Of Marriage & Family

Roles and Responsibilities in Marriage

Confessional Text

The husband and wife are of equal worth before God, since they are both created in the image of God⁹⁸. The marriage relationship models the way God relates to His people. A husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church⁹⁹. He has the God-given responsibility to provide for, protect, serve and lead his family. He is to love his wife and live with her in an understanding way, since she is a daughter of the King¹⁰⁰. A wife is to willingly submit herself to the servant leadership of her husband, even as the church willingly submits herself to the headship of Christ. She, being in the image of God like her husband, has the God-given responsibility to respect her husband and to serve as his helper in managing the household and nurturing the next generation¹⁰¹.

Scriptural References

[98]

Genesis 1:26-28

Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness'

[99]

Ephesians 5:21-33

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her

[100]

1 Peter 3:7

Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel

[101]

Titus 2:5-6

To be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands

All scripture quotations are from the ESV (English Standard Version).

Historical & Theological Background

Christian teaching on marriage roles has been consistent throughout history: husbands and wives are equal in dignity and worth, but have complementary roles in the marriage relationship. The husband is called to loving, sacrificial leadership (like Christ), and the wife to willing, respectful submission (like the church). This is not based on superiority or inferiority but on God's design for order and harmony in the home. Complementarianism upholds both equality and distinction, rejecting both male domination and egalitarian role interchangeability.

African Contextual Commentary

In African contexts, this teaching faces challenges from both traditional patriarchy (which can be harsh and demeaning toward women) and Western feminism (which rejects all gender distinctions). Biblical complementarianism is neither. It affirms women's full dignity and worth while maintaining God-ordained role distinctions. African husbands must reject cultural patterns of harsh domination, abuse, or neglect, and instead love their wives sacrificially as Christ loved the church. African wives are called to respect and submit to servant-leadership, not tyranny. Both husband and wife serve each other in love, modeling Christ's relationship with His church. This vision elevates marriage above both oppressive traditionalism and modern confusion.