Amen. Let's take our Bibles out at this time, congregation, and we want to turn back in our Bibles to the book of Ephesians, chapter 5, as we continue in our exposition of the book of Ephesians. Of course, we are considering in these days the scriptural teaching related to the family. Apostle Paul addresses various members of the family and gives very clear, straightforward, and practical words of instruction to each member of the family. And we are looking in these days specifically at verses 22 through 24. Here we have this word spoken, first of all, to the wives. So, let's begin by reading the text of Scripture, Ephesians 5 and verse 22. The Apostle Paul writes these words. Wives, submit to your own husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife. as also Christ is head of the church, and he is the savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Let's now join together before the Lord in prayer. Our gracious heavenly Father, we come before you now as we open your holy word. And Father, it is our desire today to not stand over your Word, but to place ourselves under your Word, to acknowledge its authority over us. We are not here to judge your Word. We are here to have your Word judge us. We are here not to instruct it. but we are here to be instructed by it. We submit ourselves to the authority, the sufficiency, the infallibility and the inerrancy of your word. This word that is as relevant today and just as applicable as it was in the days of the Apostle Paul when you inspired him to write these enduring principles. Father, we pray that we would be found today hearing your word aright for your glory, for your honor, for our good, and for the sake of the integrity and witness of the gospel. That a world which rejects Christ and hates his word would see how different those who have been redeemed by the precious blood of the Lamb prioritize and live their lives on a personal and familial way. Father, may you receive all honor and glory, we pray. We ask in Jesus' name, amen. As we are looking today, of course, we noted in verses 22 through 24, Paul addresses the responsibility of wives. What is their duty? Well, their duty, verse 22, is to submit. It is that word, pupitazo. It means to place or put oneself under the authority of another. Well, who is that other that wives are to place themselves under? Well, it is, verse 22, their own husbands. It is to their husbands they are to recognize that authority. We noted in verse 22 the quality of this submission. How are they to submit? Well, they are to submit to their own husbands as to the Lord. We noted the basis of this is found in verse 23. Because in verse 23 we are told that the husband is the head of the wife. He is the authority over the wife. And she is to recognize that authority and submit to that place which God has ordained for the husband in marriage. Then we noted at the end of verse 24 As Paul makes this comparison between Christ and the church and husbands and their wives, we noted the extent of this submission. And it is at the very end of verse 24 that wives are to submit to their husbands in everything, covering every area of life, whether it is the issue of child rearing and how you discipline your children, or it is your finances and decisions about what you purchase, or in any other aspect of your lives, there is this call to submit to their husbands in everything. Now, as we have been looking at this, we have then been seeking to consider what is the teaching of this idea of submission as understood through the lens of Holy Scripture and through the lens of the Christian tradition. And we, of course, are speaking specifically as Reformed Baptists through the lens of the Reformed Christian teaching on this subject of wifely submission. And we, of course, have been relying upon the teaching of Dr. Joel Beakey, which many of you are familiar with that name, and I would highly recommend anything that he has written as excellent material. And we recommended his book, On the Home, at the beginning of this series. We also are leaning on the teaching of one of the great Puritans, William Gooch, who was really the preeminent Puritan, not the only one certainly, but one of the shining stars of the Puritans who spoke on the topic of the family. His work of Domestical Duties is a classic and it has been reprinted and I would highly recommend it. And by the way, we have all of these books in our church library. So if you can't afford to go buy these books, you can check them out of the library. That's a ministry of our church, a vital ministry of our church, where you can actually resource these things that I am quoting from, and you can find that consideration in more full detail. But what we have said is this idea of the wife's submission, this duty of submission, can be broken down into four basic areas or categories. This duty involves the wife's reverencing of her husband. Secondly, her obedience to her husband. Thirdly, an assistance to her husband. She is to be her husband's helper. That's the very reason why she was created. And then fourthly, the idea of modesty. And so we've already looked at the first of these four things. Last week, we talked about the responsibility of reverence. The idea that the wife is to reverence her husband. She