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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
May 26, 2024
◘Marriage: Its Purpose & Symbolism
Selected Scriptures
Introduction
For many decades I have been using the workbook for Before You Say “I Do” by Norm Wright as part of pre-marital counseling. It includes this list of 10 negative reasons that people get married. ◘
1) To spite or get back at your parents
2) Because of negative self-image – marrying your fiancé will make you feel worthwhile and will give meaning to your life.
3) To be a therapist or counselor to your fiancé.
4) Fear of being left out! Being left as a bachelor or an old maid!
5) Fear of independence.
◘ 6) Marrying on the rebound – you were hurt in a former love relationship and to ease your hurt you immediately choose another
7) Fear of hurting the other person – you’re afraid of what will happen to your fiancé if you break up even though you know that marriage is not the answer.
8) To escape an unhappy home.
9) Because you or your fiancé is pregnant.
10) Because you have been physically intimate with each other.
Sadly, over the decades of counseling I have done, I have met examples of all of these, and I can add the following to them: ◘
*Family / Social pressure
*Because you think it will be good for your career or social status.
*Physical attraction – He is handsome, she is beautiful
*Because your fiancé is rich and can provide you an “easy life.”
*Too much has gone into the wedding ceremony and you do not want to embarrass yourself or disappoint your guests even though you know it will not be a good marriage,
*Because you want children and a spouse is a means to that end.
*To gain or give legal citizenship status
There are other reasons that could be added to this list, and often it is a mixture of several of these reasons that are combined. And while some of these reasons may have some logic to them and a couple of them could be somewhat neutral if combined with wisdom is seeking to honor God, none of them are good reasons in themselves to get married.
I could also easily compile a similar list of reasons of why people do not get married, and perhaps I will do so in the planned future sermon on finding a godly spouse. ◘The underlying question is why are these and similar poor reasons so common in either getting married or staying single? The answer is that there is a general failure in understanding the purposes of marriage, and that is getting worse as our society moves farther and farther away from the fear and knowledge of God. Even the most basic purposes which are obvious to even pagans can be lost as man strives to justify the depravity of his own will instead of following the will of God. Expect a mess when man follows his own musings instead of God’s revelation to man.
◘ Let me add here that even if your life is a mess because of poor choices you have made, it does not have to stay that way. Our God is a redeemer. Jesus became a man, lived a sinless life and willingly died as the substitute sacrifice on the cross at Calvary to redeem man from his sin. His physical resurrection on the third day proved all of his claims and promises are true. There is forgiveness of sin and justification through faith in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. That affects both eternity and the present. The Lord Yahweh declares in Ezekiel 33:11, “As I live! I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’” Jesus is the good shepherd that came so that His sheep may have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10-16).
◘ Our God is powerful to take even our bad choices and redeem them to make something good from them. Romans 8:28 is a truth, not a cliché, for God does make all things work together for good for those that love Him and are called according to His purpose. Consider what Jesus said about marriage in Matthew 19:6 after quoting Genesis 2:24, “What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” That includes marriages that were based on poor choices. While God’s will was questionable before you took your vows, once you said “I Do” in a Biblically legitimate marriage, then you did, and it is now God’s will for He joined you together. If you will strive to follow Christ, He will use your spouse and your circumstances to change you into a more godly individual who will enjoy the fruits of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness & self-control – even if your spouse is ungodly and your circumstances poor.
◘ If both of you will strive to walk with Christ, your marriage can begin to reflect the mystery of Christ and the Church as stated in Ephesians 5:32. And though the curse of sin will continue to mar our lives on this earth, God is transforming the true Christian into the image of His Son (Romans 8:29) so that righteousness becomes our master instead of sin (Romans 6:12-23). This will affect the marriage of the godly couple for the shame of sin can then be dealt with properly with forgiveness, encouragement and loving correction. ◘This allows for the marriage to become increasingly reflective of God’s original design and experienced by Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden prior to sin. They were naked – completely exposed physically, mentally and emotionally – without shame. The Christian couple learns that there is no fear in love and perfect love of God casts out all fear (1 John 4:18), and as their own lives become more characterized by that love, trust increases while fear diminishes. The marriage can have a oneness that the world cannot know.
Today I want to examine God’s stated purposes for marriage and the symbolism of it that He uses to describe His own relationship with His people. ◘This will help you to change your own motivations from selfish ones to godly ones while also helping you to set proper goals reflective of that godliness. As this is done, bad marriages can become good ones and good ones can become better ones reflecting God’s design. A marriage lived divine style instead of in selfish worldliness.
