26-30 July 1999
WEEK 48
EPHESIANS: Getting Your Faith on the Ground
Ephesians 5:21-6:9 Our Relationships in Christ
A. Introduction
Without using the word love, tell the group two important principles which you have found
essential for meaningful relationships.
When you came to know Christ in a personal way, how did your relationships with those
around you begin to change?
B. Exploration
Read Ephesians 5:21-6:9
Earlier in chapter 5 Paul exhorts us to “be imitators of God” (5:1), “live as children of light
(5:8), and “be filled with the Spirit” (5:18). How are these truths important to effective
relationships in marriage, in the family, and at work?
At every meaningful point in every relationship some form of submission is required. Do you
agree or disagree with this statement? Why?
Christ’s love led Him to die for us. What would it mean for a husband to live for his wife
with this kind of love?
In your own words, how would you express the goal of a Christ-centered marriage?
What qualities characterize a home where both children and parents seek to apply the truths
found in verses 6:1-4?
How is the slave/master relationship affected when both are obedient to the Word?
C. Application
What area can you work on this week to be a better spouse (or potential spouse)?
At this stage of life, what does it mean for you to honor your parent(s)? How might this help
improve your relationship with them?
How do the principles in verses 6:5-9 apply to your work environment?
Unless you learn to play a duet in the same key, to the same rhythm, a slow process of disengagement will wedge you apart, first secretly, psychologically, and then openly and miserably. Walter Wangerin, Jr.
Your willingness to accept the differences between you will allow you to complement one another in ways that make life better for each of you. C.W. Neal
We feasted on love; every mode of it, solemn and merry, romantic and realistic, sometimes as dramatic as a thunderstorm, sometimes comfortable and unemphatic as putting on your soft slippers. She was my pupil and my teacher, my subject and my sovereign, my trusty comrade, friend, shipmate, fellow-soldier. My mistress, but at the same time all that any man friend has ever been to me. C.S. Lewis
[From Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts, by Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott, 1995]