I just don’t understand the hullabaloo. The missiles, rockets and such were supposed to go to Syria, who would send them over land to Hezbollah who would fire them into Israel. So the final destination of those arms was Israel and they are in Israel. The only thing that Israel did was to lower the carbon footprint of the transaction by getting the weapons into Israel without them being fired. Iran wanted those weapons in Israel! So, why are they complaining?

Environmentalists should be rejoicing that Israel was helping to reduce “climate change”. Instead, these same people are upset.

The “Religion of Peace” controls the politics of Iran, Syria and Hezbollah, so I know that they rejoice that these weapons won’t be used to conduct war.

Can someone explain this to me?

At our breakfast table this morning, my wife and I were discussing how a man who has been regarded as responsible for his company’s success for thirty years said something he shouldn’t have said. People contacted the company and said, “I’ll never buy your product again.” The offender was fired. The offender was wrong. He should not have said what he did. He has been judged. But those who demanded his “execution” — are they not aware that they have set themselves up before the Almighty to be condemned for one misstep after years of good behavior?

Have you determined that a person in your life doesn’t deserve to be forgiven for pain they have caused you? Then God will judge that you don’t deserve to be forgiven for pain that you have caused.

It is not by your standard — “I’m as good as the next person.” — that you will be judged. It is by God’s standard — “For whoever shall keep the whole (Ten Commandment) law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all”.

When you are about to judge someone, whether that person has offended you, or whether you have read about that person in the papers, ask yourself whether you are willing to have God judge you in the same way.  If you would not be condemned, then don’t condemn.  You are probably already guilty of having condemned others.  Pray to Him who paid the price for your sins on the cross.  Ask His forgiveness.  Acknowledge Him as your Lord.  Then, go and sin no more.

We wrote a letter that we distributed to our friends, business contacts and social contacts.  We asked them to receive Jesus as Lord, so that they might be raptured and thus avoid that terrifying period called by the Bible, the Great Tribulation, the Big Trouble.  Some folks replied saying that we were crazy.  As far as I know, none turned to Christ.  But their blood is not on our hands.  We did what we could.

Now, we’re at a point almost a year later.  The conditions that made us think He might come last year are even more pronounced this year, namely the fact that Israel stands alone, with no friends among the nations, but with many enemies who have every intention of destroying God’s people, if they are able.

We think that there’s a good argument to be made that the time of Jesus appearance will be at this time of year, but that’s not what I want to discuss now, for arguments are, in the final analysis, useless.  We should all be ready now.  We should be ready, not in order to escape the terrible time to come, but because we love our Lord and Savior!

One of the things that many believers are doing is to put references on the Internet so that those who are shocked into reality by the disappearance of their loved ones will have some idea of what they might do.  Here is a video that addresses itself to people left behind.

I have some understanding of why my marriage is successful and I’ve heard my friends say things that really should be addressed. I decided to write to them, because what I have to say is generally applicable to both.

I found these words very difficult to write because I don’t like to put myself into a position where my words, and perhaps, myself, may be judged or rejected. Nevertheless, brotherly love requires that I share what I believe that God has taught me.

As you ask the Lord for a wife, immediately a question comes up. Why should He answer your prayer? What are your reasons for making such a request? An obvious, and very general, answer might be, “To meet my needs.” It is true that God created man to need a wife, but is this a good enough reason for a Christian man to request that His Lord give him a wife?

To ask this question another way, consider the admonition in Ephesians 5:25,

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,…

“Lord, give me someone for whom I might lay down my life.” Can you, from your heart pray this prayer? I might remind you (for you’ve already been taught this), the admonitions of Scripture are not suggestions; they are commandments. I, as a married man, am subject to judgment in ways that single men are not, and I tremble, for I know my failures. (My wife does, too.)

I saw a cartoon when I was young, where a teen-aged boy was boasting to a girl, “I’d die for my faith!”. To which she replied, “Then why don’t you live by it?” One of the things that made this exchange memorable is that time has shown me just how very good women are at reminding men of their shortcomings.

