverbs 14:1 and I Timothy 5:14 give instruction that a woman is to “build” her house “manage” her home.  This does not limit the husband's role but shows the importance of the woman in the home.

Many wives work outside the home in our society and certianly the work around the house needs to be shared.  However, just as every husband will stand in judgement for how he served as the “head” of the house, every wife will stand in judgment for how she “managed” the house.

A wife and a husband are to render unto each other according to I Corinthians 7:3-5.  Many marriages fall apart when the wife withholds herself from her husband and vice versa.  This is not according to God's will as He understood the difficulty this brings in the husband/wife relationship.

Wives when is the last time you “flirted” with your husband?  When is the last time you told him that you loved him?  When is the last time you fixed his favorite supper?  When is the last time that you just sat and talked with your husband?  Open communications between the husband and wife are essential to a strong relationship.