The Summation of All Things in Christ

Studies in Ephesians with a Local Church Emphasis

Lesson 118 : The Wise and Spirit Filled Life of Submission / The Haustafel (5:22-24)

PAUL TO THE WIVES – INTRODUCTORY THOUGHTS ON THESE NEXT FEW SECTIONS – THESE ARE SPIRITUAL GRACES – PAUL DIRECTS US TO OUR OWN HEARTS – AS WITH ALL OUR CHRISTIAN LIFE, THESE ARE AREAS OF GROWTH – DOES VERSE 22 HAVE THE WORD ‘SUBMIT YOURSELVES’ OR IS IT BORROWED FROM THE PRECEDING VERSE? – ‘SUBMIT’ DEFINED – STRUCTURE DOES NOT DENY EQUALITY – ‘SUBMIT’ (HUPOTASS ) FOR WIFE, ‘OBEY’ (HUPAKOU ) FOR CHILDREN / SLAVES – HOW FAR DOES ‘MUTUAL SUBMISSION’ IN v.21 GO? IS THE HUSBAND TO SUBMIT TO THE WIFE? – PAUL NOT SPEAKING TO ‘ALL WOMEN’ IN GENERAL BUT TO ‘WIVES’ – ‘TO THEIR OWN HUSBAND’ – MOTIVATION: THE WIFE SUBMITTING TO HER HUSBAND IS AN ACT OF WORSHIP – ‘LORD’ IS THE LORD JESUS, NOT HUSBANDS – PAUL PROVIDES THE BASIS FOR THE WIFE BEING SUBJECT TO HER HUSBAND – ‘HEAD’ CONVEYS ‘LEADERSHIP, AUTHORITY’ – DOES ‘HEAD’ CONVEY ‘LEADERSHIP, AUTHORITY’ OR ‘SOURCE’? – THE HUSBAND IS HEAD OF THE WIFE IN THE SAME WAY THAT CHRIST IS HEAD OF HIS CHURCHES – ‘HE HIMSELF’ : EMPHATIC REFERENCE TO CHRIST ALONE – SAVIOR OF THE BODY – PAUL REITERATES HIS PREVIOUS COMMENTS – ‘BUT’ … – THESE RELATIONSHIPS WILL NEVER BE SERVILE NOR TYRANICAL – ‘SO ALSO…’ – THE VERB IN v. 24b IS SUPPLIED FROM v. 24a – ‘IN ALL THINGS’