The Perfect Marriage

Introduction

Introduction

At Sunday school they were teaching how God created everything, including human beings. Little Johnny, a child in the kindergarten class, seemed especially intent when they told him how Eve was created out of one of Adam’s ribs. Later in the week his mother noticed him lying down as though he were ill, and said, “Johnny, what’s the matter?”

Johnny said, “I don’t feel well, I think I’m having a wife.”

Creation

Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible Creation, Doctrine Of

One of the two central themes in Scripture comprising the backbone of its theological teaching, the other theme being redemption. Creation is not the same as redemption; nor can redemption so overshadow creation as to cut short its theological validity. Both doctrines belong together but in a unique relationship. The God of Israel is also the God who created the heavens and the earth out of nothing. Redemption occurs within the creation, which serves as its presupposition and backdrop. The end of redemption is the creation of the new heavens and the new earth.

Human beings unaided by divine revelation cannot arrive at the biblical doctrine of creation by theological, philosophical, or scientific speculation. According to the Bible, human knowledge of creation must come by God’s revelation (cf. Heb 11:3). That creation is known only by faith means that it is known only by revelation.

The account of Creation is a record of how God conquers chaos.

God separates in order to recreate.

What do the following texts say about Creation and Redemption?

God is faithful in keeping His promises. The account of creation reveals to humanity that by believing in God’s word, we will be new creations. God separates in order to recreate. God keeping his word is the foundation to redemption.

What the following verses tell us about God’s faithfulness in keeping his word? , , , :9

Refer to Appendix A for reference.

Marriage

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

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Can you remember the first wedding that you ever witnessed?

How many of you were married in a church?

How many in a garden?

Any in Las Vegas?

We often think of a wedding ceremony as a white wedding where the groom waits for the bride to be given away by her father. It’s a sweet traditional ceremony. There are numerous traditions around the world which unites a man and woman to a committed relationship. But I’ve tried to imagine the union of Adam and Even on more than one occasion.

Here we have a wedding where God blessed them directly. What does that look like when God has blessed a marriage?

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

According the creation account, the best marriage is when it has received a blessing from God. But how do you know when God is blessing your relationship?

The union between man and woman is the foundation to understanding our relationship between Christ and His people. But let’s be clear. Our marriages are not to be the ideal picture for Christ and the church to imitate. Our marriages must imitate the relationship Christ has to the church. Consider a few of the following examples.

Isaiah 54:5-8

Isaiah 54:5–8 ESV

For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called. For the Lord has called you like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit, like a wife of youth when she is cast off, says your God. For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer.

, Song of Solomon, Hosea,

The danger of getting this twisted is that husbands believe that they are an illustration of Christ and wives an illustration of the church. To understand these illustrations correctly is for the husband to be like Christ! How many of you would be willing to marry a prostitute like Hosea did? How many of you are willing to serve your wife like Christ did for the church? Wash her feet? Die a pathetic death for her? The illustration of Christ as husband is not an easy call. It’s not for men to exert authority and for women to be passive and take shots from abusive men lying down.

This is also important to note because when we understand the model of marriage. We understand that people that are not in a marital relationship are not necessarily exempt from Christ’s redemption plan.

The point of marriage is that it’s not good for man to be alone. We have been made as social beings, we don’t just crave community, we need community! Marriage is the climax of two humans entering into a relationship. So sacred is this union, that intimacy is experienced in every possible level of human existence.

What happens in these sacred moments is not to be shared with anybody else. Otherwise, it is no longer sacred.

The Bible uses marriage as an illustration to humanity that service, and sacrifice will lead to a successful relationship. From this relationship we learn how to expand the kingdom of God to our own children and to our family, friends and community. All the while, we don’t accept abuse from from anybody. We learn to pick and choose our battles. But that’s for another discussion.

What can you do right now in your own marriage to make it more like the illustration of Christ and the church?

Sabbath

English Standard Version Chapter 2

And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.