is to reverence her husband, and we said, what does this mean? Well, we said it has to do with a deep, heartfelt respect for her husband. What is the basis of this? Well, it is, as stated very quickly, the God-ordained place of the husband in marriage. God has placed the husband over the wife, and so she is to recognize that and reverence him for that place that God has ordained in the marriage relationship. Thirdly, we said last week, the character of this reverence is that it is to be comprehensive. It is to be both inward and it is to be outward. It is to be seen in the attitudes of the wife and in the actions of the wife. This deep, heartfelt reverence her husband. Interestingly we actually looked at that word where we see the idea of respect and it's found there in Ephesians 5 33. You notice there it says the wife see to it that she respects her husband and the root word there is the word from which we get our word fear. It is the word phobia. The idea of a phobia is the idea of fear. And so it's more than just having respect. It's this idea of reverence. And that's the idea attached with that concept of fear. This character of her reverence is to be in all of her conduct. Her actions are to be consistent with submission and honoring her husband as head and in respectful communication. In his presence, she is to speak in a respectful way. She is to be meek, moderated, and honoring in her speech towards her husband. In his absence, she is to always speak of her husband in an honorable way. She is never to speak critically. She is never to speak contemptuously of her husband, but she is to be building him up and showing that honor and reverence that God has commanded, verse 33, that she have for her husband. Now, we finished last week by talking about the causes of disrespect that a wife may have and the cures of that disrespect. Why is it that some wives may disrespect their husbands? We said, following William Gouge, there are three different causes. Now, obviously, there could be others added to the list. But firstly, there is this pride and self-conceit, where the wife thinks that she knows better or that she is better or that she is able better to lead the home or make decisions. That comes from pride and self-conceit. Secondly, her disrespect may be because she is magnifying the weaknesses of her husband. That is, she looks at her husband and she realizes, she discovers, and wives you know very well, husbands are not perfect, are they? In fact, no one is perfect. We are all sinners, and we all fail, and we all have weaknesses. That should not be a shocking revelation. And yet, this idea of reverencing and respect is still commanded in the context of husbands who are less than perfect. But a cause of disrespect is that she focuses on those weaknesses and says, well, because he's not perfect, I don't need to follow or do or employ what he has required. Thirdly, we said a cause of disrespect is an unjust assumption or suspicion that the wife may have regarding her husband. Well, I'm not gonna submit, I'm not gonna show him reverence because after all, he's doing this out of spite. Or he's doing this just to show me or whatever. You can just fill in the blank of the kinds of things that Satan will tickle our ears and whisper into us as he tries to get us to disobey his word. So William Gouge gives three cures for these three causes of disrespect. We said number one, When it is self-conceit and pride, what is the cure? Well, wives are to repent of their pride and self-conceit. That is, this is a sin, they're to see it as such, and they are to repent. What if the issue of disrespect is she is focused on his weaknesses? Then what is the cure for that? Well, the cure for that is, wives, focus on your own weaknesses. Realize that you're not perfect either, that you're a sinner too, but you're still required to reverence and show respect for your husband. And then number three, what if there is this unjust suspicion or assumptions about your husband, what is the cure for that? Well, remember that love thanks no evil. You're not to be reading into what your husband says or requires and look at that with some sort of suspicious interpretation. Why? Because you love him. And love thanks no evil. You don't quickly run to some sort of a suspicious understanding of what he has said. Congregation, that is the first of these four things that we acknowledge is part of what it means to submit to one's husband if you are a wife. There is this responsibility of reverence. Now, today we want to take up the second element, and that is the element of obedience. Wives are commanded by God not only to reverence their husbands, but to obey their husbands. And I want to begin by just talking about the issue of obedience in general terms. That is, not in the context of marriage as such, but just as God's requirement. This is one of those things that is not necessarily very popular among many Christians. We live in a day where, among many professed Christians, the idea of obedience is not the priority. It's more about feeling and loving and having emotion related to God rather than this requirement of obedience. Procurgation, I want to just remind us, all of us, whether we are a man or a woman, a boy or a girl, God prioritizes obedience in our