The Reason For Marriage
For this reason a man will leave his father and his mother and will remain united with his wife, and they will become one flesh. (Genesis 2:24)
Marriage. It’s an ever-increasing issue in our society. Those who have entered in to it want to know how to make it better. Those who have not yet found it, wonder why they should make such a commitment. Those who have gotten out of it, wonder if it was worth it.
I wouldn’t doubt that millions, if not billions, of dollars, are spent every year on marriage advice. Marriage is a wonderful gift that God has given to us to enjoy. Through marriage, God establishes families and gives the lonely companionship. It is a gift that is not to be taken likely.
Unfortunately, sometimes we place other things above our marriage. We place our parents over our spouse. We place work over our marriage. Or we place our independence over our marriage.
But God tells us that in marriage, a man will leave his father and mother, and remain united to his wife. He directs all the love and attention that he had for his parents when he was single, toward his wife. She is his whole world. He will place her over everything. And the love the woman had for her parents when she was single, she directs toward her husband. They act for each other’s benefit, and they think as one. They are united to one another and have become one flesh. They do this because their marriage is centered around the relationship that Jesus has with his church. They reflect the love that Jesus has shown to them as members of his bride, the Church.
Marriage is a great blessing from God. It gives us the ability to reflect his love for us in the way that we treat our spouse. And it gives us a natural way to say thanks to God for his love. Amen.
The song for today is “Love is the Gracious Gift” from Christian Worship #505