One of the things I’ve noticed about those admonitions in Scripture that relate to Christian maturity is that they seem to tell people to do the opposite of what our sinful, human nature would direct us. The natural thing to do is not necessarily sinful in the normally accepted sense, but it causes us to fall short of what our Lord would call on us to do, which is the Biblical definition of sin. Here are examples:

It is the natural tendency for men to find their interests outside their homes and to use their homes as places of rest and refreshment before going out again. Most men do that. But, if a man is going to love his wife, giving himself for her, he’s going to have to focus much more on his home for that is her primary sphere of interest. He’s going to have to be pro-active in showing his love, i.e. in cleaning up messes and taking out the trash. Women are wierd, I know, but they actually see those things as expressions of love.

Remember the cartoon where a hubby is reading the newspaper and his wife comes down the hall behind him asking, “Honey, does this dress make me look fat?” Without taking his eyes or mind from the paper, he answers, “Yes, dear.” As he digs his way out of his crumpled paper, he asks his furious wife, “What?” You must not do that.

Women need communication. Sharing information at the emotional level is something that is a part of female human nature. She wants to talk with her husband. She needs to explain her viewpoints even when she and her husband are agreed. She needs him to listen to her and to engage her sincerely.

Conversation is something that men are almost universally poor at. Can we do it? Yes, but it’s easier to say that we can’t, for if we can get our wives to accept that as a fact, we can park in front of the TV or computer and forget our homes and families. Let me ask this: You are church and you need to share your heart with your Lord and Saviour. Our faith tells us that He is always there to hear our prayers. Suppose He was available for us in the same way that most men are available for their wives. Would your faith be the same as it is now?

Brothers, I’ve suggested that you write blogs to get practice in sharing what is on your mind and heart. To say that you can talk about the Lord, but not about yourself, doesn’t cut it for that makes you a lecturer, not a communicator. If you cannot tell people of any practical experience you’ve had with the Lord, how can you convince anyone else that our Lord is ready to minister to them? One thing I know. If you keep your thoughts and feelings bottled up now, you are not going to open up to your wife as soon as you stand before the preacher and say “I do.” I’m certain that it is more difficult for some than it is for others. You cannot meet your wife’s need if you refuse to make the effort. The question that you need to answer is how important it is to you that you meet the needs of the wife you want God to give you.

Some men, when considering a woman that would be acceptable to them as a wife, eliminate from consideration certain categories of women. I once said that I’d never marry a woman who was older than I. The Lord gave me just such a woman and our marriage was a Heaven on Earth, thanks to her. Had I stuck to my guns, I’d have lost so much! (I lost her to cancer.) Do you not want any woman who already has children? It could be that the woman the Lord has for you does have children and by refusing to consider her, you eliminate God’s choice. Will you examine yourself and see whether your refusal of such a woman might be because of what such a marriage might cost you? If “self” is the reason, why would you expect God to give you anyone?

The English word “husband” is loaded. To suggest that I am my wife’s husband is completely different than saying that I am her man. Those familiar with the Authorized (King James) Bible have seen the word “husbandman” and understand it to be “farmer”. Observe the farmer at work. He does whatever is necessary for that over which he is responsible, be it crops or cattle, to become the best that it can become, sometimes at great cost to himself. So is the husband to be toward his wife. He is to do whatever is necessary so that his wife and family might become the best that they are able to be. Will they always cooperate? As one who has cared for goats, I can affirm that they do not.

As I was growing up, I often heard Ephesians 5:22-24 preached:

Wives submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as also Christ is the head of the church; and He is the Saviour of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.

I have heard men excuse themselves from loving their wives as they ought because their wives were not subject to them.

The fact is that most women today see the whole concept of submitting themselves to their husbands as some sort of oppression and respond with an implied, “Dream on, big boy.” I had a wife once who declared that she could not be subject to me because she judged me to be an inadequate husband, so this is a two way street. (That marriage didn’t last.) Are there any women who practice a life of submission to their husbands? I can say unequivocally, “Yes.”, but it takes a special grace for a woman to be one, just as it takes a special grace for a man to love his wife as Christ loved the church. Would we want our Lord to excuse Himself from caring for us because of the degree to which the church is, in practice, subject to Him? My question for guys is, “Dare you ask God for a wife who will be subject to you, if you will not love her as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her?” Mind you, if you can declare that you will be a Christ-like husband by creating your own definition of what that means, then your wife is entitled to create the definition of what being in submission to you means. To have a wife that will bring you joy, you must be a man who will bring her joy.

When God brought Pirjo into my life, it soon became apparent that He had been working for a long time to prepare us for one another. We needed to do very little “adjusting” to one another’s ways, for we fit each other as though we’d been reared in the same village, even though we had been reared one third of the way around the world from each other. These “ways” include some very important things, but also many little things that make life together pleasant but would not make or break a relationship.

