Iron Rose Sister Ministries

Ephesians 5:21-33 has often been a controversial text among women. Discussions about women’s role and reactions to the word “submission” overshadow one of the most beautiful facets of the text, which we will spend a moment highlighting.

What we are talking about is Christ and the church.

Please read the text below paying special attention to the references to Christ and the church (bolded for emphasis).

21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. 22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as
Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ,
so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.
25 Husbands, love your wives, as
Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.
29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church,30 because we are members of his body.
31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”
32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.
33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

Now, go back and read only the bolded sections.

Christ loves the church! He demonstrated this love by giving himself up for her. That kind of sacrificial love inspires respect and trust.

When we are hesitant to submit to the head, to Christ—to His teaching and to His Word—it is often because we have lost sight of the depth of love He has for us. He wants us to “be holy, without blemish.” He truly wants what’s best for us.

Do you trust that Christ wants what is best for you personally and for His church?

He “nourishes and cherishes” us. We are members of His body and He would never want to do things that cause us, and thereby Himself, harm, but rather what ultimately builds us up. Christ loves us, protects us, and saves us, even from ourselves.

Submitting to the head, that is Christ, who loves, protects, honors, and cares for us, becomes easier when we remember the depth of love demonstrated by Who He is and what He has done. It feels less like a chore of submission, but rather like the wisdom of allowing the head to make the decision instead of the foot trying to decide what the hand should do.

Christ is the head of the church and of each of us individually. As members of His body, may we remember to always seek Him as the head and submit to His will, rather than striving to enforce our own.

Written by Johana Batres, Volunteer at Iron Rose Sister Ministries in Colorado Springs, CO.

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each is a member of that body." (1 Corinthians 12:27)

I invite you to read 1 Corinthians 12:20-27.

On one occasion a great friend and brother in Christ decided to go from Guatemala to Honduras to study at the Baxter Bible Institute. We bade him a farewell, in which we prayed and blessed him. When he returned after his graduation in Baxter, I noticed that he was missing the thumb of his left hand.

One day, on a bus, his finger was pressed by the doors and he lost it. I really appreciate this friend and brother, and I imagine it was difficult for him to lose his thumb. Without using your thumb, try brushing your teeth, buttoning a shirt, combing your hair, tying your shoes, or even eating. This chubby little finger of the body plays a key role.

The apostle Paul points out a similar scenario in the church. Those who tend to be less visible or less heard sometimes experience an "I don't need you" from others (1 Corinthians 12:21). Often this idea is reflected only in attitudes, but sometimes it is said out loud.

God calls us to show equal interest and respect for one another (v. 25). All believers are part of the body of Christ (v. 27), whatever gifts we have received, and we need each other. Some are eyes or ears, so to speak, and some are thumbs. But we all have a vital function in the body of Christ, the Church; and sometimes more than we think.

One very important thing to remember, Christ is the Head and no one else can be.

If you are an "eye", how can you encourage a "thumb?" If you think you are an insignificant member, memorize 1 Corinthians 12:27.

Many people have shared why they are staying home or taking precautions for the Coronavirus. There may be an immune-compromised individual or an elderly family member that they know are at higher risk if they contracted the virus. “I’m staying home for ____,” and messages like that have filled my news feed and reminded everyone that the good of others is a higher priority than our own selfish ambitions.

Selfish ambitions can be hard to let go of. Preschoolers are taught, “You get what you get, and you don’t throw a fit.” Not everyone can have their own way. A few adults might need that reminder...

Sacrifice for the good of others to the ultimate degree was modeled by Christ (Phil. 2:3-11).

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
7 rather, he made himself nothing
by taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
by becoming obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

The Head bowed low.
The One who was God in His very nature made Himself nothing.
The CEO of the company decided to clean the toilets at every employee’s house.
The superintendent of schools decided to go back to kindergarten.
The Head of the body decided it was time to play the part of the toenail on the little toe.

The Head bowed low and humbled Himself for the good of others.
His sacrifice made it possible for us to be one with Him as part of the body.
He did His part so that we might have our part in Him.
And now we have the opportunity to humble ourselves as the diverse parts of the body for the good of the whole and to the glory of the Head.
What is your part today?

P.S. His example of obedience and submission will be discussed at greater length in next month’s posts.