Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. (Ephesians 5:25-28)

Carry The Bride Across The Threshold

Have you ever wondered why the guy is supposed to carry his bride over the threshold? Blame the Romans. They believed that good and evil spirits fought for control at a home’s entrance. For good to prevail, Romans felt you must enter a room with your right foot first. Romans concluded that a new bride in a highly emotional state might be careless and forget about the “right foot” stuff. To prevent possible tragedy, they decided it was best for the groom to carry his bride across the threshold.

The Romans were very superstitious people, basing life decisions on concepts foreign to truth, but the principles have merit. A newlywed couple begins a life together with commitment, trust, and hope for the future. Unbeknownst to the Romans, what they suggested is a principle that is important to the establishment of the home. God created the man before He created the woman. The woman was taken out of man to be his helper or helpmate in life. This relationship changed when the serpent, the devil, deceived Eve. Part of the consequence of her actions is that God said her desire would always be for her husband, and he would rule over her.

Paul taught the Ephesian Christians that, just as Christ is the Head of the church, so the husband is the head of the wife. This role is not one where the man is a tyrant or bully. He is to love, cherish, and nourish his wife as his own flesh. The husband has the leadership role in the family according to God’s divine pattern. He must take on that role of leadership to guide the family in the way of the Lord. There is a figure by which the man must carry the bride across the threshold of the home to show his willingness to lead the family in the way of God.

There can only be one head in the home. The wife is a very important part of that leadership. If a man cannot understand his role, he must examine the way Christ died for the church, loves the church, and guides the church by His leadership. The husband must take responsibility for leading the family. As a husband, his role is to help his wife find eternal life. A father will do everything in his power to ensure his family discovers the joys of salvation in Christ. As head of the family, that is his work and passion.

No one has a greater responsibility than a man who takes on the role of husband. He must make that right “first step” to ward off the influences of ungodliness. His goal is to protect his family from the wiles of the devil while protecting himself. It begins with the right “first step.” That step is found in a relationship with Jesus Christ. Based upon a study of the word of God, the man will lead his family in the grace of God.