Now, go and tell God why He should give you a godly wife.

There’s a difference. Printed money has no value of its own. Money created by the production of goods and services is in circulation.  If the government put white strips of paper the same size as money into circulation, anyone given a strip of paper would be able to tell what is real money and what is phony money because they’d look different.  They’d reject the white strips of paper.  If however, the strips of paper are made to look like money, those taking money can’t tell which strip is real money and which is phony money.  They have to take any piece that they are given.  Each piece, therefore, has the same value and the money that is earned by the production of goods and services has less value.   The money supply is inflated by nothing of value. That’s why it’s called inflation. Because the money that is earned loses value through inflation, the printing of money is just another way of taxing the production of goods and services.

All people are consumers. We consume the value of money by buying those things that we need and that we want. Some consumers are also producers. These people produce things that people consume. People whose income depends on others being taxed are pure consumers. In this group are many government employees, people on Social Security and other forms of welfare.

Those government employees who provide a service that has value include those in the military and those who maintain our infrastructure. Government employees whose task is to redistribute money taken in taxes to those who don’t produce goods or services are in the same category as the welfare recipients, for if the non-producers didn’t receive taxpayer money, those government employees wouldn’t be needed either.

Whenever goods and services are taxed, for whatever purpose, that tax money cannot be used to produce the goods and services that they otherwise would have produced. When the government provides jobs, even when those jobs provide a service to the community, the money generating part of the economy suffers because of the tax money that is required to pay for those government jobs. Government can only redistribute the money that other people earn.

When the solution to unemployment in the productive sector of society is for the government to provide jobs, we begin the following cycle:

Money to pay for government jobs must be taxed from those providing goods and services, thereby reducing the money available to provide goods and services. This will create more unemployment in that sector. More government jobs are created which will require the raising of taxes either directly or through inflation. This causes the money available to produce goods and services to recede. We call that a recession. The recession depresses the ability of consumers to buy goods and services and of the productive sector of society to produce them. Eventually, even those who receive taxpayer funding will find it difficult or impossible to buy what they need. This is called a depression. If you see that the solution to unemployment is more government jobs or handouts, go to the beginning of this paragraph, which says…

Otherwise, vote those who support Keynesian economics out of office. This includes all Democrats and most Republicans.  And, yes, there are other options.

Sandra felt as low as the heels of her shoes when she pulled open the florist shop door, against a November gust of wind. Her life had been as sweet as a spring breeze and then, in the fourth month of her second pregnancy, a “minor” automobile accident stole her joy. This was Thanksgiving week and the time she should have delivered their infant son. She grieved over their loss. Troubles had multiplied.

Her husband’s company “threatened” to transfer his job to a new location. Her sister had called to say that she could not come for her long awaited holiday visit. What’s worse, Sandra’s friend suggested that Sandra’s grief was a God-given path to maturity that would allow her to empathize with others who suffer. “She has no idea what I’m feeling,” thought Sandra with a shudder “Thanksgiving? Thankful for what?” she wondered. “For a careless driver whose truck was hardly scratched when he rear-ended me? For an airbag that saved my life, but took my child’s?”

“Good afternoon, can I help you?” Sandra was startled by the approach of the shop clerk. “I . . . I need an arrangement,” stammered Sandra.

“For Thanksgiving? I’m convinced that flowers tell stories, ” she continued. “Are you looking for something that conveys ‘gratitude’ this Thanksgiving?”

“Not exactly!” Sandra blurted out. “In the last five months, everything that could go wrong has gone wrong.” Sandra regretted her outburst, and was surprised when the clerk said, “I have the perfect arrangement for you.” Then the bell on the door rang, and the clerk greeted the new customer…

“Hi, Barbara, let me get your order.” She excused herself and walked back to a small workroom, then quickly reappeared, carrying an arrangement of greenery, bows, and what appeared to be long-stemmed thorny roses. Except the ends of the rose stems were neatly s nipped: there were no flowers.

“Do you want these in a box?” asked the clerk. Sandra watched – was this a joke? Who would want rose stems with no flowers! She waited for laughter, but neither woman laughed.

“Yes, please,” Barbara replied with an appreciative smile. “You’d think after three years of getting the special, I wouldn’t be so moved by its significance, but I can feel it right here, all over again,” she said, as she gently tapped her chest.

