What Is Marriage?

bobinfaith said:
What Is Marriage?

Good morning, Prim90;

I took your post and red-lighted and blue-lighted and will answer straight up according to what you wrote.

Without disrespecting the good Reverend Mick, the way you described your meeting with him, he has his own method of conducting premarital sessions or counseling with engaged couples. Many ministers will conduct class curriculums using text books on marriage and the Bible that can lasts weeks and months prior to the wedding day.

It seems Sweet One met the Reverend with an agenda by his remarks,"me (meaning Prim90) had already cost him 10 cows 50 sheep and 200 goats Never mind your bloody premarital chit chats," and "Now when be the earliest date you can book our marriage?"

(I don't know if what you posted is just an example, or if this was really you and your man.)

It seems Sweet One wanted to put all that God stuff aside and "book" the wedding day without the Creator involved. We don't marry on our terms, Prim90, we don't approach the Church as community or separatist minded, but fully God minded when it comes to marriage.

Stay with me here. Let's discuss God's creation of marriage and how we should receive it.

My approach as a minister is this; Getting married is already a life challenge between two couples in love, and committing a relational lifetime together. Since God is the Creator of marriage, why not pay heed to His counsel and direction, all right there in the Bible? I take that into consideration when conducting premarital sessions; it's about the couple getting married and opening up during these sessions. How they will grow together in all facets of life? How would they respond to views on their faith in Christ, circumstances when the romance goes up and down, job careers, raising children, finances, vision and plans. I also provide during each session God's Word / Scriptures for every life situation including obedience and sin.

Being married 39 years this June 1, I get asked to share my experiences in certain areas. I take that as a tool of testimony and how the Gospel ties in our successes and failures.

After several weeks, (or less weeks) depending in this case you and Sweet One, God gives me the Word on what needs to be discussed if I'm going to officiate your wedding. Unfortunately, there were two marriages in the past that ended in divorce and other sessions when I didn't feel the couple was ready and needed more time. But I had to let them know they are more than welcome to seek another minister who will marry them instead of me.

I'm marrying a young couple on May 25th. He is 28 and she 27. They have been submissive to the several weeks of sessions, opening up to me and each other with their Bibles in hand, and in my discernment they are very happy, excited and ready to exchange I do's.

Like I posted earlier, other ministers have their methods of premarital sessions or counseling. What I shared are mine and for the most part have worked. But this takes prayer for each couple that I'm going to marry. The rest I leave to God.

God bless you, Prim90.
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Bob me not be so sure about that. The Bible certainly says do not to be yoked with unbelievers. As to premarital lessons from my experience they only ever be to educate one on the sanctity of marriage not to determine ones marriage by the Reverend. And certainly not a determining factor of whether people choose or not choose to do the premarital studies at all. It be a matter of choice. The premarital studies were only ever meant to be guide to the meaning of marriage . If it were a atheist-Christian or Muslim -Christian Union there would be grounds for great concern. But generally when both abide under the Christian banner it be merely the ministers duty to consummate the marriage vows given by God. it certainly not be the ministers job to play mediator in determining those who claim to be Christian under the universal Christian banner, unless there be contradicting faiths or blatant unbelief hostile to the Christian faith. You must also consider the future offspring of what faith the children shall inherit should the couple be offended by the refusal and that they choose no Christian at all faith for their future children. 9F69B675-5CC1-4E9D-8656-92430B116F76.jpeg

Marriage be a universal concept given by God it be for the couple to determine their compatibility of their future marriage be that Yay or Ney and it not so much the ministers responsibility to determine unless there be reasons from the above mentioned examples. . There be many reasons for divorce but the reality be it comes down to the two people before God in whether they make their marriage a paradise or make it a living hell. You merely consummate the witness of marriage as verification of Gods given command. Nothing more..I sure our Christian religions outlook on marriage may continue to differ . But still God bless to the separatist Bob : )
 
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Prim90 said:
Bob me not be so sure about that. The Bible certainly says do not to be yoked with unbelievers. As to premarital lessons from my experience they only ever be to educate one on the sanctity of marriage not to determine ones marriage by the Reverend. And certainly not a determining factor of whether people choose or not choose to do the premarital studies at all. It be a matter of choice. The premarital studies were only ever meant to be guide to the meaning of marriage . If it were a atheist-Christian or Muslim -Christian Union there would be grounds for great concern. But generally when both abide under the Christian banner it be merely the ministers duty to consummate the marriage vows given by God. it certainly not be the ministers job to play mediator in determining those who claim to be Christian under the universal Christian banner, unless there be contradicting faiths or blatant unbelief hostile to the Christian faith. You must also consider the future offspring of what faith the children shall inherit should the couple be offended by the refusal and that they choose no Christian at all faith for their future children.
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Prim90 said:
Marriage be a universal concept given by God it be for the couple to determine their compatibility of their future marriage be that Yay or Ney and it not so much the ministers responsibility to determine unless there be reasons from the above mentioned examples. . There be many reasons for divorce but the reality be it comes down to the two people before God in whether they make their marriage a paradise or make it a living hell. You merely consummate the witness of marriage as verification of Gods given command. Nothing more..I sure our Christian religions outlook on marriage may continue to differ . But still God bless to the separatist Bob : )
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Hello Prim90;

I can see how we differ under the same body of Christ and we can leave it at that. It's nothing I haven't heard before in premarital sessions or outside of it, including your sharing about Sweet One.

