Theme of the Week: Receiving and Being a Blessing
Bible Verse: Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. Ephesians 5:25
A man, the Bible says, is the head of his wife, just as Christ is head of the church.
What this means in practice, men, is that you must die first. The fulfilment of your headship is in your readiness and willingness to love your wife to the point of laying down your life for her. That is literal, if ever the situation requires it. But it’s also figurative. Your willingness and readiness to lay down your life is accomplished in a thousand daily deaths, an unending series of small sacrifices – of time, attention, ambition, entitlement, pride.
Your headship means, not that you dominate your wife, but that you put her first. Your greatness is in serving. Your fitness is in coming last.
That is the biblical way to fully release your wife into her destiny:
…to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless (vv.26-27).
This is the power of blessing. A woman does not become radiant by being bullied or scorned. No husband ever released his wife into the fullness of her God-ordained beauty and holiness by harping on her of her flaws and shortcomings.
Men, you are called to release your wife into becoming the woman God intends her to be. And you are given the key to fulfilling that call: love her as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.
Bless and love her and lay your life down for her for the sake of her wholeness and holiness.
What can you do right now to love your wife this way? What is one thing you can give up that would release her, wash her, make her radiant?
When, for instance, did you last tell her how beautiful she is? How thankful you are for her? How deeply you treasure her? Tell her now.
When did you last do something – or stopped doing something – that delighted her? Today’s the day.
If your wife isn’t radiant, that’s not her fault. That’s your job.
Get to it.
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