Eph 6:5-9 - Slaves, Masters

5 Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ;
6 not by way of eye service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.
7 With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men,
8 knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.
9 And masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.

Slaves, Service and Masters

Guidelines for Christian relationships and living continue in the following verses. (They start in 4:25 and go through 6:20.) There are some major subjects in these verses. They all flow from the fact that you are in Jesus.

Vs. 5 - Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ;

“According to the flesh” - Interestingly (to me at least), the Bible is relatively silent regarding slavery. Hebrews could not own another Hebrew as a slave. They might be slaves to non-Jews; they might even have non-Hebrew slaves. The Bible does not condone or promote slavery, nor does it condemn slavery.

This world is the domain of Satan. God ‘takes’ us where we are. He doesn’t make us change to some ideal behavior before we are acceptable to Him. We will never be acceptable, except in the blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. He calls us from where we are. Our hearts and lives are changed by the mercy of Jesus, and only by Jesus. God has been merciful to us to set us free is throughout the New Testament account.

Christ said while quoting Isaiah, “The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him, and unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written: The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. And the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on him. He began by saying to them, ‘Today as you listen, this Scripture has been fulfilled.’” (Luke 4:17-21)

He also said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32),
and, “So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.” (John 8:36).
Paul wrote in other letters: “For when you were slaves of sin, you were free with regard to righteousness.” (Rom 6:20)
And, “For freedom, Christ set us free. Stand firm then and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Gal 5:1).

We know that Christ has come to free us from sin and death. To a slave of that era, or maybe any era, the message of freedom would have more than one meaning. Paul could well be warning the Christian slaves (slaves who were owned by another person) to not get ahead of themselves. They may be free from sin, but they were still slaves to their owners. In no way could they say, “You can take this job and shove it.” This is especially true if their masters were not believers. Paul is telling them to serve their earthly masters as if they were serving God Himself.
The primary message from the Lord and the apostles was that you and I can be free from the slavery to sin! And we can be sure that as long as we do not have the Lord in our lives as Savior, we are tied to sin. It is our master. Sin owns our soul. Only when we give ourselves to Jesus Christ - believe in Him, give ourselves to Him, can we be free from the dominance of sin.
By the way: We are called 'slaves of Jesus Christ' in the New Testament. (Eph 6:6; 1 Cor 7:22) Whatever our physical condition - slave or free - we have been set free from slavery to sin. We are free indeed. (Gal 3:28; Col 3:11)  Being a slave of Christ is not onerous. He bought us; He has paid the ultimate price for us and our souls - He was crucified, and was resurrected in order that we might be with Him and the Father - forever!

From a commentary by David Guzik, "The Gospel found slavery in the world; and in many regions, particularly the Roman and the Greek, it was a very bad form of slavery. The Gospel began at once to undermine it, with its mighty principles of the equality of all souls in the mystery and dignity of manhood, and of the equal work of redeeming love wrought for all souls by the supreme Master. But its plan was — not to batter, but to undermine… So while the Gospel in one respect left slavery alone, it doomed it in another.”

Vs. 6 - “not by way of eye service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.”

“not by way of eye service” - This admonition applies to us all, not just slaves. Don’t do it for “show”. You know exactly what this means. You have seen, or worked with people who perform their ‘best’ when they think someone is watching. The rest of the time, they act as if they don’t care at all.

“doing the will of God from the heart.” - Work for your master (or your boss) just as you would work for Christ. Your boss is a ‘stand-in’ for Christ with respect to work or jobs. Disrespecting laws or rules is not just flouting the rule of law, it is rebelling against God, against Jesus. God said over and over in the Old Testament, “You have sinned against Me!”.

Paul called himself a ‘bond-slave of Christ’. (See: Rom 1:1; Gal 1:10; Col. 1:1, 4:7; 1 Tim 4:6; 2 Tim 2:24)
Peter, James, Titus and Jude did the same. (See: Titus 1:1; Jam 1:1; 2 Pet 1:1; Jud 1:1)
Moses - a bond-servant of God (Rev 15:3).
Jesus, our Lord and Savior - a Holy Servant (Acts 4:27).

