Why does Paul compare husband and wife to Christ and the church in Ephesians 5?
Paul uses marriage to picture Christ and the church as His body, because the church is the complement of its head, just as Eve was given to Adam as his complement and became part of him. This illustrates the inseparable union between the head in heaven and the body on earth.
Les teaches that in Ephesians 1 Christ is the Head over all things to the church, which is His body. The Greek word for “fullness” can also mean “complement,” so the church is the complement of the Head. Les connects this to Genesis, where Eve was given to Adam to be his complement and became part of him. Then in Ephesians 5 Paul brings in the physical marriage relationship between husband and wife as the beautiful picture of Christ and the church which is His body. Les points out that Peter never brings this out and never mentions the body of Christ.
More Questions
What does Paul compare the husband-wife relationship to in Ephesians 5?
In Ephesians 5, Paul presents the human husband-wife relationship as a correlation with Christ as the Head (husband) and the Body of Christ, the composite of church-age believers.
What does it mean to be married to Christ?
Being married to Christ in Paul's analogy means being in a union with Christ similar to the union of a husband and wife.