Sandra stammered, “Ah, that lady just left with . . . uh . . . she left with no flowers!”

“That’s right,” said the clerk. “I cut off the flowers. That’s the ‘Special’. I call it the Thanksgiving Thorns Bouquet. Barbara came into the shop three years ago, feeling much as you do today,” explained the clerk. “She thought she had very little to be thankful for. She had just lost her father to cancer; the family business was failing; her son had gotten into drugs; and she was facing major surgery. That same year I had lost my husband,” continued the clerk. “For the first time in my life, I had to spend the holidays alone. I had no children, no husband, no family nearby, and too much debt to allow any travel.”

“So what did you do?” asked Sandra.

“I learned to be thankful for thorns,” answered the clerk quietly. “I’ve always thanked God for the good things in my life and I never questioned Him why those good things happened to me, but when the bad stuff hit, I cried out, ‘Why? Why me?!’ It took time for me to learn that the dark times are important to our faith! I have always enjoyed the ‘flowers’ of my life, but it took the thorns to show me the beauty of God’s comfort! You know, the Bible says that God comforts us when we’re afflicted, and from His consolation we learn to comfort others.”

Sandra sucked in her breath, as she thought about what her friend had tried to tell her. “I guess the truth is I don’t want comfort. I’ve lost a baby and I’m angry with God.”

Just then someone else walked in the shop.

“Hey, Phil!” the clerk greeted the balding, round man. “My wife sent me in to get our usual Thanksgiving arrangement . . twelve thorny, long-stemmed stems!” laughed Phil as the clerk handed him a tissue wrapped arrangement from the refrigerator.

“Those are for your wife?” asked Sandra incredulously. “Do you mind telling me why she wants a bouquet that looks like that?”

“Four years ago, my wife and I nearly divorced,” Phil replied. “After forty years, we were in a real mess, but with the Lord’s grace and guidance, we trudged through problem after problem, the Lord rescued our marriage. Jenny here (the clerk) told me she kept a vase of rose stems to remind her of what she had learned from “thorny” times. That was good enough for me. I took home some of those stems. My wife and I decided to label each one for a specific “problem” and give thanks for what that problem taught us.”

As Phil paid the clerk, he said to Sandra, “I highly recommend the Special!”

“I don’t know if I can be thankful for the thorns in my life” Sandra said to the clerk. “It’s all too . . fresh.” “Well,” the clerk replied carefully, “my experience has shown me that the thorns make the roses more precious. We treasure God’s providential care more during trouble than at any other time. Remember that it was a crown of thorns that Jesus wore so we might know His love….Don’t resent the thorns.”

Tears rolled down Sandra’s cheeks. For the first time since the accident, she loosened her grip on her resentment. “I’ll take those twelve long-stemmed thorns, please,” she managed to choke out.

“I hoped you would,” said the clerk gently. “I’ll have them ready in a minute.”

“Thank you. What do I owe you?” “Nothing. Nothing but a promise to allow God to heal your heart…The first year’s arrangement is always on me.”

The clerk smiled and handed a card to Sandra. “I’ll attach this card to your arrangement, but maybe you would like to read it first.”

It read: “My God, I have never thanked You for my thorns. I have thanked You a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my thorns. Teach me the glory of the cross I bear; teach me the value of my thorns. Show me that I have climbed closer to You along the path of pain. Show me that, through my tears, the colors of Your rainbow look much more brilliant.”

Praise Him for the roses; thank Him for the thorns.

One of the tests for a prophet in Scripture is that of earlier prophecies he’s made that have been fulfilled.  Pastor Matutis prophesied the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1988.  It was so remarkable that a newspaper in West Berlin made note of it, for no one expected it.  It was a very short time before this prophesy was fulfilled.

Personally, I’m trying to live as close to my Lord as possible and anticipate His soon return.  I am constantly trying to find out what He wants me to do with these days.  I believe that the Lord is guiding me and speaking to me, but not in any way that approaches prophecy.  This word is consistent with the way I believe the Lord to be directing me.

Those who read my blog know that I have had things to say about the direction I think America should take, now that the Obamanation is upon us.  I have lately come to believe that the direction should be spiritual, not political.  Still, I don’t take issue with those who are working for a better America.

