Together For The Gospel (and your marriage)...

Ligon Duncan has a great post on the Together For The Gospel Blog about how husbands need to model their actions in marriage after what Christ has accomplished through the atonement.

Here is some of what he writes:

"That means, by the way, that every time we hear a sermon on the atonement, we as Christian husbands are being shown and taught by our Lord how to love our wives. Yes, certainly, above all, whenever we hear atonement proclaimed, we are always first to consider the matchless work of God on our behalf. The atonement always and foremost is to evoke in us wonder, love, gratitude and praise for saving grace freely given to us at the cost of the Father’s only and beloved Son. It is about what God is doing for us, for our redemption, outside of us, without any assistance from us, or any input from us, or any contribution from us. For the atonement is the awesome display of the stunningly surprising saving love of God at work on our behalf. It is never a mere example of love. It is never a mere illustration. It is never merely a means of moral influence.

"But here in Ephesians 5:25b, Paul bids Christian husbands to look at the cross, to look at how Christ gave himself for his people there, to look at how he gave himself totally, to look at how he gave himself to the uttermost, to look at how he endured the shame and suffering, to look at how he died – all for his bride, all for his people, all for the church.

"And then the apostle Paul applies the atonement to Christian husbands. "Men," he says, "Christ lived, suffered and died for the eternal good of his bride – now, you go love your wives like that. Love your wives like Christ loved the church. Love your wives like Christ gave himself for the church. Love your wives in light of the atonement."

If you would like to check out the complete post visit here. His words are especially timely for me as I have faced another anniversary and have realized how sobering it is to model a godly marriage for the congregation to which God has called me. Remember what Paul told Timothy-"If someone (a potential elder) does not manage his own household well, how will he care for God's church?" These words are great in demonstrating how Cross-centered all of life really is.