Wednesday, April 27, 2016

Beyond the Gospels: Ephesians

Read today's Scripture: Ephesians 5:22-33
[Click the reference above to read online, but I bet you have your Bible nearby.]

The marriage relationship, between a man and a woman, is the most holy relationship we can ever experience on this earth. It is the relationship where we have the greatest opportunity to love like God loves us and to learn more about His love for us.

It is a mystery. Making it difficult to express in words the relationship between husband and wife, and God and the church. But because God uses this metaphor for His relationship with His people, is it any wonder the world attacks marriage the way it does?

Selfishness stirs up the temptation to fight for rights rather than serve one another in love. Battles within a marriage make a heart susceptible to the temptation of infidelity and adultery. The legal system has gone so far as to allow no-fault divorce. Boredom grounds for tearing apart two lives that have become one. The world fights God's Word unrelentingly to redefine marriage, all because the enemy wants to destroy the basic building block of the church.

With this sacred joining of husband and wife, we see the sacred bonding of Christ and a Believer. On an individual basis Christ brings us into the church by the wooing of the Holy Spirit. Each marriage painting a picture of the relationship between Christ and the church. Two becoming one multiplying to bring more into the church by the conception of children or the witness of a spiritually healthy marriage bringing others to Christ.

Marriage is more than a social tradition. It is a holy union, God-ordained, from the beginning. It's worth fighting for on an individual basis and worth standing up for in the social arena. Both relationships husband and wife, Christ and the church, lead to life.

Husband and wife
Christ and the church.
The two most important relationships you will ever be a part of.

Father God, thank You for the beautiful mystery of marriage.
Not only the precious relationship between husband and wife, man and woman,
but between Christ and the church. Uphold Your work by Your mighty power.

No comments:

Post a Comment