Submission In Marriage: For Husbands

Peter Marshall, who was once chaplain to the Senate, said this about marriage. He said, “Marriage is not a federation of two sovereign states. It is a union; domestic, social, spiritual and physical. It is a fusion of two lives, the coming together of two tributaries, which after being joined in marriage, will flow in the same direction, carrying the same burdens and responsibilities and obligations.”

Marriage is a divine institution. Now I know I say that a lot, but I want to emphasize that and make it clear. Marriage is invented, created, designed by God. And all the way back in the book of Genesis, God made the male, man, and He made the female, woman. And Moses writing about this said, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother…”—Genesis 2:24—“…and he shall cleave unto his wife…”—The Hebrew word means to be glued together with his wife—“…and the two become one flesh.” Emphasis on “one flesh.” So like two tributaries flowing together, they make a river, and they lose their own individual identities “and the two become one flesh.” And that’s what marriage is in God’s design.

Jesus, picking up on the Genesis passage in Matthew 19, He said, “Wherefore they are no more two, but they are one. What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder.” And by the way, before Jesus made that statement, He said to the Pharisees, who were questioning Him about divorce, “Haven’t you read in the Scriptures that He which made them in the beginning made them…”—and listen to the words of Jesus. I’m quoting them.—“…male and female.” Without skipping a beat, He said “male, female.” And He said, “For this cause a man…”—which is the male—“…and a woman…”—which is the female—“…will leave father and mother and cleave to one another and become one flesh.” Those are the words out of the lips of Jesus Christ. So if we say that marriage is between one man and one woman, we’re in good company. Jesus said the same thing. And I stand with Jesus Christ.

And in marriage that is a God ordained, God designed institution, the two become one, but the two have their own separate roles and duties and responsibilities. And I believe that God has given to us in His Word the duty or the function, the role of the wife, and the duty and the function and responsibility of the husband. It’s not obscure. It’s not hard to understand. It’s black and white. It’s clearly laid out in His Word.

And last Sunday, verses 1 to 6, we saw the duty and the role of the wife. And we put it in three categories. Just to remind you, we saw her behavior was submission, and that was in verse 1; we saw her beauty, which was spiritual, in verse 4—It was the hidden person of the heart, an “ornament of a meek and gentle or quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious”—; and then, thirdly, we saw her belief, in verse 5, that she, like the holy women of old, trusted in God. So she’s submissive, she’s spiritual and she trusts in God.

But Peter now moves to give us instruction to the husbands, or for the husbands. And they are found in verse 7. Let’s read it together. I’ll read it. You follow with me. 1 Peter 3:7. Peter says, “Likewise, you husbands, dwell with them…”—that is, your wives—“…according to knowledge, giving honor unto the wife as unto the weaker vessel, and being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers be not hindered.”

Now Peter gives us three responsibilities or duties for the husband. And, again, I want you to write these down to remember them. I’m taking this passage and kind of compacting it. But the first of the three is not from the passage here in Peter. I’m drawing it from Ephesians 5:25. If you’re taking notes, write these down. Number one, “Husbands, love your wives sincerely.” “Love your wife sincerely.” Ephesians 5:25. This is what is says. It says, “Husbands, love your wives.” Now that’s a verse we all know, we’re all familiar with. “Husbands, love your wives.”

But what we don’t get right off the bat when you read it in the English translation is the Greek word for “love” in that statement. You see, in the English language, we have only one word for “love”; right? And we use it on this broad spectrum. “I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I love to go to the beach. I love mashed potatoes and gravy. And I love my wife.” Now I do love those other things, but they’re not on the same level or kind of love that I have for my wife. Right? You’re supposed to say “yes.” Okay, you’re scaring me for a minute there. Some of you say, “I don’t know. Mashed potatoes and gravy are pretty good.” So in the English language we’re so restricted. There’re so many people using the word “love.” “I love you. Or love is love no matter what.” And we have this kind of misunderstanding of what love is.

