Meadowbrooke Church

Meadowbrooke Church

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Meadowbrooke Church Podcast

Meadowbrooke Church, Cheyenne, WY

3 DAYS AGO

The Magnificence of Marriage

I heard a well-meaning pastor and theologian say by way of application from his reading of Ephesians 5:22-25 these words: “Godly women want to feed their men. Godly women are designed to make the sandwiches. This is not an absolute law, like the one about making babies, and there are times when a man fends for himself and makes quite a decent sandwich. But in the general scheme of things, the apostle Paul wants the women to make the sandwiches.”[1] My question to you, is that what Ephesians 5:22-25 is teaching? So, here is how I hope to answer that question. I hope to answer the above question by showing you how the willful subjecting of the wife to her husband and the sacrificial love of the husband for his wife is the apostle Paul’s way of showing us what Ephesians 4:1-3 looks like in marriage; consider these verses in light of marriage: “...walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” The way I am going to show you what sandwiches have to do with marriage is by explaining what Ephesians 5:22-25 is saying, then I will show what these verses mean for your marriage, and finally, we will look at some examples of Jesus and what He thinks about sandwich making. What is Ephesians 5:22-25 Really Saying? So what is Ephesians saying? Let me begin answering that question by unpacking what the Greek word hypotassō(ὑποτάσσω) means; it can be translated as subject, subordinate, or submit. Although every major translation except the NASB (95 and 2020 editions) decided to use the word “submit” instead of “subject” I believe “subject” is a better translation. So what is the big deal? Why do I think it matters how hypotassō is translated? In the most literal sense, the word means “to order oneself under” and in the case of the wife, she is to willingly order herself under the headship of her husband, which is much less confusing than “submit” and leaves less room for this verse to be abused in the ways it has been used in an attempt to subjugate Christian women. This is why I believe “subject” is a better way to translate this word, besides the fact that most of the time the word is used in the New Testament, it is rightfully translated as “subject.” Permit me to show you two other places hypotassō is used and why “subject” is a better translation of the word for Ephesians in the way wives ought to respond to their husbands. The first is Luke 2:41-52 when Mary and Joseph traveled from Nazareth to Jerusalem with 12-year-old Jesus to celebrate the Passover. Because they most likely traveled with friends and family, they did not realize they left Jesus in Jerusalem on their way back home to Nazareth. So, Joseph and Mary turned back (probably in a panic) to go get 12-year-old Jesus and it is in Luke 2:48-51 that we see how hypotassō is used and translated: When Joseph and Mary saw Him, they were bewildered; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You!” And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” And yet they on their part did not understand the statement which He had made to them. And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued to be subject [hypotassō] to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart. What did Jesus do at the age of 12 as fully God and fully human? How did he respond to his mother and stepfather as the rightful King of kings and Lord of lords? He willingly placed Himself under the headship of his mother and stepfather as a 12-year-old boy. Jesus was in Jerusalem because He had to be in His “Father’s house” but returned to Nazareth with Jose

38 min
SEP 5

The Marvel of Marriage

If there were ever a sentence in the Bible to serve as a trigger for anger, resentment, and resistance towards the Bible it is most likely Ephesians 5:22, “Wives, subject yourselves to your own husbands, as to the Lord.” The reason some women bristle at verses like Ephesians 5:22-24 is because they have not known the kind of love husbands are called to demonstrate in verse 25, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her...” Before we can even begin to address these verses, I need you to hear something. Marriage is an institution created by God to be celebrated, enjoyed, protected, and fought for within the covenant relationship between God and one man and one woman for a lifetime. However, if marriage (as God’s good gift) is something that you have made into the ultimate thing for your life, then you have potentially done two things: You have set your bar way too low. You have made an idol out of the institution of marriage. When it comes to marriage, how can you set the bar way too low by making it the ultimate thing you aspire to? By making marriage the ultimate thing, you miss its ultimate purpose in that it serves as the only institution on earth designed to reflect Christ’s relationship with the Church and the Church’s relationship with Christ (v. 32). What is marriage? It is a “great mystery” because it is, “an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one” (v. 32; NLT). In fact, in reference to the mystery of marriage, the ESV, NIV, and CSB translate the Greek word megas (μέγας) as “profound” while the KJV, NASB, and NLT use the word “great.” The word can also be translated: large, surprising, or prominent. What is the point? Marriage is a big deal for reasons much more significant than two humans who want to spend a lifetime together. When you read what is written in Ephesians 5 concerning marriage, you must read and study these verses within the context of everything written in Ephesians 1:1 - 5:21. Let me help you understand Ephesians 5:22-33 in light of the overall context of the epistle: In Ephesians 1:1-19, the Christian was chosen before the foundation of the world to be redeemed and forgiven of all sin exclusively through the shed blood of Jesus upon a cross. If you are a Christian, at the moment you believed in Jesus, you were sealed by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of becoming holy and blameless as God’s treasured possession to the praise of His glory, so that Jesus, who is Lord over everything (vv. 19b-21), would be head over all things to the church (v. 22-23). In Christ, those who were dead in their sins are made alive according to Ephesians 2:1-10 because of the rich mercy, great love, and sufficient grace of God. The reason why you, Christian, were made alive... is to live out your calling as God’s, “workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (2:1-10). Now that you are alive with Christ, you are a citizen “with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord...” (2:19-21). Because you are in Jesus, you now have a new identity, and as His redeemed people, we all can, “know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge” as His Church (3:14-19). As those who were once far off but have been brought near as Jesus’ redeemed people, we are to be known for walking a better way as followers of Jesus, indeed, we are to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called...” (4:1). We do this, “with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (vv. 2-3). As