I will begin with the purposes God established for marriage and then go to some additional purposes given after man’s fall into sin. Keep in mind that these various purposes intertwine so that emphasizing any one them to the exclusion of the others will pervert it. At the same time not every purpose will be able to be fulfilled in every marriage. When that is true, the other purposes are still part of God’s stated will making the marriage legitimate and holy before Him.
◘The Image of God – Genesis 1:26-27
Genesis 1:27 states “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” I have covered this in the two previous sermons but it bears repeating here. ◘First, all purposes of the existence of mankind begin with this fact. God created man. The Creator determines both the purposes of His creation and how He will use what He has created for His own purposes. You are not autonomous. You do not exist for yourself. Your first priority is to figure out why God created you and then pursue fulfilling the purpose of your Creator.
◘ Second, directly related to this, God created them male and female. God determines your sex according to His sovereign will at the moment of conception with the only two possibilities of either male or female. Man cannot “assign” sex, so he cannot “reassign” it, but he can easily recognize it at birth.
◘ Third, being created in the image of God gives man an immaterial, eternal soul and the qualities that make up personhood – being rational, emotional and volitional. ◘However, there are also attributes of God that are typically reflected to different degrees in each sex so that some are even described in terms of being masculine or feminine with physical design also playing a role. The characteristics needed for mothering such as nurture, compassion, kindness, gentleness, patience and being relationship orientated are usually stronger in women. Characteristics needed for providing and leading such as goal orientation, analysis, decision making, firmness and after the fall, the protective warrior spirit of jealousy, anger and wrath are typical in men. Many scriptures state or allude to these differences (Isa. 66:13; 1 Tim. 2:14; 5:8; 1 Pet. 3:7; 1 Thess. 2:7; Job 38:3; etc.)
◘ The combination of both masculine and feminine characteristics give a greater understanding of the full nature of God for He possesses all of them in perfection. The fullness of the image of God should be best reflected in people in a godly marriage.
◘To Subdue the Earth & Have Dominion – Genesis 1:28; 2:15
I have briefly covered the commands in Genesis 1:28 & 2:15 to subdue the earth and have dominion over the animals in the last two sermons, but I want to briefly cover it again here because they are directly connected with several of the other purposes in marriage.
◘ The command to subdue the earth is the idea of bringing it under the control of man so that he might gain its benefits. This same word is used in 2 Samuel 8:11 in reference to King David dedicating to Yahweh the silver and gold he had gained from the nations he had subdued. The same word is also used in Jeremiah 34:16 with reference to male and female slaves that had been subjected to their master. Just as a king or a master can gain benefits from those he has subjected to himself, so man can gain benefits from the earth as he subdues it.
◘ The word used for the command to rule / have dominion over all the animals is broader in meaning but limited to human rather than divine dominion. This word was also used in reference to kings and kingdoms (1 Kings 4:24), masters and slaves (Lev. 25:43) and an officer ruling over those under him in organizing and directing their work (1 King. 5:16). Man is given dominion over the animals. As with a good ruler, that encompasses both setting boundaries of what would be allowed and what should be done, utilizing them as he has need, but not exploiting them for they are under his care to also protect and make provision for them.
◘ These two commands describe man’s position as God’s regent over the earth and animals. Psalm 8:6 expresses this, 6 “You make him to rule over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, 7 All sheep and oxen, And also the beasts of the field, 8 The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.” These are responsibilities that God has entrusted to man, and it is to God that each man will give an account of himself and his conduct (Matt. 16:27; Romans :5-8; 14:12).
◘To Change a “Not Good” to “Very Good” – Genesis 2:18, 1:31
In last week’s sermon I explained that Genesis 2 gives greater detail about the events of the sixth day of creation with an emphasis on the creation of Adam ◘and fashioning of Eve from out of his side and establishing marriage. This changed the “not good” of man being alone into the assessment at the conclusion of the days of creation that all that God had made was “very good.”
◘ There been many reasons suggested about why it was not good for man to be alone, but most of these are based on evaluations of traits fairly common of men who never married. While there are lots of exceptions, there is a general tendency for them to live shorter lives, be more self-centered, lack in social graces, engage in more risky behavior, and have more idiosyncracies. The responsibilities of marriage and children force men toward greater maturity. While such assessments may be true, Genesis gives a different reason that it was not good for Adam to be alone.
