Christians Revere Christ
A sermon based on Ephesians 5:21—6:4
Sunday, October 8, 2017 – Pentecost 18B
You can't give yourself a nickname and expect it to stick. Believe me, I've tried. The "Faster Pastor" hasn't really stuck… well, except as a joke. And I can't seem to get "Rev Rob" to take hold either. Maybe because Rev is short for Reverend. And I can't get people to refer to me as "the one we revere and hold in high esteem."
But what does that word, reverend, mean? What is it to revere someone or something? Webster's Dictionary defines "reverence" as "1: honor or respect felt or shown… especially: profound adoring awed respect… 2: a gesture of respect (as a bow)."
Now, I don't think I'm getting any of you to bow to me when I walk into the room. But I don't really feel slighted for it. In fact, reverence is something in short supply everywhere these days, isn't it? Not much reverence is shown the United States flag at college and professional football games. Not much reverence is given to the office of the President of the United States, let alone the man who currently holds that office. Not much reverence was given to human life in Las Vegas last Sunday night, or is givenat any abortion clinic on any given day.
But while it's easy to look at the headlines and think "Where is the respect and honor? Where is the adoring? Where has all the reverence gone?!" God would encourage you to look into your own home and into your own mirror and ask those same questions. Where is the reverence at home? Where is the honor a wife shows her husband? Where is the awe husband shows to wife? Where is the respect children show their parents? And in all of this he wants to ask, "Where is the reverence for Christ?"
Thank God, friends, that Jesus showed us such honor that he willingly humbled himself and sacrificed his very life for us to make us holy and blameless. And it is his sacrifice that moves us to revere him. Simply put, Christians revere Christ. Our text for consideration is taken from Ephesians 5:21—6:4…
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
6:1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 "Honor your father and mother"—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3 "that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."
4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.
How well, wives, do you revere your husbands? Do you give them unconditional honor and respect as Christ calls you to do? I know it can be hard to submit to them in everything as if submitting to Christ, especially because they're sinners and, unlike Christ, their leadership will be lacking. I know it can be hard to respect your husband unconditionally when he doesn't earn that respect. But, nevertheless, that's what God calls you to do. And that's what you signed on for when you said, "I do." After all, marriage isn't your idea. It's God's. And he defines the rules. Have you revered God in the way you show reverence to your husbands?
Husbands, have you loved your wives as much as Christ loved the church—willing to sacrifice anything and everything for her benefit? Have you always put her needs above of your own? That's what Christ did for us. I know it can be hard to show such love to her, especially when she shows such little respect to you. But that's what God calls you to do and that's what you signed on for when you said, "I do." Have you revered God in the way you show reverence to your wives?
Kids, do you always obey your parents? Do you give them the honor that they deserve? I know you didn't sign on for them as your parents. You didn't get a choice in the matter. But God chose them for you. He gave you the parents that you have. When you obey them and give them love and respect, you're doing the same to God. But have you always revered God in the way you revere your parents?
Parents, have you done all you can to keep your charge from God to bring up your children in the Lord? Actually, if they're baptized, they're not even really your children. They've been adopted by God and belong to him. You're just babysitting for him. And you will have to answer to him for the way they're raised. Have you always revered God in the way you revere that high calling to raise your kids?
And singles, even though you're not in your own family unit right now, you can still revere your parents, and you can still revere God's gift of marriage, by honoring the marriage bed and refraining from "playing married" until you actually are. Save yourself for marriage. Save yourself for your future spouse. And in doing so you will show reverence to God. But have you always revered God in the way you revere his gifts of marriage and family?
You see, all of us have failed to revere God in the way we interact with family and friends. And every time we sin against our spouse, our parents, or our kids, every time we sin against God's gift of marriage in our thoughts or in our actions, we're really sinning against God. We fail to show him the reverence—the holy awe, respect, and honor, that he deserves, not only as the Almighty Creator of the universe, but as our heavenly Father who has blessed us with so much. We show him our utter contempt as we live to serve ourselves instead of him. And for it we deserve death. We deserve hell.
