Sermon Tone Analysis

[[Bible:Eph 5:21-33]]

Ah Ephesians 5:21-33: widely quoted, widely taught, most often out of context, and most often twisted to fit the teacher’s opinion – rather than let our opinions be straightened out by God’s Word!

So, let me remind you of the context – where are we in the letter to the Ephesians, and what comes just before these verses.

Where we are is in the “describing what a Christian life looks like” part of the book.

We have been saved from darkness and brought into the light.

We were dead, but now we are alive.

But we don’t know how to not be dead, and left to our own devices we’d keep living the way we always have – as spiritually dead people.

So God in his mercy tells us how to live as LIVING people.

Stop lying, but tell the truth.

Stop sinning sexually, but be pure.

Stop breaking people down with your words but build them up.

Stop stealing but work hard.

Stop living like a drunkard, stumbling through life with no plan, no purpose, but instead be filled with the Spirit, the wisdom and knowledge of God, and live like the wise man, making the most of every opportunity.

Live intentionally, examining your life carefully to see where you are out of step with God’s spirit, where you need to repent and give it over to God.

It’s living faith.

Oops, I’ve been living like I was dead in this area, I have not trusted your word here, I repent and give it over to you.

Nowhere is this more apparent with marriage.

We all have our own ideas about marriage, indeed whether marriage is even a good thing or not, and certainly about what makes it work.

And the words of v22 /“wives, submit to your husbands”/ is so grossly counter culture, sounds so harsh and backwards to our ears, that we are probably tempted to dismiss it as rubbish, or as some form of foolish thinking by Paul, the apostle, stuck in his 1st century ways.

But, if we belong to Christ, we can’t just dismiss his word because we don’t like it.

In fact, it’s often those areas where his Living Word is so difficult to accept – it’s those areas that are most important that we grapple to understand, and that we submit to.

We can’t very well call Jesus our “Lord” if we only obey him when he agrees with us.

He is our Lord, our Master, we obey his words even when they are hard, even when we don’t understand them, because we trust him.

That is faith.

That is being in a loving relationship.

Obedience is the evidence of faith.

So let us resolve to put aside our initial reaction and allow God to speak to us through his Word first, before we decide how we will respond.

Because this passage is not primarily about women submitting to their husbands – or indeed men loving their wives even to the point of dying for them.

It’s not even primarily about marriage!

It is firstly about Christ and the church.

So that’s what we’ll look at first.

Then we’ll look at the calling to husbands, and finally the calling to wives.

!

*1.

Christ and the church*

It’s all over the place in this passage, did you notice?

/V21 submit…because you revere Christ./

He is our motivation!

/V22 submit…as to the Lord.

V23 Christ is the head of the church.

He is the Saviour of his body, the church.

V25 love… like Christ loved the church.

He gave his life up for her to make her holy.

v29 just as Christ cares for the church./

And finally, v32 really poorly translated in the NLT /This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one/ – actually says /This is a great mystery, and it is about Christ and the church/.

That is, the mystery of marriage is not marriage – but Christ and the church.

Marriage is the shadow, Christ and His Church is the reality.

Marriage will pass away, but we will forever be united in Christ, being perfectly known, perfectly knowing him and each other, and perfectly loved.

Isn’t that what marriage strives towards?

That perfect love, perfect acceptance.

Deep, true intimacy.

To be deeply known by another – and loved, accepted.

That is the new Creation.

That is what we are NOW in Christ.

He knows us perfectly, yet still loves us.

We now know him in part, and soon will know him fully.

A good marriage is a glimpse towards that perfect Reality.

What do we learn about our relationship with God through this passage?

We are the church, the wife.

He is Christ, the husband.

So how does Christ, the perfect husband, love his wife, the church?

(By the way, guys, if you’re offended by being part of the “wife” – don’t be.

It’s a great blessing.

And anyway, the ladies have had to put up with being called sons!)

Christ, the perfect husband.

/V23 He is the Saviour of his body, the church/.

He saves us by /v25 He gave up his life for her 26 to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word.

27 He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish.

Instead, she will be holy and without fault./

Christ is our Saviour.

To belong to Christ is to be loved with an indestructible love.

To belong to Christ is to BE holy and clean, washed by his word (like we’re doing now).

We are being made holy, made clean through the power of his word, a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish.

Indeed, we WILL be holy and without fault.

It’s guaranteed.

That’s our destiny.

Holy.

Faultless.

Perfect.

Remember that’s what we need to be to get into the kingdom of God: perfect.

Only perfect people allowed in the Kingdom.

And by being married with Christ, we get his perfection.

It’s like the Royal Wedding: Kate Middleton was a commoner, but when she married Prince William she got his titles.

She is now a princess, a duchess, royalty by marriage.

They are one.

Or like when Debby and I got married: I brought in a study loan, Debby brought in a car!

She shared in my debts, and I shared in her wealth.

We were one.

She took on my debt – I received her car.

Like us with Christ, he takes upon himself our sins, and we receive his perfection.

Christianity, at its heart is a Marriage, the King who married the poor homeless girl.

Actually, no, it’s better than that – he is the King who marries the rebel, the girl who spat in his face and screams “I hate you” when he comes near, the girl who scrabbled in the dirt, who gave her body to everyone and anyone who came by.

This prostitute, this rebel, this unlovable wretch – she’s the one he came for, washed clean with his blood.

Redeemed.

That’s what we are.

We are united into one new body.

So close is our intimacy with Christ that we can be described as one new man, one person, one body (earlier in Ephesians) or here in /30 And we are members of his body.

31 As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”/

His body.

And so he cares for us, as his body.

/29 No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church.

Never doubt the love of Christ!