lives. This is the mark of what it means to live a life that is pleasing to God. Turn with me in your Bibles back to the Old Testament. I want to read for a couple of passages just emphasizing the importance of obedience. And then we'll get specifically to the obedience of wives. But God requires obedience. And one of those examples of the many places that we could turn to in the Old Testament is the story of King Saul. The story of King Saul. And in 1 Samuel chapter 15, 1 Samuel chapter 15, I'd like to read verses 22 and 23. These are the words of the prophet Samuel to King Saul. Verse 22, the scripture says, so Samuel said, has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he also has rejected you from being king." What an incredible statement. Well, what is the story that is found here, the context about King Saul disobeying the Word of God and then God rejecting him as King of Israel? Well, if you know your Bibles, you know the story very well. Look with me, if you will, back up in verses 1 through 3. The context here is that God gave this word to Saul that he was to confront and eliminate all of the Amalekites. It was to be a complete extermination of every man, every woman, every boy, every girl, and all of their livestock. That's what God commanded. So we read in verse 1, it says, Samuel also said to Saul, the Lord sent me to anoint you king over his people, over Israel. Now, therefore, heed, that is obey the voice of the words of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of Hosts, I will punish Amalek for what he did to Israel, how he ambushed him on the way when he came up from Egypt. Now go and attack Amalek and utterly destroy all that they have and do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, infant and nursing child, ox and sheep, camel and donkey. In other words, a complete genocide of all of the people. It was not that there was to be anyone spared and there was to be no livestock spared either. Well, what exactly did King Saul do? What did he do? Well, look in verse number seven. Verse number seven, it says that Saul attacked the Amalekites from Hevelah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt. He also took Agag, king of the Amalekites, alive and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. But, verse nine, But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, the oxen, the fatlings, the lambs, and all that was good, and were unwilling to utterly destroy them, but everything despised and worthless that they utterly destroyed." So what was the sin of King Saul? He did not do what God commanded. He disobeyed God. Now, congregation, we read a story like this and it might be a little bit disturbing to us. Because here it is, God is commanding the complete genocide of a people. All of the men, all of the women, all of the infants, all of the children, all of the livestock. God says kill them all. Why does these kind of stories bother us? They bother us because our ethics and understanding, rather than being informed by the word of God, is informed by the culture that we have been basting in all of our lives. So that we come to the scriptures and we say, I don't like that. I don't think that's just. I don't think a loving God would do that. Shall we cut out 1 Samuel 15 from our Bibles? And you see this over and over again with various things in the scriptures. For example, the teachings in the Bible about homosexuality. And God says that it is an abomination to him. And yet in our modern culture, we say, well, it isn't really that bad. There are other things that are much worse. And yet God elevates that sin to a sin that is detestable in God's sight. Or we think about the subject of slavery. You know, the Bible has a lot to say about slavery. It never calls it a sin. It never prohibits it. It, in fact, in the Old Testament, God permits it and regulates it. But again, we look at the Bible with our modern cultural lenses, and we say, I don't agree with that. I don't like that. It is because our ethics, rather than being informed by the Bible, is informed by wanting to get along with our corrupt, Christless culture. Congregation, we are called to allow the Bible to be the Bible. Amen? The Bible is the authority. And if there is anything in the Bible that somehow confronts our assumptions, we don't say, well, our assumptions must be right and the Bible must be wrong. We say, the Bible is the Word of God and whatever my thinking is needs to be recalibrated to understand what the Bible says. And here we have in this chapter, God calling for the complete extermination of all of these people. And what is interesting about this story is that Saul almost killed everyone. But he kept one person alive, and that is King Agag. And he killed all the livestock except the very best livestock. And so you might say, well Saul did almost everything that God said. But you see here the importance of obedience to God? King Saul was confronted with Samuel and Samuel in verse 22 and 23 confronts him and says, you have disobeyed God. You have grievously disobeyed God because you did not kill everyone and exterminate all the livestock. And because of that, because of your rebellion, which, verse 23, is as of witchcraft to Almighty God, because this is what you have failed to do, failing to