Eerdmans Bible Dictionary BLESS, BLESSED

BLESSED (Heb. ˒ašrê, barûḵ; Aram. berîḵ; Gk. eulogētós, makários).† To bless means variously to worship or praise, to bestow goodness and favor, and to invoke such qualities upon another. When applied to God, the terms imply homage or adoration offered in gratitude (Gen. 24:48; Deut. 11:29; Ps. 66:8). God blesses people by granting prosperity or well-being in the form of both physical and spiritual grace (Gen. 39:5; Ps. 24:5). People bless one another by bestowing goods and authority (Gen. 27; 48:9, 15, 20) or by wishing goodwill (Gen. 24:60; Num. 23:11, 20) and by commending a person to God (Ruth 2:20; 1 Sam. 23:21). One might also designate as holy or worthy of honor the Sabbath (Gen. 2:3), work (Deut. 28:8), a sacrifice (1 Sam. 9:13), a place of residence (Prov. 3:33), or food (Mark 8:7).

A standard pattern of blessing or beatitude is often used when invoking a blessing upon another (in the sense “let be praised”; e.g., Ruth 4:14; Matt. 25:34) and in describing the joyful condition of a person “happy” or “fortunate” for having fulfilled certain obligations or lived in an exemplary manner (e.g., Ps. 65:4; Prov. 8:13, 33–34; Matt. 5:11; Luke 11:28). “Blessed” occurs also as an epithet of the Lord (Mark 14:61).

Christ not only imparts a special goodness and favour on the union between man and woman, but also in the sphere or time. God understands that time is the most precious gift that we can give to anybody. Right not we crave and need the time from the people we love. Kids want time from grown-ups, especially parents. Wives want quality time from their husbands. Husbands want time to play with their new gadgets they bought on ebay.

And yet, one of our favourite lines to give to people is, “I just don’t have time.”

We do have time! God gave us the gift of time, we’re just terrible stewards of managing our time. I recently read a book called “Atomic Habits” and man was I repentant to see how I spend my time on paper. Where and who are you wasting your time on? Refocus and spend time in the right places with the right people.

It’s not that we don’t have time. Where we spend time reveals to us what we find most important in our lives. If it’s important we will make time. If we took stock, we would find that we often waste time on things that aren’t important. We got hoodwinked. A lot of people in my generation spend hours watching moves online. Younger ones dedicate hours to social media. Some kid’s love video games. This isn’t about making time, this is about these things controlling our time.

The Sabbath teaches us to “MAKE TIME”! In the last two weeks I’ve put on paper where I’ve spent my time, and how I want to redistribute where I spend my time. I’ve had to make time and it’s inconvenient. I have to make for time for things I naturally don’t want to do. I’ve reintroduced doing morning every morning, monitoring when and what I eat and drink, writing, and making videos. Things I have to put effort in but i must “MAKE TIME’

Sabbath teaches us that if we don’t “make time”, otherwise we just waste time.

By giving us the Sabbath, Christ teaches us that He is available to us, not only on the Sabbath but everyday. But the Sabbath is the day where we can give our total attention to Christ and all that He is and what He has done in us. Sabbath is a day where we come to the feet of Christ and realise that we need to make some changes. And Christ promises He will help us.

The Sabbath is stipulated in the ten commandments, and then stipulated again but for different reasons.

Exodus 20:8–11 ESV

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Deuteronomy 5:12–13 ESV

12 “ ‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,

Deuteronomy 5:12 ESV

12 “ ‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you.

Christ has dedicated one full day to demonstrate his availability to us. How will you respond?

Christ has dedicated one full day to demonstrate his availability to us. How will you respond?

Deuteronomy 5:12–15 ESV

12 “ ‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. 13 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. 15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

In Exodus we read to “remember"the Sabbath because of God’s creative power. In Deuteronomy we read to “observe” the Sabbath because of God’s saving power. The Sabbath is a day we reflect that, not only is Christ is our Creator, He is also our Redeemer. What an amazing gift!

What are the ramifications, if any, of not pausing to reflect on our relationship with Christ and each other?

The Perfect Marriage

Marriage and Sabbath were the original institutions that set the foundation of what the kingdom of God was meant to look like. It is no wonder why Satan would set his sights on attacking these two foundational pillars.

Marriage teaches us how to relate to another person. We learn that in relationships, we have been commissioned to see how we can give to others, not to take from them. All the while, we don’t accept the role of being a doormat.

Sabbath teaches us that quality time is the most important gift we can give to others. It teaches us that we must make time and not waste time.

Marriage and Sabbath is the perfect marriage because we see the power of Christ’s love to redeem a world that don’t want to reciprocate an amazing love. We reflect on his creative power, and how he saved us, and continues to be faithful in our saving relationship.