The Finnish word for trumpet roughly translates to trombone, but is the long trumpet you see heralds holding in medieval Europe.  A man could hardly hold a trumpet or trombone that would be much longer than that.  The tone of such an instrument is lower than what we Americans call a trumpet.  So, how long would be a trumpet that an angel might hold, and how deep it’s tone?  Maybe Pastor Matutis has given us a clue.

Here is Pastor Matutis message:
_________________________________________________________________

The Lord gave me a very important vision. I must inform you of them. Perhaps it is important for you and helpful?

Pastor Joh. W. Matutis, (Berlin / Germany)
http://www.nnk-berlin.de (English menu)

While praying this morning, God gave me a vision. He showed me a great, world-wide “mobilization”.

I saw myself strolling along a beach. Suddenly, there sounded a loud boom, which became stronger and more massive. It was not the noise of the sea or of the wind. It was completely still outside. The sea water was as smooth as glass. The deep booming sound which was like the sound of the mountains about to cave in, a banging sound which I had up till now never heard in my whole life, came from the other side of the ocean, from far away. It became so strong and mighty, that the earth began to quake and shake. It sounded  like the blasting of a deep bass trumpet. I had never heard this sort and depth of bass sound before now. The whole air vibrated. I holed myself up in the dunes of the embankment, face down, and waited to see what would come out of this natural spectacle.

When the booming refused to stop, and instead became stronger, I saw myself begin to pray in the vision, and to speak with my God. Then I heard a voice saying, “my child, fear not. That is my mobilization call, a signal, from the other world. I am calling my people out from all peoples. I myself am shaking the earth and the sea. The sinners and godless will pass away for fear and the fearful expectation of the things which are to come. Understand, my child, that all these have been initiated by the financial crises. That was just the beginning of ruin. The foundation of today’s society will be so shaken that the people will lose all that they have acquired, and saved up til l now.  Every infrastructure and welfare will collapse with time. Life will be very difficult for very many people. The general security will get out of control and there will be a proliferation of crime such that life on earth will be massively threatened.  But you, who fear my name will I save from ruin. I am holding my arm of protection over you.”

Although not even a silent wind blew, and not even a small wave was seen on the sea, the booming was so mighty, that my heart threatened to stop beating. Then I thought to myself, “I will now also die.” And then the Lord said to me, “My child, do not fear. You are to live and continue to declare my works. Arise, go home and tell your loved ones. Let them know that the coming of my Son is very close at hand, at the doorstep. I am setting everything in motion in order to take my people home, and I am now stripping them of everything that is holding them back, or blocking them.”

As I stood up to obey God’s voice, starting to make my way homewards, I saw very many people, lying in the dunes. They had come out from their houses, racing towards the sea to see and experience this extraordinary natural spectacle. They lay on their faces as if paralyzed, exactly as I had lain a few minutes before now. As I passed by them on my way home, despite the continuous distant booming sound, these people called to me saying: “You are crazy; you cannot make it home in this situation. It is too  dangerous”. They then buried their heads even further in the dunes, because they feared what would happen next. They no longer wanted to hear or know of anything.

And then said the Lord to me: “for you, my children, who fear my name, this is the day of my ‘mobilization.’ For you my “sun of salvation” arises, with which I gather my true children, and bring them together. Go, my son, and tell this everyone you can reach.”

Then I asked the Lord “What shall I tell them?”

“Tell my children,” He said, “they are no longer to occupy themselves with perishable things, but rather, much more with the immortal, the eternal things. They are to seek me and study my word. They should forgive one another, so long as there is still time, and make peace with one another.  They should stop being envious of, and pointing fingers at one another.  They should neither accuse nor suspect one another. Everyone should do what he is supposed to, and can do. Tell them to free themselves of every  unnecessary thing, and to stop fighting spasmodically (intermittently) for their rights. From now on, I will ensure your rights, and provide justice for you. Great changes are about to occur all over the world, in every area of life. Adjust yourselves therefore and be prepared. Nothing is going to be as it has been before now…”

The further I moved from the beach, the less of the booming sound I heard, even though I was of the opinion that the sound had become stronger and even more massive. I felt as if I had been secured in a glass case.

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying “I will bring my children into safety in my own way. You will see everything I will do in the world, which will experience all the “plagues of Egypt” before I withdraw my children unto myself, before Pharaoh releases you forever. My people hold together!  Stay with one another, encourage one another. Soon, you would have made it!”

That was the last thing I took with me from this vision.

