No Division of Household Labor for the Good of All Husbands

Ed, my old neighbor from Saskatchewan, was still cranky from a bought of the flu and cold yesterday. Thankfully, his cold and flu had gone away, but not all, of his grumpiness, had disappeared. Miserableness left a fair-sized mark on Ed, like a wet towel on wood. Ruby, Ed’s wife, described him as in recovery but prone to fits of temper.

I understand being subject to fits of the temper myself, but they are better to give than to receive. When Ed phoned yesterday, I was slow in getting the phone answered because I was vacuuming. “What took you so long?” demanded Ed. “I was vacuuming,” I explained a bit aggravated at his tone of voice. “Why are you vacuuming?” he demanded again like I owed him an explanation. “Why do you need to know” I answered in a voice losing it friendliness. Then I added, “It’s my job.” “It’s your wife’s job,” he snapped like I should know that. “There is a division of labor in a marriage and husbands’ do not do housework, especially vacuuming,” he said like I was as dumb as dirt. “It sets a bad example for other men everywhere,” he added as though nothing more needed to said on the subject.

Ed and I might have disagreed more about the division of labor, but Ed had called to share about his curling team and the burden of being such a, ‘savior skip,’ to his team. His curlers have been erratic rather than consistent. I suggested that Ed should play as a one-man team. He could then be the perfect lead, second and third curler and skip all in one as the king of curling. Ed admitted that if he did so, for a game or two, that it would convince his team of his great talent and they would give him the respect he deserves.

I assured Ed that the respect he deserves would come to him sooner or later. The truth is that honor does not always come to those that deserve it. The Bible confirms that “The race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong,” for situations and circumstances may be such that folks don’t get what they ought. Sometimes even the innocent may be found guilty. Time and chance, the unfolding of good and evil keep the present and the future uncertain. In the past, they put a sign above Jesus when he was on the cross that said, “This is the king of the Jews.”

The fact that Jesus was the very Son of God did not result in his respect here on earth. Instead of a throne and a costly crown, he was nailed to the cross with thorns for a bloody crown. Many hurled insults at him calling for him to, save himself. Even one of the criminals crucified beside Jesus mocked him saying; “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”  The other criminal being crucified with Jesus gave Jesus respect for he was certain Jesus had done nothing wrong.

Jesus was crucified because God despaired over the division, between himself, and sinful mankind. Jesus’ life and death reconciled sinners to God. Jesus brought God’s complete and undeserved pardon for us as his respected sinners.

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