◘ God set out in Genesis 1:26 the responsibilities of ruling over the animals and the earth before creating man in Genesis 1:27. Then in Genesis 2:15 Adam is put into the Garden of Eden with the specific responsibility to “cultivate it and keep it.” It is after this that God states that it was not good for Adam to be alone and therefore He would “make him a helper suitable / corresponding for him” (2:18). Adam would not be able to fulfill the responsibilities God had given to him if he remained alone, so God would make him someone who would enable him to do that.
◘ God then brings the animals to Adam to be named by him, but there is not found among them a helper suitable for him (vs. 19-20). God then puts Adam to sleep, takes a rib from his side and fashions it into a woman and then brings her to Adam who says, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man” (vs. 21-23). Verse 24-25 then concludes, “24 For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh. 25 And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.”
◘ As I already mentioned in my introduction, Adam & Eve were able to have a perfect relationship with each other. They were naked, completely exposed physically, mentally and emotionally, without any shame because there was not any sin. Only in a marriage of a godly husband and wife can there be movement back toward that ideal because Jesus forgives and the Holy Spirit actively changes the Christian to become like Him.
I will make more comments about verse 24, but here I want to emphasize that the reason God established marriage is that Adam could not carry out God’s commands alone. He needed a helper suitable, someone corresponding to him, to be able to subdue the earth and have dominion over the animals. No animal could meet the requirements, so God fashioned Eve from out of Adam’s side to be his wife. They would together carry out God’s commands and so the sixth day of creation ended as “very good.” Why emphasize this point? ◘Because it reveals that from the beginning marriage has had a purpose far beyond the personal benefits two people have in becoming man and wife. Just as you personally gain blessings from being alive, the purpose of your existence still remains bound up in God’s will. So it is also with marriage. You can receive wonderful benefits in it, but God established marriage for His own purposes.
◘To Be Fruitful & Multiply – Genesis 1:28
Adam & Eve were a perfect, sinless couple operating at the full capacity of their potential, yet God’s commands to subdue the earth and have dominion over the animals could not be fulfilled if it remained just the two of them. For that reason a primary directly related purpose of marriage is God’s command to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” ◘Procreation is a primary purpose of marriage because it produces the people needed for these commands of God to be fulfilled. Consider for a moment all of the different trades and technologies that would have to be developed to subdue the earth and how many people it would take to develop them. Examples include agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, forestry, carpentry, mathematics, engineering, construction, masonry, mining, smelting, metallurgy, welding, fiber production, textiles, clothes making, musical instruments of all kinds, water craft, wagons, engines of all kinds, and in more recent centuries, aircraft, computers and information technologies.
◘ While children are not required to have a legitimate marriage in God’s eyes, that should be normal. Couples that marry past the age of fertility will not be able to have children but they do have other God honoring reasons for getting married. Young couples that are unable to have children honor God by remaining married. However, having children is one of God’s primary purposes for marriage and so it is a blessing that should be sought. Psalm 127:3–5 proclaims, 3 “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward. 4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. 5 How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.”
◘ Tragically, these verses are now contrary to a large portion of our society which views children as a burden instead of a blessing. The birth rate must be at least 2.1 per woman for replacement, but the 2023 U.S. birth rate plummeted to 1.6 and it is worse throughout Europe and eastern Asia with South Korea being less than 1. There is something seriously wrong and it is not economics. Statistically, the higher the income the lower the birth rate. So what is the problem? It is a rejection of God’s purposes for man and marriage. Selfish couples do not want to spend the money or time required for children. ◘Other couples put it off and then it is too late. Children are not affordable or convenient, you just have them and your life is changed for the better.
◘To Establish New Families – Genesis 2:24
Another related purpose for marriage is the establishment of new families. Genesis 2:24 instructs the man to leave his mother and father and cleave to his wife which establishes a new family. If it was just a matter of population growth, then polygamy and having children apart from marriage would work. ◘Though God tolerated polygamy, that was and is not his plan for marriage. Adam was given only one wife. In Jesus’ teaching on marriage and divorce in Matthew 19:3-9 He cites this passage in Genesis that from the beginning marriage was just between two that God had joined together and that they should not be separated. Paul’s included in the qualifications for elders and deacons that he be the “husband of one wife,” or more literally, a “one woman man” (1 Timothy 3:2, 12). This then is expressly a standard of godliness for those in the church. ◘Having children outside of marriage is clearly against God’s standard of the husband cleaving to his wife and the many prohibitions against fornication and adultery, the two sins that can result in a child outside of wedlock.