As I thought about all that I had seen, and what I should do with it, the Lord spoke to me saying “spread this revelation I have given you this morning about my ‘mobilization’ further to all my children, and encourage them to do likewise, for I am at the door (I am coming soon). And tell them, especially my people, that they should be serious about their relationship with me (God), before it is too late….”

Do help me spread this message overall. Send it to your friends and acquaintances. Spread it your churches and house fellowships.  Translate it into other languages.

Maranatha! Our Lord comes.

Pastor Joh. Matutis

http://www.nnk-berlin.de (see the English menu.  Here you’ll find more about me and my ministry.  And even more prophetic words.)

E-Mail: pastor@matutis.de
Write me a few lines.  I would like to pray for you, and bring your name to God’s throne.

Postal Address: Pastor Joh.W.Matutis
Postfach 65 06 65
D – 13306 Berlin (Germany)

If you think that a vote for a third party is a vote for Obama, then you should not do it.  I don’t think that how either you or I as individuals vote is going to turn the election one way or the other.  The issue is what our decision making process about this and many other issues says about our trust and reliance on God.  In the final analysis, He is the One Who will decide the election.  He has had His hand on America.  He still has His Almighty hand on America, either for blessing or for judgment.  We know what we deserve.  We know a little of His grace.  We don’t know how His plans for the introduction of His visible empire are going to play out.  Vote in faith, not in fear.  Rest in the confidence not that the best candidate will win, but that God’s will shall be done.

“Let us raise a standard to which the wise and honest can repair; the rest is in the hands of God.”  — George Washington

http://www.selfgovernment.us/aip/

First, let us define “sin”.  In this context, sin is to fall short of God’s expectations of us.  We have all done this.  Hence, we are all sinners.  To be “living in sin”, therefore, is to continue, over a period of time that includes the present, in a manner of life that God does not want us to live in.  This condition is not a “slip up”, but rather a decision to live a certain way.

I had a “spat” with my wife and shared the fact with my brother.  He gave me counsel as to how to resolve it.  The counsel itself is unimportant.  After a short time, he wrote and asked whether I had taken his advice.  We’ll pick up the correspondance from there.

“I did, and we are at peace with one another.  I don’t know how long our sweetheart status will last, though, because” the basic problem is still not solved.  I continued, “By the way, can you explain your counsel to me in terms of anything that is written in Scripture about husband-wife relationships?

He replied, “I may have to think about that, but I do base my humble opinion on 32 years of marriage to the same wonderful (sometimes) woman!”

To help him think, I said that my wife and I “are back to being real sweethearts in the same way that you and your wife are (and under the same conditions), but in the eternal scheme of things, the issue isn’t between me and my wife (or, in my case, wives), but between the church and Jesus Christ, for the Scriptures state that marriage is a model of that relationship.  God has a particular vision of the marriage relationship, because He created it, just as surely as He created the participants in it, fashioning them for each other.  That is, if the Bible is the Word of God and shows us His ways.

“Think of the things that you do in regard to your relationship to your wife.  Are those things what Christ does (or should do) in His dealings with the church?  Keep in mind that I know nothing about the details of how your wife treats you, what she does or what she says.  But the question is not “Do those things make for a good marriage?”, but “Are those things reflective of how the church is to regard, respond to and talk to Jesus?”  Another 50 years and neither of our marriages will be intact, but our relationship to Christ will be. Will we expect Christ to treat us the way we treat our wives and expect that we should be able to relate to Him the way our wives relate to us?  Are our marriages conditioning us for a relationship that He will accept, approve of and be active in?  Do you really expect or want Jesus to treat you the way you treat your wife?  Is He wrong if He doesn’t accept our treating Him as our wives treat us?

“I greatly suspect that the condition of the church today does reflect our (the church’s) attitudes toward marriage.  How does this line up with church as it’s presented in the Scripture?

“Do you think that the Lord cares?” was my concluding question.

My brother thought that this latter question may have been a trick one, as he correctly reasoned that, if the Lord didn’t care about how we conduct our marriages He wouldn’t have said so much about it.

Here is my reply:

It was not a trick question at all.  We would all do well to compare the way we live and the choices we make with regard to the Scriptural norm.  To bring our lives, with the Lord’s help, into conformity with God’s Word is called “spiritual growth”.  To be content with what works is to miss the mark of what God has for us.  To “miss the mark” is the Scriptural definition of “sin”.  Is it OK to continue in sin because it “works”?  Is it OK to continue in sin because it makes for a good relationship?  If so, what’s wrong with homosexual “marriage”?

