from the common to the spiritual

The Bible is full of illustrations.  Have you ever noticed that?  Sheep, seeds, the body, wind, and many others are used to communicate deeper truths by realting something we know commonly to something we need to know spiritually.

In Ephesians 5:25-32 the Apostle Paul (the tool of the Holy Spirit, of course) has begun speaking about how husbands and wives should think of each other – what their attitudes need to be.  To make his point he takes something very common – the care we each give to our bodies – and relates it to something intensely spiritual – how a husband should consider his wife.

How do we care for our bodies?  We keep them clean (hopefull), put band-aids on our boo-boos, and duck when a foul ball comes our way.  It feels kind of silly to even point it out, but we instinctively look out for our bodies, don’t we?  When a person doesn’t we will typically assume there is something wrong with them (mentally, spiriutally, emotionally, etc.).  That’s how common it is for us humans to care for our bodies.

Now we make the switch – husbands, care for your wife  just like you do your own body.  How is that?  Instinctively, deliberately, for her good.  What women in her right mind would NOT want a husband who thought of her that way?  Paul’s a pretty smart guy (well, he did have some help there, didn’t he?)!  There is a tremendous principle here that we husbands have GOT to get!  Think of how much better, in the simplest of ways, our marriages would be if we could adopt and practice this simple but powerful concept!  Our wives would be much more fulfilled, secure, and overall healthy – simply beause we are caring for them as they need.  And when our wives are happy – man, that sure makes us a lot happier, doesn’t it?

But let’s go a bit deeper – Paul says that this is exactly the same attitude that Christ has toward His church – which IS HIS BODY!  Do you see the picture that is beginning to take shape? 

The way a husband cares for his wife is SUPPOSED to mimic, mirror, reflect the way Christ cares for His church (us)!  It’s supposed to be an example to the world, to our neighbors, to our extended families, of how Jesus cares for those who are His.  If those people knew that connection, what do you think they’d be saying about the way Jesus cares for His church, simply based on the way that they see us caring for our wives?  Hmmmm….