Sermon Tone Analysis

1 Peter 3:1-7

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stephen Caswell © 2000

 

Take Him - As Is

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*Parson:* /Do you take this man for better or worse?

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*Mandy:* /He can’t be no worse, and there is no hopes of his gettin’ any better, so I takes him as is./

*Young Son:* /Is it true, Dad, I heard that in some parts of Africa a man doesn't know his wife until he marries her?/

*Dad:* /That happens in every country, son./

Most people find marriage enriching or enslaving.

It depends whether or not they obey God.

Introduction

 

Today, Peter continues his theme on submission as he addresses marriage.

Last Sunday we saw why Peter commanded Christians to be submissive.

As citizens of heaven, God wants us to submit to His ordained authorities in society.

/Why is it so important for believers to submit to the appropriate authorities?/

Because people are watching us to see if our life matches up with our testimony.

Peter starts chapter 3 with the phrase */in the same manner /*or*/ likewise./*

This refers us back to Peter’s discussion of the example of Jesus Christ in* 1 Peter 2:21–25.*

Just as Jesus was submissive and obedient to God’s will, Christian husbands and wives must be submissive too.

This message breaks into two parts.

I.

The Wife's Submission           &           II.

The Husbands Consideration

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/Firstly/     The Wife's Submission           

 

When Christian couples try to imitate the world and get their standards from Hollywood instead of from heaven, there will be trouble in the home.

But if both partners will imitate Jesus Christ in His submission and obedience, and His desire to serve others, then there will be triumph and joy in the home.

A Christian psychiatrist said that the best thing a Christian husband can do is to pattern himself after Jesus Christ.

In Christ we see a beautiful blending of strength and tenderness, and that is what it takes to be a successful husband.

Peter also pointed to Sarah as a model for Christian wives to follow.

To be sure, Sarah wasn't perfect; but she proved to be a good helpmeet to Abraham, and she is one of the few women named in Hebrews 11.

A pastor once made a visit to a woman who said she had marital problems, he then noticed a number of /movie fan club magazines/ in the magazine rack.

After listening to the woman’s problems, the pastor concluded that she needed to follow some Bible examples and models and take her mind off worldly examples.

Peter gives three reasons why a Christian wife should submit to her husband, even if he is unsaved.

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/a.

An Ordinance  /*1 Peter 3:1a* /Wives, *likewise*, be submissive to your own husbands, /

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*/Firstly/,* God has commanded it.

The word translated */submission/* u&potassw is a military term that means to place under rank.

*Ephesians 5:22* and *Colossians 3:18* give this same command.

/Wives submit to your own husbands as is fitting in the Lord./

God has a place for everything; He has ordained various levels of authority.

God has ordained it this way.

Just like a ship has one captain and an army one general, a household needs one head.

The Lord in His wisdom has ordained that the husband is to be head of the home.

God did this for the benefit of the entire home; not just to favor men.

He has decreed that the husband should be head of the home and that, as he submits to Christ, his wife will submit to him also.

Headship is not dictatorship, but the loving exercise of divine authority under the lordship of Jesus Christ.

*1 Corinthians 11:3 says:* /But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God.

*Submission*/ does not mean that the wife is inferior to the husband.

In fact, in *1 Peter 3:7*, Peter made it clear that the husband and wife are heirs together.

The man and woman are made by the same Creator out of the same basic material, and both are made in God’s image.

God gave dominion to both Adam and Eve, and in Jesus Christ Christian mates are one.

*/Submission/* has to do with order and authority, not equality.

Jesus Christ set the example of submission for all of us to follow.

*Philippians 2:5-8*/ Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

/Although Jesus Christ was equal with God He willingly submitted Himself to the Father's will.

In like manner wives must submit to their husbands, because this is God's will.

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/b.

An Opportunity/

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*1 Peter 3:1b-2*/ that even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear./

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/An opportunity for what?/

To win an unsaved husband to Christ.

God not only /commands/ submission, but He /uses/ it as a powerful spiritual influence in the home.

This does not mean that a Christian wife /gives in/ to her unsaved husband in order to subtly manipulate him and get him to do what she desires.

This kind of selfish psychological persuasion ought never to be found in a Christian’s heart or home.

An unsaved husband will not be converted by preaching or nagging in the home.

The phrase */without the word/* does not mean */without the Word of God/*, because salvation comes through the Word.

It means /without talk, without a lot of speaking./

Christian wives who preach at their husbands only drive them farther from the Lord./

/It is the character and conduct of the wife that will win the lost husband — not arguments, but such attitudes as submission, understanding, love, kindness, patience.

These qualities are not manufactured; they are the fruit of the Spirit that come when we are submitted to Christ and to one another.

A Christian wife with */purity and reverence/* will reveal in her life the */praises of God/* and influence her husband to trust Christ.

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Monica Won Her Husband And Son - Augustine

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One of the greatest examples of a godly wife and mother in church history is Monica, the mother of the famous St. Augustine.

God used Monica’s witness and prayers to win both her son and her husband to Christ, though her husband was not converted until shortly before his death.

Augustine wrote in his /Confessions,/ /She served him as her lord; and did her diligence to win him unto Thee... preaching Thee unto him by her behavior; by which Thou ornamentest her, making her reverently amiable unto her husband.

/A Christian wife must encourage her husband and help him grow strong in the Lord.

If there are unsaved people in the home, they will be won to Christ more by what they see in our lives and relationships than by what they hear in our witness.

/c.

An Ornament/

/ /

*1 Peter 3:3-6* /Do not let your adornment be merely outward — arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel — rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.

For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror./

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The word translated */adorning/* is kosmo" in the Greek, and gives us our English words */cosmos,/* */the universe/*, and */cosmetic./*

It speaks of order and is the opposite of /chaos./

Peter warned Christian wives not to major on external decorations but on internal character.

Roman women followed the latest fashions of the day, and competed with each other in dress and hairdos.

It was not unusual for the women to have elaborate /coiffures,/ studded with gold and silver combs and even jewels.

They wore elaborate and expensive garments, all for the purpose of impressing each other./

Ladies would never do this today, would they?

/

 

A Christian wife with an unsaved husband might think that she must imitate the world if she is going to win her mate; but just the opposite is true.

Glamour is artificial and external; true beauty is real and internal.

Glamour is something a person can put on and take off, but true beauty is always present.

Glamour is corruptible; it decays and fades.

True beauty from the heart grows more wonderful as the years pass.

A Christian woman who cultivates the beauty of the inner person will not have to depend on cheap externals.

*/God is concerned about values, not prices./*

This inner beauty is revealed through her character.

A kind word, loving smile and a gracious manner all reveal an inner beauty.

Of course, this does not mean that a wife should neglect herself.

It simply means that she is not /majoring/ on being a */fashion plate/* just */to keep up with the crowd./*

Any husband is proud of a wife who is attractive, but that beauty must come from the heart, not the store.