Ephesians 5:22-33
1 Corinthians 7:1-17
1 Peter 3:1-9
What is the purpose of Marriage?
• To teach servanthood, humility, and submission (1 Cor 7, Eph 5:22-29, 1 Pet 3)
• God’s only provision for sexual fulfillment (1 Cor 7:1-9)
• Spiritual growth and sanctification (1 Cor 7:14, Eph 5:22-29)
o do not take on a person as a conversion project (ie marrying them hoping to convert them) (1 Cor 7:16, 2 Cor 6:14) http://www.visi.com/~nathan/xtian/unequalyoke.html
• Pictures Christ’s relationship with His church (Eph 5:22-32)
o A witness to the world of the true intimacy with God.
o A foretaste of the eternal intimacy with Christ.
o A display of sacrificial, unbreakable love.
by divorcing, we are telling the world that God gives up on us when we do something wrong.
o Helps us understand His forgiveness of our sins when we must continually forgive each other in marriage despite continued offense and vulnerability.
The world sees marriage as a personal fulfillment, not as a way to glorify their Creator. People get married for monetary gain, for comfort, for someone to make them feel loved, for sex, for safety, etc., but they are all still self-centered though they sound noble.
Based on the Biblical reasons for marriage (or even dating), how do we choose the right person and what kind of person should we be?
• Both need to be of one mind (Eph 5:30-32, 1 Pet 3:8,9, 2 Cor 6:14), agreeing that they are together to show the world the glory of Christ.
• Both are to show love sacrificially, not expecting anything in return.
• Husbands to love wives as part of their own body. Wives show respect for husbands leadership.
• We are to concern ourselves with showing affection with the other, not getting affection from the other.
• Women are to be modest, trying to show from the way the dress their Godly character, not overtly displaying their physical beauty for all to admire.
• Men are ready to honor their wives, presenting her to the world as his treasure, as a gift from God.
• Men are to strive to understand their wives, listening to her concerns to lead with her interests in mind.
• Men should be willing to stand up to the world for her, ready to die for her.
• Women should look for a man who is ready to be the spiritual leader of the home (Eph 5:26), not someone who makes excuses for their lack of spiritual discipline.
• We should respect God’s call to purity (in thought and action), not tiptoe as close to the edge of sin as possible.
• The person you are considering should respect their parents and your parents.
• They should be humble, ready to admit fault and wrongdoing, open to council and rebuke.
• A man should not be afraid to show emotion over his wife.
The three radio broadcasts on this site inspired this study. They are only 30 minutes a piece.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment