Christ and the Church.

"Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it..." -Eph 5:22-25

Before we begin, we must rid ourselves of the idea that the "church" mentioned here is a brick building with pews. It is every born-again believer. "So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another." -Romans 12:5

Man-- Christ
Wife-- Church

Just as the church submits themselves unto Jesus Christ, so is the wife to be submissive to her husband. This does not imply that she has no opinion or that she is given no regard. Does the church not pray and make their request know to God? Do we not lay all of our cares out before the Lord? It is the same with man and wife. The wife may freely and honestly give her heart-felt opinion to her husband. But --the stopping point for many women-- she lies the final decision in the hands of her husband. Just as when the Church prays to Christ, the final choice is in the hands of the Lord. Furthermore, when Christ does not hearken to the opinion of the Church or the Christian, the Christian does not rebel from Christ, or become angry with Him. This is also the way wives are intended to react when their husbands make choices contrary to their advice.

Just as Christ is the provider for His church, so is the man the main provider for his home. As the Church gives of herself to serve Christ, so does the wife give of herself to serve her husband. The Lord may call a member of the church to do some particular work or service. That Christian will never be settled and content until they have followed the command of the Lord. This reflects perfectly in marriage. A wife may be asked of her husband to do some work or service. This could be anything from simply keeping the home, to possibly teaching a Sunday School class. If a woman refuses to obey her husband, she will never be content. She may temporarily please her flesh, but there will never be a true sense of Godly marriage.

If you will read verse 25: "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it..." This is often the verse put in bold and underlined font by the feminist. I do not mean to belittle the roles of men in marriage. In fact, the man's role is the most challenging. When these roles are played out, and when the symbolism of Christ and His church is understood, it is a beautiful thing. It is not a man running a hate-filled dictatorship within the home. Nor is it a feminist, bossy wife taking charge over the life of her husband.

It is Christ and the Church.
Guidance and Submission.
Provision and Service.

-Deborah Newby