In the last post, we discussed God’s original purpose for marriage. In this post, we will look at God’s current purpose for marriage. God has an original purpose for marriage, which is to picture Jesus and the Church. What about for here and now? How can we get to here and today?
God’s current purpose for marriage is… (Are you ready for this?)… The same as His original purpose! God’s current purpose for marriage is to picture Jesus and His Church.
That may seem like the most obvious statement in the universe, but, really, God’s purpose for marriage has not changed. We have a tendency to distance ourselves from the biblical teaching and see it as something that is only relevant for ancient history. Granted there are some things that only apply to a specific group of people in a specific time. However, in laying down the foundation for marriage, the original and ongoing purpose of marriage are the same.
God’s purpose for marriage is the same today as it was on the sixth day of creation. Marriage is a picture of Christ and His Church. This is the main point of Ephesians 5:22-33.
Remember the main application that is true for all marriages: All we do in our marriages should clearly represent Jesus’ relation to the church and the church’s relation to Jesus. Anything short of this is sin and must be turned from and thrown away in the hope of the Gospel.
God’s purpose for marriage is not some far off picture, but it is something that affects each married couple today. Each married couple has been entrusted with a real and living picture of Jesus and the church. Marriage is a means of proclaiming the Gospel in picture form.
The test of each marriage’s success can be boiled down to this question: “Is my marriage clearly representing the way that Jesus relates to His Church or the way the Church relates to Jesus?” If the answer is “no” then we need to repent and adjust our behavior to reflect that relationship. I believe you will agree, there is a need for daily repentance! We fail. We fail so often. Thankfully, the perfect Bridegroom of the Church does not fail. He has died for our sins. He is cleansing His people with His blood. Someday, He will make us perfect (1 John 3:1-3). May that hope fuel our holiness.
If you would like know more about Jesus Christ and trusting in Him, please see the Good News page!
God’s original and ongoing purpose for marriage is to clearly represent the relationship of Jesus and His church.
In Service of the Perfect Bridegroom,
Bill Whittington
(Please Note: When the word “marriage” is used in any post on this blog, it refers to the lifelong covenant union of one man and one woman before God. The gender references of male and female refer to the biological gender of individuals as determined by God at conception. This is the only way that the Bible refers to marriage and gender. Anything outside of these definitions rebels against the God of the Bible, therefore it is sin.)
Notice: Unless otherwise noted: “Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. May not copy or download more than 500 consecutive verses of the ESV Bible or more than one half of any book of the ESV Bible.” https://www.crossway.org/permissions/
Bible Living Blog 