tmeiers

Momentary Marriage
Jesus: Marriage Is the Doing of God
Jesus  makes  the  point  most  clearly  that  marriage  is  the  doing  of  God.
Mark 10:6–9:
"From the beginning of creation, 'God made them male and female'
[Genesis  1:27],  'Therefore  a  man  shall  leave  his  father  and  mother
and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh' [Genesis
2:24]. So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore  God
has joined together, let not man separate."
This  is  the  clearest  statement  in  the  Bible  that  marriage  is  not
merely a human doing. The words "God has joined together" means it
is God's  doing.
Paul: Marriage Is the Display of God
Paul  makes  the  point  most  clearly  that  marriage  is  designed  to  be  the
display of God. In Ephesians 5:31–32 he quotes Genesis 2:24 and then
tells us the mystery that it has always contained: "'Therefore a man shall
leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall
become  one  flesh.' This  mystery  is  profound,  and  I  am  saying  that  it
refers to Christ and the church."
In other words, the covenant involved in leaving mother and father
and holding fast to a spouse and becoming one flesh is a portrayal of the
covenant between Christ and his church. Marriage exists ultimately to
display the covenant-keeping love between Christ and his church.
A Model of Christ and the Church
I asked my wife Noël if there was anything she wanted me to say at this
point when I was preaching on this subject. She said, "You cannot say
too  often  that  marriage  is  a  model  of  Christ  and  the  church."  I  think
she  is  right,  and  there  are  at  least  three  reasons:  1) This  lifts  marriage
out  of  the  sordid  sitcom  images  and  gives  it  the  magnificent  meaning
God meant it to have; 2) this gives marriage a solid basis in grace, since
Christ obtained and sustains his bride by grace alone; and 3) this shows
that  the  husband's  headship  and  the  wife's  submission  are  crucial  and