Sermon Tone Analysis

Prayer

Lesson

Last night I had the chance to speak about equality between men and women.

We read Galatians

We learned that we are all equal in Christ.

Every Brother, Every Sister.. regardless of race, nationality, gender .. etc etc etc are equal in Christ.

You might feel like I am over emphasizing this, but there is a reason.

Scripture very clearly tells us that men and women are equal in Christ!

Meaning mean are not superior to women and that women are not superior to men.

So why do i feel the need to state this repetitively.

This morning we are going to take a look at a verse that has been used to go against what I have just said.

Ephesians 5:22-

As we start out this morning I want to just emphasise something.

I believe that Scripture tells us that when we are in Christ, that men and women are equal.

That means that men are not superior to women

Wow!

What a counter statement.

I just told you that men and women are equal and now i cam telling you that women should submit to their husbands.

But it also means that women are not superior to men.

I have head this verse quoted many times by husbands angry at their wives for some trivial or sometimes not so trivial thing

There is to be equality.

I have heard women quote this verse as a reason to not get married.

I have heard no Christians use this verse to show how anti-women the Bible is and how wrong Christianity is in the modern world.

However, lets take a moment and look at what it really means.

Let me read it again:

One line earlier can change the whole context of the verse.

Whereas before it was about women being submissive to their husbands, now we have a verse telling us to submit to one another.

Even the phrasing can be misinterpreted.

22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.

23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Saviour.

24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies.

He who loves his wife loves himself.

29 After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body.

31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”

32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.

33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Submit to your own husbands as you do to the lord.

NOT submit to your husband as lord.

As Christians we submit to the lord when we follow him and accept him into our lives.

We become one of his flock.

Does this mean we stop thinking, stop speaking, stop asking questions?

No, in fact the opposite usually happens, we start to think more, speak more, as more questions.

We submitted to Jesus gives us a sense of security and companionship.

We submit and live with the knowledge that God is with us and he has a plan for us.

God does not control every aspect of our lives once we submit, he doesn’t force us to radically change our lives.

To obey or be punished.

He isn't some tyranical leader.

See when we submit to Jesus we do so by choice, its our will to submit and serve because we receive joy and security.

This caption, which Paul never put there, makes you think Paul is starting to talk about something new here.

And the problem is the caption, and the place where the caption is put, changes the meaning of what you are reading.

So what is Paul really telling us.

When we read it like that, we would think it is quite clear that wives should submit to their husbands

Maybe he means to have some trust in your husband, and that by working together you will be able to do great things.

He isn’t telling you to ‘obey your husband’ especially when your husband is doing wrong such as mentally, physically or verbally abusing you.

To put this in context, at this time in history women had very little rights.

They were often seen as little more than second class citizens.

They were often poorly educated and had little rights, so they were either slaves to their husbands or radicals who wanted nothing to do with men.

Paul says

21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.

23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Saviour.

24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

What do you expect to follow?

I would expect to hear how husbands submit to their wives.

This morning I want to interrogate what Paul is saying for a few minutes.

He calls for husbands and wives to submit to one another.

To women he says “Submit to your husbands as to the Lord”

Paul is not asking for a blanket submission.

He says “wives, submit to your husbands AS TO THE LORD or AS THE CHURCH SUBMITS TO CHRIST.

So to understand this submission, we need to understand, “How do we submit to the Lord?”

We submit to Jesus with joy and confidence to let Him save us, heal us, provide for us, empower us.

When I am submitted to Jesus, I do not give up my ability to think and speak and ask questions.

When I am submitted to Jesus, He opens my eyes to things I have never seen.

He quickens my thoughts so that I am free to think in amazing new ways.

Jesus always stretches me to be more than I ever thought I could be.

We submit to God out of free will and because I know that His plans for me are GOOD.

We submit to Jesus because He earned our trust when He died in our place on the cross.

What Paul is telling these women is trust your husbands to put you as equals.

The Greek word used for “submit” means that even though you are strong, put away your strength and allow yourself to be weak.

It’s the same concept as Jesus, who is God, who strips Himself of His Godly nature and takes on the form of a servant.

Paul does not say “Obey your husband”, as in “do everything you are told”, he says submit, let your guard down a little and allow him to help you.

In the movie “DANCES WITH WOLVES, Kevin Costner falls in love with a Native American women called, “STANDS WITH A FIST”.

I think Paul is saying, “Put your fists down”.

In , the Psalmist says,

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

2     He makes me lie down in green pastures,

he leads me beside quiet waters,

So what about husbands, whats there role in the submission.

3     he restores my soul.

He guides me in paths of righteousness

for his name’s sake.

4     Even though I walk

through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me.

This person trusts the shepherd to make it lie down in green pastures, the sheep submits to the shepherd to be led to quiet streams.