Ephesians 5

Greetings,

The memory passage for Ephesians 5 is;
Ephesians 5:1-2,22,25 (ESV)
¹ Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. ² And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
²² Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,

The outline theme is Love and Marriage in Him.

Ephesians 5 is divided into two main sections; the first focusing on our walk with God in Christ and the second focusing on the walk of spouses with each other.

The word 'walk' appears three times in the first 21 verses; walk in love, walk as children of light and walk in wisdom. The first walk is the one that flavors the rest of the chapter; if we are walking in love according to the example of Christ (selfless, sacrificial, and serving) then our relationship with God, other people, and our spouses will be transformed.

Paul follows the first command to walk in love with several negative commands concerning sexual immorality and filthy talk. This impurity, as evidenced in the sons of disobedience, will not inherit the kingdom of God. This behavior is not only the opposite of the will of God, but it is bringing His wrath upon those who walk in sin.

Therefore, we are warned not to associate with them (become partners). It would be inconsistent for a child of God to be associated with (in the sense of being linked to or united with) those who still walk in sin and the flesh (as we once walked before following Christ).

Instead of hanging around or near the works of darkness, we are to walk as children of light in goodness, righteousness and truth. This walk is pleasing to the Lord. And He uses our walk in the light to expose the works of darkness. There seems to be two elements to this; the workers of darkness (those unsaved, living in sin) and the works of darkness done by believers who bear unfruitful works of darkness.

The third element of our walk in the love of Christ is walking in His wisdom and seeking His will. This plays out as we are separated from the world and filled with Holy Spirit. It is evidenced (along with the fruits and gifts of the Spirit) in our relationships; with each other in corporate worship, with the Lord in singing, with God in thanksgiving through the name of Christ, and with each other in submission (our of reverence and in the model of Christ).

The second main section of Ephesians 5 deals with the marriage relationship. It is filled with commands and instructions for the wife and the husband. The wife is to submit to her own husband as unto the Lord (not in the same way, but as an act of service and love). This command comes with the description of the husband's role; head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. So the wife's role is likened to the churches role with Christ.

Husbands must love their wives as Christ loved the church and died for her (in order that He might make the church holy through the cleansing of the water and blood to present her holy and blameless). Paul reasons this out; just as a husband loves his own body and takes care of it, so should he love and take care of his wife.

The husband and wife have left their parent's home and care, being united to each other as one flesh. The responsibility that follows this union is the husband loving his wife as himself and the wife respecting her husband.

I am going to diverge from my normal summary for this week's entry. I do so only because I was struck very profoundly by one verse in this study that unlocked the whole chapter for me.

It seems that this chapter is one that comes up often in the context of marriage (obviously) and women's roles in the home and church. The majority of the flap seems to center around women resisting the command to 'submit' to her husband or any man; how are women supposed to be equal if they must submit to their husbands? Then, as if reading it for the first time, I was struck by verse 2. "And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." Without trying to be overly simplistic, this verses hit me as the key to the marriage relationship, and every relationship for that matter. If we walk in the love of Christ, His sacrificial, selfless, servant love, the difficulties of authority and submission go away. This goes for husbands and wives, parents and children, pastors and church members, brothers and sisters in the body, bosses and employees, etc. If I, as a husband, love my wife with the love of Christ and give myself up for her, not only will I honor Christ but I will make it a whole lot easier for her to honor Christ in her relationship to me. It plays out that way in any human relationship. Follow Christ, His words and example, and He will fulfill your roles through you for His glory. The heart of 'submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ' is each of us walking in His love.

May you walk in His love today,

Ethan