Framework; Husband and Wife Relationship

The point: You are obligated to reject any human teaching, regardless of credentials, that contradicts the Bible.

Martin recounts a story of a young man writing 'bosh' in the margin of a book by a highly credentialed expert on family living. This illustrates that biblical truth, even from an uneducated person, trumps human expertise that contradicts Scripture.

that will govern our study to the law and to the testimony. If they speak not according to this word, it's because there is no light in them. Now it's interesting, I was reading the other day a book that was loaned to me by someone in the congregation, written by a man who in the world's eyes is eminently qualified to talk about family living. He's a Ph.D.

5:14 - 5:38 Read in full sermon

The point: Do not agree or disagree with the pastor, but submit to what God says if the Word is rightly expounded.

Society inherited a 'superstructure' of family concepts (husband as head, wife as follower, children submissive) but has thrown out the biblical 'foundation.' This analogy explains why modern movements question traditional roles, as the underlying scriptural authority has been rejected.

Now you see, what's happened in our day is that our present society inherited a superstructure of concepts about family living. The husband was to be the head, the wife in that sense is to be the follower, children are to be submissive. This is the kind of structure that our society inherited from a day when men derived those principles from the Bible. Now what has happened, in the past couple of generations, the foundation has been thrown out, you see, and now this generation comes along and says, why should a woman be subject to the man?

8:30 - 9:14 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The goal of the study is clarified: not to provide an exhaustive manual for every problem, but to lay out broad biblical principles. Martin uses Jesus' teaching on divorce in…

Martin describes the desire for an 'exhaustive manual' with an index for every conceivable family problem. This analogy highlights the human tendency towards laziness and a 'Roman Catholic at heart' desire for detailed rules, contrasting it with the biblical approach of broad principles.

Between husband and wife, wife and husband, parent-child, child-parent, everything that had to do with family devotions, how to use your TV, how to treat your teenagers. We'd love to have some kind of a manual with an index that every time we had a question or a problem, we could thumb through, find the right place, put our finger on it, page 719, six little rules, and bingo, we'd have it. Now, if you've come expecting that, you're going to be miserably disappointed. Because it's not my goal to be exhaustive, and it's not the scriptural approach to be exhaustive and to give detailed answers to...

11:37 - 12:19 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It is humbling to the woman to know that she was created for the man. But it is her glory to know that she alone can complete the man.

Someone humorously remarked that God used the 'first anesthesia' when Adam was put into a deep sleep to create Eve. This lighthearted anecdote adds a memorable detail to the creation account.

Verse 21. And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man and he slept. Someone said the first anesthesia, the Lord used it here with Adam. And he took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh instead thereof.

42:46 - 43:02 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It is humbling to the woman to know that she was created for the man. But it is her glory to know that she alone can complete the man.

Martin quotes Dwight Small, who beautifully articulates the humbling yet glorious nature of complementarity: the woman's humility in being created for the man, and her glory in completing him; similarly for the man. This quotation deepens the understanding of Genesis 2.

Dwight Small comments so beautifully on this concept. This idea that the husband is incomplete without the wife, that the wife, you see, was made not to exist or the woman made not to exist on her own but to find her true identity in being that help answering to the man's need. He says of this, for the husband and wife this leads to glory and to humility. Now catch this.

44:03 - 44:34 Read in full sermon

Driving home: God took a rib of Adam in order to make the woman. He didn't take a bone from his head to symbolize that the woman should rule, nor did he take a bone from Adam's foot to teach that the man should trample upon her. But h…

The metaphor of God taking a rib from Adam's side (not his head or foot) to create Eve symbolizes her place of protection, near his heart, yet in submission to his headship. This illustrates the intended relationship between husband and wife.

The man was made first in order. And as someone has said, and it's a beautiful thing, God took a rib of Adam in order to make the woman. He didn't take a bone from his head to symbolize that the woman should rule, nor did he take a bone from Adam's foot to teach that the man should trample upon her. But he took a rib from close to his heart that as she takes her place near his heart in subjection to him, she finds her glorious fulfillment as a woman.

66:06 - 66:37 Read in full sermon

The point: Wives, your submission is not absolute; if your husband asks you to violate Scripture or your conscience, you must obey God rather than man.

A humorous story of a man claiming to decide 'big things' (China in UN) while his wife decides 'smaller things' (car, house, college) illustrates how some men nominally claim headship but practically abdicate it in daily family life.

One of the books I was reading, a man said humorously, in our house, I decide the big things, whether China should be admitted to the UN, whether the Tennessee Valley Association should be sold to private industry. But my wife decides the smaller things, like what car we're going to buy, what house we're going to live in, what college my kids are going to go to. I thought that was a beautiful way of stating it. You see what he was saying?

68:31 - 69:02 Read in full sermon

The point: Husbands, recognize the awesome responsibility to reflect Christ's relationship to the church in your relationship to your wife, eliciting her glad submission.

Martin quotes from 'Towards Christian Marriage,' explaining that the wife's submission is a free, religious submission arising from faith and love, not compulsion. This clarifies the nature of biblical submission for wives.

And would be very helpful to give them some guidelines as they think of dating and courtship and ultimately of marriage. But here's the summary of this passage. As it relates to the woman's subjection. The subjection of the church to Christ is a free subjection arising out of faith in his absolute wisdom and goodness.

71:45 - 72:07 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: The husband's key responsibility is 'love.' Martin expounds on the measure of this love (Christ's love for the church – exclusive, self-giving), its ground (the mysterious union…

Martin uses the example of a man nourishing and cherishing his own body (fixing a nicked chin, soaking stubbed toes) to illustrate how a husband should care for his wife, recognizing their mysterious union as 'one flesh'.

But it's that consciousness that we are one that becomes the ground of that love. And Paul goes on to say. Did you ever see a man who hated himself? Went around sticking pins in himself?

82:33 - 82:44 Read in full sermon