Of all of the
incredible gifts God has given to mankind (beyond the gift of eternal life!),
one of the greatest has to be the gift of marriage.
Think about it – the
Lord Almighty formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. God then surrounded
the man with a beautiful garden in a perfect paradise, in which stunning trees and
luscious green plants produced good food for the man to eat. And the Lord gave
the man fulfilling and meaningful work in tending the garden.
The man was in
charge of the garden and had dominion over every creature on the face of the
earth. The world was at his fingertips. He had untainted fellowship with God,
and sin wasn’t even on the radar. What more could he want? No ESPN yet, of
course, nor Harleys to ride, but otherwise he had it made.
But there was something
missing. The Lord God said, “It is not good for man to be alone; I will make
him a helper fit for him” (Genesis 2:18).
The story goes that
God approached Adam and told him that He would create for him the most gorgeous
creature he’d ever seen, a lovely figure to behold, charming and pleasant in
nature, and beautiful in every way. But it would cost him an arm and a leg.
Adam thought about it for awhile and countered, “Well, that sounds great, but
I’m not sure I can give up an arm and a leg. What can I get for just a rib?” (Ba-dum-ch!)
Maybe not quite like
that, but God did take one of Adam’s ribs and with it He made a breathtaking
companion in all of her radiant beauty and brought her to the man. Adam
declared, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be
called Woman, because she was taken out of Man” (Genesis 2:23).
Can you imagine the
joy that must have leapt from every fiber in Adam’s being when God introduced
him to this incredible new creature, this woman who was designed to be man’s
suitable helpmate, and who also just happened to be easy on the eyes?
Do you wonder how
their first conversation may have gone? The Bible doesn’t say this exactly, but
can you see Adam ambling up to her with a cheesy pick-up line like, “Is it hot
out here, or is that just the Holy Spirit burning inside you?”
“I didn’t know angels
flew so low.”
“Excuse me, is your
name Grace? Because you are amazing.”
“Or is it Faith?
‘Cause you’re the substance of things I’ve hoped for.”
“I’m not usually
very prophetic, but I can see us together.”
Warning to single
guys: If you ever use any of these lines, you will forever remain single. And
if Adam had, well you and I wouldn’t be here today.
What the Bible does
tell us about this gift of marriage is that, “For this reason a man shall leave
his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one
flesh” (Genesis 2:24). That was our Maker’s gracious purpose from the
beginning, affirmed by Jesus in His earthly ministry (Mark 10:6-8), to define
the sacred covenant of marriage for all time. And what a gift God has given!
The Bible also says
this to us, “Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and let the marriage
bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous”
(Hebrews 13:4).
Friend, let me urge
you to honor marriage. Honor it by keeping it pure, by keeping your marriage
vows faithfully, with steadfast love and unwavering devotion. Honor it by
refusing to allow an ungodly culture to redefine it in ungodly ways. And honor
it by treasuring this gift with much gratitude to the Lord for His great grace.
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