Another problem is that in polygamy and unwed motherhood the rearing of the children is left largely or completely in the mother’s hands, and that is not God’s design for the family. ◘Throughout the scriptures the responsibility is placed on the father with the mother being the “helper suitable” to him in rearing the children (See Proverbs; Ephesians 6:4). Yes there are women that for various reasons have had to raise their children on their own and some have done well at it, but they are the exception. The demographics of single parent homes is a higher rate of poverty and crime and a lower rate of educational achievement. This tends to repeat itself generationally as the children follow the sinful example of the parents. ◘God’s design is for both father and mother to raise the children in His nurture and admonition. As Proverbs 1:8 puts it, Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, And do not forsake your mother’s teaching.” Children are to obey their parents – both father and mother – in the Lord, for this is right (Eph. 6:1). The commitment of marriage goes a long way in enabling the proper rearing of children by establishing of a new nuclear family according to God’s design.
◘ Just like with marriage, God establishes and defines the family. Sinners can malign the word by getting society and governments to go along with their perverse definitions, but that does not change the actually entity. A new family begins with a man and a woman joined in marriage and is expanded by adding children whether by natural means or adoption. An extended family consists of all the descendants of a common ancestor and those related to them by marriage. And since we are on the subject, a church family are all those related to one another due being adopted as God’s children (Galatians 4:5-6).
◘ Establishing new families also aides in fulfilling God’s commands to subdue and fill the earth and have dominion over the animals. New families enable the spread of mankind because they are independent units that can move to a new place whether that is next door, elsewhere in the community or in a different place in the state or nation. Man could not “fill the earth” if they all stayed in one area. That was the problem with Babel in Genesis 11 and why God confused their language forcing them to separate by language groups and spread out over the earth.
◘Companionship – Ecclesiastes 9:9
Another God given purpose in marriage is companionship. It was not good for man to be alone, so God made him a companion that corresponded to him. ◘She would help him carry out God’s commands and also be a personal blessing and joy. Ecclesiastes 9:9 advises“See life with the woman whom you love all the days of your vain life, which He has given to you under the sun—all the days of your vanity; for this is your portion in life and in your labor in which you have labored under the sun.” In the vanity of life, a wife you love is one of the blessings. Proverbs 18:22 makes the same point, “He who finds a wife finds a good thing And obtains favor from Yahweh.” Proverbs 12:4 describes such a blessings, “An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,” though as Proverbs 31:10 explains, the worth of such an excellent wife is far above jewels for she is not easy to find. In fact, Proverbs 19:14 gives the reminder that “a prudent wife is from Yahweh.” Marriage is a serious matter and so should be approached with a lot of prayer. There are also plenty of Proverbs that warn about foolish men and women and the grief they cause.
◘ What qualities make up a good companion? Wisdom will certainly be part of it as Proverbs 14:1 states, “the wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.” That goes for men too. Proverbs 31:10-31 gives a detailed example of such a woman and Psalm 15 of such a man. ◘But such wisdom begins with the godliness that arises from the fear of the Lord. Someone who demonstrates the fruit of the Spirit described in Galatians 5:22-23 will be a good companion – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
◘ Too many couples get married because they have fun together without thought about the other qualities needed in a life long companion. Certainly there should be fun in marriage, but there is much more needed in a good marriage. ◘There is to be a commitment to the other’s best interest which is why the marriage vows are for better or for worse, for richer or poor, in sickness and in health, until death do us part. The best companion to have is one with whom you carry out all of the one another commands which include not just love, be devoted to, encourage, care, serve, comfort, forebear, bear burdens, be patient, be kind and forgiving, but also be humble, regard as more important, be subject to, teach, admonish, confess sins and pray for and with. God’s design for marriage is that your spouse should be your best friend on earth.
◘Promote Holiness – Ephesians 5:22-33; 1 Peter 3:1-7
For the Christian, the companionship in marriage is also to result in your spouse being your best ally in learning to walk with Christ in holiness. Ephesians 5:23-27 specifically charges the husband to love his wife as Christ loves the church with the purpose of sanctifying her that she should be holy and blameless. 1 Peter 3:7 charges the husband to “live with your [wife] in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.” 1 Peter 3:7 charges the wife to win a husband who may even be disobedient to the word by her chaste and respectful behavior. 1 Timothy 2:3-4 tells the older women to “instruct the younger women in sensibility; to love their own husbands, to love their children.” ◘A Christian marriage is to be both a training ground in and the expression of a holy life. God will use your spouse as either a blessed encouragement toward holiness or a prod to greater dependence on Him which will result in holiness. Either way, God will fulfill His purposes in your marriage.