Another question — and this time, I’ll give you the answer.  Ephesians 5:24,25 “Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.  Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her.”  The word “subject” is used instead of “submit”.  Why?

To answer this, one needs to understand the difference.  When I submit myself to someone, I voluntarily do what that person wants, regardless of the reason.  You cannot “submit” another person to yourself.  Even our language forbids such usage.  You can subject another person to yourself if you have enough authority or power.  Kings have subjects.  We are subject to the law.  We submit ourselves to the law because we are subject to it — we fear punishment.

Notice in this scripture that “the church is subject to Christ”.  It is not voluntary.  He has the authority to make us subject to Him.  The only question is whether we will submit voluntarily or whether we will be subjected by force.  You object.  Christ doesn’t force us to do anything.  He doesn’t — yet.  There is a judgment for believers and many will be surprised.  We love to sing the old song “Count your blessings.  Name them one by one.  And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.”  There is another version:  “Count your obligations.  Name them one by one.  And it will surprise you what the Lord wants done.”  Would you be willing to sing this version from your heart?

From the standpoint of Christian women, because they are part of the church, they have the same attitude toward their husbands as they have toward Christ.  Show me a woman who does not recognize the authority of her husband and submit to him and I’ll show you a woman who does not recognize the authority of Christ, who does not submit to Him.  In fact, it is her submission to Christ that provides the motivation for her submission to her husband.  The Lord knows that most of us men are not wise enough nor loving enough to inspire our wives submission to ourselves.  If she is going to do it at all, it must be as unto the Lord.

From the standpoint of Christian men, we are looking in two directions.  Because we are part of the church, we are to submit to our Lord because we recognize our place as His subjects and know that He will judge our lives at some point in the future, even though it may not be obvious if He is doing it now.  On the other hand, we are to be the servant leaders of our wives, to be toward them as Christ is to the church.  The operative word here, is “love”.  We are not to attempt to make our wives subject to us because most of us cannot do such a thing in a loving way.  If she should choose to be subject to us as unto the Lord, the best we can do is to make such action as easy for her as possible.  I would posit that a Christian woman whose husband loves her unconditionally, faithfully and who is himself subject to his Lord is more likely to submit herself to him.  But, that’s not a given.

Our human tendency is to trust only ourselves.  This goes for both genders.  We want those around us to conform their behavior to our convictions and preferences.  To get past this is one of the biggest challenges of our mortal lives.  No married woman can claim to be subject to God’s will if she is not subject to her husband’s.  No married man can claim to be subject to God’s will if he tries to dominate or force his will upon his wife.  Many men have their primary interests outside their homes and use their wives to support those outside interests.  That is not how Christ loves the church.  We’d like to think that the Lord has more interest in His church than in the billions of galaxies that are “out there”.  Can we claim to love our wives if we are not interested in her welfare — physical, emotional and spiritual?  If your wife is relating to you in a way that is inappropriate for her to relate to Jesus Christ, is it loving for you to say nothing about it?

I remember a statement my first wife made.  She said that if I was the kind of husband that she thought that I should have been, she could have been subject to me, but because I didn’t meet her standard of a “good” husband, she was relieved of her obligation.  Many of us Christians justify our ordering our own lives apart from Jesus Christ because He doesn’t do things the way we think that they should be done.  (What will that get us on Judgment Day?)  My first wife used the word “could”, as though my behavior prevented her from being obedient to Christ by being submissive to me.  One of the heaviest burdens that Scripture lays upon women is to have to be subject to men who are not living lives that are subjected to Christ.  It goes back to the Garden of Eden, where in Genesis 3:16 we read, “…Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.”  This isn’t a command that may be obeyed or not, such as a speed limit.  It is more like the law of gravity.  We may choose to break that law, but who is most likely to be hurt by doing so?  We men are usually taller, stronger and potentially more aggressive and dominant.  It is usually easier for men to intimidate women than for women to intimidate men.  My experience with rebellious wives has been that if I kept my aggression and dominant tendencies in check, the women were able and willing to become aggressive and domineering.

The bottom line is that the whole issue is not about our relationship with each other.  It’s about our relationship with Christ.

Will the ushers please come forward as the choir sings, “Have Thine own way, Lord”?