So in the Greek, in which the New Testament was written, they had actually about four words for “love.” All of them are found in the New Testament, but they convey different kinds of love. There’s a word we have. It’s the word “eros,” the Greek word “eros.” We get our word “erotic” from it. Now that’s a physical attraction or sexual love, and what we would use in the English would be “lust.” If you love somebody in that sense, you’re desiring them, you’re lusting for them. That’s erotic or eros. And then the Greeks had another word. They had the word “storge,” which was family love, a love for brothers and sisters and family and so forth. And then they had a third word, which was the word “philia,” and we get our word “Philadelphia" from that. And it means a brotherly love. It means kind of a kinship or fondness love or that we’re friends. We like each other. We would say, “I like that person a lot.” And then they had the word “agope,” “agape.” Agape love was really kind of coined by Christianity, because it’s a sacrificial, self-denying, giving love that has only the object loved in mind. That is the Greek word that Paul uses in Ephesians 5:25 when He says, “Husbands [apage] your wives.” I would say “eros” wants to take, “phileo” wants to give and take and “agape” wants to give and give and give and give, expecting nothing in return. So when the Bible says, “Husbands, you are to love your wives,” it uses the Greek word “agape,” a-g-a-p-e. You’re to unconditionally love your wife. That’s agape love.

Paul tells us, “…as Christ loved the church.” So how is a husband to “apope” his wife? Unconditionally. She doesn’t have to deserve it. She doesn’t have to merit it. She doesn’t have to cook good to get your love. “You figure out how to make mashed potatoes, and I’ll love you.” No. Agape love just goes on loving, even when it is not deserved; it’s unconditional. And then agape love is sacrificial. You go on loving sacrificially, self-denyingly. “…even as Christ gave Himself for the church,” Paul says in Ephesians 5.

This means, guys, you may have to give up watching the football game to go shopping with your wife. Some of the guys are, “I rebuke you, Satan! I bind you, right now, in the name of Jesus!” You know, your wife might want you to go shopping with her sometime. You know, when guys enter the mall, they see that sign over the top. It says, “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.” It’s like, “Please, please don’t make me do this!”

Or maybe going on vacation where your wife—I like to vacation at the beach. My wife loves the mountains. I have to admit it; this is a hard sermon for me to preach, because most of our vacations are at the beach. Most of them; not all of them! There are those times, “Okay, we’ll go up to the mountains. We’ll go.” It’s like, “Aw, there’s no surf here. There’s no surf here.” What am I supposed to do? Chase squirrels or something? I don’t do hiking. I don’t do that kind of stuff. I’m a beach guy, and that’s all there is to me. But it may mean sacrificially. You love your wife. You give of yourself. And you deny yourself for the sake of your wife.

And then I would say that agape love is not only unconditionally loving her, sacrificially loving her, but it’s sanctifyingly loving her. What do I mean by that? Jesus washes the church in the water of the Word, that He might sanctify the church. So husbands are to have a sanctifying influence upon their wives. Is your wife spiritual because of you, or in spite of you? Good question to ask yourself as a husband. Do you pray with her, and do you talk about the Scriptures and read the Word and go to church? Do you set an example for your wife of pursuing God and the things of God, so you can have a sanctifying effect upon your wife and your family?

And then, fourthly, to agape your wife is to love her affectionately. This is in verse 29 of Ephesians 5 where it says that Jesus “nourishes and cherishes” the church, so men ought to nourish and cherish their wives. You know what that Greek phrase “nourish and cherish” means? It literally means to warm with body heat. So you put your arms around your wife and you warm her with your body heat. A lot of times as men, you know, we think, “Aw, I don’t hug people. I don’t touch people. I don’t do that kind of affection.” But your wife wants to be warmed by your body heat, and you show her affection, and you show her your love by cherishing her and nourishing her, feeding her emotionally.

And then fifthly, and lastly, you love her agape when you love her exclusively. Exclusively. Paul says in Ephesians 5:31, taking it from the book of Genesis, “For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and be ‘glued to’ his wife, and the two become one.” So there’s one woman in your life, and that’s your wife. You’re to be the husband of one wife. That means in the Greek, literally it’s translated “a one-woman man.” You’re to have eyes for no one else. You’re to stay focused and committed and devoted to loving your wife. You love her unconditionally, sacrificially, sanctifyingly, affectionately and exclusively. Husbands, do you agape your wives?

