A Godly Family In An Ungodly World

How Long The Marriage Should Last

"Until Death Do You Part" Is Still God's Plan

Introduction

• • • Vows, pledges and promises do not seem to mean much anymore particularly in marriage. People used to say, "until death do you part" and they meant it. Today many in the world have compromised God's position by changing the words to "until love ends."

How Long

• • • • Tragically the institution of marriage has been driven to its knees by folks who know little or nothing about God's design for marriage. Even the church of our Lord has not stood firm against Satan's assault. Accordingly, the rate of divorce even among those who claim allegiance to Christ has skyrocketed.

This tragedy is the result of God’s word not being taught to those who need it.

How Long

• • • What can be done to stem the tide? There may not be much we can do about those who are part of Satan's kingdom, but there is much we can and must do about those who are in the church.

Those of us who claim to believe in 'The Book' must do a better job teaching, and we must also do a better job living.

How Long

• • • We must teach the principles of godly marriage to our children. In classes, in seminars, in our homes and especially in the pulpit, we must provide a clear picture of what God expects of us. The truth is, there is not one marriage in existence that would not benefit from an in-depth study of God's word as it relates to God's blueprint for the home.

God’s Blueprint

• • God's directive for the home can be found throughout scriptures beginning as early as the second chapter of Genesis. Adam said, "This is now bone of my bones and

flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman,

because she was taken out of the man. “ (and God said) "For this cause shall a man leave his

father and mother and be joined to his wife, and

they shall become one flesh" (Genesis 2:23-24).

God’s Blueprint

• • • • Later, in the New Testament Jesus referred back to that same passage and then added, "They (those who are married) are no longer two, but one flesh.

Therefore, what God has joined together, let not

man separate" (Matthew 19:6).

What is the problem? Why are marriages so soon severed today? We have already admitted that some have compromised the truth, but beyond that, what?

God’s Blueprint

• • Ephesians 5:22-33 holds one of the keys to understanding what Biblical marriage is all about. To the woman God says, "Wives, submit to your

own husband as unto the Lord, for the husband is the head of the wife, as also Christ is the head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their husbands in everything.“ (verses 22-24)

God’s Blueprint

• • • Submission is a very important part of the marriage fabric. If the home is to be what God intends, the wife must appreciate her God-assigned responsibility. Nothing else will suffice.

God’s Blueprint

• • • I understand it is fashionable to water down the word "submit" until it is meaningless, but such does not agree with the word of God. To the Greeks the word "submit" meant to place in order under or beneath, and it should be translated so today. Any contrary or lesser meaning of this word is out of sync with clear Biblical terminology, and can only do serious harm to the marriage relationship.

God’s Blueprint

• • But the relationship is not supposed to be one sided favoring one party or the other.

God also said unto the man, "Husbands love

your wives as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it.“ (verse 25)

God’s Blueprint

• • • When the husband loves his wife even as he loves his own body, the wife should have no difficulty in submitting to him. But when the husband fails to love her with the love of Christ, the home will not be what God intends for it to be.

Christ's love for His church was and is a sacrificial love.

God’s Blueprint

• • • Just so, the husband is to love his wife with an unalterable, self-giving love, a love that is so sincere that it cannot be broken by human frailties.

Very much like the love of a parent that would even sacrifice their own life for the child.

Future considerations (lessons) will allow us to see how the husband and wife are to view and treat each other.

God’s Blueprint

• • • • Nothing in either instruction is negotiable.

Marriages are often contracted on lesser considerations, but the marriages are failing, and as a result there is much pain and many broken homes.

We have already discussed what God wants couples to consider BEFORE the marriage.

Often times, the wrong things are considered.

Conclusion

• • • • • When these two ingredients of submission and sacrificial love are present, the marriage will abide and be what God wants it to be.

Marriage should be "until death do we part.“ That is the design from the beginning.

Any deviation from God’s blueprint involves sin.

Remember to put God first in your decisions.