A Spirit-Filled Marriage

Ephesians 5:21–33 CSB

submitting to one another in the fear of Christ. Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord, because the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of the body. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives are to submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her to make her holy, cleansing her with the washing of water by the word. He did this to present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless. In the same way, husbands are to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hates his own flesh but provides and cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, since we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. This mystery is profound, but I am talking about Christ and the church. To sum up, each one of you is to love his wife as himself, and the wife is to respect her husband.

_________________________________________________________________

**Sermon Outline: Spirit-Filled Submission in Marriage (Ephesians 5:21-33)**

**I. Introduction: The Central Theme of Submission**

- Submission is the central theme of this passage.

- As Spirit-filled believers, we must constantly live in submission to God and to one another.

- Submission is living in humility—not as though we have no worth, but rather understanding the worth and value of knowing Christ. Our value is found in Christ, and all believers have equal value, no one is greater.

- We submit our lives for the sake of one another so that we might know and identify with Christ more and more. Knowing we are all equal, we willingly submit to one another giving up our selfishness and giving ourselves to one another.

- Submission looks like (“The one another” passages): loving, honoring, welcoming, being hospitable, fellowshipping, agreeing/being united/being at peace & living in harmony, compassionate/kind, forgiving, bearing with one another, comforting, caring, confessing sin, praying, encouraging, building up, exhorting, teaching, speaking truth, singing together, spurring on to love & good works, serving, patiently waiting for, not judging/envying/provoking.

**II. The Biblical Definition of Submission**

- Submission is placing oneself under the leadership of another, not to be trampled on but for the sake of provision and protection.

- It is a rejection of individualism and independence.

- It is a cooperation between fellow believers to love and respect one another (John 13:34-35).

- Submission is typically directed toward those who are “persons worthy of respect.”

**VI. The Role of Wives in Submission**

- Wives are called to submit to their husbands in everything as the church submits to Christ. She is ultimately called to show reverential respect to her husband, just as she would to the Lord.

- Submission is as Prov 31 illustrates, living faithfully, in such a way that her husband trusts her with everything. Just like the church is to Christ, she uplifts her, she honors him as a tremendously valuable crown atop his head Prov 12:4.

-The wife is not called to take advantage of her invaluable status in the eyes of her husband. she is not rude or boastful, arrogant in her ways. she is not called to demean her husband, treating his as second class and lesser, tearing him down as he aims to build her up.

- As the church is in awe of Christ and His love, wives should be in awe of the love their husbands show them.

**VII. The Role of Husbands in Love and Sacrifice**

- Husbands are called to sacrificially love (AGAPE) their wives as they love their own bodies. This love is one that benefits the other, seeking the highest good for the other no matter the cost. Just as Christ loved us and gave his whole life serving us, we ought to love our wives in sacrificial service & love.

- This is a willing sacrifice, not out of compulsion or obligation. Just as marriage began in an a voluntary way, it continues to be a voluntary sacrifice. Submission for the husband is a willingness to sacrifice his life for her.

- Their purpose is to lift their wives up, presenting them as spotless, blameless, and beloved. It is not that he cleanses her like Christ, but that he is given a gift that he is to care for leaving her better than he found her. He is to encourage her in her devotion to God, calling her in love to holiness, by living and breathing out God’s Word. In the end, as husbands we are to treat our wives greater than anything or anyone else, loving them just as Christ continues to love us with the goal of presenting us in splendor (great beauty and honor), physically and morally pure.

- The husband is the head, of the body. As the two have become one flesh the role of the husband is to be the head, in leadership he directs this new union in following Christ, submitting to the ways of Christ, walking together as one body, fully obedient to his word.

-As one body, the husband shows great love to his wife and by proxy he experiences a love of his own self. To love ones self is to sacrificially and willingly love the wife.

- Husbands are to sacrifice their own lives to provide, care for, and love their wives with the same love Christ has for the church. Just as an individual does not hate his own flesh, neglecting and malnourishing it, husbands should provide and show great care to meet all the needs of his wife, physical , spiritual, and emotional. To care for her is to cherish and comfort her, as if one was cold they would seek to warm the body. He should pray with and for his wife, Encourage his wife, listen to his wife, be present in her suffering and pain. He should defend his wife against the schemes of satan and men, he should honor and praise his wife as a beloved crown. Just as Christ provides and cares for us, we should model this kind of love for our wives.

-We do not criticize or condemn our wives, belittling them for or treating them as lesser. We do not act harshly towards our wives. We bear the problems and issues our wives face and we gladly bear them as our own.

As Christ is the Savior, The husband models this kind of love, as the rescuer/defender/deliverer.

**VIII. Conclusion: The Call to Spirit-Filled Submission**

- Submission in marriage reflects Christ’s relationship with His church.

- It is an act of love, honor, and mutual respect.

- As Spirit-filled believers, our submission to one another is a reflection of our submission to Christ.

- The more we submit in love, the more we reflect Christ’s love to the world.

______________________________________________