Ephesians 5:25-33 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
Several years ago I was involved in a small-group Bible study where some members became divided over the exclusive use of the male pronoun references to God in scripture. I tend to be a live-and-let-live sort of person, so I found myself scratching my head over the depth of feeling some had on the issue. However, I do think that the male-dominated history of the church has caused passages like today's reading to be less preached/taught when compared to the "wives submit/respect" verses.
Throughout scripture it is the man who has the greater duty and responsibility for how he treats his wife. Scripture teaches wives to respect and submit to their husbands, but are those husbands deserving of such? As a husband do I love Kristi as Christ loved me? Do I place as high a premium on her happiness as I do on my own? Is her welfare as important to me as my own?
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