Sermon Tone Analysis

Peter here writes a powerful paragraph to believing ladies.

In particular to ladies in the early church.

However, this text is as relevant to our ladies and us as husbands today as it was then.

As I prayed through and pondered on this text yesterday morning, my own mother came to mind.

For my entire childhood she was the only godly influence in our home.

She was raised in the Baptist church and then when her and my Dad got married became a member of the Methodist church where my Dad and his family were members.

However, my mom lived out her faith where as my Dad did not.

Early in my childhood my dad and his buddies drank heavily, and engaged in other sinful behaviors, while my mom sought to raise my brother and I in the fear and admonition of the Lord.

She submitted to my Dad graciously while at the same time calling out sin and rebuking when she thought necessary.

She was not perfect by any means but when I think about a wive living in subjection to her own husband and eventually being used to lead him to salvation she was it!

Here is the good news of the story.

Up until Vickie and I got married I would consider all of us lost.

Then eventually Vickie said I cannot go to this Methodist church any longer and we began going to the Baptist church down the road.

This is where my Dad ended up hearing the true gospel and being saved.

Actually, my mom got re-baptized because she believed she had been baptized on the wrong side of conversion.

But in one day, My Mom, My Dad, and My wife were all baptized and I was the one hold out thinking what is going on?

But is wasn’t long before I could no longer deny the truth of the gospel and I repented and believed as well!

But do yo see how the godliness, quiet spirit of one wife and mother lead to the salvation of her family?

This is what Peter is talking about.

These ladies were being saved, so they were coming into the church unequally yoked and Peter says, “Wives, be subject to your own husbands.”

Why would Peter say this?

Why would Peter call believing women to submit to unbelieving husbands?

First and foremost,

I. Submission Leads to Salvation

Pastor David is helpful in reminding us that this text is more difficult in some marriage relationships than others.

We all know that their are wives who are battling to be faithful to Christ while at the same time be faithful to their unbelieving husbands.

Now depending on the level of which their husbands are antagonistic towards the gospel will dictate the difficulty in which wives will struggle obeying this text.

Some unbelieving husbands my have not problem with their wives faith because it frees them up to do what they want, they may think, “you go to church I will go to the woods....” In the other extreme their may be husbands that hate that their wife loves the Lord and His church and they verbally, and physically abuse their wives which will obviously create difficulty in maintaining faithfulness to the marriage covenant and the call to subjection...

Now, before we dive into the goal of submission, lets first consider the way of submission.

In other words, how are wives supposed to submit to their husbands?

Wives are to,

A. Submit like Citizens and Slaves (3:1)

3:1a Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands,

Likewise, (in a similar way)

2:13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution

2:18 Servants, be subject to your masters,

3:1 Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands,

Peter has laid out a pattern of submission for the believer and at the beginning of verse 3 turns from all of us, to ladies specifically.

With “be subject” being the imperative here let’s make sure we understand the meaning.

36.18

ὑποτάσσομαι; ὑποταγή, ῆς f; ὑπείκω: to submit to the orders or directives of someone—‘to obey, to submit to, obedience, submission.

Peter is commanding wives here to submit to the orders or directives of “their own husbands.”

He is calling wives to obey and or submit to “their own husbands,” Now we all know and have learned over the years that this does not mean husbands are to be some militaristic, authoritarian drill sergeant over their wife.

And we will get to us men in verse 7.

Wayne Grudem states, Be submissive to your husbands means willingly to submit to your husband’s authority or leadership in the marriage.

Grudem, W. A. (1988). 1 Peter: an introduction and commentary (Vol.

17, p. 143).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Grudem, W. A. (1988). 1 Peter: an introduction and commentary (Vol.

17, p. 143).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Grudem, W. A. (1988). 1 Peter: an introduction and commentary (Vol.

17, p. 143).

Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

What Peter is saying here is that women are to loving follow, place themselves under the headship and leadership that God has given husbands to lead, guide, and protect their wives.

18 Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”

19 Now out of the ground the LORD God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them.

And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.

20 The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field.

But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him.

21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.

22 And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man.

23 Then the man said,

“This at last is bone of my bones

and flesh of my flesh;

she shall be called Woman,

because she was taken out of Man.”

24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Then we know what happened.

Adam and Eve disbelieved and disobeyed God, and the result for the women was and is still today,

16 To the woman he said,

“I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;

in pain you shall bring forth children.

Your desire shall be contrary to your husband,

but he shall rule over you.”

Now this is not the only place the Scriptures address how the family is to live, relate and respect one another.

Titus

Paul gave these instructions to the church at Ephesus, Colossae, and to Titus who was Shepherding the Church in Crete, to “set things in order.

This is one of the most consistent teachings of the NT.

Why then does this doctrine cause so much division?

In light of the creation order, the fall, the New Testament consistency and Peter’s imperative how then are wives to be subject to their husbands?

I want us to consider for a moment how ladies are to be subject in the same way to husbands as we are to the government and to masters.

As I have been meditating on the text this week, I just kept thinking I don’t want my wife submitting to me the same way I submit to the laws of the land or to my employer.

Another way to consider Peter’s exhortation is to understand he is calling wives to submit in a similar way, but not in every way the same as these other two relationships.

1. Submit as Citizens

First, I submit to the laws of the land, because I don’t want to end up in jail.

I don’t want to pay a speeding ticket or any other fine.

But is that the way wives are supposed to submit to husbands?

Because of the law?

No, we want our wives to submit to their husbands because of their love, not legal obedience.

But if you remember Peter did not tell us to submit to the law for the purpose of avoiding punishment, but for the purpose of silencing the foolish.

1 Peter

We are subject to the government because we want the foolish to be pointed to Christ because of our obedience.

We absolutely want to avoid punishment from those who bear the sword, but as believers we want to obey in order to be faithful witnesses so that the lost cannot speak evil of us, so that the lost will see a difference in us, not just because we are afraid of the consequences of disobedience, but we want to see sinners recieved the same deliverance from condemnation we have received.

Now then, how are wives to submit in the same way as obedience to government authorities.

As we review these instructions Peter lays out for us, I want you to help me expound and apply these principles to marriage and the way wives can be subject in this way,

1. Live as people who are free.

2. By not using their freedom as a cover up for evil.

3. Living as servants of God.

4. Honor everyone.