Yiannis mentioned in prayer which humbled me as I imagined the image in my mind. The same hands that formed man out of the dust, were the same hands that were pierced to restore a broken relationship. Christ made a perfect world with perfect people. But people, are perfectly imperfect because we can choose to love or not. Christ made us to be in a marital relationship for eternity. But we like our parents often forfeit eternity for temporary pleasures. We often choose to follow our own course because to deny ourselves and carry the cross means we have to serve, and make time. Jesus not only created us, but died the cruel and pathetic death of capital punishment that we can be a new creature in Christ and live a life of undeserved accolades.

Once upon a time, there lived a girl who was born blind which caused her great anguish. She would always inquire about an eye transplant, with the hope that maybe some-day she could be given the gift of vision. She was told that she was on a 20 year waiting list. One day a young man met her. He appreciated her on a deeper level. He saw beyond her closed eyes, and beyond her bitterness. Deep inside of her he found a very gentle, refined and deep soul, hurting badly. He took a very deep liking to her. He finally proposed. She said yes to the proposal

Once upon a time, there lived a girl who was born blind which caused her great anguish. She would always inquire about an eye transplant, with the hope that maybe some-day she could be given the gift of vision. She was told that she was on a 20 year waiting list. One day a young man met her. He appreciated her on a deeper level. He saw beyond her closed eyes, and beyond her bitterness. Deep inside of her he found a very gentle, refined and deep soul, hurting badly. He took a very deep liking to her. He finally proposed. She said yes to the proposal

Once upon a time, there lived a girl who was born blind which caused her great anguish. She would always inquire about an eye transplant, with the hope that maybe some-day she could be given the gift of vision. She was told that she was on a 20 year waiting list. One day a young man met her. He appreciated her on a deeper level. He saw beyond her closed eyes, and beyond her bitterness. Deep inside of her he found a very gentle, refined and deep soul, hurting badly. He took a very deep liking to her. He finally proposed. She said yes to the proposal

You can only imagine how she appreciated what he had done for her. One day, he comes home and informs her, she would not have to wait 20 years for an eye transplant. In a few months she would be able to get a pair of eyes. She was overjoyed beyond words. Before she went into the surgery, he told her something: My dear wife, I don’t want you to be shocked when you wake up, so I am telling you now. “I am a blind man, too. I can’t see…” She began weeping. The transplant ended with success, she opened her eyes and saw the world around her.

She saw the heavens, she saw sunrise, sunset. She saw children playing; she saw rain, snow, trees, streams, rivers, gardens, and animals. Her joy knew no bounds. In the beginning she tended to him with tireless dedication and love. After all he was the man who chose to marry her, the blind woman, and she knew how much he loved her. After all, this man allowed her, to get the transplant.

As time went on she was feeling frustrated. She could finally travel and see the world; yet her husband’s impediment, would limit her every move and her every step. It was just unfair to her, she felt. She wanted to go live it up, but her blind husband just needed too much attention. The woman decided to end the marriage. “My dear,” she said; “I appreciate you and I love you. I feel our marriage is not allowing me to live a good life, a free life, an exciting life. I don’t see the point in being married to you while I resent it.” The day of the divorce, she found a letter under her pillow. This is what it said: My dear beloved wife, As you know, I always loved you and cherished you. After your request for a divorce, I immediately complied with your request. Love can’t be forced. I will miss you dearly, and I wish you the most beautiful, exciting and fun life you wish for yourself… I will just ask you one favor: Those eyes of yours, please treat them well. Take good care of them. For not too long ago, those eyes were mine…I loved you too much and could not bear to see you blind; so I gave you my eyes. That is why you did not have to wait twenty years…

“Christ was treated as we deserve that we may be treated as He deserves. He was condemned for our sins, in which He had no share, that we might be justified by His righteousness, in which we had no share. He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was His. 'By His stripes we are healed”. - Desire of Ages Chapter 81.

What has Christ said to you this morning? What is your response?

Questions for lunch discussion:

Questions for lunch discussion:

1) Do you think that the marriage institution is still important in 2019? why or why not? (Imagine you are speaking to someone that has no understanding of Christ or the Bible.)

What can we do to

2) How did you know that you wanted to marry your spouse? OR how did you know that you won’t be committing to a marriage relationship?

3) If someone was to give you quality time, what would it look like?

4) What are the strengths of Margate church when it comes to healthy relationships?

5) What are the areas we can improve on for healthy relationships?

Some young adults, kids and teens don’t see any importance in marriage because they perceive that separation and divorce is inevitable. How do we help them see otherwise?