Well, good morning, everyone. It's great to see you. We missed you last week. We were on vacation in Colorado. It was beautiful, but it's great to be back. I miss church and great to be behind the pulpit again and to open up God's word with you. I see that Mike and Henry are matching today. I missed the memo for the elders leaving me out. Did you guys plan that? The scripture reading for this morning is Proverbs 31, verses 10 to 31. Proverbs 31, verses 10 to 31. And in my Bible, the heading for this portion is the description of a worthy woman, although I would change that to the description of a wise woman or a wise wife. Proverbs 31, beginning in verse 10. An excellent wife who can find. For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. She looks for wool and flax and works with her hands in delight. She is like a merchant, shit. She brings her food from afar. She rises also while it is still night and gives food to her household and portions to her maidens. She considers a field and buys it. From her earnings she plants a vineyard. She guards herself with strength and makes her arms strong. She senses that her gain is good. Her lamp does not go out at night. She stretches out her hands to the distaff, and her hands grasp the spindle. She extends her hand to the poor, and she stretches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of the snow for her household, for all her household are clothed with scarlet. She makes coverings for herself. Her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them and supplies belts to the tradesmen. Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she smiles at the future. She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and bless her, her husband also, and he praises her, saying, many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all. Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her the product of her hands and let her works praise her in the gates. Let's pray. Father, we come to you in the name of your son Jesus with boldness and reverence asking that you would bless this service, asking that you would open up our minds to understand what you have for us in the scriptures this morning. And that you would take these truths and apply it to all of our hearts, not just the wives, but help us all to understand that these these words apply to all of us in some way. And as always, Father, our heart is for those who are here this morning or listening online who may not know you, who are still your enemies and who are still far from you, that you would draw them near to your Son, Jesus, that you would open their eyes to see, their hearts to believe, that they would repent of their sins, and cast all of their hope and trust in the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. This we ask in His name. Amen. Amen. Please stand. Is Christ yours forevermore? Christ is mine forevermore. On all days that God has humbered, I was made to walk with Him. That I'd look for worldly treasure, And forsake the King of kings. I His hope bore, my Redeemer, Though my fault His love ensured. For Christ is faithful and forfeiting, Why don't you use the Earth as a model? I know my pain will not be wasted, Christ completes His work of you. My own days here as a stranger, but I'm on the right way. When we clash, time will encounter Our adventure for this hill He'll find his father for his saddle Strong enough to last the war And he has said he will deliver Safety to the golden shore In my own keys to Zion's city, Where beside the King I walk. For there my heart has found its treasure, Christ is mine forever. Rejoice now, O my soul, for His love is my reward. Fear is gone and hope is sure, Christ is mine forevermore. Rejoice now, O my soul, for His love is my reward. Fear is gone and hope is sure, Christ is mine forevermore. Rejoice now, O my soul, for His love is my reward. There is none at home, be sure, Christ is mine forevermore. I'll go east to Zion's city, where beside the King I walk, for there my heart has found its treasure, Christ is mine forevermore. Christ is mine forevermore. Christ is mine forevermore. Amen. Please be seated. Well, I invite you to open your Bible to Ephesians chapter five. Ephesians chapter five, we will continue our study in Ephesians, a series titled Walking Wisely at Home and at Work. And we are picking up this morning in verse 21, verses 21 to 24. And this section of God's Word covers God's instruction for the wives in the congregation. This text reveals to us, in the context of what we have been studying, it reveals to us what the wise, understanding, spirit-filled wife looks like. If you're a wife, this is the sort of wife you ought to strive to be. If you're a husband, this is the sort of wife you ought to encourage your wife to be. If you're a single lady, this is the sort of wife you will one day want to be, And if you're a single man, this is the sort of woman that you will want to marry someday. But if none of these categories describe you, it's still applicable. Because as we will see in this passage, the attitude called for here, this attitude of submission, is one that we ought to have toward Christ as a church. And so it applies to the entire body of Christ. I would like to begin by reading this passage with you, Ephesians 5, 21 to 24. Verse 21. and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ. Wives, be subject to your own husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, he himself being the savior of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Let's pray. Father, we ask that you would bless the preaching and the hearing of your Word this morning. In Jesus' name, Amen. As a lead-in to this topic, I want to read to you some excerpts