As Paul refers to himself as a bond-servant, we see (according to some of the commentaries and Bible dictionaries) there is a difference between a bond-servant and a slave. The Jew, under the Mosaic covenant, was never a slave as we know slavery, such as experienced in America’s South and other places. An Israelite could not own another Jew. The slave under the Mosaic Law was mostly paying off a debt, occurred legally or not.And a Jew could not forced to be a slave for more than six years. After six years as a servant (slave) the man or woman was freed and the debt forgiven. Technically, a Jew was not a slave, but a ‘hired hand’ working to pay off a debt. See: Exo. 21:2-6

A Jew, having served to pay the debt, could decide to stay with the ‘master’ - voluntary servitude. They went through a ceremony in which a hole was punched in the servant’s ear, after which the servant served for life. The term ‘bond-servant’ may refer to this voluntary service. This was a HUGE commitment - not at all like taking a job which you can leave for a better job or in a different location.

What a good picture of our relationship to the Lord Jesus. We are not forced to be saved. Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, calls us to believe and be saved. When we believe in our heart Jesus was raised from the dead, and confess Him as Lord and Savior, we will be saved. See: Rom. 10:9-10. Now, we are His. His friends. His servants. His bride. His glory. Our life is not our own, for we were bought for a price. (1 Cor. 6:20, 7:23) That price - a perfect sacrifice, is the Lamb who was slain.

The image of a bond-slave is a good picture of our Christian life. The servant, after the debt is paid, volunteers to serve the master. We acknowledge that Christ paid our debt - one we can never pay in full. We must confess that we believe He is our Lord and Savior. This confession is not forced from us. We do it by our free will.

Remember, the former slave has no more obligation to the master, the debt has been paid. The former slave publicly announces the desire to serve the master permanently, for life. Our confession of faith is made before other people. The ceremony for the bond-servant is public. All people now know the person is permanently connected to the master. Our ceremony - baptism in conjunction with confession of faith - is a public announcement we are Christ’s possession for life, both physical and spiritual, both here now and for eternity.
The following chart may help to see the similarities:

The Christian as Bond Servant
Bond-Servant	Christian
Slave pays his debt by working it off.	Jesus Christ pays our sin-debt by His crucifixion and resurrection.
Former slave volunteers to serve his master.	Sinner decides to believe and accept Christ as Lord and Savior.
Former slave publicly has a hole punched in the ear to show he is now a bond-servant.	Sinner pubiicly acknowledges Christ and is baptized to show he is a Christian.
Bond-servant is bound to the master for life.	Believer, a Christian, is Christ's personal possession for life and eternity.

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Vs. 7-8 - “With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free. “

“render service, as to the Lord” - Too often we do not look beyond our physical circumstances. We see our boss, and naturally assume that is who we answer to. Forgetting that God has placed that person there in the path of your life, we cannot see our service as serving God, not just the person before us. Your boss or master may not be a believer. They are where they are at God’s good pleasure. Being obstinate or belligerent in your job is not a good witness of your faith in the Lord and Savior. “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life” (see note 1) is not heard in rebellion and stubbornness.

Vs. 9 - “And masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him. “

“And masters, do the same things to them” - Care and concern for proper and appropriate behavior does not run just one way. Slaves are urged to see themselves as serving Jesus Christ, not just their human masters. Masters are instructed to treat their slaves as they themselves want to be treated - with compassion and love. The image of the slave serving Christ applies to the master as well. The people you are ordering around have been placed in your home or business by the Lord. They are loved by Jesus. Cruel treatment is therefore not just on the human level, but reaches into heaven.

“ knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven”- The master has a Master in heaven who knows the heart of each person. Being rich or master of others has no advantage in the Lord’s judgment. “Your true life does not consist of the things you may own, no matter how rich you may be.” (Luk 12:15)

Jesus the Lord judges every person, and judges fairly. “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” (Heb 4:13)

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Note 1: From “Four Spiritual Laws” by Campus Crusade for Christ.

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Eph 6:1-4 - Children, Parents

Chapter 6
1-4: - Children & Fathers
5-9: - Slaves & Masters
10-18: - Whole armor of God
19-24: - Closing words.
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Guidelines for Christian living continue in the following verses. (They start in 4:25 and go through 6:20.) There are some major subjects in these verses.

They all flow from the fact that you are in Jesus.

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1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
2 HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise),
3 SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.
4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Moms, Dads, and Children

Vs. 1 - “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.”

