A wife has a whole list of qualities that she should strive
for as they are listed in Proverbs 31. A man has only one
thing that he must do in order to be a good husband but his job
is far more impossible than the one expected of a good wife.
Ephesians 5 gives us instructions on how a marriage
should properly work. Ephesians 5:25 says, "Husbands,
love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave
himself up for her."
The love of Christ is self sacrificial. It gives up
a person's own will for the good of another. We may be
capable of doing this for short periods of time,
occasionally doing what someone else wants, but we aren't
capable of doing it all of the time.
For a husband to love his wife the way Christ loves the
church, he must protect her physically, emotionally, and
spiritually. He must protect her even at the expense
of his own well being.
The love of Christ gives us a vague notion of being an
immense love, but we must remember that Christ died for the
church. A husband should love his wife enough to give
up his life for her. This could be literal but in
practice it means that he doesn't hang out with his friends
as much any more. It could mean that he cuts back on
his personal spending in order to afford raising a family.
A woman should look for a husband who is willing to give
up his old life in order to start a new one in love with
her. This is the greatest quality that a woman should
look for in a husband.