from an online article titled, quote, The Danger of Wives Submit to Your Husbands in Modern Society. This is a site called Surgeoners. It's an organization that advocates for social justice while at the same time claiming to be Christian. Throughout this article, the author makes several statements that really express the opinion of many in the 21st century toward God's command, which we find in our text, and toward God's Word in general. For example, the author says, quote, I'm left wondering if the idea of women submitting to their husbands is an outdated concept, or perhaps the Bible is in need of new interpretation. Is the command an outdated concept? Is the Bible in need of new interpretation? Another quote. Throughout life, rules and systems are improved once the collective has reached a new perspective. So when it comes to the Bible, how do we approach its commands that are no longer widely accepted or suitable in cultural practice? Is the command that we find here no longer suitable for our culture? Another quote. Women are not wrong to choose to submit to their husbands, but to impose that opinion on women as a whole is not only inaccurate, it's a continuation of oppressive interpretations of the Bible. Is this command an oppressive interpretation of the Bible? Is the command itself oppressive? Is it just an opinion that women ought to submit to their husbands? A final quote. I think that this was a passage that was written for the people in that day and age to explain a natural phenomenon. Is this command only for the people, the wives of Paul's day? Let's look at our passage, and I want us to learn the answers to all of these questions. And I want to begin by first looking at verse 21. where Paul introduces the concept of submission. And so look at verse 21, and the first heading for you, if you take notes, you can just write submission. We want to define this word in general terms. And in our context, I want to remind you that this is the fifth mark of the wise, walking, understanding, spirit-filled Christian. A wise Christian will be a submissive Christian. And not only wives, but also men. Verse 21, And be subject to one another in the fear of Christ. Literally, in the Greek, this reads, "...and being subject to one another." Now, there has been much debate as to what Paul is commanding in this verse. Is he saying that every Christian is to submit himself, herself, to every other Christian? This sort of general principle where everyone submits to everyone. Many interpreters, many theologians say, yes, that's what Paul is saying. Why do they say that? Because they say, well, he's addressing the whole church, isn't he? He's speaking to the entire congregation. And Paul uses these two words, one another. And so clearly he is saying that every Christian has to submit to every other Christian. Now, in defining this mutual submission, what it looks like, People who hold to this view will often quote verses such as Philippians 2, verses 3 to 4, where the Apostle Paul says that we need to regard one another as more important than ourselves, and that we are not merely to look out for our own interests, but also for the interests of others. And they say, well, that's essentially what Paul is calling for here, this mutual submission, putting others ahead of yourselves. Now, is that true? Should we do that? Of course, the Bible says we ought to. Philippians 2, 3, and 4. But is that what Paul is teaching in verse 21? That's the question. Is that what Paul is saying? I strongly believe the answer is no. That's not what Paul is teaching here. Why not? Well, because of the word submission and what it means. The word submission never means that in the Bible, considering others is more important than yourselves, considering their needs, putting them before you. The word submission means this. To place yourself under the authority of someone else. That's what the word submission means. To place oneself under the authority of someone else. And in the Bible, everywhere that this word is found, it is always in the context of one person or one party, one group of people, submitting themselves to someone or a group that stands in authority over that person or group of people. And interpreters recognize this fact, and yet, they make an exception here. And they say, well, Paul is actually teaching here, in this passage, this general principle that we need to submit to one another in the church. Why is that? Again, because of the words, one another. and submitting yourselves to one another. And what they say is that one another always means everyone to everyone. Equally reciprocal action. But here's the thing. The Greek word translated one another does not always mean everyone to everyone. Often it does. For example, in John 13, 34, the command to love one another. We ought to love one another equally. But sometimes it actually means, some to others. One theologian points this out. He says, sometimes one another actually means in the Bible, some to others. Let me give you an example. Revelation 6 and verse 4. In that verse, it says, so that they would slay one another, so that they would kill one another. Clearly, that doesn't mean that every person is killing the other person equally. Some are doing the killing, and some are doing the dying. Some to others. And so the word submission does not allow for this interpretation of a mutual submission, because in mutual submission, there's no what? There's no authority to which you submit. And the word to one another doesn't require that interpretation either. So how do we determine what Paul is saying here? Context. Context, context, context. What does Paul go on to do in the next few verses that we're going to be looking at