Please read all of Ephesians. Choose one of the questions below and select a verse that particular helps in answering that question. Please explain your choice.1. What seem to be the most import ethical challenges the Ephesian Christians are facing?
2. In what ways does Ephesians seem different than Romans and I Corinthians?
3. What specific standards does Paul set for servants, masters, children, wives, and husbands? Is he right is saying that the husband is the “head” of the wife? How do Paul’s ideas differ from those of contemporary society?
4. What is Paul’s advice to leaders on handling ethical problems?
For this blog post, I will be doing question 3.
ReplyDeleteWives: Submit in everything to your husbands
Husbands: Love your wives as your own bodies, leave his mother and father and hold fast to his wife, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in discipline and instruction of the Lord,
Children: Obey your parents and honor them
Servants: Obey your earthly masters
Masters: Do the same as your servants do to you and stop threatening your servants
Although I do believe what he said was right for society at the time, I think many people would have a problem with it in today's society. This is because back then. the husband was in charge of making decisions for the household, making decisions for their wife, and making decisions for their children. Nowadays, decisions are made by both the husband and wife regarding what needs to be done within the household. With this being said, no. I do not believe he is right in saying the husband is the "head" of the wife.
Question 1: The biggest challenges the Ephesian Christians are facing are following God's commandments and not falling back into there bad sinful habits. (6:11) "Finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil." I think this verse sums up the problems the Ephesian Christians are facing perfectly because it shows what they need to do to stay on track. It also shows how the devil wants to drag them back into there old sinful ways. - Eathen Erck
ReplyDeleteQuestion 1: I would say one of problems facing the church. Is that they still do not trust the Gentiles. Which is shown in Eph 2:11-13 "Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands" 12 That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." Which Paul talks about earlier in Eph 2 how can the Jews judge the Gentiles like this knowing there own history. Also this shows how the Gentiles are now in this together with the Jews as Christians.
ReplyDelete-Austin Dreyer
Delete#3. Paul tells wives that they are to be subordinate to their husbands in everything they do, while husbands are just supposed to love their wives. While this seems like an unfair standard, Paul is really telling women to serve their husbands as they would the church and husbands should love their wives as they do Christ. A marriage is a commitment between three people: the two partners and God. The husband is considered the head of the relationship because at that time he was in charge of making sure the family had what they needed. This idea of the man being the head of the relationship definitely has some conflicting opinions now. However, I think it mostly has to do with where you are.
ReplyDeleteChildren are instructed to obey their parents. Servants are told to follow their masters orders and masters are told not to be too harsh on their servants.
Question #1: I think one of the ethical challenges shown that the Ephesian Christians are facing is that Paul is telling them that they need to not live like the Gentiles anymore. Ephesians 4: 17-19. Paul is telling the Christian Ephesians that the Gentiles are darkened in the way that they think and that they are separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is hardening their hearts. Paul also explains that the Gentiles are full of greed and that they indulge in every form of impurity. Paul then goes on in Ephesians 4: 20-24 to explain that the Ephesian Christians must put on a new self created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
ReplyDelete-Dawson Pfister
I feel the greatest ethical challenge that the Ephesians had was learning to refuse sin and to walk and be unified in the manner that Christ intended. In Chapter 4, Paul talks to the Ephesians, saying he is a prisoner of the Lord, but he urges them to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to Christ. Paul starts Chapter 4: 1-3 off by saying, “I, therefore a prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness. With patience bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of one in spirit in the bond of peace.” Later Paul urges them in the same chapter to not follow in the way of the gentiles because that is not the way of Christ that they were taught. Later in chapter 4:17-20 Paul says, “Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to the hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!” From these verses its easy to assume that it must have been difficult to follow the way Christ intended because other followers were following in a wrong way.
ReplyDeleteQuestion 3:
ReplyDeleteWives; Submit to your husbands, as to the Lord.
Husbands; Love your wives, be prepared to die for them.
Children; Obey your parents in the Lord for this is right.
Servants; obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart.
Masters; Treat those who work for you well.
Is he right about saying the husband is the head? I think Paul is right about saying that the husband is the head of the household. But I also think this verse is misconstrued. People usually have the image of a guy, having 100% of the power. But that's never the case. In every married couple I know, the man while being able to make the final decision, can almost always be swayed to make it or not by his wife. That's the case in a healthy relationship, when it comes down to it, they know how to talk things out.
Contemporary Society usually focuses on sticking it to the man, and rebelling against authority. Paul's message is a clear authoritarian structure, but also lays out ground rules for people in charge. He tells people to be courteous to each other. Don't be rude to people, for rudeness sake.
Question 3:
ReplyDeleteWives; Submit to your husbands, as to the Lord.
Husbands; Love your wives, be prepared to die for them.
Children; Obey your parents in the Lord for this is right.
Servants; obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart.
Masters; Treat those who work for you well.
Is he right about saying the husband is the head? I think Paul is right about saying that the husband is the head of the household. But I also think this verse is misconstrued. People usually have the image of a guy, having 100% of the power. But that's never the case. In every married couple I know, the man while being able to make the final decision, can almost always be swayed to make it or not by his wife. That's the case in a healthy relationship, when it comes down to it, they know how to talk things out.
Contemporary Society usually focuses on sticking it to the man, and rebelling against authority. Paul's message is a clear authoritarian structure, but also lays out ground rules for people in charge. He tells people to be courteous to each other. Don't be rude to people, for rudeness sake.
-Walker Larson
Question #3
ReplyDelete- Wives: submit to your own husbands
- Husbands: love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her
- Children: obey your parents in the Lord
-Servants: obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart
- Masters: do the same, and stop your threatening
I think, in a biblical sense, the husband is meant to be the head of the house. If you go back and look at the Old Testament, you will see that men (husbands) are often instructed to do things rather than their wives. For example, Adam was created first and was instructed to keep watch of his wife (Eve) in the garden. I think Paul's idea can be more easily related to marriage in the past. Men were the ideal producers and providers and were meant to take care of their wives--they made the money and brought home all the goods to provide care for their family. But now, the roles can be reversed. Women can do just as much, if not more, work than men. In today's society, this idea is taken entirely out of context, but if you think about it, is very easy to misunderstand. If you are reading the Bible for the first time and come across this verse, as a woman, you would probably be taken off guard and, quite honestly, offended. Society today is heavily focused on independence and the idea of feminine power, so this verse is very off-putting for many women today, as it sounds like they should obey their husbands without question and "submit" to them in everything.
-Lauren Bland
Ephesians 5:21 - 6:9
ReplyDeleteHusbands: love, respect, and lead your wife. Love her as you love yourself. Leave your family to be joined to your wife.
Wives: Listen, respect, and submit to your husband
Parents: love and do not provoke your children, rather bring them up to be loving, contributing members of the Church
Children: obey and honor your parents
Slaves/Servants: be obedient to your masters
Masters: stop bullying your servants/slaves, treat them kindly and with respect and as they treat you.
I do believe that he is right in saying that the husband is the “head” of the family and wife. He is not saying this literally but figuratively, as back then it was up to the men to make all decisions. Today decisions are made together between man and wife but I still believe that the man is the “head” of the family. I think this because while man and woman were created equally we were created differently for different purposes. Woman was created from the rib of man and therefore belongs at the side of man, not behind or under foot but rather cradled in his arms next to the heart. Women are oftentimes the heart of the family as it is through the woman that the gift of life is brought forth in love. It is up to the man to be the protector of that life, love, and heart. Men are also the head of the family in the faith as we now see that the more active the father is in the faith the higher chances of the children continuing on in the faith.