◘Avoid Immorality – Proverbs 5:15-17, 20-23; 1 Corinthians 7:2, 9
Another reason for marriage is that it is the only proper place for physical intimacy which by God’s design should draw the couple into a deeper relationship and unity as expressed in the phrase that the man “cleave to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” That should be a cause of rejoicing as expressed in Proverbs 5 and throughout Song of Solomon. It is also the means of avoiding immorality of either fornication or adultery. Those are serious sins which are included in the list in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 as acts of the unrighteous who will not inherit the kingdom of God. They can be forgiven, but the true Christian will be sanctified from them.
◘ The Scriptures have a very realistic view of man and his weaknesses including the temptations of the flesh. 1 Corinthians 7:2-3 & 9 states this bluntly. Though Paul advocates the advantages of singleness in serving the Lord as he did, he gives these commands, 2 “But because of sexual immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband. 3 The husband must fulfill his duty to his wife, and likewise also the wife to her husband.” And 9 “But if they do not have self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn.” That is not the best reason for getting married, but it is a legitimate reason. Just keep in mind that God will fulfill His other purposes of marriage in the couple even if those were not on their minds when they exchanged vows.
◘Marriage as Symbolism
How serious is God about marriage? Consider this. The prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Hosea all use marriage as symbolism in describing God’s relationship with Israel in both good and bad ways. Isaiah 54:5 is an example of a positive usage, “For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is Yahweh of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth.” God is the faithful husband who will redeem and restore his wife. Hosea uses a similar analogy. From a negative standpoint God compares both Israel and Judah to adulteresses who act as harlots. Why does God use this analogy? Because marriage is to be sacred and adultery was punishable by death. Adultery and harlotry was the best description to describe the seriousness of their spiritual infidelity toward God.
◘ More important to us as Christians is Paul’s statement in Ephesians 5:32. After quoting Genesis 2:24 Paul says, This mystery is great, but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.”
Marriage is to reflect the relationship between Christ and the church. It has a purpose far beyond just the couple. ◘Marriage is to bring glory to Christ. But that also means that God wants your marriage to work, so no matter what struggles you face in your marriage, God is present to help the one that desires to honor Him in their marriage.
◘Conclusions
Just as with your very existence, marriage has purposes far beyond your own desires. God created you for His own purposes to glorify Himself. God established marriage to fulfill His own purposes which ultimately is His own glory.
Marriage changed the not good of Adam being alone to the very good of having a helper suitable to him enabling them to fulfill together God’s commandments to multiply and fill the earth, subdue it and have dominion over the animals. Marriage establishes new families in which children can be raised by both parents in His nurture and admonition. Marriage provides the joy of companionship and the development of the most intimate relationship possible among humans. A Christian marriage can even pursue regaining some of what Adam & Eve had in Eden of risking exposure to a spouse in the mutual quest for holiness. Marriage avoids immorality. Marriage is to glorify God by reflecting the mystery of Christ and the Church.
◘ Few people had these purposes in mind when they got married, yet God wants them to become the purposes for their marriage and they can be and will be as you walk with Jesus Christ and submit your will to His.
