There are only three bona fide institutions ordained by God: family, church, and government. They are all necessary for society's function and stability--the glues that hold us together and hinder Satan's work and keep evil at bay. Marriage especially preserves society from evil becoming rampant or out of control. Augustine is attributed with saying that "government is not a necessary evil, but necessary because of evil!" We all need to find fulfillment in these institutions, or our mission from God. Everyone is responsible for his own assigned domain. We are all on a mission! That involves our roles or duties in our family, our church, and government--we don't concede the world-system to Satan by default.
Man is complete in marriage, just as we are complete in Christ, and need each other in the church, and the government doing what the others are not meant to do, each with their own sphere of sovereignty. One institution has no right to intrude on the other's responsibilities or powers. Now the Bible says that everything created by God is good and all good comes from God--that includes these institutions. Woe to those who call good evil and vice versa! But beware: Satan is bent on destroying our society and make us independent of God--he doesn't care how good we are as long as we keep Him out of it and privatize our faith--eradicate God from the public square of discourse!
Marriage, biblically, is a union between a man and a woman, that is meant to be permanent and exclusive and is a mutual give and take or sharing, sacrifice, responsibilities, stewardship, compromise, and relationship that each compliment the other and unselfishly meet or fulfill each other's needs (psychological, emotional, social, and physical)--everyone needs someone to share their life with. There is meant to be unity, not uniformity! Marriage works if you work at it, they say! They are a team and need each other. Intimacy is a primary goal, just like it is with God--we are social creatures and desire to be known and to know one another. Marriage is a good way for the couple to find their identity and to see where they can have an impact and make a difference with their common calling. We all have a need to interact and socialize. This institution should not be maligned because it has God's blessing as defined by Him, not the government!
The biggest anchor of our society is marriage and it is often called the great civilizer because each partner grows in maturity and character and they each realize their unique potential in building relationships and foundations for a witness to the world at large. The woman was created from man's rib so that she would be close to him and be of his essence as the finishing touch of all God's work--afterward, He could say nothing but "very good." When God created woman as the consummation of His creation, and for this reason, marriage is good because God declared it to be. The purpose of marriage is not merely to propagate the species or to copulate, but this is an expression of true love being fulfilled and shared by two caring and intimate individuals.
Marriages only last if the solidarity is in God as the center and focus. Marriage is meant to be a representation of God at work and is in this respect the crown of creation (mankind) made plain to see, saying it was very good. It needs that third participant for meaning and fulfillment. Marriage without God in the equation will not be all it's cracked up to be and may seem like a dead end or lost cause. The whole purpose of marriage is oneness, or to be so involved on all levels that your acquaintance of each other is unavoidable and productive--one's spouse has a unique contribution to the relationship based on personal insight and intimacy. Removing God from the picture only invites disaster and neglects the rock of stability in Christ.
Partners or mates (spouse is a secular word) can pay special attention to Augustine's dictum and apply it wisely when they find themselves disagreeing, and they will: "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity." Remember: Each partner needs the other and is perfectly designed for them as God's plan and intention with His blessing. They're the one meant for each other and need to learn to work things out not fight or quarrel. Marriage is not a power play, though the man is the head of the household (the role of subordination does not mean inferiority), Christ is His head and he should love his wife as Christ loves the church--it's an institution of equals! Each should be fully convinced that they are meant for each other and God has a plan for them to do jointly.
There can be a great fallout from contention, argument, divisiveness, and judgmental attitudes because there is always the ingredient or fallout of sin. Remember who the enemy is, know your enemy and beware of his schemes of psychological, mind games and to divide and conquer. Sometimes marriage seems to deteriorate into being each other's number one critic. When a marriage is successful, people may wonder what kept them together and the best answer is the grace of God and applying His principles. Remember: Marriage was God's idea and His invention and is not subject to man's revisionism, revamping, tampering, re-interpretation, or inventions. It was here long before government was instituted and has priority over it in its domain!
In sum, what brought the couple together initially was probably shared interests and commonalities, being made for each other, and complimenting each other, but what keeps them knit together with the tie that binds is their union in Christ as the cohesive factor (or missing ingredient in some marriages)--that is why they must never jeopardize their relationship and faith by being unequally yoked, for it's meant to be a representation of Christ and the church, which is a mystery! Thus, we recognize that God is a triune relationship and reveals Himself to us personally in marriage! Each partner is to offer support to the other half for they are one flesh, and hopefully, one in spirit and in the Spirit, sharing common goals of oneness, not mere friendship! NB: Marriage differs from casual friendships and ties in that there's commitment, much like the one made to find salvation. Soli Deo Gloria!