“Children, obey your parents in the Lord” - The word “obey” has the implication of listening or hearing and following or doing what you've heard. It is not ‘eavesdropping’ or ‘over-hearing’ a conversation and then acting on the information. Decide to “place yourself under the authority of” that person or people. (See also: Pro 1:8, 6:20; Col 3:20)
The concept of obedience is not limited to children. As believers we are to obey our Lord Jesus Christ. One of my wife's daily devotions started with the following, "Maybe you want the Suggestion Box Jesus, whose law is more advice than command. He will be nothing less that the sovereign Savior King... God's law is not a curse; it is a grace. God's law is not a burden; it is a gift of his love." (See note 1, below.)

Vs. 2-3 - “HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise), SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.”

Quoted from Exo 20:3-17; Deut 5:7-21 - (The Ten Commandments - given to Moses, engraved in stone tablets).

Vs. 4 - Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

“Do not provoke your children to anger” - Do not be so strict and authoritarian that their only response will be anger and rebellion. I think that cannot be avoided - as children transition from child to young adult and beyond there is a certain amount of stress because of rebellion against the authority figure - you.

“Bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” - In the song “Teach Your Children”, by Crosby, Stills & Nash, we are admonished to teach our children our dreams and the codes we live by. (See note 2, below)

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As they grow, children will determine for themselves how they will live. They will make a choice. Teach them about God and how to follow His rules or laws. (See also: Pro 22:17, 19, 22:16; Lev 10:11; Exo 18:20; Deut 4:10, 11:19; Psa 86:11)

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Note 1: Paul David Tripp; "New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional"; Crossway; 2014.

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Note 2: “You, who are on the road, Must have a code, That you can live by ...
Teach your children well, Your father's hell did slowly go by,
And feed them on your dreams, The one they pick, is the one you'll know by”
(I wrote these as I heard them, not from copies of lyrics - so I apologize if they aren't quite correct.)

Eph. 5:25-33 - Husbands, Wives, Church

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 
26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. 
28 So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; 
29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, 
30 because we are members of His body. 
31 FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THaE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. 
32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.
33 Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband.

Husbands - Love Your Wives

Vs. 25 - “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, “

“Husbands, love your wives” - This doesn’t seem like a big stretch as a command. I suppose it is possible that man might not love his wife, even in a Christian home. Love between married couples is shown throughout the Bible (Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jocob and Rachel). These two commands - wives submit to your husbands, and husbands are tied together both here (5:23-24) and in Col 3:18-19.
Why do husbands need to be reminded to love their wives? I suspect it is because men tend to think in terms of power and position and control. We need to be reminded that it the self-sacrificing love, like Jesus showed us when he gave Himself up for us, that is to be lived out in our marriage to our wives. God has not given us “a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of self-control.” (2 Tim 1:7)

Emotional affection, love, for your wife is not the point here. The point being made is in the next phrase...

“Just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her” - We might ponder how He could love the church before the church began? But, then, we are thinking in finite temporal situations. God is not limited by time, Jesus is infinite, outside of time. Of course He knew of the church, those who believe and worship Him, ‘before’ His death and resurrection. But, again, that’s not the important point. 

He loved us and voluntarily died in our place. This is not romantic love, a movie love story, not boy-friend-girl-friend love. This is “Medal of Honor” type sacrifice, where a life is given to protect and save others. We do not deserve nor have we earned this sacrifice.
“God demonstrates His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8)
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor 5:21)
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” (1 John 3:16 ).
“This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.” (1 John 4:9-10)
See also: (Rom. 8:34; 2 Cor. 5:15; 1 Pet 3:18)

Vs. 26 - “so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, “

“so that He might sanctify her” - The “so that” in this verse refers to the “Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her” above in verse 25. The reason Christ died on the cross and was resurrected was to provide salvation (sanctification) to the world. The offer is made to all. Unfortunately not all will believe. Fortunately, grace abounds to all who do believe and accept Jesus as Savior. Jesus takes sinful imperfect people and by His shed blood cleanses us of sin - i.e., sanctifies us. 

