Ephesians 5:28-32 AMP
Even so husbands should and are morally obligated to love their own wives as [being in a sense] their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself. [29] For no one ever hated his own body, but [instead] he nourishes and protects and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, [30] because we are members (parts) of His body, of his flesh and of his bones. [31] FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND HIS MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED [and be faithfully devoted] TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. [32] This mystery [of two becoming one] is great; but I am speaking with reference to [the relationship of] Christ and the church.
I know that most of the time when people refer to these verses, they refer to them in the context of the relationship between husband and wife in marriage, but these Scriptures speak of 2 relationships; that of husband-and-wife, and that of Christ and his church. This subsection is about 2 becoming one, and as a matter of fact, the relationship of oneness between a husband and a wife, is simply a reflection of the oneness of Christ and his Church, corporately and personally. In verse 28 the Holy Spirit tells us that when a husband loves his wife, he loves himsel, f because they are in union with each other; and then he says, for no one hates his own body, but instead he nourishes and cherishes it, and here’s the important statement; just as Christ loves the church. Think of it, as his bride, in union with him, Jesus loves you the same way he loves himself. It says that Jesus nourishes and cherishes you. I think it’s easier for us to believe that Jesus nourishes us (provides for us in every way out of his resources) but I think it is more difficult for us to believe that he cherishes us. The word “cherish” comes from a Greek word that simply means “warm.” Jesus always has warm thoughts and warm feelings about you. He has the same warm thoughts and feelings about you that he has about himself, because in Christ you have become one with him. We’ve given in too much to dmonic false teachings that tell us that humility involves self-hatred because of our capacity to sin. It is true that we are called to lay aside the old self, but you and I are new creations in Christ, and we are called to celebrate the fact that Jesus is our adequacy (he nourishes us), but that he also cherishes us all the time. There may be times when his heart is grieved by our behavior, but that does not change the fact that he always cherishes us, and never stops believing in us, because of our union with Him.
In Genesis 2:23 Adam said about Eve, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh;”
That sounds a lot like Ephesians 5:30 doesn’t it? This is a profound mystery, that two can become one, but this is the glory of the mystery of the gospel. This is The truth that is the heart of all truths that set us free.
Because we are one with Jesus we can be restfully confident, and celebrate the fact that he will always provide, and that he always cherishes us. Let this sink in! He doesn’t just tolerate us; he cherishes us, and can I dare say that if he cherishes us it is holy for us to cherish ourselves. Coming into agreement with the mind of Christ about all things concerning us is how transformation takes place. Humility isn’t thinking of yourself as some kind of loser. Humility is celebrating the fact that somebody extraordinary has brought you into union with His life, and therefor you have become someone extraordinary also, all because of Him.