C. CHRISTIAN GOVERNANCE-&-Marriage-IV—1Peter 3:1-7
Governance by God in Marriage.
Peter pressed & confirmed the crucial role of Christian governance regarding Christian marriage.
Christian governance is foundational in/to Christian marriage.
How is Christian governance addressed in our marital obligations?
...OR...
What does Christian governance or submission look like in Christian marriage?
2 applications of Christian governance for/in marriage.
2 aspects of Christian governance that are addressed in/within marriage.
Thus far we have discovered that Christian governance in MARRIAGE addresses/encompasses...
1. A Submissive Attitude for WIVES(:1-6)
A. SOUL-WINNING CONDUCT(:1-2)
B. INWARD ADORNMENT(:3-4)
C. OBVIOUS REGARD(:5-6)
2—Christian governance in MARRIAGE addresses/encompasses...
A Submissive Attitude for HUSBANDS(:7)(2 aspects--A-B)
:7—“Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, & as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.”
Having directed “wives”(3:1-6) in their submissive posture, the submissive posture of “husbands” is now addressed by the apostle Peter.
* A Submissive Attitude for HUSBANDS addresses/encompasses two things...
A. UNDERSTANDING TOGETHERNESS(3 aspects--i-iii)(:7a-d)
B. UNHINDERED PRAYERS(:7e)
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A Submissive Attitude for HUSBANDS addresses/encompasses...
A. UNDERSTANDING TOGETHERNESS(3 aspects--i-iii)(:7a-d)
:7a—“Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding,...”
!NO, this is NOT saying that it is ‘okay to live together’ ‘before’ marriage!...This describes ‘living together’ within marriage!
‘Living together’(shackin’ up) before marriage sets up a negative precept for an ‘ongoing’ relationship...It prepares you for loss rather than for commitment. Marriage is about commitment! It is about making a life-long commitment to the other person(spouse) before God & His church. ‘Christian’ Marriage is to picture one’s blissful commitment to God.
“Dwelling together” as husband & wife has everything to do with mutual respect born of cherishing one another as one’s own. It encompasses intimacy in it’s purest most godly aspects of what is meant in ‘nurturing.’
A “husband’s” calling & submissive posture is to approach his “dwelling” together as “husband” & “wife”(gunaikeiov—AKA ‘femininity’) “with understanding/knowledge(gnwsin).”
“Understanding speaks of being sensitive & considering his wife’s deepest physical & emotional needs.”—MNTC
*Without such an “understanding” on the part of the “husband”, the marriage will not thrive.
“Husbands”—anhr—Noun Masc.—1) with reference to sex—1a) Of a male, 1b) Of a husband, 1c) Of a betrothed or future husband; 2) With reference to age, & to distinguish an adult man from a boy; 3) Any male; 4) Used generically of a group of both men & women. Strong—A man(properly as an individual male).
“Likewise”(See 3:1)—omoiwv—Adverb—1) Likewise, equally, in the same way. Strong—Similarly. Used 30X.?From the base of—omou—genitive case of omov (the same; akin to ama[properly--at the "same" time, but freely used as a preposition or adverb denoting close association]) as adverb; At the same place or time.
“Dwell With”(See 3:6)—sunoikew—Present Active Participle Nominative Plural Masc.—1) To dwell together—1a) Of the domestic association, 1b) Of intercourse of a husband & wife. Strong—To reside together(as a family). RWP—Sunoikew is an old verb for domestic association, here only in N.T. Used as imperative. Used 1X.?From—sun—Preposition—1) With. Strong—a primary preposition denoting union; With or together(but much closer than meta or para), i.e. By association, companionship, process, resemblance, possession, instrumentality, addition, etc.—&—oikew—To occupy a house, i.e. Reside(figuratively--Inhabit, remain, inhere); by implication--To cohabit.
“With Understanding/According To Knowledge/An Understanding Way/Be Considerate”—kata gnwsin—Lit.=‘According to Knowledge’—RWP—“With an intelligent recognition of the nature of the marriage relation”(Vincent).?From—kata—Preposition—1) Down from, through out; 2) According to, toward, along. Strong—a primary particle; prepositionally--Down(in place or time), in varied relations(according to the case [genitive case, dative case or accusative case] with which it is joined).—&—gnwsiv—Noun Fem.—1) Knowledge signified in general intelligence, understanding—1a) The general knowledge of Christian religion, 1b) The deeper more perfect & enlarged knowledge of this religion, such as belongs to the more advanced, 1c) Especially of things lawful & unlawful for Christians, 1d) Moral wisdom, such as is seen in right living. Gnwsiv denotes knowledge by itself, sofia denotes wisdom as exhibited in action, gnwsiv applies chiefly to the apprehension of truths, sofia adds the power of reasoning about them & tracing their relationships. Strong—Knowing(the act), i.e. by implication--Knowledge.
* A Submissive Attitude for HUSBANDS addresses...
A. UNDERSTANDING TOGETHERNESS(3 aspects--i-iii)(:7a-d)
i. HONORING HIS WIFE(:7b)
“giving honor to the wife,...”