The Unger Bible Dictionary has the following regarding ‘sanctification’ - The dominant idea of sanctification is separation from the secular and sinful, and setting apart for a sacred purpose. In the OT, things, places, times, people were sanctified, i.e., consecrated to holy purposes - usually only in a ceremonial and legal sense, to remind the Jews of the need for spiritual cleansing and the grace of God. In the NT, people are called to consecrate themselves to God, that is the inward cleansing work of God and Holy Spirit.

The church is set apart and cleansed by Christ’s sacrifice, and the work of God and the Holy Spirit. This is an important concept - cleansing is made available to all, but not all will derive any benefit. We are sinful creatures, and totally unsuitable to be in God’s holy presence. Christ’s death makes us acceptable and holy. 

The image of the church as a bride is powerful. Look back to Genesis 2:18-24 in which man and woman are designed for each other. Eve is ‘presented’ to Adam (who had been alone) and Adam is blown away. The song (Gen 3:23) is Adam saying, “Wow!” God confirms that we are designed for each other in verse 24. The idea of the wife being pure and virginal at the time of marriage is found throughout the OT. However, just as about everything else, we have cheapened and demeaned the idea of marriage. God has not changed His view of marriage, we have changed our attitudes. God shows marriage is of adoration and love in “The Song of Songs”. The bride is bathed and pure, cleansed and waiting eagerly, is sequestered waiting for the arrival of her husband-to-be. They meet and are filled with joy.

“Having cleansed her” - Sanctification is spiritual cleansing, spiritual separation from the secular and sinful. Christ sanctifies the believers - we are cleansed by His shed blood. “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7) His blood purifies us. As normal human beings we are by nature impure, inherited from Adam - it is our spiritual DNA, it is built in from conception. There is no vaccine we can create that will change our sin nature. Unless we are perfect, as He is perfect, we have no place in His kingdom. Money, fame, glory - none of these things will make us perfect. Only Jesus blood and His righteousness can do that. 

Vs. 27 - “that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. “

“That He might present to Himself the church” - This is another “So that”, linking the cleansing and sanctification to this act - The church and the Savior come together as bride and bridegroom to be joined together in marriage. Again, the images from The Song of Songs show the bride waiting expectantly, eagerly and the groom filled with anticipation. They meet and are overwhelmed with love for each other! This is not about a Justice-of-the-Peace over-the-counter marriage. This is even more than wedding in a garden, or a church. (We have seen several English royal weddings - they are nothing compared to this!) 

The God of the Universe has given Himself to save and purify His believers. He is now waiting patiently for us. The perfect groom will be presented to the perfected bride. We are His, and acceptable to Him because what He has done! The Day is coming when the Savior and the Believers will be together. We who are many will be One with Him. We will see Him as He is, because we will be just like Him! 

“in all her glory” - There are times when I do not feel all that glorious. I believe that God’s word is true, and it says that the church will be ‘glorious’, therefore I will also be glorious. I know that I do not have to generate that. Christ has done it for me - Praise to His Glory! 

“But that she should be holy and blameless.” - The Bride will be holy and blameless - the basic definition of sanctified. Me - holy and blameless! “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” (1 Pet 1:18-19) You - holy and blameless! (See: Jude 24,25; 1 Thess 3:13; Col 1:22; 2 Cor 5:21). 

Vs. 28 - “So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; “

“Love their own wives as their own bodies” - This is not about possessing the wife as your own. Very few of us do not love and respect our own bodies - that is, to protect our physical selves from danger, harm, and death. We will feed it, clean it, care for its wounds, do what it takes to get healed. We know this is the only body we can have here on earth. If we don’t take care of it, we die. 

Husbands, take care of your wife with the same care as you take care of yourself. Protect her from physical harm. Protect her from emotional harm. Do nothing that will lead her into spiritual harm. She is as important to you as is your own body. God brought Adam and Eve together (Gen 2:15-25). God knows men and women need each other - “It is not good for the man to be alone”. 

Vs. 29-30 - “for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body.”

“Nourishes and cherishes” - God planned for man and woman to be together and live as one entity - “They shall become one flesh.” Treating your wife with any less respect than you treat yourself means you are going against the blueprint that God the Father has laid out.

“just as Christ also does the church” - Wow! Husbands, treat your wife like Christ treats the church! Christ voluntarily came from heaven to live as a human. He gave His life on the cross as the perfect sacrifice for the sin of the world. That is all of the sin of all of the world for all of time. The price to redeem every human who has ever lived has been paid. 