Here’s the second point for husbands. Write this down. Husbands are not only to love their wives in an agape love, but they are to love their wives by dwelling understandingly with them. So love them sincerely, and the second point is dwell with them understandingly. Now go to our text, 1 Peter 3:7, and notice that it opens with a “likewise, ye husbands.” What does he mean by “likewise, ye husbands”? Well, go back to verse 1 of chapter 3. “Likewise, ye wives.” And then you have to back up to chapter 2, verse 13. “Submit yourselves to every ordnance of man.” Then you jump down to chapter 2, verse 18. “Servants, be subject to your masters with all reverence.” Then you jump to chapter 3, verse 1. “Likewise, ye wives.” Then verse 7 of chapter 3, “Likewise, ye husbands.” Now I hope I haven’t confused you thoroughly, but basically I pointed that out to show you that in the context, the “likewise, ye husbands,” the “likewise, ye wives” is submission. We submit to government, we submit in the workplace, we submit in the marriage. Wives submit to their husbands, and husbands have a sense in which they submit to their wives.

Now what does he tell the husbands? He tells them that they are to submit by dwelling with their wives in an understanding way. In Ephesians 5:21, before he speaks to the wife or to the husband, he says we’re to be “submitting one to another in the reverence or fear of God.” And I believe the same Holy Spirit that makes the wife “meek and quiet,” verse 4, would also make a husband kind and considerate. Ladies, if your husband’s not kind, he’s not considerate, he’s getting a little grumpy, you know, and not being very nice, tell him he needs “a dose of the Ghost.” Tell him to go in the closet, get down on his knees and get “a dose of the Ghost.” He needs to be Spirit filled. He needs the Holy Spirit. Before Paul tells wives to submit and husbands to love their wives, you know what he tells everyone? “Be filled with the Spirit.” “Be filled with the Spirit. Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks unto the Father for all things.” You know, a Spirit filled heart and a Spirit filled marriage is joyful, is thankful and is humble. That’s a Spirit filled marriage; joyful, thankful and humble. I believe the greatest secret to a happy, blessed and successful marriage is not only knowing Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior but being filled with the Holy Spirit. It’s allowing the Holy Spirit to fill your life and to guide you. Certainly He’ll give you agape love for your wife. Certainly He’ll help the wife to be submissive to her husband.

But notice specifically what Peter tells us in verse 7. Husbands are to “dwell with them.” “Dwell with them.” You know, that is a good idea, and I highly recommend that married couples live together. I studied all week to figure that out. Isn’t that profound? Every time I come to this phrase, “dwell with them,” I want to preach a whole sermon on this statement. Dwell with your wives. I run into people who say, “Well, we’re married, but I live in LA and she lives in New York, and we see each other about every three months.” It’s like, I understand there are times—you’re in the military, you’re traveling, you know, that you’re apart, but let me tell you, the idea is when you get married—the idea is you kind of usually like live together; okay? That means that you dwell together, you spend time together and you build a life together.

Let me tell you what’s hidden in this little phrase “dwell together.” This phrase simply doesn’t mean that you have the same address. The compound verb “dwell with” occurs only here in the entire New Testament. It has a general and a specific meaning. I want you to know what they are. The general meaning means “to live with,” “to be at home with.” It’s the idea to make a life together. And some translations have “settled down and be at home.” But I like the idea conveyed in this phrase “dwell together” or “make a life together.” The older I get, the longer I’ve been married, the more I appreciate my wife, that she’s sacrificed with me, she’s served with me, worked with me, that we’ve been a team together. All God has done in and through our lives—our children, our grandchildren, our ministry, everything—has been a partnership that she’s a part of; that I couldn’t have done without her. And so we came together in marriage, and we flowed the same direction. We live for God, we serve God, we had children together, we bought homes together, we live together, we serve together, work together, pray together, laugh together, cry together; we’re doing life together. What a blessing that is. And when you get down that road and you’re empty-nesters and you’re looking back, you so value that relationship with that partner, who has spent a lifetime building a life together with you. What a blessing that is.

That’s what’s found in this phrase “dwell with them.” It actually means that you are the head of the family, you love, you lead, you provide, you protect, but too many husbands are not home. They’re not home enough to love and lead and guide them. One recent study said the average husband and wife communicate or talk to each other about 37 minutes a week. That’s the average conversation. Kind of coming and going. It’s not “Who has the kids? When will he be home? Hey, where’s the mashed potatoes?” It’s just talking; being together, communicating with one another. I do know that a man can be home and not really engaged.

