Kingdom Bites

I’m not sure why, but my family hasn’t had the best luck when it comes to vacations. One year we rented a cabin on a lake; and it rained all week. Or the year we drove for hours to reach our hotel only to find they were overbooked and the spacious room we reserved was not available; and were forced to stay in a much smaller room and had to move into another the next morning. Wouldn’t you know it, this year our streak continued. No, it didn’t rain; and our room was nearly perfect, but it was bitterly cold. 

I know, what can you expect when you vacation in Minnesota during the month of January, right? However, after a season of warmer than average temperatures we hoped for more. Instead, we were greeted with one of the coldest weeks of the year. 

One morning, as we were preparing to leave for a day of activities, I headed out early to warm up our van. I even pulled it up to the front door of the hotel lobby so my family didn’t have to walk in the bitterly cold wind. As I sat there, shivering from the cold I thought to myself; “Now this is Ephesians Five Love,” self-sacrifice love. Not only was I braving the cold, sacrificing my warmth for theirs, but I did this while fighting a head cold and sore throat; I was convinced I deserved “Husband of the Year”! 

What is Ephesians Five Love you ask? Loving your spouse as Christ loves the church. Ephesians 5:25-27 reads: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the Word, and to present her to Himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”

Yes, Ephesians Five Love is a “Christlike” love. A love of sacrifice. A love of action. A love expressed unconditionally without exception or expectation of something in return. I was confident my love fitted within those criteria. But, was I really loving my wife just as Christ loved the church? The more I attempted to compare my love, my sacrifice, and my actions to Christ; I realized I wasn’t even in the same league. 

Christ sacrificed more by leaving the glories of heaven for the dullness of earth. He became human, and faced every temptation, struggle, and hardship we do; yet He never sinned. If that wasn’t enough, Christ willingly went to the cross, making the ultimate sacrifice: giving His life for ours. What makes this even more amazing is that He did this all for us while we were His enemies. “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8.

Christ’s sacrifice cost him exceedingly more than mine and offered something far better than a warm car. It paid for our sin, satisfying the wrath of God, restoring our broken relationship, and opening the gates of heaven. All done while we were hostile to Him. 

No, my gesture of love doesn’t compare to that of Christ’s; for showing Christlike love to your spouse means loving them when they are unlovable, serving them when it’s undesirable, and sacrificing everything for them regardless of how they act.

Hard? Yes. Impossible? No. However, we are only able to love like Christ if we have experienced Christ’s love. “We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:19. Because of Christ’s love and sacrifice for me, I am able to love Him and my wife. May you experience Christ’s Love in your life, so you can extend it to others around you.