Sermon Notes – May 26, 2024
Marriage: Its Purpose & Symbolism – Selected Scriptures
Introduction
Negative reasons people get married:
A general ______________to understand God’s for marriage results in poor choices
God is a ____________from sin through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ
God is powerful and can make something _____out of even poor choices for those that love Him (Rm 8:28)
A Christian couple is to reflect the mystery of ______& the church – and move toward God’s original design
A bad marriages can become a good one when the couple strive to fulfill God’s ____________ for it
The Image of God – Genesis 1:26-27
God created you so He ______________the purpose of your existence – your quest is to fulfill that purpose
God determines your sex by His sovereign will at the moment of __________- it is recognized, not assigned
God created man in His image with an immaterial soul and ______________- rational, emotional, volitional
The attributes of God reflect to __________degrees in each sex – a marriage gives a fuller reflection of God
To Subdue the Earth & Have Dominion – Genesis 1:28; 2:15
To subdue the earth is to bring it under the __________of man to gain its benefits
To have dominion encompasses ruling, utilizing, protecting and providing – as a good ____over his kingdom
Man is God’s ________over the earth and the animals – Psalm 8:6
To Change a “Not Good” to “Very Good” – Genesis 2:18, 1:31
The “not good” of Adam being alone was changed to “very good” when ___was fashioned from Adam’s rib
Most suggestions that it was not good for Adam to be alone are based traits common to _____________men
It was not good for Adam to be alone because a “helper suitable” was _______to carry out God’s commands
Nothing was found among the animals, so God fashioned Eve from out of Adam & ____________marriage
Adam & Eve were naked – completely _________physically, mentally & emotionally – without shame or sin
From the beginning, marriage has had a purpose far beyond the _____________benefits of the couple
To Be Fruitful & Multiply – Genesis 1:28
Though Adam & Eve were sinless & operating at their full potential they could not do it all by ___________
Procreation is a ___________purpose of marriage to provide the people needed to “fill the earth”
Other purposes make marriage legitimate if a couple cannot have children, but they are a ________to pursue
Large portions of society view children as a __________instead of a blessing so the birthrate has plummeted
Children are not affordable or convenient, you just have them and your life is changed for the __________
To Establish New Families – Genesis 2:24
God ______________polygamy but that was and is not his plan for marriage – Matt. 19:3-9, 1 Tim. 3:2,12
Having children out of wedlock is ____________to God’s prohibitions on fornication and adultery
God places the responsibility of child rearing on the _____with the mother helping him (Proverbs, Eph. 6:4)
________father & mother instruct and teach the children who are to obey both of them – Prov. 1:8; Eph. 6:1
God, not man, defines marriage – a man & woman joined in ____________and expanded by adding children
Adding new independent families enables man to “___the earth.” Babel was the result of man not doing this
Companionship – Ecclesiastes 9:9
She helps him carry out God’s commands and is a personal __________too! Prov. 18:22, 12:4; 31:10; 19:4
A good companion is ______- Proverbs 14:1; 31:10-31 – and ________- Prov. 9:10; Psalm 15; Gal. 5:22-23
Being able to have _____together is nice in a marriage, but much more is needed for a good marriage
______________and godliness in carrying out the “one another” commands makes the best spouse & friend
Promote Holiness – Ephesians 5:22-33; 1 Peter 3:1-7
The Christian ____________should be your best ally in learning to walk in holiness
A Christian marriage is to be both a training ground in and the expression of a ________life
Avoid Immorality – Proverbs 5:15-17, 20-23; 1 Corinthians 7:2, 9
Marriage is the only proper place for ___________intimacy which God’s design draws the couple together
The realistic view of Scripture provides marriage as the solution for those ____________by the flesh
Marriage as Symbolism
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel & Hosea all use marriage as symbolism for ______________relationship with God
Ephesians 5:32 – ___________marriage is to reflect the relationship between Christ and the church
Marriage is to bring _______to God, so He is present to help the one that desires to honor Him in marriage
Conclusions
Those who pursue God’s purposes in marriage will have the __________marriages
Bad marriages can become good & good ones become better as you walk with Christ __________to His will
KIDS KORNER
Parents, you are responsible to apply God’s Word to your children’s lives. Here is some help. Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents at lunch. Older Children – Do one or more of the following: 1) Write down all the verses mentioned in the sermon and look them up later. 2) Count how many times “marriage ”is mentioned in the sermon. Talk with your parents about God’s purposes for marriage.
THINK ABOUT IT!
Questions to consider in discussing the sermon with others. What were the reasons you got married or reasons you have remained single? How does redemption in Christ Jesus enable you to live a better life and have a better marriage? Why is it important to recognize that you are a creature made by God for His purposes? What does it mean to subdue the earth and have dominion over the animals? What was “not good” about Adam being alone? How did God’s fashioning of Eve make it “very good.” Why is being fruitful and multiplying a primary purpose in marriage. What about couples that cannot have children? Why is the current birth rate so low? How does marriage establish new families and why is that important? What is wrong with polygamy? With unwed motherhood? Why / how can marriage be a blessing in the vanity of life? What qualities make up a good companion? How can a Christian marriage be different from all others in regards to companionship, intimacy of relationship and purpose? How can marriage promote holiness? How does marriage avoid immorality? How and why did the prophets use marriage as a symbol of Israel’s relationship with God? How can marriage be a reference to Christ and the church (Eph. 5:32). How can your marriage bring glory to God?
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