When our kids were young—I haven’t gotten it for years. I used to get delivered to the house all the time—magazines. Kind of want to know what’s going on in the world, so I’d get a new Time magazine. And I’d come home and I’d open my magazine. We used to sit at the counter, looking at that. I’d be gone all day. My wife’s with the kids. I’d come home. She wants to talk, and I’d want to look at my magazine. I’ll never forget one time I’m flipping through my magazine, and she’s in the kitchen getting dinner ready. She goes, “What did I just say?” I heard that. I looked up at her, and I just said, “I don’t have a clue.” I thought I could guess, but it wouldn’t work. “What did I just say?” “Ah, I have no idea.” Shut that magazine, put it away, give her my attention. That’s what it means to be home. You know, you’re not out in the garage tinkering around the garage doing things. You’re home, looking at your wife, listening to your wife, you’re communicating with your wife. So it says, when you’re home, really be engaged. Be home. The marriage and the family is really not a priority. And they come home, they bring their work, they bring other worries and concerns, their hobbies, their interests, and they’re not focusing on their marriage and their family.

Now it also carries the idea in “dwell with them” of a specific meaning. And New Testament scholars concur that the phrase is also used as a euphemism for sexual relations. It’s a euphemism for sexual relations. “One flesh” means that they’re sexually intimate. So not only should husband and wife live in the same house, but they should have intimacy in their marriage relationship. That’s what’s implied in this text. And the inference for the husband is, you meet your wife’s need, your wife meets your need. And I want to give you a reference if you’re a married person. And even if you’re not married, it’s in the Bible. You ought to know what it says. 1 Corinthians 7:1-7. That is a classic passage in the Bible about your conjugal rights in a marriage relationship. The husband’s body is not his own; it belongs to the wife. The wife’s body is not her own; it belongs to the husband. It says that you’re not to defraud one another in the marriage relationship unless it be by mutual consent. You only do it for a very short time. Then you come back together again, “lest Satan tempt you for lack of self control.” That’s what it says in that passage. God’s Word is very clear about what a marriage is. It’s not just that we live under the same roof, but we dwell together, we make life together, we’re intimate with one another and no one else.

When Paul was writing to Timothy about the spiritual leadership of the church, he said in 1 Timothy 3:12 that the spiritual leaders are to be the husband of only one wife. Now in the Greek, that phrase literally means a “one-woman man.” It means he’s devoted to only one woman. There’s only one woman in his life. And if you’re married, there’s only one person on earth who can meet your sexual needs, and that’s your spouse. You don’t get them met on the internet. You don’t get them met with someone else. You don’t get them met vicariously watching pornography. You get them met in a relationship with your wife, dwelling with your wife. So all that is contained in that first admonition, “Husbands, dwell with your wives.”

Now how are you to dwell with your wives? According to knowledge. Look back with me at the verse. “Dwell with them according to knowledge.” Literally that means “in an understanding way.” Now you say, “Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Wait a minute, preacher boy. I’m willing to come home. I’m willing to be in the house. I’m willing to be intimate with my wife. But don’t ask me to understand her; okay? Ain’t gonna happen, buckaroo! No way!” “Dwell with her in an understanding way.” That’s what the Bible says. God wouldn’t ask us to do something unless He gave us the ability to do that. “Dwell with them” conveys the physical relationship. “Understand them” conveys the intellectual relationship.

Charles Swindoll said, “The success of your dwelling with your wife will be in direct proportion to your knowledge of her.” And I like the concept conveyed in “understand your wife” of be considerate toward your wife. Some Greek scholars render it that way. “Dwell with your wife considerately, understandingly.” It means, you know, think about her needs. Think about her feelings. Understand her. Get to know her. A lot of men don’t even think about their wives. They’re thinking about themselves. They’re thinking about their work. They’re thinking about other hobbies. And they’re not considerate toward their wives. Husbands don’t often realize that before it’s too late, that they’ve taken their wives for granted. You know how many men I’ve had in my office crying because it was too late? “It’s too late. It’s too late. I’ve neglected her for so long. I’ve abused her emotionally for so long, that she has gone. It’s too late.” Don’t let that happen to your marriage. Get to know her likes, her dislikes, her feelings, her fears, her cares, her expectations. How do you do that? It’s called talking. You look at your wife, say, “How are you doing? How was your day?” And you get to know them by talking with them. So to dwell with them in an understanding way means to be considerate. Husbands, make life with your wives—make a life with your wife, and dwell with them understandingly.

