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Prayer In Marriage

Pray

"…and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered." 1 Peter 3:7c

We have looked at praying when we don't know, praying when we are stressed, and praying with the Body of Believers. Today I want to look at prayer in marriage and specifically the condition which has been placed on the husband's prayer life. The condition is connected to how we view our wives and how we treat our wives. Husband's, please read and then reread I Peter 3:7 and pay attention to how the verse ends. Below is a quote from John MacArthur's interpretation of I Peter 3:7C:

"The husband is to be a companion for his wife as a fellow heir sharing in the grace of life, which refers not to eternal life, but to the true and intimate friendship that belongs only to those who are possessors of God's most blessed gift in this life - marriage. Peter labels marriage the grace of life because grace (charis) means 'unmerited, undeserved favor' (cf. Rom 1:5; 3:24; 5:15, 17; 13:3; 15:15; 2 Cor. 8:1; 9:8; Gal. 2:9; Eph. 2:7; 3:2, 7; :7;4:29; 2 Tim. 1:9; Heb. 4:16; James 4:6). Marriage is a divine providence given to man regardless of his attitude toward the Giver. Intimate companionship in marriage, the richest blessing of this life, was a foreign concept of the Greco-Roman culture of Peter's day. Husbands were generally uninterested in friendship with their wives, expecting them to merely maintain the household and bear children. In contrast, the Christian husband is to cultivate all the richness God designed into the grace of marriage by showing honor to his wife in loving consideration, chivalry, and companionship. So that his prayers will not be hindered is the reward God promises to the loving, caring husband (cf. Ps. 66:18; Isa. 59:2; John 9:31; James 4:3). The prayers in view may be specifically for the salvation of an unbelieving wife, but nothing in the text limits it to that. The warning is clearly given that if a husband in Christ is not fulfilling his responsibilities toward his wife, God may not answer his prayers. No more serious divine threat could be given to a believer than that - the interruption of all the promises of prayers heard and answered."

Guys, I am not trying to foster guilt by "picking on you," but rather I pray for conviction of the Holy Spirit in all our hearts.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Psalm 51:10

Dedicated to Prayer
Dave
Heb 4:16