Mutual Submission - God's Marriage Protection Plan
/Dr. Stewart Brown shares a message entitled “Mutual Submission - God's Marriage Protection Plan”.
Live Stream
Sermon Only
Discussion Notes
Download Sermon & Discussion notes in PDF format.
Supplemental: SECRETS TO A HEALTHY MARRIAGE [Dr. Stewart Brown]
Sermon Notes
Reflection & Discussion
Read: Gen 2:20-25; Eph 5:21 Pray for your study time.
In His word, God has revealed His plan for healthy marriages that reflect His heart, will and purpose for us as His people. Christ-like marriages are an essential channel through which the Lord expresses His love to the world. But such marriages are opposed by Satan, our old nature and by secular culture. So today, we will also look at 5 dangers or minefields facing our marriages. Let’s identify these and know from God’s word how our marriages can be protected.
A. Identity of Christ-like marriage
“Then God said, let us make man in our image…” Gen 1:26a)
“…for this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will be one flesh”. (Gen 2:24, Matt 19:4-6)
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ”. (Eph 5:21)
B. Purpose of a Christ-like marriage
“But for Adam, no suitable helper was found…” (Gen 2:20)
“Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her…” (Eph 5:25)
Marriage is an unconditional and permanent covenant of belonging rather than a conditional ‘service’ contract to meet each others needs and wants. R. Paul and Gail Stevens
C. God’s Marriage Protection Plan- 5 Minefields to Avoid
1. Protect your marriage from the desire to control - “Submit to one another” (Eph 5:21)
“Your desire will be for your husband, and He will rule over you.” (Gen 3:16b)
2. Protect Your Marriage from a loss of intimacy
“…This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman for she was taken out of man.” (Gen 2:23)
The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife. Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your self-control. (1 Cor 7:3-5)
3. Protect your marriage from a process of abuse
Verbal
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs…” (Eph 4:29)
Emotional (Eph 4:31-32)
“Get rid of…anger… Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving…just as in Christ, God forgave you.”
Physical
“In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (in your marriage). (Eph 4:26-27)
4. Protect Your marriage from an attitude of competition.
“Husbands, in the same way, be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.” (1 Pet 3:7)
5. Protect your Marriage from the consequence of neglect
“Each of you must love his wife as he loves himself and (she) must respect her husband.” (Eph 5:33)
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition…but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” (Phil 2:3)
The killer of love is creeping separateness…taking love for granted, especially after marriage. Ceasing to do things together. Finding separateness. “We” turning to “I”. Self. Self-regard: what I want to do. The man going off to his office and the woman staying home with her children -HER children- or perhaps having a different job. The failure of love might seem to be caused by hatred or boredom or unfaithfulness with a lover, but those were the results, not the cause. First came the creeping separateness: the failure behind the failure.
(Sheldon Vanauken, A Severe Mercy)