Paul begins with a hinge passage, Ephesians 5:21, connecting Ephesians 5:1-20 and Ephesians 5:22-33, in which he advocates for church members to submit to each other (compare Mark 10:42-45; Romans 12:10; Philippians 2:3-4). Believers are to do so “out of reverence for Christ” (Ephesians 5:21, ESV), the first of several times Paul will identify the relationship with Christ as the most important and defining one for believers.

What does Paul mean by exhorting church members to submit to each other? How are we to understand this idea? Ephesians 5:21.

Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com

Paul also invites Christian wives to submit to “your own husbands, as to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:22, ESV), clarifying that he is discussing the submission of wives to their respective husbands (see also 1 Peter 3:1, 1 Peter 3:5). When Paul says wives are to do so “as to the Lord,” does he mean a wife is to submit to her husband as though he were Christ; or, instead, does He mean that Christ is the truest and highest focus of her submission?

In view of Ephesians 6:7, where slaves are asked to serve “as to the Lord, and not to men” (NKJV), and Colossians 3:18, where wives are asked to submit to their husbands “as is fitting in the Lord” (NKJV), the latter view is to be preferred. Wives are themselves believers who must ultimately honor Christ over their husbands.

In both Colossians and Ephesians, Christ — and only Christ — is identified as the Head of the church, which is His body (Ephesians 1:22, Ephesians 5:23, Colossians 1:18): “Christ is the head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body” (Ephesians 5:23, NKJV). By analogy, the husband is “the head of the wife” (Ephesians 5:23), with the church’s faithfulness to Christ serving as a model for the wife’s loyalty to her husband. The passage presumes a loving, caring marriage, and not a dysfunctional one. This verse should not be interpreted to allow any form of domestic abuse.

<–Sabbath Monday–>

Amen!(0)

The post Sunday: Counsel to Christian Wives appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/sunday-counsel-to-christian-wives/

Image © Pacific Press

Sabbath Afternoon

Read  for This Week’s Study: Ephesians 5:21-33; Philippians 2:3-4; Ezekiel 16:1-14; 2 Corinthians 11:1-4; Genesis 2:15-25.

Memory Text: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:25-27, NKJV).

In Ephesians 5:21-33, Paul builds on the idea of the submission of believers to each other (Ephesians 5:21); he then offers counsel to Christian wives (Ephesians 5:22-24) and husbands (Ephesians 5:25-32); and he concludes with a distillation of the instruction to both (Ephesians 5:33).

In this counsel, Bible students today may hear the risen Christ addressing our relationships. We are positioned to do so when we understand Ephesians 5:21-6:9 as Paul’s way of actualizing the great theme of the letter, unity, but now for the Christian household. While he offers a strong critique of the flawed social structures of the old humanity (see Ephesians 4:22), he also celebrates the creation of a new humanity (see Ephesians 2:15) embedded within the wider humanity with its flawed social structures. From within these structures, believers demonstrate that a new power, the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:22; Ephesians 3:16; Ephesians 5:18-21; Ephesians 6:17-18) and a new ethic patterned on Christ (Ephesians 4:13, Ephesians 4:15, Ephesians 4:20-24, Ephesians 4:32; Ephesians 5:2, Ephesians 5:10, Ephesians 5:17, Ephesians 5:21-33) have been unleashed, which point toward the ultimate fulfillment of God’s plan for His people and the world.

Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, September 2.

Sunday–>

Amen!(0)

The post Sabbath: Husbands and Wives ~ Together at the Cross appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/sabbath-husbands-wives-together-at-cross/

Join It Is Written Sabbath School host Eric Flickinger and this quarter’s author, Dr John McVay, as they provide additional insights into this week’s Sabbath School lesson
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JF4WEOuKGEA?si=ltLDADvghJ5lbGSs&w=560&h=315]

Amen!(0)

The post 9: Living Wisely – It is Written – Discussions with the Author appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/9-living-wisely-it-is-written-discussions-with-the-author/

You can view an in-depth discussion of Living Wisely in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view:[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzELi3SOSow?si=TxTUit2Br_BAyShx&w=560&h=315]

With thanks to

Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.

Amen!(0)

The post 9: Living Wisely – HopeSS Video Discussion appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/9-living-wisely-hopess-video-discussion/

Further Thought:

 Looking back at Ephesians 5:1-20 as a whole, we watch Paul take a strong stance against sin and evil, especially in the form of sexual immorality and crude speech.

Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com

He is unwilling to accept the presence of corrupt behavior among the people of God. Instead, he calls the believers in Ephesus to a high standard of conduct and to embrace their identity as the “beloved children” of God and as “saints” or holy ones, (Ephesians 5:1-10, ESV). He dares to believe that when the Christians in community do so, they shine a light into the darkness, drawing their neighbors away from self-defeating lifestyles and into God’s grace and truth (Ephesians 5:11-14).

Paul imagines the church, buoyed by a renewed commitment to “walk as children of light” while they await Christ’s return (Ephesians 5:8; see also Ephesians 5:15-16) and blessed by the presence of Christ (Ephesians 5:14), gathering to worship. As they are motivated by their status “as beloved children” of God and by Christ’s death for them (Ephesians 5:1-2, ESV) and are filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), their shared worship is characterized by energy and joy as together they sing thanksgiving praise to their Lord, Jesus Christ, and to God the Father. With a firm grip on heavenly realities, they celebrate their hope for the future, rooted in the story of what God has done, is doing, and will accomplish through Jesus Christ their Lord (Ephesians 5:18-20).

Understood in this way, the passage becomes far more than a set of disconnected commands about Christian living. It becomes a prophetic call concerning Christian identity, commitment, community, and worship in the last days, a pathos-filled invitation to “snap up the bargains” on offer in the days until Christ’s return (Ephesians 5:16).

Discussion Questions:

<–Thursday

Amen!(3)

The post Friday: Further Thought ~ Living Wisely appeared first on Sabbath School Net.

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/friday-further-thought-living-wisely/