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The fact that so many homes are being dissolved in divorce is proof that many homes are far less than ideal. Since the most basic requirements of a home are a husband and wife, it follows that the greatest responsibility for the quality of every home rests upon these two persons. Every person is the product of some kind of home. Beyond question much of the personal unhappiness and tragedy people experience relates directly to the unhappy and misguided home environment in which they were reared. A home can never be what God wants it to be without the spiritual foundation of God’s Word, where both husband and wife pattern their lives by the Bible. Another important ingredient of the ideal home is the complete loyalty a husband and wife owe to each other, a loyalty that goes beyond all other earthly relationships. Further, there must be a healthy mutual admiration between a husband and wife, in which they build each other up instead of running each other down, if the home is to approach the ideal
Another essential ingredient of the ideal home is respect for God’s plan of authority in the home. Every institution, whether secular or spiritual, requires someone to shoulder responsibility for leadership and authority—a place “where the buck stops.” In the church, it is Christ. In the home, it is the husband and/or father: “For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is also the head of the church” (Eph. 5:23; 6:1–Í4). This is the consistent teaching of Scripture in numerous passages, regardless of modern philosophies that strip man of his authority. Let it be emphasized that this is God-given authority, not a humanly devised plan. Such authority of a husband over his wife does not imply that the wife is inferior to her husband, nor should she feel inferior in submitting herself to her husband. It does not mean that the wife has no right to freely speak her mind or hold her own opinions and convictions. Neither does it give any man the right to abuse his wife, physically or any other way, as a despot who rules his subjects with an iron hand.
The authority of the husband means that he has been given the responsibility of leadership in the home. This relates both to spiritual emphasis and material provisions. After consideration of the needs and desires of each member of his home, he must choose the best course. He would be a fool not to consult with his wife in making major decisions. When all has been considered and decided, he should receive the cooperative respect of his wife. We have known thousands of married couples and have counseled with hundreds of people with their problems over the years. Never have we seen a happy or ideal home situation where God’s plan of authority of the husband over the wife was ignored.
[Note: I wrote this article for, and it was published in the “Bible Thoughts” Column for the Hood County News, Granbury, Texas, November 25, 1979.]
Attribution: From thescripturecache.com; Dub McClish, owner and administrator.