in the next few weeks? He goes on to explain what he means by submit to one another in verse 21. So verse 22 to 6, 9, explains what Paul means, what he's saying in verse 21. If you remember, verse 21 is a mark of being spirit-filled, and it introduces this new section on the household code. And in this code, Paul addresses three relationships in which submission to an authority is required. Wives to husbands, children and parents, slaves and masters. In each of these relationships, there is a submissive party, wives, children, and slaves, and there is an authoritative party. husbands, parents, and masters. And what we notice when we read this entire passage is that although the wife is called to submit to her husband, the husband is never called to submit to his wife, which you would expect in mutual submission. Children are called to obey the parents. The parents are never told to obey the children. And so what we see in this passage is that submission goes one way. Submission is never a two-way street. It always goes one way. Now, why is this all important? Why am I explaining this to you in verse 21? In this feminist movement and egalitarianism, what they do, and those who claim to be Christians, is they interpret verse 21 to say that everyone submits to everyone. And they ignore the context, and they bring in this idea from verse 21 into the marriage relationship, and they say, well, yes, the wife has to submit to the husband, but also the husband has to submit to the wife. You see that. And in so doing, what do they do? They reinterpret God's Word to fit some modern secular views of women and men. And what's worse is they dishonor the Word of God. They dishonor the Word of God. That's why it's important. Now notice in verse 21 that submission is to be performed in the fear of Christ. That means out of reverence for Christ, understanding that this is his will for his people. Submission is obedience to Christ's will for your life. It's not a bunch of cavemen that came up with this to suppress women. This is God's instruction. It is the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom. And you know how that proverb goes, but fools despise what? Instruction. Foolish people are unsubmissive people. People who despise authority and who are self-willed. The wise wife will be a submissive wife to her husband. Not the pastor's word, God's word. Heading number two, the audience. Look at verse 22. The audience. Wives. I want to spend some time here. Wives. This is important for us to understand. These are not just any women. These are Christian women. Right? These are women with a new identity in Christ, who have placed their faith in Jesus, who have declared Him to be Lord of their lives, and who have placed themselves under His authority. That's what Lord means. Lord means Master. And so you place yourself under His authority. These are women who are no longer of the world, but citizens of heaven. These are women who now live by a higher standard than the world. the standard of Christ. And the same is true for wives here this morning who profess faith in Jesus and who are listening online. This command is a timeless command. It is not a cultural command. It is a timeless command applying to every generation of wise, godly wives. Paul is not talking here to worldly women who do not care about God's Word, who do not worship Christ. And as an encouragement to you ladies and to anyone listening online, never ever compare yourself to them. Never compare your situation, your home life, your marriage to an unbeliever's. They are polar opposites. And to them, submission seems oppressive, because they don't understand what it is. To them, submission is unloving. Never compare yourself to ungodly, foolish women. The third heading is the command. The command. And under this heading, I'm going to give you a few points. I want to break this up. And it is a command that we understand. It's not optional for some women, some wives and not for other wives. Look at this, he says, and be subject to your own husbands as to. the Lord. It's interesting that the command is simple. It's brief, but there's a lot here that we want to unpack. And so I want to give you some sub points, a bunch of points beneath this third heading. And the first one is this submission does not imply lesser worth. Submission does not imply that the woman has lesser worth. I can prove that very easily. Submission doesn't mean the person is lesser than. In Luke 2, 51, it says that the child, the teenager Jesus, went back home and he lived in submission to Mary and Joseph. Now, who's more worthy? Who's more valuable? Jesus or Mary and Joseph? Jesus, he's God. And yet he willingly went and as a teenager submitted himself to his earthly parents. But when it comes to the wife, we need to understand this. She is not of lesser worth because she is called to submit. The husband and the wife are equal in the sight of God according to worth, according to value. When God created woman, Eve, the first wife, Adam said what in Genesis 2.23? This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman because she was taken out of man. Then what does it say right after that? For this reason, the man shall leave his father and his mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." In fact, if you look down, Paul is going to quote that verse in verse 31 of Ephesians 5. The two shall become one flesh. One flesh expresses unity and equal worth. You are one. Now, yes, we find in the Bible that women are incredibly mistreated by men. And we see from history that men have used the Bible to treat women horribly and to diminish a woman's worth. Yes, that is true. But that does not mean that God condones it. You can use