Lesson 5
The Joy of Marriage - How To Be A Great Husband
Greetings to one and all. I pray your marriages are growing and you are beginning to experience the joy of marriage. We will begin discussing the role of the husband. Wives, you will be happy and husbands, you might not be as happy. The fact is, if a man is living according to God’s plan for the husband, the marriage will be secure and strong. I know that we guys don’t like to think that we are the answer to a great marriage. The truth is, we are. This doesn’t mean the wife doesn’t have responsibilities or areas in her life that need work, but it does say, according to the Bible the husband is the one required to make things happen. In order to be a great husband, we must be the husband God has called us to be. Let’s face it, we cannot improve on God’s plan for husbands.
The role of the family has changed over the years to meet the needs and wants of society. Society’s concept of marriage changes with the latest fad. These fads and philosophies have not, in any way, helped the family. They have created chaos in the institution of marriage. The result has been disastrous. Certain roles in the family have been de-valued and made to appear unimportant and lowly in character, including the idea that men and women are different and have differing abilities. Men no longer know what it means or what it takes to be a good husband and father. The marriage and family have become throw away commodities with little or no value, especially if they interfere with a career. To bring the family back to strength we must go back to the Bible. We must understand its’ principles and apply them in our lives and homes. The first, and probably most important thing to know, is that in order to be a good and godly husband, we must have a vital relationship with God. Most people would agree with this statement, but might ask why. The Bible tells us in Ephesians 5:22-29 that the husband is to love his wife, and give himself for her, sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of the water by the word, as Christ has done for the church. How can a husband love his wife like Christ loves the church if he doesn’t understand how Christ loves the church? The husband is a type of Christ. The Bible says he is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. A lack of understanding of what this scripture means has caused a multitude of problems and much damage in many families. This scripture has been perverted and abused until just saying this scares most women. The man is responsible to draw from his relationship with Jesus the understanding of how to be the kind of husband Jesus is to the church. When the husband treats his wife like Jesus treats the church, we won’t have the distorted abuse that we have experienced in the past. A major objection and difficulty that many wives have had in submitting to their husbands "as to the Lord" is that their husbands have not loved them as Christ loves the church. Neither have husbands given themselves for their wives and put her first before anything else. They are not willing to sacrifice themselves for their wives as Jesus has done for us. As the husband grows in his relationship with God, he will understand how to love his wife. Knowing this alone will not change things. He must allow God’s love and character to transform his life to be more like Christ. In the coming lessons we will learn how to love our wives and be a great husband. Until next time, God bless. Terry