Now, the sad (or bad) news. Not everyone will be saved. (See: 1 Tim 1:16)

“we are members of His body” - There are several images in the New Testament about the relationship of the believers and Christ: church, body, bride, temple. Each of these words are used many times (most of them in a normal non-metaphorical sense) in the NT. For example “church” is used about 77 times; seven of which refer to Christ. 

For example: we the church are a holy people (1 Cor 1:2); Jesus is the head over everything of the church (Eph 1:22); He is the head of the body, the church (Col 1:18, 24); the church is God’s household (1 Tim 3:16). The church is seen as the Bride of Christ (See: John 3:29, Rev 19:2, Rev 21:2, 9, 22:17). 

The church is said to be the body of Christ - about 16 times in NT - (See: Rom 12:4-5; 1 Cor 12:12-17; Eph 1:23; Col 1:18; Heb 3:13, etc.) 

We are the temple for Christ (See: 1 Cor 3:15-17, 1 Cor 6:19, 2 Cor 6:16, Eph 2:12). Interestingly, in heaven there will be not temple structure, because God Himself will be the temple - we will worship Him because we will be in Him and He will be in us! (Rev 21:22).
“you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Pet 2:5 )

Vs. 31 - “FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. “ (Quoted from Gen 2:25.)

The church is the Bride of Christ (See: John 3:29; Rev 19:2, 21:2, 9, 22:17). The church, the body of believers, will be ‘presented’ to the bridegroom - in your mind picture a royal wedding - the bride in a gorgeous white gown, signifying purity (holiness), being presented to the groom, the Holy One who died for her salvation, before the presence of God, to be joined together as one, and never, ever separated for eternity! The bride and groom are presented to each other, God the Father in all His glory handing us to Jesus Christ in all His glory. We have been made holy because of what He has done. We are His own. He is our own. (See also: John 14:20; 15:4; 17:9, 21, 23). 

Vs. 32 - “This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. “

“This mystery is great” - This message is a mystery in this sense: Moses or the prophets did not speak or write about the ‘church’. There are no references to the church in the OT. The body of believers is identified as the church after Peter’s “Great Confession” (Matt 16:13-20). How does one become a ‘member’ of Christ’s church? By believing and confessing that “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Who do you say that Jesus is? If you read or hear the testimony, the evidence of what He did. If you hear and believe in Him as Lord and Savior, He will acknowledge you as His own. He will give you the Holy Spirit as earnest guarantee He will return for you that you may be with Him in eternity. 

It is not a mystery “Who Done It” novel. But it has been revealed at the proper time, for our benefit. The prophets did not predict this. They knew and believed that God would prevail and Israel would be saved. But just HOW it was to happen was not understood until after His resurrection, after He appeared to the disciples, after the Holy Spirit came upon them at Pentecost. If we look back at the Old Testament scripture we can see hints and allegations - but we have the benefit of hindsight. The Pharisees and Sadducees did not have Jesus crucified, sentenced to this humiliating death because they were anxious to see Jesus resurrected! They had Him killed to get rid of Him. 

Vs. 33 - “Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband.”

“Nevertheless” - Paul is not saying “In spite of everything I just said...” The example of Christ loving His body the church is intensely spiritual, and applies to us all. But to get down to practicalities: So, to sum up: Husbands - love your wife with the same intensity as you love yourself. Simple, huh?

“wife must see to it that she respects her husband” - The other side of the man/wife relationship. 

“I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church” - If the resurrection of Jesus and His ascension into heaven was a great mystery, only revealed as it happened, then the believers being empowered by the Holy Spirit was equally amazing!

How do we apply the principles stated above?

Men love the idea that they are to be respected! That’s how they want the marriage to operate.
Women love the idea the husbands are love the wife unconditionally. That’s how they want the marriage to function.
We are plotting with these attitudes how the partners should behave and react, not on how we should conduct our own lives and behavior. We are very concerned that our partner is doing what God instructed them to do for us, but take a 'side-eye' at what He requires in our Christian life. Remember, Jesus rebuked Peter; telling him not to be concerned the 'other guy', but to follow Him. Don't be concerned about your wife or your husband. Be aware that Jesus has commanded you, and you are to obey Him. You will not be judged on someone else's behavior, only on your own!

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