obey me, your stubbornness of heart, you shall no longer be king over Israel. Verse 24, notice Saul's reply to all of this. Then Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord in your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me, that I may worship the Lord. But Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel. You can read the whole chapter sometime at your leisure. But congregation, what does this story tell us? This story tells us that we are to obey God completely, immediately, without any kind of our contribution to what we think ought to be done or not done. Amen? Our obedience is to be complete. And this story is a striking example that God requires that we obey what he says. Period. End of discussion. What about the words of the Lord Jesus? Wasn't Jesus more concerned about being loving and relational? Is that what Jesus taught in his teaching? Well, turn with me just for the sake of time. Turn over in Luke to Luke chapter 6. Luke chapter 6, verses 46 through 48. And what we find in the Gospels is that Jesus made obedience central in all of his teachings. Luke 6 and verse 46, Jesus says, but why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to me and hears my sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like. He is like a man building a house who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house and could not shake it for it was founded on the rock. But he, verse 49, who heard and did nothing, that is, did not obey, is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently, and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great. I've been watching the news over the last weekend. I have thought about this statement of the Lord Jesus as we think about the tragedy in Central Texas with the floods and the latest count I've heard, 51 people who have died. And congregation, we need to be praying for those folks down there in Central Texas because that is a devastating situation. And congregation, that is really something of a little sliver of an insight into what Jesus is talking about right here. He says, the person who obeys me, that is, he hears what I say and does them. He is like a person who has built a house on a foundation that is a rock. And when the floods come, his house will remain. He will not be swept up in the judgment of Almighty God. On the other hand, verse 49, those who hear my teaching, but they don't obey, well, they are like someone who built their house on a foundation that is weak, and they will be swept away in judgment. Congregation, we could look at many other verses. We could turn to John 14. Jesus puts a high priority on God's people, those who truly are his. Jesus says, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. So nothing is so pleasing to God as obedience. Conversely, nothing is so provoking to God as disobedience. This is a principle that is found throughout the scriptures. So, talking about obedience generally, let's now move back to the subject of wives obeying their husbands. Turn with me, please, over to Titus, chapter 2. You say, Pastor, what about this subject of wives? Are they commanded to be obedient to their husbands? Is that a biblical teaching? Well, yes, it is. And we find this, and we'll look at just two passages for the sake of time. Obedience is part of the wife's God-honoring submission to her husband. We've read from this passage before, we'll read from it again, Titus 2, verses 1 through 5. Titus here is instructed by Paul, verse 1 of Titus 2, but as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine, that the older women be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith and love and patience, the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things. that they may admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, and then here's the phrase, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemy. So we see here for our consideration today in verse number five that wives are to be obedient to their own husbands. Now all of these things that the older ladies are to be admonishing the younger ladies about are things related to domestic life. The importance of this is that this is to be upheld, encouraged, with words of encouragement and admonition, because, verse 5, that the Word of God may not be blasphemed. God's will is clear on the subject, and if we are not doing what God says, then the testimony of Christ and the Word of God is blasphemed. So we see here this requirement that wives are, verse 5, to be obedient to their own husbands. Another place you want to turn to with me, please, is over in 1 Peter 3. 