I will agree with you. It's not my position to take the place of God who ultimately guides marriage between man and woman. Nor is it my responsibility if the couple decides against the sessions or not going forward with the wedding. My role is solely used by God in ministering to the couple engaged to be married and seek premarital sessions.

God bless you, Prim90, and thank you for sharing your position.
 
crossnote said:
I’m a DUNCE, when it comes to marriage, just ask my wife. :eek:
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it dont take a rocket Scientist to make a marriage work .. your no longer 2 in marriage but one ----7For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; 8And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. 9What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

you work together and yes sometimes you have to swallow your pride and let the wife have her way.. men have there when they eye that new 4 wheel drive truck or buy that new hunting rifle . while the wife does with out to let the man have his play toys we bought a new car few years ago i asked her what she thought. she said what ever you want.. we signed the papers then got a payment book than created us headaches money wise a few times .

we later paid the car off.. dipped into the 4o1k just to take the pain away . a man and wife must work together . Paul wrote husbands love your wife like Christ loved the Church. the post went from common sense to complicated what man thinks.. as Christians we do have a instruction booklet called the Bible.

marriage is sacred and unless its treated that way it will not work
 
forgiven61 said:
it dont take a rocket Scientist to make a marriage work .. your no longer 2 in marriage but one ----7For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; 8And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. 9What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. you work together and yes sometimes you have to swallow your pride and let the wife have her way.. men have there when they eye that new 4 wheel drive truck or buy that new hunting rifle . while the wife does with out to let the man have his play toys we bought a new car few years ago i asked her what she thought. she said what ever you want.. we signed the papers then got a payment book than created us headaches money wise a few times . we later paid the car off.. dipped into the 4o1k just to take the pain away . a man and wife must work together . Paul wrote husbands love your wife like Christ loved the Church. the post went from common sense to complicated what man thinks.. as Christians we do have a instruction booklet called the Bible. marriage is sacred and unless its treated that way it will not work
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Hello forgiven;

I want to share my thought while reading your post. My wife and I were not in agreement with the "behind the scenes" at a Church we attended back in the 90s before I became a pastor.

After hearing my wife express her disappointed to the leadership regarding the doctrine of this Church so she stepped down and moved on. It was the right thing to respect my wife's position. So we started attending two different Churches until I realized this wasn't right for our marriage. So I stepped down and prayed until God led us to a Church that we could worship together.

Regarding our marriage, we both agreed it was against God's will for us to attend separate Churches. We felt by earnestly seeking unity and harmony in our marriage pleased God and we would reap His blessings.
 
Musicmaster said:
Years ago, in my youth, I would have answered this by claiming that those with a license are married.

That's is nothing more than a social/cultural construct. It's the paradigm we've all been raised with.

It wasn't until I began to read the word of God for what it says, and what it does NOT say, for the realization to set in that I was VERY wrong!

Genesis 2:23-24
23 And 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 Man.
24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

There are three elements by which the Lord defined marriage:

- leave (forsake) father and mother
- cleave (cling, keep close) unto his wife
- become one flesh with her.

Throughout all the rest of scripture, we see not one verse whereby the Lord added to that definition, nor did the Lord speak of His ever having relinquished to mankind and/or his governments the Lord's own sole authority over marriage and its definition. Marriage is one of the items the Lord did not want man to corrupt, as we see happening within governments when they allow perversions to be defined as legal "marriages."

We see, therefore, that marriage is not an emotional tie, or defined under the auspices of romance, handed over to the authority of any earthly government, not defined by pieces of paper from City Hall, lauded as a "Marriage License," nor does the word of God state that the strength of marriage is somehow bolstered by ceremony, vows, exchanges, acknowledgements nor declarations from anyone with a title, be it governmental and/or religious.

This is the one means by which the Lord has kept marriage pure and beautiful. Those couples with some silly piece of paper from City Hall or s state that says they are married, and have not fulfilled the three items from Genesis 2, they are living sexual sin, and many in adultery who were married before, divorced on unbiblical grounds, such as "incompatibility," and remarried...that is adultery, for the Lord does not recognize divorce on any other grounding that that which the Lord allowed.

This may seem harsh to some, and if it does, then please read your Bible, pray about it, and let the Lord give to you His wisdom, or we can discuss this here. I'm not here to analyze anyone's marriage, but rather to speak only what the word of the Lord says and does not say. Many men have abandoned their wives and children, leaving them to fend for themselves, and therefore failing to provide for his wife's raiment and food. The word of God says that a wife is therefore no longer bound, and owes nothing to the wayward husband.

There are thousands, perhaps millions of variations of stories behind failed marriages, and we can't cover them all here. Suffice it to say that some situations may rest solely upon the Lord's own Judgement, where there is no injustice.

MM
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What is marriage you ask?

It is a legal agreement where the husband agrees that his wife will always be right!
 
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