the Bible for many things. It's like someone once said, you can use a knife to perform surgery or to murder. You can use the Word of God in a way that is completely wrong, and it has been done throughout the centuries, but God does not condone that. God never purposed for a woman to be some inferior object or slave, to be used by man for his own pleasure or purpose. R.C. Sproul said this concerning this submission. When Adam first saw Eve, what did Adam say? Did he say, a slave, just what I always wanted? Did he say, thank you God for this object that I can now exploit at my pleasure? God forbid. Adam was elated with this new and vital creation, exclaiming, this is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman because she was taken out of man. It is sin. Sin is the reason for the abuse of women, not God and not the Bible. And so this isn't about which sex or gender is superior. The answer is neither when it comes to worth. This is about what role has God given each gender in the context of marriage. And so the second point I want to give you, submission stresses difference in role. Submission stresses difference in role. Having equal worth does not mean that the roles of a husband and wife are the same. Husbands and wives' roles, they must complement each other. They complement each other. Even in creation, before sin entered into the world, think of this, even before God created Eve, we are told that the woman would be a helper to the man. Before sin, before the fall, Genesis 2.18, The Lord God said, it is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him. Isn't that interesting? Before sin came into the world, God says something is not good. It is not good for man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him. We see here a distinction of role before the fall. Adam is not described as a helper to Eve. Eve is described as a helper to Adam. And what we learn here, this is very important, is that this role of being a helper is not a consequence of sin. It's not punishment, in other words, to the wife. Because this is a role that God designated before the fall. This is creation design. Now, someone might say, well, being a helper still implies having lesser worth. Right? If I'm a helper, that means I'm less worthy. But that is simply not the case. Guess who the word helper most often describes in the Old Testament? God. Yeah. God. For example, Psalm 115, verse 9. Oh, Israel, trust in the Lord. He is their help and their shield. God is a helper to His people, even though He is immeasurably more worthy than us. The third point I want to give you is this. Submission is an act of the will. Submission is an act of the will. Notice what Paul says. in verse 22. Wives, be subject to your own husbands. He is telling the wives to subject themselves to the husband. This is an act of the will on the part of the wife. It is a willing submission. And so this is not something that the husband demands from the wife, and much less something that the husband takes by force. This is something that the wife gives to her husband. She places herself willingly and joyfully under the authority of her husband, recognizing God's ordered structure in the home. To quote my pastor from back home, when he preached on this long ago, he said, a wife's submission is a gift to her husband. It is a gift to her husband. You know when it rains and outside you're trying to sleep and there's a constant drip? It's so annoying. Right? The book of Proverbs says that the contentious wife, an unsubmissive wife, is like that. It's a constant drip. It's unbearable. This isn't something the husband demands. This isn't something done grudgingly or bitterly. That's a tough one, isn't it? But lovingly and graciously. 1 Peter 3, 4 says that the submissive wife has a gentle and quiet spirit. So this gets at the heart behind submission. You see, it's easy to obey the Word of God, but in your heart you're like, ah, fine. I'll do it. Right? This gets at the heart behind submission. It ought to be given joyfully, with humility and respect for the husband and his role. It's allowing the husband to fulfill his God-given role as a leader in the home. Number four. Submission is particular. Submission is particular. Notice what Paul says in verse 22. Wives be subject to what? Your own husbands. To your own husbands. Not to other women's husbands. This is a particular submission. It is restricted to one man whom you of your own free will have chosen to say yes to. You are bound to your own husband as your husband is bound only to you. It's particular. Number five, submission is unconditional. Submission is unconditional. And there are a few exceptions that we'll look at in verse 24. But submission is, by and large, unconditional. This is incredibly important for us to understand. Notice Paul says nothing about the husband's spiritual state, whether he's saved or unsaved. Notice Paul says nothing about this husband's spiritual maturity. or his knowledge, or his gifting, his abilities. Paul doesn't qualify the exhortation by saying, as long as your husband is perfectly loving and patient and gentle, submit. But otherwise, don't submit. Paul doesn't say that. The Apostle, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, simply says to Christian wives, wives, submit to your own husbands. It may be that the wife is twice as godly as the husband. It may be that the wife is twice as knowledgeable as the husband, twice as gifted. Regardless of ability and gifting, And maturity. God says, wives, be subject to your own husbands. You need to be very careful to make this a conditional submission. And to just say, well, if he meets these things, then I will submit, but otherwise I will not submit. And I