"The Family and God's Order" (Eph 5:21-33)

Announcements: The church is looking for baby sitters for a few hours, possibly once or twice a month. You will be paid by donation, which will probably be good pay. (See Molly for more information).

Intro: For the next few weeks, we will be looking the family and God’s order. This week we are going to look at marriage and the order God has given for it. (Every once in a while, I will have someone ask me why I preach on certain subjects. The answer is that I don’t had pick the subjects, we simply go verse by verse through the Bible and that is where we are today

(V21) Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ

A) God is a God of order

-God has placed people in authority to keep order

-Imagine living in a world where there is no rules; for an example, imagine driving with no rules, or a military with no leader (Order is necessary to maintain harmony)

-When we submit to one another, we are actually submitting to God because God has placed people in authority

B) We submit to one another out reverence to God

-Reverence is to have a deep respect for someone or something

2. (V22) Wives must submit to their husbands as to the Lord

A) God has created order in the home and the husband is the head of the home

B) The wife must submit to his authority ( One consequence of the fall of man)

Genesis 3:16 NLT

Then he said to the woman, “I will sharpen the pain of your pregnancy, and in pain you will give birth. And you will desire to control your husband, but he will rule over you.*”

-Girls, be carful who you marry because you must submit to him as the leader of the home

-This does Not mean the wife is a slave or is less than the husband

-The husband should be led by God and he will lead the family in a way that is well pleasing

-The exception to this rule is if the husband tells the wife to do something against God (Babe, can you go steal the groceries this week instead of putting them on credit card)

C) The husband answers to God for how he rules the home

-The husband was given the honor of leading, but with it comes responsibility and the judgement of God

-As a leader in my home and here at the church, people don’t always agree with my decisions

In most situation in our marriage, we talk about decisions that need to made and most of the time we agree.

But if not, then I go to the Lord and ask for wisdom and make the final decision and my wife’s job is to submit to my authority

3.(V25) Husbands must love their wives as Christ loves the church

A) How does Christ love the church?

-Christ gave His life for the church

B) The husbands job as the leader is to lay down his life for his wife.

C) Love

1 Corinthians 13:4–7 NLT

Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.