“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,”
When it comes to husbands loving their wife as Christ loved the church, what is involved? The end of verse 25 into verses 26 and 27 provide interesting and helpful insights.
Jesus gave Himself up for His church. We men often take this as being willing to lay down our physical life to protect our wife. And, it certainly does mean that, but much more.
The laying down of Jesus’ life had a purpose, and we find that purpose in verses 26 and 27. The first step in this chain is sanctification. Jesus gave Himself up for His bride in order to sanctify her. Men, we need to have a sharp focus on the sanctification of our wife. What does that mean? Sanctification is the process of becoming more holy. One of the main responsibilities we have in our marriage is to increase the holiness of our wife.
Now, that presumes that we ourselves are growing in our sanctification. We can’t help strengthen and support the sanctification of our wife if our life is in a downward spiral as far as our own holiness is concerned.
This responsibility requires intention, time, and forethought. It’s not something that will just happen. In turn, then, this requires a laying down of our life for her. Why? Because in order to help her, our own growth and planning require that we give up some of the things that we would rather do. When you look at the lives of other men around you and their interests and hobbies, you may not be able to involve yourself as deeply as they do, because you have a far greater mission in life — that of providing for the spiritual growth of your wife. This might seem like an intimidating challenge, but it is one we should accept gladly. God has made us to be strong leaders, not demanding thugs, but being a leader, especially a spiritual one, means we have to have goals and a plan to meet those goals. What are your plans for helping your wife to grow in her relationship to God?
To be continued…