sf325 - HOW TO HAVE PARADISE AT YOUR ADDRESS (Genesis 2 24-25)
Genesis 2:24-25
INTRODUCTION
Marriages are in trouble
Adam and Eve
Adam and Eve had an ideal marriage. He did not have to hear about all the men that she could have married‑and she did not have to hear about the way his mother cooked.
Young Couple
“Why do you not make biscuits like my mother?” Wife, “I do not know, why do you not bring home the dough like my Daddy?”
1A. We Must Completely Cut the Apron Strings
Girls tend to marry men like their fathers. That is why mothers cry at weddings.
Ø To "leave father and mother" means to break the parent - child bond.
1B. Parents, you must release your children
Accountability
Financially
Emotionally
2B. Children, you must maintain a relationship without reliance
Daughter - Mother
A father turned to his daughter and said: "Your young man approached me this afternoon and asked for your hand and I consented."
"But, Father," cried the daughter, "I don't want to leave Mother."
"I understand," he said, "But don't let me stand in the way of your happiness - take your mother with you."
2A. We Must Commit to a Life-Long Relationship
"united" / "cleave" = to glue, to cling
Four Husbands
Her first husband was a banker, the second an actor, the third a minister, the fourth and undertaker. When asked why the different ones she said: "One for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, and four to go."
1B. There can be no question about permanence
Most couples approach marriage as a terminable arrangement.
Do not even discuss the "D" word.
2B. We must constantly commit to each other
Winston Churchill
"Wars are not won by evacuations!"
3A. We Must Concentrate on our Mates
Little Attention
He pays so little attention to me that if I died I do not think he would be able to identify the body.
1B. Seek real unity with your mate
"become one flesh"
Unity is not uniformity
Ø God made you different to complement and complete each other.
Unity is the product of unselfishness.
(1 Corinthians 7:3-4 (NIV) The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife's body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.
Peter Marshall
Marriage is not a federation of two sovereign states.
It is a union…domestic, social, spiritual, physical.
It is a fusion of two hearts - the union of two lives - the coming together of two tributaries. Which, after being joined in marriage, will flow in the same channel, in the same direction...carrying the same burdens of responsibility and obligation.
2B. Strive for true intimacy with your mate (25)
Be totally transparent
"naked" = laid bare
Ø Opera Singer
Man fell in love with a great opera singer. She was several years his senior. They married, on the honeymoon they got to the room. She removed her make‑up and wig, her glass eye and false teeth. He took one look at her and said "sing honey, sing!"
Be completely honest
"felt no shame" = they weren't ashamed "before one or with one another"
APPLICATION
How can we have Paradise at your Address?
Cut the Apron Strings
Relationship without reliance
Commit to a Life-long Relationship
Do not compromise your commitment
Concentrate on your mate
Learn to put them first
How to Have Paradise at Your Address
Sunday, February 22, 1998 - Genesis 2:24-25
1A. We Must Completely _______ the Apron Strings
1B. Parents, you must __________ your children
2B. Children, you must maintain a relationship without a ______________
2A. We Must _________ to a Life-Long Relationship
1B. There can be ______ question about permanence
2B. We must _____________ commit to each other
3A. We Must _______________ on our Mates
1B. Seek real ___________ with your mate
Unity is not ______________
Unity is the product of ______________.
(1 Corinthians 7:3-4 (NIV) “The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife's body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.”
2B. Strive for true ___________ with your mate (25)
Be totally transparent
Be completely _______________