Ephesians 5:22-32
Frankly, the Biblical image of marriage sounds like kind of a drag.
Wives: "Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything" (Ephesians 5:24).
Really? Even supposing that husbands are "lov[ing] their wives as their own bodies" (Ephesians 5:28) this is no guarentee that they will be making good decisions. You can do your best but you are still going to fail. And really, are wives supposed to just sit around having their advice at times ignored, and then be completely fine with the poor decision their husbands make? I'm not saying this would happen all the time. It may not even be the norm in a relationship but man, that would be rough! No thanks! I don't want another person making all the important decisions about what is going to happen to me and my life. (God, of course, is another story as He is infalliable). Did God really intend for women to be that passive?
Husbands: "In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself" (Ephesians 5:28).
I don't know about you but I already make enough mistakes in my own life. I wouldn't want the responsibility of making all the important decisions in someone else's as well. Talk about pressure! If you end up making some terrible mistake that affects your wife you know you are fully to blame. Buying a house? Investing? Moving? Want 6 kids? You, husband, are the ultimate deciding factor. And if you don't want to take your wife's advice you can go ahead and ignore it. You can make that decision, it's within your right. Of course, it might be up to debate as to whether you are loving your wife as your own body... And if that decision of yours goes sour, well, you have no one but yourself to blame.
It seems like this arrangement would cause quite a bit of resentment on both people's parts. I would think that a wife would start resenting her husband and envy his freedom and I would think the husband would start to resent his wife for being a burden.
And if this is really how it is supposed to work I don't really think I want to get married. I wish, oh I wish ever so much, that I didn't long for a romantic relationship or, when I end up having a crush on someone, feel the desire to care for them. I feel like I'm just undermining myself here.
Wives: "Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything" (Ephesians 5:24).
Really? Even supposing that husbands are "lov[ing] their wives as their own bodies" (Ephesians 5:28) this is no guarentee that they will be making good decisions. You can do your best but you are still going to fail. And really, are wives supposed to just sit around having their advice at times ignored, and then be completely fine with the poor decision their husbands make? I'm not saying this would happen all the time. It may not even be the norm in a relationship but man, that would be rough! No thanks! I don't want another person making all the important decisions about what is going to happen to me and my life. (God, of course, is another story as He is infalliable). Did God really intend for women to be that passive?
Husbands: "In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself" (Ephesians 5:28).
I don't know about you but I already make enough mistakes in my own life. I wouldn't want the responsibility of making all the important decisions in someone else's as well. Talk about pressure! If you end up making some terrible mistake that affects your wife you know you are fully to blame. Buying a house? Investing? Moving? Want 6 kids? You, husband, are the ultimate deciding factor. And if you don't want to take your wife's advice you can go ahead and ignore it. You can make that decision, it's within your right. Of course, it might be up to debate as to whether you are loving your wife as your own body... And if that decision of yours goes sour, well, you have no one but yourself to blame.
It seems like this arrangement would cause quite a bit of resentment on both people's parts. I would think that a wife would start resenting her husband and envy his freedom and I would think the husband would start to resent his wife for being a burden.
And if this is really how it is supposed to work I don't really think I want to get married. I wish, oh I wish ever so much, that I didn't long for a romantic relationship or, when I end up having a crush on someone, feel the desire to care for them. I feel like I'm just undermining myself here.