Who doesn't enjoy a task completed, a project finished, reaching the goal? One of the most important 'projects' in my life was my God-given responsibility to prepare our children for adulthood, giving them the tools - emotional, intellectual, and spiritual - to build a life that pleases God and blesses others. Last week, our kids and their spouses assembled for a friend's wedding in New Hampshire. As I talked with them, heard what they're up to these days, and watched them at work and play, my heart filled up with joy that occasionally spilled out of my eyes as tears. My youngest is 24 and they're all well 'on the way' in life. By the grace of God, I believe that Bev and I did a reasonable job of raising God's gifts to us. Oh yes, I'm still their Dad, but the task of disciplining, training, inspecting, enforcing - thank God - is finished.
During His agony on the Cross Jesus uttered these words - "It is finished!"
Was He simply crying out in His pain, wishing for an end to His suffering?
Was He giving up, acknowledging sin's triumph - "I'm done in, defeated, game over?"
No way! Those words, "It is finished," were the words of a Victor, the declaration of the Man that He had completed the awesome mission of being our Savior, offering the final sacrifice for the sins of humanity. Because He completed His task, you and I stand today before our holy God- forgiven, free, and filled with assurance! There is nothing to add to the work of Christ, no improvement can be made. It is a finished work of redemption from sin!
The book of Hebrews is written around the themes of fulfillment and completion. The writer explains how Christ fulfills the Law, satisfied the holy requirements of God in every way, offering us a relationship to God based on a superior agreement. Take a look at this passage --
"When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctifies them so that they are outwardly clean.
How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant." (Hebrews 9:11-15, NIV)
The old way, the Law, was built on sacrifices that were temporary, that had to be renewed year after year. Jesus was the Final Sacrifice for us! Our response is to accept that sacrifice, to be restored to full relationship with our Creator/Father, and to 'serve the living God.' Our service is not motivated by terror, nor are we proving ourselves worthy of His love. Rather as beloved sons and daughters, we are living out Dad's vision, a perfect vision, for us. In that place, we are making a difference in His world, and preparing to enter into eternal life.
As you read the story of the Cross, as you hear John tell us of Jesus' words - "It is finished!" - hear it as a declaration of your victory over sin, death, and Hell!
Meditate on that today. From those simple words, draw strength and hope to finish well.
"So, friends, we can now—without hesitation—walk right up to God, into “the Holy Place.” Jesus has cleared the way by the blood of his sacrifice, acting as our priest before God. The “curtain” into God’s presence is his body. So let’s do it—full of belief, confident that we’re presentable inside and out. Let’s keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:19-25, The Message)
Friday, April 14, 2006
Thursday, April 13, 2006
The Wonderful Cross
Do you ever stop and think why Christians wear crosses and decorate churches with crosses thereby making the means of suffering and cruel death the symbol of their faith? In some churches it has become fashionable to keep the cross out of sight, replacing it with rainbows, angels, or doves. I will glory in the cross! A rainbow may speak to me of hope. Angels may cause me to feel some comfort and strength. Doves may remind me of the hovering Presence of the Spirit -- but only the Cross brings peace to my soul, assuring me of the Father's covenant love.
What a glorious thought - Christ suffering for ME, willingly, because He loves ME! I wish it had never been necessary for Him to become the Lamb of God, offered for my sin, but that is not the case. I am a sinner, a wretch, through and through: hopeless, broken, alone, dying - apart from the Cross where Life flowed down to ME!
I read through some of the hymns of the Cross again this morning. Read these lines thoughtfully, prayerfully. Let Watts and Crosby lead you to contemplate the wonder of Jesus' offering of Himself to meet your desperate need --
Jesus, keep me near the cross, There a precious fountain,
Free to all, a healing stream, Flows from Calvary's mountain.
In the cross, in the cross, Be my glory ever.
Till my raptured soul shall find, Rest beyond the river.
______________
Alas and did my Savior bleed, And did my sov'reign die?
Would He devote that sacred head, For such a worm as I?
But drops of grief can ne'er repay, The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself to Thee, 'Tis all that I can do!
At the cross, at the cross, Where I first saw the light
And the burden of my heart rolled away;
It was there by faith, I received my sight
And now I am happy all the day!
______________
In the cross of Christ I glory,
Tow'ring o'er the wrecks of time;
All the light of sacred story
gathers round its head sublime.
When the woes of life o'ertake me,
hopes deceive and fears annoy;
Never shall the cross forsake me,
Lo! it glows with peace and joy.
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure,
by the cross are sanctified;
Peace is there that knows no measure,
Joys that thro' all time abide.