do want to stop here and say a few words to wives with unbelieving husbands. And to first acknowledge how difficult that must be for you, how terribly difficult that is. And that happens often. One of the two persons in marriage gets saved and the other one's not. And now you're married and you're living with an unbeliever. And that happens often with wives. And so I want to acknowledge how difficult that is. But let me just say this. You will not win your husband over by being unsubmissive, and by fighting him, and by being stubborn toward him. If you go to 1 Peter 3, he talks about this. 1 Peter 3. Listen to what the apostle says. He says, in the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands, so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, I believe he's talking about unsafe to husbands, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives. As they observe your chaste and respectful behavior, your adornment must not be merely external, braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses. But let it be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. For in this way, in former times, the holy women also who hoped in God used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands. Your husband, the scriptures say, if he is won over, he will be won over by your conduct, your submissive conduct to him. Not rebellion, not fighting against him. Six, and here's where we're getting to the main point. Number six, what does submission look like practically? What does submission look like practically? This is the $1 million question, isn't it? It's a difficult question to answer because it's going to look different in every marriage. Submission is going to look different in every culture. And yet the command stands. The command is the same to all Christian women, no matter where they live in the world. There's a reason scripture does not give specifics here. That being said, there are a few general principles I want to give you as to what this looks like practically. Generally speaking, we can say that submission is a willingness on the part of the wife to follow her husband's lead in all things. Submission is a willingness on the part of the wife to follow her husband's lead in all things. However, This is not a blind obedience to the husband. This is not the husband saying, do as I say, and that's it. That's not what submission is. A submission does not mean that the wife has no input in the affairs of the home and the family. It does not mean that the wife is not involved in the decision-making process. If you read the text, this whole passage, it's interesting. When you notice the household code, the children are told to obey their parents. Slaves told to obey their masters. He doesn't use that word for the wives, though. He says wives submit to your husbands. Why is that? It's because marriage is a union. Marriage is a union. One flesh. One flesh means the wife and husband ought to be of one what? Mind. in agreement as much as possible. The wife, as a helper, is to help her husband fulfill his God-given role as a leader by fulfilling her own God-given role to submit. Now, let me just give you a scenario that I've heard before. Suppose something comes up in your marriage. Major decision has to be made. What do you do? What does submission look like in this context? It's not the husband making decisions and that's it. That's called unloving, uncaring, and inconsiderate. Instead, what does the husband do? He consults with his wife. They discuss the issue. They pray about the issue. They seek scripture on this issue. They seek godly wisdom and counsel on this issue. The husband considers the wife's concerns. The wife considers the husband's concerns. And in the end, After much prayer, much discussion, much searching for wisdom, if there is no clear definitive agreement between the two, if there is no 100% agreement, then the wife is to allow the husband to make the final call and to follow his lead. It falls upon the husband to make that final decision. And by the way, that ought to be extremely rare. In fact, I can't think of one instance in my marriage where we disagreed to the point where I had to make the final call. That ought to be very rare. That's what submission looks like. The wife is not a doormat. She's not inferior. The wife ought to have tremendous say in your household input and the direction in which the family goes. Here's another nugget. Often the husband, in love, he will defer to his wife's wants and choices, even if he would not particularly choose that route. But that can't be called submission on the part of the husband. That's simply called mutual love and mutual care. That's what Philippians 2, 3, and 4 talks about. That's what happens in a marriage with two people striving to be like Jesus Christ. Now, when Ashley and I got married, it quickly became evident that we were opposite extremes. And not just introvert, extrovert, extreme. We just did things differently. When I was single, I used to shop for my meals every day. I'd have four things in my fridge. I would just shop for what I needed that night. I'd come home, cook it, and then I'd go again the next day. I went down to a store right down the street. It was Wise Markets, W-E-I-S. Then Ashley came along, and she said, that's not very wise. I would fill my tank up with five bucks, until I went to eat again, and then I'd put five or ten more dollars in. I had places to be. And then she came along, and now we're married, and we had to compromise. So I tell people, now we do things her way. But all jokes aside, you see, even though I'm given the role of the authority in the house, my wife called to submit, it's nevertheless often smarter to listen