Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit… Husbands, love… Ephesians 5:21-25

God’s instructions about marriage don’t start with husband and wife. They begin with a blanket statement that applies to everyone. Verse 21 is the foundation upon which specific instructions are built. “Submit to one another out of reverence to Christ.” Without that foundation, wives declare hotly: “I’m not submitting to that moron! I have a brain too!” And husbands growl to their buddies: “Love her? Yeah, it’s like trying to love a rattlesnake.” So Paul wisely poured the foundation for a home the way God intended it to be built. The groundwork is humility. The frame is mutual submission. In everything, keeping the interests of the other before your own. When both spouses are committed to obeying Christ, the result is home-sweet-home.

To understand what that looks like in real time, let’s look at the opposite. Jim and Sue didn’t think God knew what He was talking about, so they poured their own foundation called “My Way or the Highway.” Sue regularly beats Jim with her Master’s degree, reminding him that she makes more money so she should do what she wants. She’s charged up the credit cards, goes out whenever she pleases, and ignores most of his requests. Jim threw up his hands before the honeymoon bills were paid and retreated into his hobbies, finding subtle ways to punish Sue whenever he can. He excuses his porn habit, believing he would be happier with a different woman. Neither has any intention of submitting to Christ if it means submitting to the other.

Final Thought: Upon which foundation is your home built?

Prayer: Father, voluntary submission to the wishes of another is so foreign to my way of thinking. Our culture says it’s all about me. But your word says that’s not the way to real happiness. Help me build upon the right foundation. In Jesus’ name, Amen.