Let me give you the third and last command for husbands. First of all, you love her sincerely. You dwell with her understandingly. And thirdly—write this down, guys—you honor her very highly. You got that? You honor her very highly. Look at verse 7. It says, “giving honor unto the wife.” What does that mean? It means to assign her great price or value. It’s used back in verse 4 when a wife has “the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit.” God sees that as “great price.” The very same Greek phrase is used here in verse 7 where it says, “giving honor unto the wife.” The word “honor” there means to “place value” or “to make her of great price.” Husbands, do you assign great value to your wife?

So we’re to dwell with them physically, know them intellectually and we are to also place value on them. And now emotionally we get to know them and their feelings. Do you tell her she’s valuable? Do you treat her like she’s valuable? A lot of guys spend hours waxing their car, buffing their car, cleaning their car, working on their car, touching their car. Some wives are wishing, “I wish he’d touch me the way he touches his car.” “Don’t you dare kick my car!” But a lot of men wouldn’t think twice about kicking a wife, pushing her, shoving her, shaking her. How do you communicate value to your wife if you don’t treat her like she’s very valuable? In a moment, she’s going to be referred to as the “weaker vessel.” The idea is as a very delicate vase that has to be handled very delicately.

So be considerate of her, give honor to her, treat her as though she’s valuable by telling her. I love what Allister Begg said. He said, “There’s no more precious gift entrusted to a man than the treasure of his wife. She is to be admired, prized above all others. She is to have first place in his heart, in his mind and his affections.” Don’t take your wife for granted. William Barkley says that “This phrase ‘honor your wife’ conveys the idea of chivalry. It speaks of a gracious courtesy.” Remember when you were dating you actually brought her flowers? “Ah, no need for flowers anymore. We’ve been married for 39 years. Flowers are stupid anyway.” Remember when you used to actually open the door for her and wait ‘till she got through the door before you shut it? Remember when you used to take her to a fine restaurant? Now it’s just drive-throughs. Jam-through restaurant. “Honey, you think we can ever go to a real restaurant, sit down…” “Ah, no need to. We’re in a hurry.” Showing chivalry and concern and care; that’s all conveyed in this idea. Love her sincerely, dwell with her understandingly and honor her very highly.

But Peter’s not over yet. The passage tells us why husbands should do these three things. He gives the husbands three reasons. I want you to look at verse 7. Three reasons, husbands, why you should love, dwell and honor your wives. Reason number one, your wife is the weaker vessel, verse 7. Now I want you to notice, that’s comparative. “Weaker” vessel. What does it mean? It means both the husband and wife are weak. Husbands have weaknesses too. Amen, ladies? Lots of weaknesses. But the wife is here described as the “weaker” vessel. In what sense is a wife weaker? Let me cut to the chase. I believe in two areas: physically and positionally. Now as a general rule, women physically don’t have the strength of a man, or the female as a man. I know there are some women who can press a lot of weight, and they can beat men up and stuff. And I understand that. But generally speaking, physically, women are more fragile than the men. It’s never appropriate for a man to physically abuse his wife. That’s out of bounds. Totally out of bounds.

But it moves to the second point, and I think this is what’s in the context here. Positionally she’s the weaker vessel. What do I mean? I mean, verse 1, “Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands.” Her very position of submission puts her in a vulnerable place. What Peter is actually saying is, “Men, don’t take advantage of your wife.” Her role is submission, and the husband is the head of the wife. That doesn’t mean the dictator or the tyrant. That means the protector. That means the lover. That means the leader. So because of her position of weakness, submission. Just like when God tells the children to obey their parents. They have a position where they could be taken advantage of. He then quickly turns to the parents and says, “Don’t you provoke your kids to anger. You bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” The minute he tells servants to obey their masters, he then turns quickly to the master and he said, “You render unto your servant what is just, right and equal.” You got that? See, the Bible is a balanced book, and God always takes the position of the weak and the needy. So he says your wife has a position of submission, but you’re not to take advantage of that.

