I've been doing a little studying lately and have come across some information that I will call interesting. It is in how God created relationships and how He views them, particularly the marriage relationship. God created the family after his own nature. God is Triune in nature. There is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. God is the Head, or in Authority, Jesus said He submits to the Father and the Spirit comes from the Father and Son. OK, that is a REALLY simplistic view, but stay with me.
If you look back at creation, there was one phrase that kept getting repeated. "God saw that it was good". Several times this is repeated, then in Genesis 2:18, God said "It is not good..." Interesting! What was not good? That man should be alone. If you think about it, it was the first time there was "alone-ness". So God created woman and later said that the man and woman would be one flesh. See a pattern here? While they are two, they are one. God's nature is to be in fellowship, as is man's nature.
So God created the man in authority, or the head. The woman is to submit to the authority of the man and the children come from the man and woman and are to honor the parents. Just like God is in authority and Jesus submits to the Father and the spirit honors the Father and son.
Unfortunately, the world has made the word "submit" into an ugly word and some men have abused their authority. Many people today see the word submit and see a very negative attribute, but that is just not the case. Do you see Jesus submitting to the Father as a bad thing? Think on that for a while.
And now, allow me to show you what concerned me most in my recent studies. It is in 1 Peter 3:7. Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives,
and treat them with respect as the weaker (physically) partner and as heirs with you
of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers. It's those last 7 words that scare me. "So that nothing will hinder your prayers." Hinder means to delay, impede or hold back. I read that as saying that if you don't treat your wife with respect, God may not hear your prayers! The thought of that is truly frightening to me. It also tells me that God takes this marriage thing VERY seriously.
Need further proof about the seriousness of your marriage? Read Malachi 2:13-17
Here is another thing you do. You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, weeping and groaning because he pays no attention to your offerings and doesn’t accept them with pleasure. You cry out, “Why doesn’t the Lord accept my worship?” I’ll tell you why! Because the Lord
witnessed the vows you and your wife made when you were young. But you
have been unfaithful to her, though she remained your faithful partner,
the wife of your marriage vows.
Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth. “For I hate divorce!” says the Lord, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty," says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.” You have wearied the Lord with your words.
It is unfortunate that we in the world have changed relationships and marriage into something so trivial and disposable. It is just so much "easier" to move on to the next one. I'm not writing this to judge anyone, but it is a frightening thought to me to see people throw a relationship away by being more concerned about self than others.
So guys, respect your wife. It's important!
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