_______________
Yes, Believer it is the Christ of the Cross that makes us holy and free. Don't 'rush' to the Resurrection this week. That is a grand Truth, and we love to tell it again and again. The empty tomb is the ultimate! But, the road to new life leads through the Cross. Think on His suffering. Don't distance yourself. Worship Him that He died for you, for me! Don't be swept up by those who would teach you that you can save yourself from God's judgment by religion, goodness, or martyrdom. God's love flows from the Cross, so let's glory in the Christ who showed us the depth of His love by dying there.
For my part, I am going to boast about nothing but the Cross of our Master, Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross, I have been crucified in relation to the world, set free from the stifling atmosphere of pleasing others and fitting into the little patterns that they dictate." (Galatians 6:13-14, The Message)
What a glorious thought - Christ suffering for ME, willingly, because He loves ME! I wish it had never been necessary for Him to become the Lamb of God, offered for my sin, but that is not the case. I am a sinner, a wretch, through and through: hopeless, broken, alone, dying - apart from the Cross where Life flowed down to ME!
I read through some of the hymns of the Cross again this morning. Read these lines thoughtfully, prayerfully. Let Watts and Crosby lead you to contemplate the wonder of Jesus' offering of Himself to meet your desperate need --
Jesus, keep me near the cross, There a precious fountain,
Free to all, a healing stream, Flows from Calvary's mountain.
In the cross, in the cross, Be my glory ever.
Till my raptured soul shall find, Rest beyond the river.
______________
Alas and did my Savior bleed, And did my sov'reign die?
Would He devote that sacred head, For such a worm as I?
But drops of grief can ne'er repay, The debt of love I owe;
Here, Lord, I give myself to Thee, 'Tis all that I can do!
At the cross, at the cross, Where I first saw the light
And the burden of my heart rolled away;
It was there by faith, I received my sight
And now I am happy all the day!
______________
In the cross of Christ I glory,
Tow'ring o'er the wrecks of time;
All the light of sacred story
gathers round its head sublime.
When the woes of life o'ertake me,
hopes deceive and fears annoy;
Never shall the cross forsake me,
Lo! it glows with peace and joy.
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure,
by the cross are sanctified;
Peace is there that knows no measure,
Joys that thro' all time abide.
_______________
Yes, Believer it is the Christ of the Cross that makes us holy and free. Don't 'rush' to the Resurrection this week. That is a grand Truth, and we love to tell it again and again. The empty tomb is the ultimate! But, the road to new life leads through the Cross. Think on His suffering. Don't distance yourself. Worship Him that He died for you, for me! Don't be swept up by those who would teach you that you can save yourself from God's judgment by religion, goodness, or martyrdom. God's love flows from the Cross, so let's glory in the Christ who showed us the depth of His love by dying there.
For my part, I am going to boast about nothing but the Cross of our Master, Jesus Christ. Because of that Cross, I have been crucified in relation to the world, set free from the stifling atmosphere of pleasing others and fitting into the little patterns that they dictate." (Galatians 6:13-14, The Message)
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Don't be bamboozled!
The message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been challenged this year by the fictional work of Dan Brown, The DaVinci Code. Nearly 40 million copies of the book, which is a novel about the conspiracy of the Church to hide the 'truth' about Jesus' marriage to Mary Magdalene and to make Him into a god. I haven't read it, but I'm told it's a story that is written in a way that keeps the reader turning the pages. What it isn't is true! But many people seem to think that it is. This month the National Geographic Society is hyping the so-called Gospel of Judas as though it is a major new revelation about Christianity. Yes, it is true that an ancient book was found in the Egyptian desert that has been dated to the 2nd or 3rd century. But the book doesn't change a thing about the origins of Christianity. Judas didn't write it and it isn't Christian. It is a rehash of Gnosticism. "The Gnostics were a heretical cult that believed that the inner self was held prisoner by a material body, a prison from which they hoped to escape. This Gospel of Judas holds that Judas was helping Jesus to get rid of his flesh, so that his inner divine being could be free." - Dr. Ron Carlson
What we are seeing is the conceit of human intelligence in full bloom. I am not suggesting that scholarly inquiry and study of the Bible is a terrible thing, nor do I think that Christianity is incapable of withstanding criticism. But much of the 'stuff' being written about the so-called 'historical Jesus' is just speculation based on scraps of information by people who have already determined that the supernatural content of the Gospels cannot be true and that the declaration of Jesus' divinity is merely a myth, invited by the unsophisticated men and women who first followed Him. These presumptions color their inquiry so that they are incapable of seeing the plain truth of the Word. Their high-sounding words and intricately woven arguments bamboozle many into rejecting the wonderful facts that Jesus, the Christ, came into the world to bring us the full Truth about God, to die to reconcile us to Him, and to restore us to eternal life!
Paul, just a couple of decades after Jesus lived and died and rose again, warned about being taken in by high-flown rhetoric and invented theories that invalidate the Truth of the Gospel. "I know very well how foolish the message of the cross sounds to those who are on the road to destruction. But we who are being saved recognize this message as the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, “I will destroy human wisdom and discard their most brilliant ideas.” So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made them all look foolish and has shown their wisdom to be useless nonsense." (1 Corinthians 1:18-20, NLT)
Many are suggesting that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a fabrication, a collection of folk tales and legend that collected around an obscure Jewish apocalyptic prophet whose radical ideas got him killed. I don't think that a cleverly invented lie about a Jewish prophet's death and 'Resurrection' would have the ability to change the world, do you? When did a lie ever last for two thousand years? It is much more reasonable to believe what the Bible claims - that the Gospel is the Truth of God, that it is the "the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—... This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” (Romans 1:16-17, NLT)
I affirm the ancient Truth. "You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart!"
______________
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven and
sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic* church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.
Amen.
__________________
*Note: The word "Catholic" in this creed does not mean the Roman Catholic Church, but the Christian Church as a whole.
What we are seeing is the conceit of human intelligence in full bloom. I am not suggesting that scholarly inquiry and study of the Bible is a terrible thing, nor do I think that Christianity is incapable of withstanding criticism. But much of the 'stuff' being written about the so-called 'historical Jesus' is just speculation based on scraps of information by people who have already determined that the supernatural content of the Gospels cannot be true and that the declaration of Jesus' divinity is merely a myth, invited by the unsophisticated men and women who first followed Him. These presumptions color their inquiry so that they are incapable of seeing the plain truth of the Word. Their high-sounding words and intricately woven arguments bamboozle many into rejecting the wonderful facts that Jesus, the Christ, came into the world to bring us the full Truth about God, to die to reconcile us to Him, and to restore us to eternal life!
Paul, just a couple of decades after Jesus lived and died and rose again, warned about being taken in by high-flown rhetoric and invented theories that invalidate the Truth of the Gospel. "I know very well how foolish the message of the cross sounds to those who are on the road to destruction. But we who are being saved recognize this message as the very power of God. As the Scriptures say, “I will destroy human wisdom and discard their most brilliant ideas.” So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made them all look foolish and has shown their wisdom to be useless nonsense." (1 Corinthians 1:18-20, NLT)
Many are suggesting that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a fabrication, a collection of folk tales and legend that collected around an obscure Jewish apocalyptic prophet whose radical ideas got him killed. I don't think that a cleverly invented lie about a Jewish prophet's death and 'Resurrection' would have the ability to change the world, do you? When did a lie ever last for two thousand years? It is much more reasonable to believe what the Bible claims - that the Gospel is the Truth of God, that it is the "the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—... This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” (Romans 1:16-17, NLT)
I affirm the ancient Truth. "You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart!"
______________
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
the Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day He arose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven and
sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty,
whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic* church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.
Amen.
__________________
*Note: The word "Catholic" in this creed does not mean the Roman Catholic Church, but the Christian Church as a whole.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Change - in you or your place?
Recently I had a conversation with a discouraged pastor who told me that he had concluded that his work in the church he served was finished. He had prepared his resume and put it out to other churches. He was praying for a change. As we talked, I discerned that he wasn't really certain that he was making the right choice. He was reacting to his inner pain. How many times have you prayed for God to change your situation? Dozens, hundreds? Me, too! We become convinced that the only answer to a problem is a change of face or place; a new job, a different town, a new church, etc. Sometimes that is needed, however we need to consider that God's plan may be to use us as a catalyst for change right where we are! That may well require that we engage ourselves in painful situations, or with difficult people. A primary model of this is the Lord Jesus and His choice to accept God's plan to save the world. On the night before He died on the cross, He prayed - “Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will, not mine.”" (Luke 22:41-42, NLT) You're objecting, "Jerry, I can't identify with that! I'm not Jesus with a call to die for the sins of the world!" That is true, but we are called to die to self as we walk the way of the Lord! Many years ago, a good friend and I were talking about a hard choice he faced. It was clear to him what the God-honoring decision was and it was clear to me that he in for a road of difficulty. He wisely said, "Jerry, called me to obedience, not happiness. I am convinced that there is joy for me in my obedience."
For many people feeling good, being happy, is the ultimate goal, the highest value in life. If a situation causes them to feel pain and/or stress, it must be changed. This emphasis on 'being happy, regardless of the needs of others,' leads many to an empty life of little accomplishment, shallow relationships, and meager character! Of course, we need to acknowledge that it doesn't make much sense to do something the hard way, just because it is more difficult. The polar opposite of the pleasure-seeker is the masochist who seeks pain and/or difficulty because he thinks that the only way to pleasure is through suffering. Finding gratification or pleasure in pain is not natural! Generally, pain signals disease or dysfunction, thus it follows that the right response to pain is to seek to alleviate the suffering. And yet, there are times when God allows us to live with pain, when He calls on us to walk a road that is narrow and steep, in order to accomplish a greater good in us or through us in the world! When that is His plan, though we may not feel happiness, we will have joy!
The Bible says that Jesus made choice to walk up Calvary to die and on the other side of that awful place He found joy. We are encouraged to be willing to make similar choices. "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." (Hebrews 12:2-3, NIV)
Are you preparing to 'move on' from where you are seeking happiness elsewhere?
Have you prayed about your plans, sincerely asking God what His will is? You may be right in looking for new opportunities!
But would you even consider that you may be in just the right place, the person He purposes to use as a change agent in that company, that neighborhood, that church? Believer, before you make a change- seek God! Your life is not yours, you belong to Him and live for His purposes. So, be proactive in prayer. Outline your problem to God. Acknowledge the real pain you feel in the situation. Tell the Lord that you're feeling like another place, a new opportunity is just what you need. Then, listen carefully - to the Spirit, to the counsel of godly friends. Make sure your choices are conformed to the principles of the Scripture. Consider the model of Jesus, willing to allow that God may be leading you through the situation rather than around it!
Remember, happiness is external and therefore temporary.
Joy is an evidence of God's Spirit at work in us, an inner quality, and therefore, lasting!
Seek JOY!
___________________
Change my heart, oh God,
Make it ever true.
Change my heart, oh God,
May I be like You.
You are the potter,
I am the clay.
Mold me and make me,
This is what I pray.
Change my heart, oh God,
Make it ever true.
Change my heart, oh God,
May I be like You.
Change My Heart, Oh God
Author: Espinosa, Eddie
Copyright: 1982 Mercy / Vineyard Publishing (Admin. by Music Services)
For many people feeling good, being happy, is the ultimate goal, the highest value in life. If a situation causes them to feel pain and/or stress, it must be changed. This emphasis on 'being happy, regardless of the needs of others,' leads many to an empty life of little accomplishment, shallow relationships, and meager character! Of course, we need to acknowledge that it doesn't make much sense to do something the hard way, just because it is more difficult. The polar opposite of the pleasure-seeker is the masochist who seeks pain and/or difficulty because he thinks that the only way to pleasure is through suffering. Finding gratification or pleasure in pain is not natural! Generally, pain signals disease or dysfunction, thus it follows that the right response to pain is to seek to alleviate the suffering. And yet, there are times when God allows us to live with pain, when He calls on us to walk a road that is narrow and steep, in order to accomplish a greater good in us or through us in the world! When that is His plan, though we may not feel happiness, we will have joy!
The Bible says that Jesus made choice to walk up Calvary to die and on the other side of that awful place He found joy. We are encouraged to be willing to make similar choices. "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." (Hebrews 12:2-3, NIV)
Are you preparing to 'move on' from where you are seeking happiness elsewhere?
Have you prayed about your plans, sincerely asking God what His will is? You may be right in looking for new opportunities!
But would you even consider that you may be in just the right place, the person He purposes to use as a change agent in that company, that neighborhood, that church? Believer, before you make a change- seek God! Your life is not yours, you belong to Him and live for His purposes. So, be proactive in prayer. Outline your problem to God. Acknowledge the real pain you feel in the situation. Tell the Lord that you're feeling like another place, a new opportunity is just what you need. Then, listen carefully - to the Spirit, to the counsel of godly friends. Make sure your choices are conformed to the principles of the Scripture. Consider the model of Jesus, willing to allow that God may be leading you through the situation rather than around it!
Remember, happiness is external and therefore temporary.
Joy is an evidence of God's Spirit at work in us, an inner quality, and therefore, lasting!
Seek JOY!
___________________
Change my heart, oh God,
Make it ever true.
Change my heart, oh God,
May I be like You.
You are the potter,
I am the clay.
Mold me and make me,
This is what I pray.
Change my heart, oh God,
Make it ever true.
Change my heart, oh God,
May I be like You.
