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Friday, December 28, 2012

Say "I Do"


Churches for centuries have placed women in a subservient role.  It started with the cave man, and the traditional Muslims in the Middle East have carried it to an extreme to this very day.  The Jewish customs set that up officially, and we have perpetuated it.  But is it realistic considering that God chose women to be Judges and to have leadership positions in the Old Testament.  It would seem a cultural rather than Biblical decision on our part to perpetuate it.  Go Joyce Meyer!  Go Sister Teresa!  If you look at Western Culture today, the subservient woman role doesn’t fly very well anymore.  Have we abandoned the Bible?

How does the Bible integrate on this subject with the family structure today?  Ephesians says that wives should submit to their husbands, and I view that word submit more as “respect” as it is worded later in the same passage.  It also says there that a man should love his wife as he loves his own body, which is a pretty incredible standard when a guy takes the time to think about it. Love and Respect…what a concept!  Philippians says "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself."   I think it is clear that we are responsible for meeting each other’s needs.  Instead of trying to figure out who is the boss or blaming each other for our difficulties and selfishly considering only our own needs, we should be looking out for our lover’s needs.  I’ve often said that a marriage is not a 50/50 proposition as so many have said --it is a 100/100 proposition.  If you are not willing to commit to that viewpoint, there will be problems. 

Is it always going to be a consensus decision-making process in that kind of marriage?  Somehow I doubt it, and at some point one or the other will have to give in.  Husbands and wives need to keep that in mind.  But if you commit to and follow the 100/100 principle, it shouldn’t be impossible…difficult sometimes…yeah, let’s not be naïve about it.  Still, it can be done.

Can you imagine a world where we all took to heart our biblical responsibility and tried to truly meet the needs of those we are committed to?

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