GOD'S DESIGN
Genesis 2:24-25 | Marriage was the plan all along, from before the fall on page three. However, because of what happened on page three, the word “marriage” now brings a freight train of baggage. We need to unpack it all...broken marriage, singleness, betrayal, loneliness, hurting, etc. All of it swirls in a cauldron of emotion. Jesus redeems us and restores marriage, even for, especially for: the broken, betrayed, and the lonely. See Revelation 19:6-9.
THE EVIL DAYS
Ephesians 5:15-16 | The days we live in are EVIL. They are wrong. They are broken. Those daily arguments, that gut-wrenching loneliness, the oozing feeling of brokenness are all part of the evil. We must be wise and face these days properly: See Ephesians 6:10-18.
Ephesians 5:21-22 | Following Jesus means submitting. This is where faith meets sin head-on. Sin, which is this thing inside us that fights against God and goodness in the world, sees submission as weakness. In Jesus, however, submission is based upon faith, so it is the daily reality of us continuously trusting in the Lord to make all things right. Jesus submits to the Father, the husband submits to Jesus, the wife submits to the husband. See 1 Corinthians 11:3 and Philippians 2:3-11.
HOW IT WORKS
Ephesians 5:23 | The husband is the head of the wife JUST AS Christ is the head of the church. How did Jesus use His authority? What did He do with His power? What motivated His actions? See John 17:10-19.
Ephesians 5:25| Husbands: you go first. Give yourself up for your wives. Period. See 1 John 4:7-18.
Ephesians 5:26-27 | This sentence is why marriage is so important for all people, regardless of who’s married, single, divorced, broken, damaged goods, or otherwise. Adam and Eve, before the fall, were naked and felt no shame. WE FEEL SHAME. So! OUR Bridegroom arrives and He washes us clean. CLEAN. With the water through the Word. All of this to present you and me to Himself as a RADIANT church, without stain or wrinkle or any blemish. HOLY. BLAMELESS. See Galatians 2:20, Revelation 21:2-4.