1 Peter 3, and again, verses 1 through 6. Peter writes in 1 Peter 3 and verse 1, wives likewise be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they without a word may be won by the conduct of their wives. That is, this idea of submission has an evangelistic overtone to it. When they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. Do not let your adornment be merely outward, arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel. Rather, let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own And then notice in verse 6, the idea of obedience. as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him, Lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror." So here again we see, just as in Titus 2, verse 5, we see in 1 Peter 3, verse 6, Sarah obeyed Now, it's in the context of talking about submission. Wives, be submissive to your own husbands. And then in verse 6, the idea of obedience is interjected because that is part of what it means to be submissive to your husband. If you are submissive, you will obey your husband. So, as we think about this, let me just quote to you from Dr. Joel Beakey. He says, quote, rather than being a yoke to be cast off or a snare to be avoided, a wife's obedience to her husband is an ornament to her beauty before God and the flowering of the doctrine of God in her marriage. You see, there are many feminists today who would look at women who would say, yes, we need to obey our husbands. And they would say, that is an ugly thing. They would say, oh, that is a horrible thing. You can do that if you want to, but I'm sure not going to do it. And yet what we see here and what Joel Beakey is pointing out is this spirit of obedience to the wife. This is not a yoke to be cast off. This is not a snare to be avoided. This is an ornament to her true beauty. This is what is beautiful, as Joel Beakey says, before God. Do we want to be beautiful? among the other women who hate God and His Word? Or do we want to be seen as beautiful before God? Well, if that is our goal, then we desire to be obedient to our husbands. So we want to ask and answer some questions about this idea of obedience to our husbands. And let me just start with this first question. What are the essential elements of a wife's obedience. Now, question number one, what are the essential elements of a wife's obedience? Well, and again, this is relying on Joel Beakey, William Gouge, and others. There are two elements which this obedience consists of. Two things, basically. Number one, it involves abstaining from doing things against her husband's will And number two, it involves doing what her husband requires. That is, whenever we talk about this idea of obedience, the husband is the head of the household, he is the head over the wife, and she is therefore, by obedient compliance to her husband, to comply to whatever he requires. Now obviously the caveat is if he tells her that she is to go rob a bank or she is to go lie to someone, that's different. That would be where in the book of Acts we must obey God rather than men. But if it is not sinful, then it is her duty to do whatever her husband requires and abstain from doing whatever is against her husband's will. In other words, if her husband says do this, she is to do it. If her husband says don't do that, she is not to do it. That's simply stated what this means. A second question, number two, not only what are the essential elements, but secondly, how is the wife's obedience manifested? How is it manifested? And again, I quote from Joel Beakey. If it is to be acceptable to God, the wife's obedience should be manifest in both words and deeds. Since the mouth speaks out of the abundance that fills the heart, Matthew 12, 34, if she reverences her husband in her heart, then it will be manifest in her speech. She should refer to him with respect, 1 Peter 3, 6, and speak of him to others with respect. She should guard against being argumentative or disagreeable, knowing that the Lord hears and she will give an account, Matthew 12, 36. She will both win her husband's heart if it can be won, 1 Peter 3, verse 1, and get honor from the Lord by the imperishable beauty of a meek and quiet spirit, 1 Peter 3, verses 4 and 5. A wife shows her reverence in deeds. by obeying her husband in all things lawful and harmonious with the Lord's greater headship over her. And that basically, what he means by that is that if it is lawful, if it is not sinful, she is to obey. Either by way of not doing what he forbids or doing what he commands. She is to obey and that is manifested in her words and in her deeds. Question number three, what is the extent of the wife's obedience? If you're there in 1 Peter, turn back with me please to Ephesians chapter 5. Ephesians chapter 5. And we see here, and we have read this many times and we will continue to emphasize it, we see here in verse 24, therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their husbands in everything. In other words, the question that we might ask ourselves is, is the church completely subject to Christ or only partly subject to Christ? Is anyone here willing to say, well, you know what? The church is only 50% to be subject to Christ. Well, I think we would all say that's ludicrous. The church is to be 100% subject to Christ. I'm following Paul's argument here in this verse. Well, just as the church is subject to Christ, so the wives are to be to their husbands in everything. So a wife, the extent of her obedience, she is to be obedient to her husband in all things lawful, all things harmonious with the Lord's headship over her. Question number four, as we make our list, what is the manner of the wife's obedience? Well, look at verse 22 here again in Ephesians. wives, submit to your own husbands as to the Lord." So here we see that it is to be as to the Lord. Again, quoting Joel Beege, he says, the manner of her obedience, speaking of the wife, the manner of her obedience is that it is done as to the Lord. She obeys her husband with the intent of not only pleasing him, but also pleasing the Lord, because she sees the Lord's authority in her husband's, even when the thing required by him has no other argument for doing it than that it pleases him. You see, this issue of obedience, and we've talked about this as it relates to submission, it's not just if you can understand the reasoning behind what he says that the wife is to do. Wives, your husband may tell you to do something or to abstain from doing something, and he may discuss it, and you may have a conversation, and that is perfectly legitimate in the bonds of marriage. And it is good husbands that we explain and lead her along to the thinking that we have when we give her a directive, a requirement, or something to abstain from. But even if she disagrees with the reasoning, even if she says, well, you know what? I just don't see it that way. I don't think that's right, or I think you're way off. She still is required to obey her husband. Amen? She is required to do it regardless of whether she agrees. Because this is her duty as it relates to that headship God has placed over her. Again, it is not submission if she only submits when she agrees to submit. That really isn't submission at all. It is to be obedience as to the Lord. As we obey the Lord, wives, you are to obey your husbands. How do we obey the Lord? We obey Him immediately. We obey the Lord completely, because partial obedience is disobedience. And we obey the Lord cheerfully. That is, it is not merely our actions. It is our attitudes as well. It is that we do it with a sweet compliance of the will to what is required of your husband. Number five, what is the clear evidence of a wife's obedience? The fifth question here, what is the evidence of this obedience? Well, obviously it's by her doing what he says, in word and deed, in everything as to the Lord, and yet the wife's obedience is most clearly evident in her submission to her husband's counsels, and his reproofs. You see, the husband has, and we'll be getting to this later, husbands, right now you're just kind of sitting back and enjoying, but let me just share with our husbands, your time is coming, and it's not necessarily maybe going to be enjoyable for you. But the husband has the responsibility to be the prophet, the priest, and the king in the home, just as Christ is prophet, priest, and king. And a part of that responsibility of the husband is to be the prophet and priest, and that involves giving biblical counsel, and yes, correction and reproof. not only to the children, but to the wife as well. This is his duty as the head, the prophet, priest, and king in the home. The husband is called to encourage, instruct, counsel, and lovingly reprove his wife. The wife is called to receive his counsel and correction and reproof. So do you see, that's really where the rubber hits the road, isn't it? It's one thing to just kind of go along and comply, but whenever there are those situations where the husband has to give correction and reproof, now that's where the real test of obedience and submission comes in. Listen to what, again, Joe Beeke says. He says, quote, to her obedience to her husband's counsels, the wife must add obedience to his reproofs. This will be her hardest task and a bitter pill to flesh and blood, especially where she harbors a proud and contentious spirit within. But she must lovingly and thankfully bear his reproofs. Let her consider that since none is as close to her as her husband, so none is more able to be obliged to speak to her about her sins. Moreover, since the two of them are one flesh. Whatever sins beset her beset the relationship itself. and pain them both. Likewise, whatever sins are repented of and cut off in either of them will bring healing and joy to both of them." As Joel Beakey says here, this really is where the manifestation of submission and obedience is found. It's, yes, wives are to obey in word and deed everything their husband tells them. And whatever he requires, she is obligated to do. Whatever he says don't do, she is not to do. But even more so, where the rubber hits the road, is that when he as that loving prophet, priest, and king in the home, corrects her, and admonishes her, and reproves her, That's where the test of submission and obedience is most clearly seen. That is where the wife is seen to be either truly in conformity to the will of God for her life as it relates to her husband, or whether there is this resistance to the God-ordained duties she is called to fulfill. So, congregation, as we conclude this morning, let's just sum all of this up today. It is the duty of wives to submit to their husbands. This submission requires this recognition of his place over her and in the home. If that is not understood, then this stuff does not make sense. God has ordained the husband to be the head and she, the words hupotasso, to place herself under that authority. This includes the responsibility of reverencing her husband, this deep, genuine, heartfelt respect for him, acknowledging that he is over her and over the home. And as we have seen today, it involves this responsibility of obeying her husband, doing what he requires, abstaining from anything that is against his will. Both in her