Today we continue with our message series from 1 Corinthians called “Spirit Empowered Living.” Our message today is entitled “Build a Godly Marriage.” Marriage is a hot topic in our culture today, for all the wrong reasons. Rather than begin with those misconceptions, we going to start today with the biblical definition of marriage.
Genesis 1:27 (ESV) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
This verse is taken from the very first chapter in the Bible about God’s creation of the universe. We see first of all, that humans were created in the image of God. That means that they possessed a moral likeness, they were created as sinless and holy. They were created with a natural likeness to God, having a spirit, mind, emotions and the power of choice. Finally, they were created in such as way that they could enjoy a personal relationship with their Creator.
God created humans as two and only two genders, male and female. We now know scientifically that gender is determined by the DNA of a person which never changes throughout their lives. Every male has XY chromosomes and every female has XX chromosomes.
Genesis 1:28 (ESV) And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion … over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Men and women were not created to live separate lives, but together to multiple and fill the earth with their children. The Bible speaks of this union or marriage in the second chapter of Genesis.
Genesis 2:24 (ESV) Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
The foundation of human society is the family, consisting of a husband and his wife, who in a mystery become one flesh. Together they reflect the image of God to the world and actually represent the loving relationship of Christ and the church. In every age, Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy God’s design for marriage. Romans 1 speaks of how because of sin, men have perverted sexual relations with men and women with women. Not only is this sin in and of itself, it also destroys the biblical concept of marriage and eliminates the blessing of children.
The good news is that any sin, including sins of homosexuality and gender confusion can be forgiven and healed through the cross of Christ. Today, we’re going to see what God’s Word has to say about building godly marriages and promoting godly marriages in a culture that is headed the other direction. So, let’s see what the Bible has to say about …