Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Act Like A Man

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her---Eph.5:25 So how does a man love his wife like Christ loved the church today? He loves her by committing to her whole-heartedly. Aside from his personal relationship with God, the man's relationship with his wife becomes top priority as he is willing to lay down his life for her. But a whole host of men do not comprehend this, and we can be sure from basic statistical analysis. So what does it mean for a man to lay down his life for his wife? Certainly God is not counting on the fact that every man will have to physically die for his wife. --- Well first let's establish that a man becomes a man when he becomes serious about life and responsible for himself and those with him. When a man commits to a woman in holy matrimony, he and she are coming out of the public "dating pool" and commit to the journey of life together. So what does it mean for a man to lay down his life for his wife? It does not mean that a man has to necessarily stop hunting, fishing and overall "hobby-ing." It simply means that those things are no longer the high priority they may have been as a single man. The love of your life now is your wife, not Bass Pro Shop. --- Take the example of Christ a step further. Serve her! Christ who is God, came not to be served, but to serve (Mk.10:45) It also means that any carousing, flirting and women-chasing is over. You have made a commitment as Christ made a commitment to the church. He died to sin when he came to the world. The Bible says that he was tempted like every other man, yet he never sinned. He died for the sins of the world on the cross. So God isn't calling for your blood to be shed, but He is calling for you to die to self. You're not a boy any more. Boys play with toys. So, act like a man! While you are living for the One who died for you and rose again, don't mess up God's picture of Christ and the church, for that is what the marital relationship is a picture of in the first place.--- This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. ---Eph.5:32