A “husband’s” “understanding” posture is exemplified thru his actions. His actions are to be built around his “giving” a focused/specific “honor” to “the wife”(gunaikeiov not gunh!) or rather to the aspect of her ‘femininity’(gunaikeiov).
A godly husband affords his wife’s femininity(gunaikeiov) the proper “honor.” He respects her recognizing her feminine nature in a godly manner. He recognizes his need for it in his life so he will be complete. He has a deep heartfelt regard for her, thus respecting her weakness(:7c) & the fact that she is his fellow heir(:7d).
1Cor. 11:3-12—“But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, & the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for that is one & the same as if her head were shaved. For if a woman is not covered, let her also be shorn. But if it is shameful for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image & glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. For man is not from woman, but woman from man. Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man. For this reason the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. Nevertheless, neither is man independent of woman, nor woman independent of man, in the Lord. For as woman came from man, even so man also comes through woman; but all things are from God.”
The man is not to cover his ‘head’ because he is the head of his wife. Therefore it is right for the woman(wife, who is under her husband’s headship) to cover her head in some manner. To cover her head is a pictorial declaration to her personal ‘LACK of headship’ in recognition of her husband’s headship. Given that “the angels” have a permanent hierarchical order ordained of God, then it is pertinent that God’s order is maintained on earth by & among God’s people. Yet even in this, it must also be remembered that such a symbolic approach does not guarantee that one’s heart is aligned with God’s(Col. 2:18-23).
Col. 2:18-23—“Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility & worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, & not holding fast to the Head, from whom all the body, nourished & knit together by joints & ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God.”.....“These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, & neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.”
“Giving/Treat with/Rendering”—aponemw—Present Active Participle Nominative Plural Masc.—1) To assign, portion out. Strong—To apportion, i.e. Bestow. BKS—Thus the word seems to carry with it a sense of loving concern & provision. Used 1X.?From—apo—Preposition—a primary particle; “Off,” i.e. Away(from something near), in various senses(of place, time, or relation; literal or figurative).—& the base of—nomov(in its original sense of partitioning, i.e. [reflexively]--Getting by apportionment).—& the base of—nomov(in its original sense of partitioning, i.e. [reflexively]--Getting by apportionment).
“Honor/Respect”—timh—Noun Fem.—1) A valuing by which the price is fixed—1a) Of the price itself, 1b) Of the price paid or received for a person or thing bought or sold; 2) Honor which belongs or is shown to one—2a) Of the honor which one has by reason of rank & state of office which he holds, 2b) Deference, reverence. Strong—A value, i.e. Money paid, or concretely & collectively--Valuables; by analogy--Esteem(especially of the highest degree), or the dignity itself.?From—tinw—strengthened for a primary tiw(which is only used as an alternate in certain tenses); To pay a price, i.e. as a penalty.
*“Wife/Female”(See 3:1—gunh)—gunaikeiov—Adj.—1) Of or belonging to a woman, feminine, female. Strong—Feminine. Used 1X.?*BKS—Gunaikeiov seems to highlight the surrounding aspects of a woman’s femininity, rather than to her role or position as gunh does.—NAC
Argumentation:
1Thess. 4:1-7—“Finally then, brethren, we urge & exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more & more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk & to please God; for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification & honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of & defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you & testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness.”
1Pet. 2:17—“Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.”
Rom. 13:7-14—“Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor. Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” & if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, & let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry & drunkenness, not in lewdness & lust, not in strife & envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, & make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.”
Eph. 5:33—“Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, & let the wife see that she respects her husband.”
Illustration:
Personal Discussion is ‘ONE’ means of HONORING one’s WIFE/Communication is a matter of mutual Respect/HONORING HIS WIFE
Not micro-managing her/HONORING HIS WIFE
Not treating your wife as property to be tossed about at will
I had a near relative on my mother’s side whom I thankfully never met/I am told that he treated his wife like a slave, never letting her leave the premises/He treated her like some brands of Islam treat women—like dirt!/He obviously needed at minimum, biblical direction in marital affairs/P.S.—He also died by getting hit by a train when he laid on the tracks drunk!/ HONORING HIS WIFE
Some so-called ‘husbands’ treat their hunting dogs better than their own wife!
Some so-called ‘husbands’ put more into their fishing boats & gear than time with their wife!
Some so-called ‘husbands’ invest more in entertainment than they do their wife!
Some so-called ‘husbands’ pay more attention to their colleagues than to their wife!
Application:
?Is Your Attitude as a HUSBAND Submitted to the Governance of HONORING HIS WIFE by Christ required in Christian MARRIAGE?
?Is Christian Governance constrain/govern Your Marriage?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
Christian governance in MARRIAGE addresses/encompasses...
2. A Submissive Attitude for HUSBANDS(:7) addresses:
A. UNDERSTANDING TOGETHERNESS(:7a-d)
i. HONORING HIS WIFE(:7b)
1. A Submissive Attitude for WIVES(:1-6) addresses:
A. SOUL-WINNING CONDUCT(:1-2)
B. INWARD ADORNMENT(:3-4)
C. OBVIOUS REGARD(:5-6)
Pt.#2-A-i only! Presented 02/25/2018am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave.(SE Ave. A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
