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Building Block Ten: Spiritual Companionship
Finally, and perhaps most important, a Christian husband and
wife should see themselves as spiritual companions. They are
making a spiritual journey through life together, walking
hand in hand as children of God toward the wonderful eternity
with God that awaits them. What a difference it makes when
a marriage has a godly husband and a dedicated wife! No one
can measure how much they help each other spiritually as they
travel life’s road together.
The spiritual dimension was included in the passages about
marriage we’ve been discussing. Speaking to husbands about
their wives, Paul said:
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved
the church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify
and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that
He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having
spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy
and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives
as their own bodies (Eph. 5:25-28).
There is to be a purifying, cleansing dimension to the marriage.
Just as the church is made pure because of Jesus Christ, so
the wife should be made better by her relationship to her husband.
And how is that accomplished? The same way Christ helped the
church: He loved it and gave Himself for it. Love and sacrifice—these
set a marriage apart and make possible a true spiritual companionship.
Peter also mentioned the spiritual dimension in his passage
on marriage. He closed it by saying, “that your prayers may
not be hindered” (1 Pet. 3:7). As the husband understands his
wife, giving her honor and seeing her as a joint-heir of the
grace of life, he will be able to pray with power. If he does
not, Peter says, his prayers will be “hindered.” He will lose
the easy freedom of unhindered prayer.
Here are some qualities that will be present in a marriage where
husband and wife are spiritual companions:
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They
both worship
the same God. |
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They
both seek to do the will of God. |
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They
are both accountable to Christ. |
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They
raise their children together. |
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They
pray for each other. |
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They
encourage each other’s faith. |
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As a husband and wife draw closer to the Lord through prayer,
Bible reading, fellowship, and submission to Christ, they will
also draw closer to each other. This relationship may be visualized
as a triangle. As the husband and wife draw closer to God, they
will also grow closer to each other in a relationship that pleases
God.
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