God's Marriage Instructions Series

Introduction:

A. Marriage bears the brunt of a lot of humor, and in many respects for good reason.

B. Here’s a few interesting quotes about marriage:

1. Mae West said: “Marriage is a great institution, but I'm not ready for an institution yet.”

2. Rita Rudner said: “I think men who have a pierced ear are better prepared for marriage. They've experienced pain and bought jewelry.”

3. Helen Rowland said; “In olden times, sacrifices were made at the altar, a practice that still continues.”

4. Here’s some good advice from Benjamin Franklin: “Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, and half-shut afterwards.”

C. I like the story of the boss who was complaining in a staff meeting that he wasn't getting any respect.

1. The next day, he brought a small sign that read “I'm the Boss!” and taped it to his office door.

2. Later that day when he returned from lunch, he found that someone had taped a note to the sign that said: “Your wife called. She wants her sign back!”

D. I read a story about a preschooler who was sitting with her parents on the couch one evening.

1. The little girl said to her dad: “Daddy, you're the boss of the house, right?”

2. Her father proudly replied, “Yes, honey, I am the boss of the family.”

3. Then the little girl added: “Cause Mommy put you in charge, right Daddy?”

E. I also like the story of the groom who showed up at the wedding carrying his golf clubs.

1. His bride asked, “Why did you bring your golf clubs?”

2. He replied, “This isn’t going to take all day is it?”

F. God created us male and female, and He created us for marriage.

1. When God created us for marriage, He designed us to play certain roles in marriage.

2. Truthfully, we must admit that marriage isn’t easy.

3. Marriage requires a lot of effort and adjustment.

4. Thankfully, God has given us marriage instructions in His Word, the Bible.

5. And in addition to that, God also gives us the ability to put His instructions into action through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

6. Let’s look at today’s section from 1 Peter and see what instructions God has given us for husbands and wives.

7. No matter what your marital status may be, all of us can learn something from this discussion.

I. God’s Instructions for Wives

A. Peter begins with wives and so we will also.

1. Peter wrote: 1 Wives, in the same way submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, 2 when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.

2. The phrase “in the same way” refers us back to the overall context of the previous verses.

3. Peter has been addressing the behaviors and attitudes for Christians with regard to submission.

4. Peter dealt with our submission to civil authorities, and to those who have authority over us in the workplace.

5. Then Peter pointed to Jesus who submitted Himself to His Heavenly Father, even though that submission resulted in suffering.

6. Jesus has left us this example to follow.

7. Now Peter seeks to show how the issue of submission is critical in the family, beginning with the submission of a wife to her husband.

B. Twice in this paragraph, Peter reminded Christian wives that they were to be submissive to their husbands (vs. 1 and 5).

1. I mentioned in our previous sermon on titled “The Blessing of Submission” that the word translated “submit” is a compound verb that means “to order under.”

2. It is a military expression literally meaning “to arrange in formation under the commander.”

3. Submission is simply the recognition of God’s authority in our lives and ordering ourselves under God’s will.

4. Submission does not imply any moral, intellectual, or spiritual inferiority in the family, workplace, or society in general.

5. But it is God’s design for roles necessary to humankind’s well-being.

6. Along the same line, a commanding officer is not necessarily superior in character to the troops under him or her, but his or her authority is vital to the proper functioning of the unit.

7. Even Jesus submitted Himself to the Father, but in no way was inferior to the Father.

8. There is nothing degrading about submitting to authority or accepting God’s order.

9. Matter of fact, it is the first step toward real fulfillment.

C. God has ordained that the husband is to be the head of the wife, just as Christ is the head of the church. (Eph. 5:23)

1. Headship is not dictatorship, as we will see in a few minutes when we get to Peter’s instructions for husbands.