Change My Heart, Oh God
Author: Espinosa, Eddie
Copyright: 1982 Mercy / Vineyard Publishing (Admin. by Music Services)
Monday, April 10, 2006
"I promise to love"
Brian and Katie are beautiful young adults, full of life and optimism, obviously in love. On Saturday, as I heard them say, "I promise to love... in good time and bad times, in times of plenty as in times of need, in sickness and in health," I bowed my head and prayed, "Give them grace, Lord, they do not know the meaning of the words they are saying." They are mature Believers, apparently emotionally prepared for marriage and committed to each other; but they are living in a society where marriage vows are abandoned at alarming rates that rise to more than 50%! Nothing in life, except their commitment to Jesus Christ, will require more discipline, more selflessness, more prayer, and just plain hard work than building a marriage that is truly intimate, that enjoys real, lasting love and that is a model of Christ's own love for His Bride, the Church.
"Jerry, you don't sound very positive about marriage." Oh, you're so wrong. I believe in marriage, and after 31 years with Bev, have some idea of the joys of a long-lasting relationship that grows and adapts to the demands of life in the real world. However, I also have walked with many men and women through the wreckage of marriages that broke under the pressure of infidelity, immaturity, selfishness, and mis-placed values. So, while I rejoice at weddings, I also pray!
Friend, is your marriage strong, healthy, and a source of joy? There are ways that you can help your relationship grow.
Most important of all, is the submission of self - learning to think in the 'we' mode instead of the 'me' mode! A marriage cannot grow strong where the husband and wife are each grasping for positions of advantage, trying to control each other, or using up their resources (emotional, financial, and spiritual) to feed their own need! A godly husband submits himself to Christ as Lord and, in that humility, earns the privilege of providing servant leadership to his wife, who is herself submitted to Christ. The couple, who as individuals are deeply committed to Christ, has found the key to building a marriage that lasts! The Word says, "you will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. You wives will submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of his body, the church; he gave his life to be her Savior. As the church submits to Christ, so you wives must submit to your husbands in everything. And you husbands must love your wives with the same love Christ showed the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean..." (Ephesians 5:21-26, NLT)
Jesus shows us the path of humility and invites us to walk on it. The Word teaches us that "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name." (Philippians 2:5-9, NIV) This is not something we can achieve on our own, by our will alone, or with some human technique. Humility of person that lets us serve our Lord and our spouse faithfully, in keeping with those vows "to love, honor, and keep (him) her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others keep only unto (him) her so long as I live" demands the grace of God and the transformational work of the Holy Spirit in us- daily.
Love- it's not just songs of romance, walks on moonlit beaches, and great sex! It's serving, giving, sharing - "We know what real love is because Christ gave up his life for us. And so we also ought to give up our lives for (each other.) But if anyone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need and refuses to help—how can God’s love be in that person? Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions." (1 John 3:16-18, NLT)
"Jerry, you don't sound very positive about marriage." Oh, you're so wrong. I believe in marriage, and after 31 years with Bev, have some idea of the joys of a long-lasting relationship that grows and adapts to the demands of life in the real world. However, I also have walked with many men and women through the wreckage of marriages that broke under the pressure of infidelity, immaturity, selfishness, and mis-placed values. So, while I rejoice at weddings, I also pray!
Friend, is your marriage strong, healthy, and a source of joy? There are ways that you can help your relationship grow.
Most important of all, is the submission of self - learning to think in the 'we' mode instead of the 'me' mode! A marriage cannot grow strong where the husband and wife are each grasping for positions of advantage, trying to control each other, or using up their resources (emotional, financial, and spiritual) to feed their own need! A godly husband submits himself to Christ as Lord and, in that humility, earns the privilege of providing servant leadership to his wife, who is herself submitted to Christ. The couple, who as individuals are deeply committed to Christ, has found the key to building a marriage that lasts! The Word says, "you will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. You wives will submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of his body, the church; he gave his life to be her Savior. As the church submits to Christ, so you wives must submit to your husbands in everything. And you husbands must love your wives with the same love Christ showed the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean..." (Ephesians 5:21-26, NLT)
Jesus shows us the path of humility and invites us to walk on it. The Word teaches us that "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name." (Philippians 2:5-9, NIV) This is not something we can achieve on our own, by our will alone, or with some human technique. Humility of person that lets us serve our Lord and our spouse faithfully, in keeping with those vows "to love, honor, and keep (him) her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others keep only unto (him) her so long as I live" demands the grace of God and the transformational work of the Holy Spirit in us- daily.
Love- it's not just songs of romance, walks on moonlit beaches, and great sex! It's serving, giving, sharing - "We know what real love is because Christ gave up his life for us. And so we also ought to give up our lives for (each other.) But if anyone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need and refuses to help—how can God’s love be in that person? Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions." (1 John 3:16-18, NLT)
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