Responsibility Of A Husband

Ephesians 5:22,25 “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord... Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church...”

Many husbands know the verse 22 better than they know verse 25. They’re adamant about the respect and submission that their wives are always lacking. Unfortunately for them, verse 22 was only written to their wives, not to them. God never said, “Husbands, make sure your wife submits to you.” His command for submission and respect was to the wife, it has nothing to do with the husband! Guys, you’ll never have to answer for her lack of submission. You will have to answer for verse 25 though; how are you treating her?

Sure - she’s responsible for submitting to and respecting you. That’s God’s command to her as a wife. But that’s between God and her. It’s not your responsibility and it’s not what I’m writing about today.

You are called to love her, and there are no conditions attached to that! No matter how she acts, no matter what her attitude is like, whether you think she deserves it or not - your Lord and Savior commanded you to love her. That’s your responsibility, and it became your primary calling on the day of your wedding. You don’t get sick days, vacation time, or credible excuses. Your God commanded you to love her!

You’re called to love your wife in the same way that Jesus loves us.

Faithfully. Jesus is always faithful to us. He’s never left us, never failed us, and never cheated on us. His entire focus is on us. Romans 8:34 says that He ever-lives to pray for us. We are constantly on His mind! This is the way you’re called to love your wife. You must be so faithful to her, and focused on her, that there is no room in your heart or mind for anyone else.

Selflessly. Jesus’ love for us is selfless. When He came to this earth, He never once questioned His mission. He knew that He was going to the cross, but you never see Him say things like, “But what about me?” No, He gladly laid down His life out of love for us! John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” This kind of love is sacrificial. It’s not only about dying for someone, it’s about laying down your life for theirs. This type of love is evident when you abandon your desires for the sake of your wife. When you yield your hobbies, ambitions, and your interests to make your wife happy - you start showing Jesus’ kind of love.

Progressively. Jesus’ love for us makes us better. He always seeks our improvement, without ever condemning us for our weaknesses. You see, Jesus always sees who we could be in the future without ever  loving us less for who we are now. Too many husbands are critical of their wives’ weaknesses. This is wrong! True, our love and leadership should always be changing our wives. True, we may see things that our wives could improve on. But who are we to criticize? Don’t we have areas like that too? Aren’t you glad that Jesus doesn’t jump on us when we make mistakes the way some guys jump on their wives? We must help our wives grow while covering their weaknesses with love. You can be sure of this; if you love your wife unconditionally for who she is now, the growth (in both of your lives) will almost take care of itself.

Above all, your love for her must be unconditional. It should be an unchanging reflection of Jesus’ love for you.

Colossians 3:19 NLT “Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly.”