Ah, but consider how much God revered us. He honored us by sending his own Son to take our punishment for every time we've refused to submit—to one another, and to him. Jesus had so much respect for us, sinful rebels that we are, that he submitted to the Father in our place. He loved us so much that he gave himself up for us on the cross as the perfect once for all sacrifice that made us holy! He washed us clean of our sin in baptism—"by the washing with water through the word"—he's made us, who were once filthy with sin to be radiant, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, holy and blameless.
It reminds me of that old reality TV show "Extreme Makeover," where ordinary men and women underwent "extreme makeovers" with plastic surgery, exercise regimens, waxing, plucking, hairdressing, and new wardrobes which transformed them from "ugly ducklings" into handsome and beautiful men and women. Except, what God had to work with was so much worse—we were deformed and depraved in our sin and rebellion, refusing to show reverence to anyone or anything but ourselves—and the results are so much better—not just a transformation of our outward appearances, but an inward change of our minds, of our hearts, and of our wills. We've become new, beautiful, people, inside and out, fit to marry God himself!
31 "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church.
Now, we are united to God in such an intimate way that he is wherever we are. All that was ours (our sin and our rebellion) he took away. All that belongs to him (his protection, his might, his heaven) is ours. And he will never leave us. He will never forsake us. He will never divorce us even for all our sin. What honor he's given to us! What reverence he's shown!
And now, we're eager to give ourselves to him in return! We can't help but give him reverence and honor and respect and love. Christians revere Christ! Now, we're glad to submit to him—in everything!—trusting that he who loved us that much will take care of us from day to day! And how do we show that love? What is his will that we eagerly submit to? We, "Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ."
"Wives, submit to [their] husbands [in everything!] as [if submitting] to the Lord." They give them not only love, but show unconditional respect. Whether such respect is earned or deserved matters little. They show respect out of reverence for Christ. So wives, go home today and ask your husband how you can show him greater respect.
"Husbands, love [their] wives, [as much as they love themselves… even more!] just as Christ loved the church." They gladly sacrifice their time, their energy, their very selves, giving themselves up for their wives. And it matters little if their wives give them respect in return. They love their wives anyway out of reverence for Christ. So husbands, go home today and ask your wives how you can better show love to them.
"Children, obey [their] parents…" not just to avoid getting into trouble, but to please God. They give parents obedience, love, honor, and respect out of reverence for Christ. Kids, go home today and ask your parents how you can help them and how you can better show them love and respect.
"Fathers… bring up [their children] in the training and instruction of the Lord," eager to introduce their children to their real, heavenly Father, and help them to know him better. They do this not just so they might be proud of their kids someday, but to make their heavenly Father proud. They do it out of reverence for Christ. Parents, sit down together tonight and talk about how you can help your kids to better know the Lord.
Do you want to fix the problems that you see with the lack of reverence in our nation? Well, unless you're close friends with an NFL player and can convince him to stand with his hand over his heart during the singing of the national anthem, you're probably not going to have a huge impact on the NFL with your Facebook posts and tweets. Unless you know someone is currently contemplating a mass murder suicide and you can talk them down or report them to the police, you personally probably won't prevent the next shooting. Unless you believe your scathing Facebook replies will silence all your political foes so they will finally show your party respect, you won't likely have a huge impact on too many by what you post.
But you can be more reverent in your sphere of influence. You can show more respect and honor to your spouse, to your parents, to your kids, to your coworkers and your family and friends. In thanks to Christ, who so willingly submitted to the Father, to death, to hell, for you and for me, we can willingly submit to him and be more reverent in our community right here, in our workplaces, in our marriages, and in our families. We can be more reverent at home as we "Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ." For Christians revere Christ. In his name, dear friends, amen.
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