Let me give you the second reason why you should love, dwell and honor your wife. Notice that in verse 7. “Heirs together of the grace of life.” You have the same Savior, same Lord, same grace, same love for Jesus, same life of God in your soul. This is the spiritual dimension. In that one verse we have the physical dimension, we have the intellectual dimension, we have the emotional dimension of marriage and we have the spiritual dimension of marriage. Your are “heirs together of the grace of life.” I love my wife’s commitment and love and devotion to Jesus Christ. She loves the Lord. And I’m just so thankful for that. I’m so thankful for a wife who loves Jesus with “all her heart and all her soul and all her strength and all her mind.” And I have to remind myself she belongs to God. She’s the Lord’s child. And we’re “heirs together.” She and I are both saved the same way; we love the Lord, we serve the same Savior, we are filled with the same Holy Spirit, we read the same Bible. And one day when I get to heaven, God’s going to ask me to give an account of what I did with my wife, who was entrusted to me. God’s going to say, “I gave you this wife. What did you do? How did you take care of her?” She is a treasure who is entrusted to us by God. And we need to remember that our wives are also our sisters in Christ. They’re your sisters in Christ. How would you treat your sister in the Lord? You should treat your wife with that same respect and honor.

Let me give you reason number three and we’ll wrap this up. Verse 7. Why should you love your wife sincerely? Why should you dwell with her understandingly? And why should you honor her very highly? Verse 7, “that your prayers be not hindered.” Wow! Isn’t that amazing? Now, in saying this, Peter is assuming that married couples are going to pray. That’s assumed in that statement. “That your prayers be not hindered.” “No problem. We don’t pray. Can’t hinder prayer if you don’t pray, so my wife and I never pray.” So it’s assumed in the text that married people pray. Nothing more powerful than a husband and wife praying together. And I don’t know why it is, but the Devil does all he can to keep couples from praying together. “A couple that prays together, stays together.” Amen? Don’t let Satan keep you from praying together as husband and wife. And I know that when I need prayer, I can always depend upon my wife. When I leave on a Sunday morning, nothing encourages me more than to have her say, “I’m praying for you.” I appreciate that. To know that she prays for me and our marriage and our children and the ministry every day. And we pray together, and we agree together. That’s what it means to make a life together. “That your prayers be not hindered.”

But there’s a second thing that’s said here, and it’s a clear, obvious statement. “That your prayers be not blocked.” In the Greek, that word, “that your prayers be not hindered,” is actually a military word that was used in warfare when they would block a road or highway so that an army could not travel over a road. So what it means is that your prayers are actually blocked, that God doesn’t hear your prayers. This is a reference in the New Testament to an actual situation where God will not hear and answer your prayers. And you know what the principle is? Broader than marriage, but it applies to marriage. You cannot be right with God and be wrong with your wife. Let me repeat myself. You cannot be right with God and wrong with your wife. And it works both ways for husbands and wives. You cannot be right with God and wrong with other people.

Jesus said if you come to church and there is ought in your heart or hatred in your heart or bitterness in your heart, He says, “Leave your gift at the altar and go and make amends with that person. Get things right with that person. Then come to church and then offer your sacrifices to God.” How many times couples will argue before church. “Ah, just get in the car! We have to get to church. We’re going to be late!” We argue until we hit the parking lot. [Smiling.] “Praise Jesus. Hallelujah. Thank you, Jesus. God is good.” Then we pull out of the lot. “I’m so mad at you right now!” How do you come to church when you’re mad at each other and go, “Jesus, I just love you. I love you, Lord. I praise you. But I’m just so mad at my wife right now! I just want to [grrr]!” You can’t do that. God is literally saying, “I don’t hear you.”

You know that as parents when your kids aren’t getting along and one of them tries to come up and be lovey-dovey, you go, “No; you go work it out with your brother or sister. I don’t want you coming to me.” You don’t think God does the same thing? You’re not getting along with your wife. “Oh, God, bless me. Guide me. Watch over me. Lord, fill me with joy. In Jesus’ name. Amen.” And God says, “No, no, no. You go get things straight with your wife first.” I’ve been a pastor for 43 years now. You know how many Sundays on my way to church I had to call my wife? “Please forgive me. I’m sorry. I gotta preach. Please forgive me. Help me!” And what a blessing that she so faithfully says, “I love you. I forgive you.” And she prays for me. I couldn’t do it without her.

So don’t think that you can raise your hands to God or that you can love God or serve God if you’re not dwelling with your wife understandingly, honoring your wife highly and loving her sacrificially and sincerely. Amen?

Let’s pray.