words and her deeds, she manifests this obedience. What is the extent? We said, Ephesians 5, 24, it is in everything. What is the manner? As to the Lord. And what is the evidence? It is by the sweet reception and submission to the counsel, corrections, and reproofs of her husband. That's where it is clearly evident. So, as we conclude this morning, questions for our wives to reflect and prayerfully consider. Number one, are you obeying your husband? Are you obeying your husband in word and deed? Are you obeying your husband in everything as to the Lord? Whenever your husband comes to you, ladies, and says, here's an issue I see in your life, There's an area that needs to be addressed. And yes, He does so lovingly. He does so with a view of your well-being because He loves you and He wants the best for you and for your relationship and for your home. And He corrects you. He reproves you. How do you respond to that? Do you recall from that? Do you immediately say, well, I've got some things to share with you as well, Buster. Or is there this spirit of a willing compliance and teachableness whereby you say, I see that. Or maybe I don't completely see that, but regardless, I desire to submit and obey because that's what God has commanded that I do. This is what God has for your will, for your life. Wives, are you obeying your husbands? Secondly, another question for our wives, do your children see you obeying your husband? You see, this is not just a matter of you and your husband. If you have children, Maybe they are young children. Maybe they're middle-aged or even teenagers. You are setting a pattern that will impact the rest of their lives. And how often have I in pastoral counseling dealt with couples and you'll have one spouse who was reared in a home where the Bible was followed and another spouse where they didn't see this modeled. And it creates all kinds of problems in the home because they perhaps have never seen this. And sadly, increasingly in our feminized culture, where feminism is so much a part and pervasive in our day, there is a great lacking of this reality. So wives, it is your responsibility, it is your duty to obey and submit and gladly receive the reproofs of your husband in compliance to his will, Not only for your sake and to the Lord, but as an example to your children. What do your girls, your daughters, see you doing? Because you know what? That's going to follow when she, Lord willing, gets married. What is it that you are doing or not doing because you are setting a precedent? Praise be to God, we have families where they see that glad compliance. Praise God for that, because that's a rare thing. Rather than arguing and contending and debating, there is this spirit of sweet and immediate compliance and obedience for the sake of Christ. And the children see that And that is an impactful thing as to how they understand the Word of God. Mommy and Daddy are following the Bible. That must mean the Bible is true. That must mean we're to do that too. You see how what we do or not do impacts so many others around us. Wives, you are to obey your husband in everything. You are to do it by your words and deeds as unto the Lord. You are to do it when he corrects you, when he counsels you, when he lovingly reproves you and speaks to you about your sin. This is your duty before God. Congregation, it is the duty of all of God's people to obey God. And this is the duty for wives, all of us are called to obey God. If we have an issue with obedience, then we have an issue with God. Because God repeatedly, pervasively puts the priority in obeying Almighty God. To obey is better than sacrifice. because rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft. Obey the Lord, and thus please him, and show that you truly love him. Let's bow together in prayer. Our gracious Heavenly Father, we bow before you now as we come to this point, the conclusion of this message, And Father, we recognize that these things, these are not the kind of things that our world says. In fact, these are not the kind of truths that you will find in many, if not most, so-called churches. Because so often we operate on the basis believing our own wisdom is wiser than yours. And our understanding is better than yours. Father, I pray that there would be in our day a great turning among God's people back to the Bible, back to the basic truths of Scripture, things that are simple and straightforward, and yet so often the very things that we leave off or even rebel against. We thank you, O Lord, for our wives. We thank you for the godly wives who obey their husbands, who set that example before their children. Lord, we give you praise for them. And we pray, Lord, that this area of obedience would be enlarged and it would be communicated through word and deed so that you, would be glorified and the gospel would not be blasphemed. Father, we thank you and we pray this all in the precious name of our Savior, your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And for his sake, we pray. Amen. Amen. Let's all stand together now as we prepare to be dismissed. Again, with the words of Holy Scripture, the Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you. The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. All of God's people said, Amen. Amen.