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Sermon #4165

True Love

A Sermon on True Love from Ephesians 5:25-33

Originally preached Feb. 14, 1960

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Scripture

Ephesians 5:25-33 ESV KJV
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, …

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Sermon Description

The Bible tells that in marriage the wife is to submit to the loving and caring leadership of the husband, just as Christ himself submits to God the Father. Additionally, husbands are to love their wives just as Christ loves the church. In this sermon on true love from Ephesians 5:25–33, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones exhorts that every Christian marriage is to be marked by this love and service. It is not to be an oppressive and cruel union, but in all things it is to reflect Christ’s love. It is also to be marked by real communion and fellowship between husband and wife. Dr. Lloyd-Jones says this to confront the error that says that all sexual and physical pleasure in marriage is either wrong or not important. The Christian marriage is one that involves many forms of love, including physical love. This is in stark contrast to those who teach celibacy and abstention from sexual pleasure as a higher life than that of the married. This kind of thinking misses the biblical teaching that marriage is good and created by God for His glorification and human enjoyment. It is God who made marriage as a representation of the great relationship between Christ Jesus and the church.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The apostle Paul instructs husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church.
  2. The word 'love' used here refers to agape love - the highest form of love, God's love. It is self-sacrificing and unconditional.
  3. There are three types of love: eros (physical/selfish), philia (friendship/fondness), and agape (God's love). The love between spouses should include all three but be centered on agape.
  4. A husband's leadership should be one of love, not tyranny. Power should be balanced with love and discipline.
  5. Christ's love for the church is the model for a husband's love for his wife. Christ loved the church in spite of her imperfections and gave himself up for her.
  6. Christ's ultimate goal is to present the church as glorious, without blemish. This shows his pride and interest in the church.
  7. The relationship between Christ and the church is the model for the relationship between husband and wife.
  8. We must first understand Christ's love for the church before we can understand the husband's love for his wife.
  9. Christ's love for the church is self-sacrificing, not self-centered. It is focused on giving, not getting. Husbands should love their wives this way.
  10. Though marriage is common, if done God's way it reflects profound Christian truths.

The Book of Ephesians

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.