For the Christian, life can be deeply discouraging. Someone once said that discouragement is inevitable, but despair is a choice. I don’t recall who said that, but the writer of Psalm 119 certainly understood it. He spoke of his soul clinging to the dust (v. 25) and melting away for sorrow (v. 28). He asked not to be put to shame (v. 32). This is clearly a major thought in this … [Read more...]
The Gospel-Driven Husband (Ephesians 5:25–32)
In one of his many sermons on the Ephesians marriage text, Martyn Lloyd-Jones writes, How many of us have realized that we are always to think of the married state in terms of the doctrine of the atonement? Is that our customary way of thinking of marriage—husbands, wives, all of us? Is that how we instinctively think of marriage—in terms of the doctrine of the … [Read more...]
Husband, Love Your Wife (Ephesians 5:25–28a)
Marriage, God’s way, demands that husbands and wives know Jesus Christ as the way (John 14:6). This is the only way to keep a marriage from going astray. And, make no mistake, without this, it will. The gospel of Christ must be at the foundation of your marriage. This is Paul’s point in the passage before us. Marriage has been assaulted and distorted ever since the fall. … [Read more...]
The Need for Nerds
The title of this article might lead you to think that I am about to provide some autobiographical insights. In a sense, I hope that is true. If I am correct that the world needs a certain kind of nerd, then I want to be one. And I want you to be one. At the risk of sounding like a disgruntled and out-of-touch old man, I have to say it: I wonder if there has ever been an era … [Read more...]
Submission, God’s Good Gift (Ephesians 5:22–24)
Pastor James Boice observed, “Marriage is God’s idea and that is a good idea. It is a good idea, because it comes from God who never had a bad idea.” How true! And we can logically conclude that submission for the wife is a good idea, for it is God’s idea. But some readers might be thinking, whatever gave you that idea? God’s command in Ephesians 5:22 (repeated … [Read more...]