The book of Genesis is a gold mine of eternal truth. It has been said that every major doctrine taught in the Bible is found in seed form there, and that is particularly true of the first few chapters, the creation story. That is true of the topic of our postings the past few weeks, the relationship between husbands and wives and the unique roles of each in the great plan of God for His world. Women are said in Genesis to be created…
Last week we discussed the role women are given in the Bible in their marriages—to submit to their husband’s leadership and to honor and respect him as her head. Coincidentally, just this morning I discovered that this Friday is International Women’s Day, and it has been celebrated here since 1909 when the American Socialist Party did so in New York City. It gradually spread around the world until the United Nations encouraged all countries to celebrate it as a holiday in 1975. Though a…
Over the past few blog posts, our picture of a biblical family is now taking shape. Paul tells us as husbands we are to “love (our) wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her” (Ephesians 5:25), and confidently lead our families in the direction God has shown us they are to go. In response, our wives are to “submit to their own husbands, as to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:22). Paul is saying that our wives are to submit themselves…
We have discussed that the responsibility for the state of the family lies fully at the feet of the husband; all problems in the family are a result of not leading and/or loving its members in some way. He is totally accountable to his Head, Jesus Christ, for it’s condition (1 Corinthians 11:3). This does not mean he will have a model family with everything running smoothly; all husbands, including himself, are sinners. But if he is loving and leading, he is living as…
The picture I have painted of the Christian family in the last few postings has been the IDEAL one—the loving, strong husband, laying down his life for his family, always looking out for them and their needs before his own, and leading them with loving, firm, decisive decision-making. The wife, while submitting herself unto her husband just as if he were Jesus himself (Ephesians 5:22), faithfully carries out his vision for the family. This biblical approach to family structure seems impossible in our culture…
Who leads my family? The leader of the family is not the one who talks the loudest, the most, or even the one who thinks they are the leader. It is the one who makes final decisions on the direction the family will go and then on how they will all arrive there. The de jure leader (the one who is designated the leader by God’s law according to the Bible) can be far different than the de facto leader (the one who actually…
We saw last week that Eve did not see clearly what was happening in the Garden as Satan tempted her. However, when she offered the fruit to Adam, he knew perfectly well what was occurring. He knew, and yet he seems to have made a deliberate decision to disobey anyway. That is the thrust of 1 Timothy 2:14, when Paul says, “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.” If Adam knew what he was doing, then why did…
We saw in the last posting that rulership begins with the genuine, agape love a husband has for his wife. Without it, trying to implement today’s posting on leadership will lead to oppression, tyranny or disinterest. However, love without authoritative, confident, godly leadership causes a lack of respect and even contempt, as a wife and her children unconsciously seek the strength that the man, as head of his home, is not providing. Strong family leadership from the father also gives security and purpose. If…
The foundation of the rule of the kingdom of God in the family is the unconditional love the husband has for his wife. All other attempts to express that rule without that foundation will never lead to the results we all seek—a home filled with love, joy, peace and secure children who reflect the kingdom in their lives. This love is not the destination; it is the starting point. Nor will it ever be consistently present in my life as a husband until I…
Is there a more vilified, denounced and disparaged concept in our current culture than what immediately springs to mind when the average citizen, Christian or not, hears the word “patriarchy?” To this person, the word is synonymous with selfishness, tyranny, subjugation, and abuse, but the word means simply the “rule” of the father in the family, and the Bible teaches that patriarchy is the only model for a kingdom family (1 Timothy 3:4, 5). This kingdom model is an historical one, first followed in…