Mar 09 – Love in the Family !

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church” (Ephesians 5:25).

Everyone who loves the Lord must also show the same within the family. Every Christian home should reflect Christ’s love to the world.

In Ephesians chapter 5, special instruction is given concerning the relationship between husband, wife, and children. The apostle Paul exhorts: “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord” and “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church” (Ephesians 5:22, 25).

Yes, the wife is to submit to her husband, and the husband is to love his wife. Only then will harmony and loving unity prevail in the home. Problems will not easily arise. How much should a husband love his wife? Paul gives the measure clearly—“just as Christ also loved the church.” That love must resemble the sacrificial love of Christ.

Next, Paul speaks of the loving unity between parents and children. The Word of God says: “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12).

No one can replace the place of parents. No matter how old they may be, they remain special. Honouring parents is the sacred duty of children.

Thirdly, we are commanded to love our brethren (1 Peter 2:17). Loving our brothers and sisters strengthens us and brings glory to the Lord. In a family where siblings live in unity, the enemy cannot enter easily.

Sadly, in some homes, when the time comes to divide property among children, brotherly love disappears. In other families, misunderstandings—sometimes influenced by spouses—create division among siblings. But dear children of God, under no circumstances should brotherly love diminish. It is our responsibility to preserve affection and unity.

The Word of God warns: “He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes” (1 John 2:10-11)

Verse for further meditation: “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1)