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Sermon re-cap from December 5, 2010:
1. After addressing wives about their biblical responsibilities in marriage in Ephesians 5:22-24, Paul turns his attention to husbands' responsibilities in 5:25-32. “Paul turns to the reciprocal duties of the husband. In Greco-Roman society it was recognized that wives had obligations to their husbands, but not vice versa. In this, as in other respects, Christianity introduced a revolutionary approach to marriage that equalized the rights of wives and husbands and established the institution on a much firmer foundation than ever before.” (Expositor’s Bible Commentary)
2. Paul’s call to Christian husbands is to exercise “loving, servant leadership.” This leadership is sacrificial (vs. 25), nurturing (vv. 26-27), caring (vv. 28-30), and committed/exclusive (vv. 31-32).
3. A man is instructed to love his wife, not command her. This love is not based upon her submission/respect (vv. 22-24) but is independent of it.
4. Of the four Greek words for love, Paul does not use “storge,” which C.S. Lewis defines as “love, affection, especially of parent for children; of the love of dogs for their master.” He does not use “eros,” which Lewis defines as “love, mostly of sexual passion.” Nor does Paul use “philia,” defined as “affectionate regard, friendship.” Rather Paul calls upon men to love with “agape” love. Don Meredith, in his book Becoming One defines agape love as “commitment-love.” He writes: “This agape ..is described in Scripture primarily as the kind of love that God gave to His Son and then to man. This kind of love is the opposite of eros in that it is totally sacrificial. This love can only be measured by the sacrificial action of the giver. It is not primarily emotional or sexual because it is drawn out not by the attractiveness of the object loved but by the commitment of the giver. The lover is acting in obedience to God's commandment; therefore the love is God-directed. It is first an issue between God and man, not between two people, and it does not always run with the natural inclinations of feelings. This love is responsible and does not change as feelings change. It is commitment-love.”
