Dr Paul Allen

Bill Mounce In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” (Matt 7:12, NIV). In other words, the underlying social ethic that runs throughout the Hebrew Scriptures with all its statutes and laws is this: when you think about what to say or do to another person, ask yourself what you would like that person to say or do to you. When you are talking about significant issues — theology, ethics, politics — how do you want the other person to behave? Do you want them to listen to you politely, with engagement, not necessarily agreeing but treating your ideas with respect? Or do you want them to shut you down, ignore what you are saying, and treat you with contempt and scorn? The answer to that question should determine how we treat the other person. Ten years ago, I was speaking with a younger person who didn’t agree with something I said. Her response was, “That offends me.” I wish I had ...

Scripture teaches us that Christians should honor or respect all men (1 Peter 2:17). Every human being bears the image of God, and so, of course, we are called on to respect and honor that. And of course, Scripture also teaches us to love our neighbor (Leviticus 19:18), and Jesus in his famous story makes the point that our neighbor is whatever person God has placed right in front of us (Luke 10:29–37). So all Christians are to love everyone, and all Christians should honor everyone. That is the baseline. But when we come down to the particular relationship of husbands to wives, and wives to husbands, Scripture gives us an important, additional emphasis. Husbands are told specifically to love their wives as Christ loved the church (Ephesians 5:25). Wives are told specifically to respect their husbands as the church does Christ (Ephesians 5:33). There are three things that we can take away from this. The lessons are not limited to three, but we should make a point of grasping at le...