to her voice and to go that route. And so leadership, husbands, is not to say, say as I do. Leadership is the ability to recognize that your wife's point of view is often better than yours. And to say, yes, let's do that. You see that? It's the ability to listen to your wife's opinion, and then if it's better being humble enough to say, yes, that's the right decision. Let's go this way. And fellas, I think more often than not, that's often the case, isn't it? Right? And so for another example, in our marriage, I might say to my wife, tell Selah to go do this and that. And she might say, well, what about this? She's doing that right now. And it's not like I'm going to be like, no, she has to do this. Right? I'm like, OK, I didn't know that. And then she does that and then she comes and does what I told her to do. So it's an exchange. OK, that's biblical submission. Number seven. In verse 22, at the end, I want you to notice the ultimate authority. The ultimate authority. Wives, be subject to your own husbands as to the Lord. What does that mean? This means that the wife's submission to her husband is the Lord's will. It's His will. Verse 17, Don't be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Well, here it is for the wives. Wives, submit to your husbands. This is what is fitting in the Lord. In the parallel verse in Colossians 3.18, that's what Paul says. He says, Wives, be subject to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. What is not fitting in the Lord is an unsubmissive behavior. That is what is unbecoming of a Christian wife. But here's the main point here. What Paul is saying here, wives, is that your submission to your husband is ultimately submission to Christ himself, because you are obeying his command. An unsubmissive wife will never reach her potential in Christ. An unsubmissive wife will never reach her potential in Christ, because she is not operating within the role that God has designed for her. Not to mention, she lives in active disobedience. Number eight. Notice the reason for the command to submit. Verse 23, the reason for the command to submit. Verse 23, for, here's the reason, because the husband is the head of the wife. So we've touched on this. Here's the scripture to back it up. He says, the reason the wife submits to her husband is because he is the head of the wife this means that he is the authority he is the leader of the home and so the ultimate decision falls upon him now husbands a word for you notice paul doesn't say husbands should be the head of the wife paul doesn't say husband is the head of the wife if he wants to be he says the husband is This is a God-given, God-ordained role, responsibility in marriage. And here's the thing, wives. Ultimately, it is your husband who will answer to God as to how he has led you, how he has loved you, how he has treated you. As Adam first had to answer to God in the garden, so will husbands answer to God as to how they led their wives. We will all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, even as believers. Not for judgment onto condemnation, but for reward or loss of reward as to how we lived, how we led. But still, This begs the question. I mean, this is common knowledge, even in the unbelieving secular culture that the man is the head of the wife. That used to be at least common knowledge. So why the command? Well, in Paul's day, the family, the household was led by, it was called the paterfamilias, the male head of the family. And he was the husband, the father, the master, everything. He had absolute sovereignty over the household. He had every decision. He made every decision. He was in charge of all the finances, often without even consulting with the wife. It was very strict, but by this point in time, this is interesting, historians tell us that these things in the culture, they were beginning to change. It was not as rigid. There were these new Roman women, that's what they were called, the new Roman women, kind of like the Kardashians of the first century. They were wealthy women, who sought positions of power in society, and positions in law and politics, and they were promiscuous, and they slept around, and they committed adultery with married men and single men. They used contraceptives, and if they got pregnant, they had abortions. And they were beginning to have an influence on women in their lower classes as to how to dress, how to act, how to live. And guess how these changes were beginning to take place? Comedy. In theater, they would portray these women as the example to follow. and theater and plays, they would portray these new Roman women. This is how you live. This is how you are to act sexually. This is how you are to dress. Sound familiar? Sitcoms in the first century. And it was beginning to have an influence. And so it's possible that Paul gives this command because of that influence, partially. Because these women were beginning to be unsubmissive, and to violate their vows in marriage, and to sleep around. And Paul is reminding them, no, this is not God's will for your life. That's the women in the world. That's how they behave. That's what they do. Not you. God's will is submission to your husband. It all stems from the fall, doesn't it? After Adam and Eve sinned, what happened? In Genesis 3.16, God said to Eve, I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you will bring forth children, yet your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you. See, the woman's desire because of sin would now be to usurp the husband's authority and to bring the husband down to a position of submission. And she would want to be the head. You see, the feminist movement is satanic. Because that's where it stems. This is where