As to the Lord Part 2: The Submission of Wives (Ephesians 5:21-24)

Act of Worship

The late Ruth Bell Graham, wife of evangelist, Billy Graham, was once approached and asked if she or her husband had ever thought about divorce. She responded with, “Divorce? No. Murder? Yes.”[1] Marriage is a relationship based on a principle as simple as submission but convoluted by unsatisfied humanity, which is why it only works when true satisfaction is found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Marriage is submission. Where submission is not present is not only a failed marriage but a marriage that does not do what it should: display a picture of Christ and his bride, the church.

This series will be divided into three parts: 1) focusing on wives, 2) focusing on husbands, and 3) focusing on children and families and centering around the text in Ephesians 5:21-6:4. The common thread through the entire text is submission (first to God and then to each other). God has initiated a design for marriage that reflects his character, and it is not to be ignored, for doing so begs for failure. God-honoring marriages and families should conform to the instructions presented in Scripture.

This portion of the series deals with wives. Although wives are addressed first in the text, most of Paul’s instructions are delivered to husbands. Any wives prone to offense by Paul’s address, therefore, should take comfort in the fact that his address to husbands soon follows. The charge to wives centers around submission. Submission, however, is not to be considered a negative term or inferior action, for it is necessary among all believers. For the wife, the responsibility in a marriage is to, yes, submit to the husband but first to God. Likewise, the wife’s submission to her husband presupposes the husband’s submission to God so that her best interest is considered. In the text considered today (Ephesians 5:21-24), three key essentials may be pulled from Paul’s words.

1. Gospel-family dynamics are founded upon submission to Christ;

2. the wife’s submission is subsequent to submission to Christ; and

3. the wife is a representation of the church.

These three elements are crucial to understanding various roles in marriage and especially the role of the wife.

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[1] Catherine Klasne, “Divorce? No. Murder? Yes,” UWWM, n.d., https://www.uww-adr.com/uncategorized/divorce-no-murder-yes#:~:text=The%20late%20Ruth%20Bell%20Graham,Murder%3F.