11 Spirit Filled Plan for Marriage

As the church is the extension of Christ, so is the wife an “extension” of her husband. No one hates his own body but takes care of it. We feed it and care for it literally, “nourishing and cherishing.” Thus as Christ loves the church, His body (of which all believers are members; cf. Eph. 4:25), so should husbands love their wives as their own bodies (5:28; cf. v. 33). Men care for their bodies even though they are imperfect and so they should care for their wives though they are imperfect. The bond between husband and wife is greater than that between parent and child. The greatness of this union refers to the two becoming one flesh. This mystery, which was unknown in the Old Testament, is wonderful bond between Christ and the church, which illustrates the love of a husband for his wife. The Jews were expecting their Messiah. They did not realize that He would be the husband of the new creation, The Church. The Jews were known as the “wife of Jehovah” (Jeremiah 31:32). This is a restatement of the responsibilities of the husband and wife toward each other: love by the husband (cf. v. 25) and respect by the wife.