it stems. This is part of the fall. Women now want to take charge and take control, and we see that everywhere today. That's Genesis 3.16, on a wider scale beyond marriage. And so Paul gives this command to remind us that we would maintain God's established creation order. Egalitarians, what do they say? Men, women not only equal in worth, but also equal in role. The wife can do what the husband does, the husband can do what the wife does. No distinction in role. Now, I am not saying that women can't work or go to school, right? Proverb 31 woman, she had business. It's not about that. But what the Bible says, for example, in Titus 2, 3-5, which the ladies went through in a book study recently, is that the submissive wife, her priority is at home, being a homemaker and caring for the children. And so as long as that priority is being met, she can work as well. Now, if that makes you uncomfortable, even hearing that, it goes to show how much the culture has influenced your thinking. Right? All these TV shows, this is how it's supposed to be. God says, no, women are to be homemakers and to raise up the kids. The husband is to be the primary breadwinner and to work. That's scandalous saying that today, right? In today's culture. But that's God's Word. As long as those priorities are met, there's nothing wrong with women working. But the husband is the head of the wife. Then notice Paul introduces a metaphor here that will run throughout the whole section here in marriage. That of Christ's relationship with the church. Verse 23, for the husband is the head of the wife as Christ, in the same way that Christ also is the head of the church. What does that mean? He is the authority of the church. The church submits to Christ. They listen to Christ. They follow Christ's word. He is the head of the wife. The main emphasis here is authority and subordination. We can't press this too far, because unlike husbands, Jesus is also sovereign God, sovereign Lord. of all creation, omniscient, all-knowing. So Jesus never asks input from the church. Is this how we should do things? He tells us. On the other hand, the husband ought to always seek the wife's counsel, because he is a fallen, limited human being. We ought to recognize the wife's perspective, and opinion, and seriously to consider her suggestions. Then Paul adds, he, that's Christ, he himself being the savior of the body. That's interesting, isn't it? Notice Paul doesn't say, he himself being the Lord of the body, or the authority of the body. He says, he himself being the savior of the body. What's Paul saying? I think the apostle is anticipating what he will say to the husbands. And what Paul is stressing here is that just as the church submits to a Lord, yes, she submits to a Lord who is loving, sacrificial, who gave himself for his bride. He is the Savior of the body. The final point. The limits of submission. The limits of submission. Verse 24. But as the church, here's the example again, as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be, that's an obligation, ought to be subject to their husbands in everything. Now, that raises the question, this is the final point. Is there ever a situation or a circumstance in which the wife refuses submission to her husband? The answer is not only yes, it is required. In what situation ought the wife not submit to her husband? I have three, just to give you a few quick points. Number one, if the husband is asking the wife to sin. If your husband is leading you into sin, then not only can you not submit, you must not submit. And that includes if he is causing you to violate your conscience. Although I will say this, it's very easy to use that as a cop-out not to submit. Well, it's against my conscience, I can't do this, I won't do this. We always remember that you can't fool God. You can't fool God. Number two, this plays into that, if he prevents you from worshiping God, being a church, then you must not submit. You worship God. And then three, this is kind of outside of the point, but I think it's related. If you're in an abusive relationship, If your life or the life of your children is in danger, I strongly believe you don't submit and you seek safety. You leave the home. For your sake, for the children's sake, that doesn't mean you divorce. We'll talk about divorce in the next couple messages. But I strongly believe if you're in an abusive relationship, that you are allowed and you should leave. And so these are really a few exceptions that we find here. And so this is what the biblical wife will do, submission to her husband. It is not an antiquated command. It is not a need of reinterpretation. It's not oppressive. It's not a consequence of sin. And it's not just for wives in Paul's day. It's really difficult to talk about the wife without talking about the husband, the man to whom she ought to submit. And that's what we'll look at next, the next two weeks. It's kind of funny. The wife's portion is like three verses, the husband gets like nine. And so we need extra help. We need extra help. And so we'll look at the husband, the next two messages, the ideal man that the wife ought to submit to. And I would argue that God's command to husbands is more difficult than God's commands to wives to submit. It is more difficult to love your wife as Christ loved the church. Let's pray. Thank you, Lord, for this day, for this morning, for your word. I ask that you would bless this message and that it would have been helpful to your people and, Lord, that you would use it to glorify yourself and to help us to live in wisdom and to walk in a way that is pleasing to you, in a way that is worthy of the calling with which we have been called. This we ask in Christ's name. Amen.