Sacrifice Like Christ
by Pete & Bobbie-Jo Moellgaard
Since January, the Spirit has been stirring up Pete and I to talk about having a servant’s heart, and what that looks like within relationships. For us, the best picture is the relationship in marriage. It’s not something that is a new idea, but in fact it is something that the writers of the New Testament talked about a lot. Marriage is a prophetic image of our oneness with God.
As we continue in the 1 Peter series, we find that he touches on different aspects of relationships. 1 Peter 2-3 We hit some very uncomfortable portions of this letter that deals with relationships between kings and citizens, servants and masters, husbands and wives, and finally all of us within the body of Christ.
1 Peter 2:13-20
“For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king as head of state, or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honour those who do right. It is God’s will that your honourable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God, and respect the king. You who are slaves must submit to your masters with all respect. Do what they tell you—not only if they are kind and reasonable, but even if they are cruel. For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment. Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.”
Cultural context of the time is very important as we read through this letter. Government and society was way different back then. Today relationships between citizens and government, employees and bosses, and the family unit are much different. However, there has always been a need for structure. As Heavenly Kingdom citizens, we gave up all our rights as Canadians and have come under the Kingship of Jesus. So when it comes to submitting and honouring earthly authority, we have to remember that in all things, we must obey God rather than man.
Acts 5:29
“But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority.”
1 Peter 2:21-25
Christ’s example: “For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone. He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed. Once you were like sheep who wandered away. But now you have turned to your Shepherd, the Guardian of your souls.”
You die with Christ and rise with him in baptism.(Romans 6:3-8) Your body/temple gets washed clean and filled with the Spirit. You have a new identity and are now a citizen of Heaven. Jesus gives you the ability to live righteously through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Main key: Jesus modelled sacrifice and submission to father God.
1 Peter 3:1-2
“In the same way (Just like Jesus), you wives must accept the authority of your husbands. Then, even if some refuse to obey the Good News, your godly lives will speak to them without any words. They will be won over by observing your pure and reverent lives.”
In different translations you will see the word “submission” or “subjection” instead of “accept the authority” For those of us who have been raised in a feminist culture, These are trigger words.
However, we must pay attention, Peter is not saying to the women to “give up control.” This idea comes from a history of oppressive culture that believed a (demonic) narrative that “the woman was lesser than, and must submit to her husband in almost a slave like fashion and thus be submissive to all the men around her. And not just women being lesser, but children and servants fell under the same oppressive mindset (to the extent that servants were considered lower than the dogs). These are all 100% lies from the enemy. Some of you might be thinking,” many of these themes are actually found in the bible.” It’s true, you can pick and pull things out of the bible to say these things…. But it is Satan, the father of lies, that twists the words of scripture into a demonic doctrine of oppression. ( Even in the Old Testament there are laws that liberated women, children and servants… at the time it was radically different from the nations around them. ) Unfortunately, the spiritual leaders of the day (and even some today) forgot to unpack the man’s responsibility to God, and instead twisted the word, and in turn made themselves into their own god. They forgot to look further and see that they are called to humble themselves and become like Christ — a living sacrifice and servant of ALL.
The union between a man and his wife is so mysterious and powerful, it’s no wonder Satan has attacked it so hard. Paul touched on this mystery in Ephesians 5:21–33 (Parenthesis added):
“And further, submit to (honour/respect) one another out of reverence for Christ. For wives, this means submit to (honour/respect) your husbands as to the Lord. For a husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Saviour of his body, the church. As the church submits to (honours) Christ, so you wives should submit to (honour/respect) your husbands in everything.
Marriage has been attacked from the beginning. Satan has twisted and skewed this.
If you forget to honour, respect, and submit to Christ, does he bash you? Shun you? Hold it over your head? NO!
Check out the book of Hosea and see how God called Hosea to show his relationship with Israel— Matthew 6:24 …”No one can serve two masters.”
“For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word. He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault. In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually shows love for himself. No one hates his own body but feeds and cares for it, just as Christ cares for the church. And we are members of his body. As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one. So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.”
When God put Adam to sleep, he separated himself into two distinct persons, man and woman. He not only took the female out of the man; he also took the woman out of him. Men and women are more than just physically different; all the strengths of womanhood were removed from the man. God literally broke Adam in half…. Adam would no longer be alone because he would now need his woman the way he needed God… women would now complete men in the same way Christ completes us when he is joined to his church.” – Kris Vallotton
“Marriage merges the two so that they re-emerge as one again. This holy union gives a husband access to his wife’s strengths and vice versa.” – Kris Vallotton
“God is not human, but neither is God male. It takes both feminine and masculine characteristics to represent God to the world.” –Kris Vallotton
Marriage is a prophetic image of oneness with God and Christ’s relationship with the church.
“In marriage we must cultivate a strong desire to make visible the invisible—the love of Jesus for his church through the love we have for our spouse. Marital love makes visible how God loves the world today—faithfully, freely, & fruitfully. It also points to our eternal destiny; being perfectly united in and by his love.” -Peter Scazzero
A godly marriage should be preaching the gospel the loudest — through our love for each other. John 13:34–35, “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples”
Likewise being single is also a sign and a wonder… you, in your singleness, bear witness to the sufficiency and fullness of Jesus. Because you are married to Christ your whole person belongs to him. Paul desired that all could be single for that very reason of being fully committed to Jesus without the earthly concerns of taking care of family. Paul realized how much harder it is to have time to spend in relationship with Christ while taking care of family matters. (1 Corinthians 7:7-9)
Peter was so confident in the power of submission, that he said,” they will be won over by observing your pure and reverent lives.”
A wife’s submission is a powerful expression of her trust in God. Ladies, your submission/respect/honour to your spouse, as unto God, is so unbelievably attractive that it will literally bring your husband to the light. It awakens them to the God given role of servant leadership in the family unit.
It is not easy, because it means dying to self and our wants. In our world that screams self care, Jesus is asking us to “lay down our lives” for each other, that the lowest/humblest on earth becomes the greatest in heaven.( Mark 9:35) Our goal, not just in our marriage but as well as amongst our church family, should be to our serve one another in the same way Jesus served us.
Peter goes on to say in vs 3-6 , ““Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God. This is how the holy women of old made themselves beautiful. They put their trust in God and accepted the authority of their husbands. For instance, Sarah obeyed her husband, Abraham, and called him her master. You are her daughters when you do what is right without fear of what your husbands might do.”
When we focus on our inward beauty— a pure heart towards God— it outshines anything we could do with makeup, hair styles or clothing. Being secure in our womanhood looks like a calm voice when faced with kids having a melt down, a clear mind filled with the word of God to navigate problems, a quiet peaceful spirit that’s at rest in knowing we are God’s most treasured daughter and nothing can remove us from his love, approaching her husband with honour and honouring him when he isn’t there (likewise for us who are not married to honour people in authority without succumbing to gossip) and a boldness to do what is right in the ways of God without fearing a husband (or other people in authority) might do.
1 Peter 3:7
“In the same way, you husbands must give honour to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered.”
1 Peter 3:8-12
“Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing. For the Scriptures say, “If you want to enjoy life and see many happy days, keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right, and his ears are open to their prayers. But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil.””
Proverbs 25:21-22 NLT
“If your enemies are hungry, give them food to eat. If they are thirsty, give them water to drink. You will heap burning coals of shame on their heads, and the Lord will reward you.”
Galatians 5:24-26 NLT
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.”