Man is complete in marriage, just as we are complete in Christ, and need each other in the church, and the government doing what the others are not meant to do, each with their own sphere of sovereignty. One institution has no right to intrude on the other's responsibilities or powers. Now the Bible says that everything created by God is good and all good comes from God--that includes these institutions. Woe to those who call good evil and vice versa! But beware: Satan is bent on destroying our society and make us independent of God--he doesn't care how good we are as long as we keep Him out of it and privatize our faith--eradicate God from the public square of discourse!
Marriage, biblically, is a union between a man and a woman, that is meant to be permanent and exclusive and is a mutual give and take or sharing, sacrifice, responsibilities, stewardship, compromise, and relationship that each compliment the other and unselfishly meet or fulfill each other's needs (psychological, emotional, social, and physical)--everyone needs someone to share their life with. There is meant to be unity, not uniformity! Marriage works if you work at it, they say! They are a team and need each other. Intimacy is a primary goal, just like it is with God--we are social creatures and desire to be known and to know one another. Marriage is a good way for the couple to find their identity and to see where they can have an impact and make a difference with their common calling. We all have a need to interact and socialize. This institution should not be maligned because it has God's blessing as defined by Him, not the government!
The biggest anchor of our society is marriage and it is often called the great civilizer because each partner grows in maturity and character and they each realize their unique potential in building relationships and foundations for a witness to the world at large. The woman was created from man's rib so that she would be close to him and be of his essence as the finishing touch of all God's work--afterward, He could say nothing but "very good." When God created woman as the consummation of His creation, and for this reason, marriage is good because God declared it to be. The purpose of marriage is not merely to propagate the species or to copulate, but this is an expression of true love being fulfilled and shared by two caring and intimate individuals.
Marriages only last if the solidarity is in God as the center and focus. Marriage is meant to be a representation of God at work and is in this respect the crown of creation (mankind) made plain to see, saying it was very good. It needs that third participant for meaning and fulfillment. Marriage without God in the equation will not be all it's cracked up to be and may seem like a dead end or lost cause. The whole purpose of marriage is oneness, or to be so involved on all levels that your acquaintance of each other is unavoidable and productive--one's spouse has a unique contribution to the relationship based on personal insight and intimacy. Removing God from the picture only invites disaster and neglects the rock of stability in Christ.
Partners or mates (spouse is a secular word) can pay special attention to Augustine's dictum and apply it wisely when they find themselves disagreeing, and they will: "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things, charity." Remember: Each partner needs the other and is perfectly designed for them as God's plan and intention with His blessing. They're the one meant for each other and need to learn to work things out not fight or quarrel. Marriage is not a power play, though the man is the head of the household (the role of subordination does not mean inferiority), Christ is His head and he should love his wife as Christ loves the church--it's an institution of equals! Each should be fully convinced that they are meant for each other and God has a plan for them to do jointly.
There can be a great fallout from contention, argument, divisiveness, and judgmental attitudes because there is always the ingredient or fallout of sin. Remember who the enemy is, know your enemy and beware of his schemes of psychological, mind games and to divide and conquer. Sometimes marriage seems to deteriorate into being each other's number one critic. When a marriage is successful, people may wonder what kept them together and the best answer is the grace of God and applying His principles. Remember: Marriage was God's idea and His invention and is not subject to man's revisionism, revamping, tampering, re-interpretation, or inventions. It was here long before government was instituted and has priority over it in its domain!
In sum, what brought the couple together initially was probably shared interests and commonalities, being made for each other, and complimenting each other, but what keeps them knit together with the tie that binds is their union in Christ as the cohesive factor (or missing ingredient in some marriages)--that is why they must never jeopardize their relationship and faith by being unequally yoked, for it's meant to be a representation of Christ and the church, which is a mystery! Thus, we recognize that God is a triune relationship and reveals Himself to us personally in marriage! Each partner is to offer support to the other half for they are one flesh, and hopefully, one in spirit and in the Spirit, sharing common goals of oneness, not mere friendship! NB: Marriage differs from casual friendships and ties in that there's commitment, much like the one made to find salvation. Soli Deo Gloria!
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