Untitled Sermon (12)

1 Corinthians 13:4–8 (NIV84)

4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails.

It can be hard to be married. Not to get married.

Applicants or officiants who have questions or concerns regarding the officiant’s authority to perform marriages in Wisconsin should seek legal counsel. Information as to the validity of any specific religious organization or any ordination process is not available from the County Clerk’s Office or from the State Vital Records Office.

A marriage may be validly contracted in Wisconsin only after a marriage license has been issued by a county clerk, and only when the mutual declarations of the two parties to be joined are made before an authorized officiating person and in the presence of at least two competent adult witnesses other than the officiating person. If one of the parties is serving on active duty in the military, only one adult witness is required.

Marriage is the legal union of individuals. The basic elements of a marriage are: (1) the parties' legal ability to marry each other, (2) mutual consent of the parties, and (3) a marriage contract as required by law.

But being married and staying married has its risks and challenges. One reason is because it involves an intimate connection between two individuals — individuals who are both sinners and because they are so closely connected to each other physically and emotionally, they have the greatest opportunity to expose themselves to each other in ways in which it is almost impossible to conceal certain aspects of their lives that could otherwise be concealed. As one golden oldie (Sung by Mills Brothers in 1944, being so close can created the most potential hurt.

You always hurt the one you love The one you shouldn't hurt at all You always take the sweetest rose And crush it till the petals fall

You always break the kindest heart With a hasty word you can't recall, so If I broke your heart last night It's because I love you most of all

Love draws people together in marriage. But it is that drawing together that makes each partner the most vulnerable. But it is also love that can cement a marriage so that in spite of its difficulties, a couple can not only survive but thrive in the marriage relationship until “death do us part”.

In the classic Scripture verses about love (love not limited to marriage, by the way), St. Paul lists the potential vulnerabilities when sinners interact.

Impatience

Cruelty

Envy

Sinful pride

Rudeness

Self-seeking

Anger

Record keeping of wrongs

Schadenfreude (delight in evil)

Lies

Abandonment

Lack of trust and hope.

Since we are all sinners, we must all confess that at times in our lives we have to some extent been guilty of these things. A deep and meaningful truthful conversation with couples married seven days or seventy years could reveal empirical evidence that this is true.

Except . . . “Love keeps no records of wrongs.” Although love cannot always prevent such things from happening, it goes a long way in motivating people so that the frequency and severity of such sins will be lessened. And when those sins to happen, Love keeps no record of wrongs and elsewhere

1 Peter 4:7–8 (NIV84)

7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

Psalm 32:1–5 NIV84

1 Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. 2 Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit. 3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. 4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah 5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”— and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah

Where do we get this love? Love that is more than the attraction that two people have for each other that leads them to marry? The love that St. Paul writes of here is not limited to marriage. It is the love that comes from God and can be applied to any relationship . . . although it may indeed find its greatest expression in marriage. This love is from God. There is much to say of this but let us conclude by having St. John (the disciple whom Jesus loved) summarize what this love is.

1 John 4:7–12 NIV84

7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.