45 min
AUG 28

The Walk of the Wise (part 2)

From the Pulpit of Keith Miller Meadowbrooke Church August 25, 2024 The Walk of the Wise (part 2) Ephesians 5:14-21 Introduction: The definition of apathy is, “a lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern. Atrophy is the gradual decline in effectiveness or vigor due to underuse or neglect. I said last week that spiritual apathy is the kind of thing that will happen when you are so paralyzed by shame that you stay in your shame instead of allowing it to motivate you into repentance. Spiritual apathy, if left untreated, will lead to spiritual atrophy. In Ephesians 5:14-21, we are given a four-fold pathway to keep us from spiritual apathy and to rescue us from spiritual atrophy; last week, I showed the first step for that pathway, and it was: “Run to Jesus as your only advocate.” If you are a Christian, you were once dead and now you are alive in Christ (Eph. 2:1-5). If you are a Christian, you are alive with Jesus through the redemption of His shed blood (1:7). You, Christian, are, forgiven of all your sin, but you have also been, “sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit.... for the day of redemption” (1:13-14; 4:30). Because of God’s great love, rich mercy, and sufficient grace, you are His child and even more staggering (in my opinion), you are His inheritance (see 1:18-19a)! Because of all of this, your awareness of your sin ought not lead to apathy, but to the place and time where your redemption was made possible which is the cross of Christ! With that being said, I believe Ephesians 5:15-21 is a pathway and plan to keep us from spiritual apathy and if necessary, to lead one out of spiritual atrophy. Pay Attention to How You Live (v. 15) In consideration of that reality and hope that is yours in Jesus, the apostle Paul continues: “So then, be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise...” (v. 15). In light of verses 1-14, Paul does not suggest we take care how we walk, but commands it out of the utmost importance. “be careful” is translated from Greek word “blepō” (βλέπω) and it literally means and is most commonly translated, “see” but it can also be translated in the following ways: “beware”, “watch out”, or “look.” Verse 15 is an appeal to pay attention because there are dangers along the way as you “Walk.” A better translation of this verse is: “Watch carefully how you walk, not as unwise people, but as wise...” Consider the seven ways the word “walk” is used in Ephesians. In Ephesians 2:1-3, the Christian once, “previouslywalked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” If you are a Christian, you are God’s, “workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them (2:10). Because of the great price of your redemption, you are to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called” (4:1) instead of walking “as the Gentiles also walk... because of the hardness of their heart” (4:17-18). As children of God, you are to “walk in love just as Christ loved you and gave Himself up for us” (5:1-2). You, Christian, are alive with Christ, and because you are alive with Christ, you are “light in the Lord” and no longer in darkness; therefore “walk as children of light” (5:8). This brings us to the final verse where the word “walk” is used in Ephesians: “So then, be careful [watch carefully] how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise” (v. 15). To watch carefully how you walk is to do so with urgency, care, and wisdom. So how does one walk with wisdom? Proverbs 9:10 tells us what the first step towards wisdom requires: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” According to proverbs, wisdom begins with a fear of

45 min
AUG 19

The Walk of the Wise (Part 1)

From the Pulpit of Keith Miller Meadowbrooke Church August 18, 2024 The Walk of the Wise Ephesians 5:14-21 Introduction: I understand that Ephesians 5:1-13 is a difficult section in the Bible, for at least 50% of the men and about 25% of the women in churches across America view porn at least once a month. To listen to three weeks of sermons on Bible verses that address sexual sins when you already feel defeated is surely discouraging. According to one study, 43 percent of Christian men and 20 percent of Christian women acknowledge that your exposure to porn (and any sexual sin for that matter) has worsened their relationship with God.[1] What that means is that some of you not only feel stuck and defeated, but you also believe that you are far from God and that He is so disgusted by you he wants little or nothing to do with you. I want you to know that if I just described you, you have bought into a lie! One of the titles given to the devil is “the accuser” and what is said of him is that he is, “the accuser of our brothers and sisters... the one who accuses them before our God day and night” (Rev. 12:10). Jesus said of the devil that, “He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he tells a lie, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). The devil is both master accuser and master liar, and he wants nothing more than for you to believe that your ongoing pattern of sins is making you more inaccessible to a Holy God whose wrath is being stored up against humanity for sins such as sexual immorality, impurity, and greed (v. 3). It is for the above reasons that I wanted to spend so much more time on Ephesians 5:14 then we were able to last week. What you must remember is that Paul is not writing to non-Christians in his epistle to the Ephesians, but to Christians whose most dangerous adversary exists in their own flesh. It is the thing that the apostle Paul wrote about in Romans 7:14-23, For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am fleshly, sold into bondage to sin. For I do not understand what I am doing; for I am not practicing what I want to do, but I do the very thing I hate. However, if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, that the Law is good. But now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I do the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin that dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully agree with the law of God in the inner person, but I see a different law in the parts of my body waging war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner of the law of sin, the law which is in my body’s parts. What is important to point out is that Paul was not paralyzed by the tension and struggle he experienced with sin in light of his relationship with Jesus, for it is in what he wrote in response to the war he experienced within that should help us to appreciate Ephesians 5:14-21. What are we to do with the evil that is present within? Listen to what Paul writes in Romans 7:24-25, “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.” I have four points that really serve as a plan to keep you from spiritual apathy that can result in the atrophy of your faith and relationship with Jesus. I will spend all this sermon on the first point and next week, we will look at the remaining three. Howev

47 min
AUG 13

Risen With Jesus

Ephesians 5:11-14

42 min
AUG 8

Live The Jesus Way

From the Pulpit of Keith Miller Meadowbrooke Church August 4, 2024 My sermon today is meant to be both helpful and hopeful. What we read in verses 7-10 is encouraging to you if your faith and trust is in Jesus Christ as the only One qualified to atone for all of your sins as the Lion and the Lamb. These verses are encouraging if you believe that Jesus while fully divine was also fully human for the purpose of living the life you could not live to die upon the cross for your sins while He was perfectly sinless, and that all the wrath of a Holy God fell upon Him in your place. If you are a Christian, you are no longer in darkness, but because of nothing you have done and everything He has done... you are “light in the Lord” and now able to “walk as children of light.” Because you are a Christian, you know Him and long for His appearing in the same manner the apostle Peter described: “...and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory” (1 Pet. 3:8). It is because you are a Christian that there is coming a day when you also will be able to face death with the same confidence the apostle Paul did while facing death: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Tim. 4:7-8). This is why we can sing songs like “He Who is to Come” with hope and confidence: There is a day coming When the old will pass away Every wrong will be made right No darkness no night The Son will light the way There is a king coming The one who conquered death and grave No more pain and no more sorrow This hope for tomorrow Is our hope for today He who is to come Christ the Son of man Riding on the clouds with a crown upon His head Every eye will see Him With the nail scars in His hands[1] If you are a Christian, you belong to God as His beloved child (5:1) because He chose you before the foundation of the earth (1:4), He forgave and redeemed you through the shed blood of His Son, Jesus (1:7), and have been adopted as a child of God according to the good pleasure of His will (1:5). If you are a Christian, you are now alive with Jesus (2:4-5), and because you are alive with Christ, you are God’s, “workmanship [poiēma], created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). You Were Saved from the Wrath of God If you are a Christian, you have been saved from the wrath of an infinitely holy God! You who were once dead in your offenses and sins, walked according to the course of this world, lived in the lusts and desires of your flesh and mind, and were by nature a child of the wrath of God, stand before God as one who has been fully pardoned, forgiven, and loved because the wrath you deserved, Jesus willingly endured. This is why Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:6-7, “See that no one deceives you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. When I preached on verses 1-6, I spent a considerable amount of time explaining that “these things” in verse 6 include sexual immorality, impurity, and greed. Sexual immorality is any perversion of sex that has not been sanctioned to be enjoyed between a husband and a wife within the bounds of the covenant of marriage. Impurity includes any sexual sin but is not limited to sexual sins. Greed is any form of covetousness which also includes the taking of a person for sexual pleasure who does not belong to you because you are not married to that person, and this can be done physically as well as mentally. It is because of sexual immorality, impurity, and greed that the wrath of God comes. However,

36 min
JUL 30

Contender (Summary Of Jude)

Guest Speaker - John Byrne

45 min
JUL 15

The Jesus Way

Walk the Jesus Way - Ephesians 5:1-2

43 min

5

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Meadowbrooke Church, Cheyenne, WY

Creator

Meadowbrooke Church
Years Active

2019 - 2024
Episodes

55
Rating

Clean
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© Meadowbrooke Church
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