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THE
NEW LIFE by
John Marshall
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Chapter
12 • MARRIAGE
For
a son or daughter who has been spoiled and smothered by over-anxious
parents, marriage may seem to make the break with parents
a great sacrifice indeed. But the purpose of marriage is to
integrate the new relationship into a new and divine family
and each partner must strive to make it a divine reality.
When all the parties concerned in the marriage situation reverently
understand God's purpose in it, the outcome can, for all of
them, be a happy and joyful experience, especially when the
marriage is consummated in the birth of children.
A Joint Venture
Marriage is not only a private but a divinely directed venture:
"Therefore shall a man ... cleave unto his wife ..."
Hence a marriage should be God-guided, otherwise it will fail
to achieve unity of purpose. It is the Scriptures that reveal
that "a prudent wife is from the Lord" and that
a wise husband is "one that ruleth well his own house".
The Proverbs give a detailed picture of the dedicated wife,
and Paul in more than one place portrays an elder of an ecclesia
as a faithful and blameless husband.'
The realization of this divine conception of marriage should
add to the joy of the young couple who set out on this venture
of creating a new family. It should also help them through
the difficulties of their adjustment to one another, and to
the break with their parents. How much stronger is a marriage
when it is realized that there is another, if unseen, partner!
There are few greater challenges in life than the experience
of marriage. No man or woman normally achieves the unity of
relationship with either of his parents or brothers or sisters
that is possible in marriage. The setting up of a flat or
house, the gradual equipment of the home with all that is
needed, the adjustment of the temperament of each partner
to the needs of family life, the joint service in ecclesial
life and the gradual development of an outlook and character
shaped by the new relationship all contribute to a divine
conception of unity to be found nowhere else.
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References
Prov 19v14, 1 Tim 3v2, Prov 31v10-31,
1 Tim 3v1-9, Titus 1v5-9
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Chapter
12 • MARRIAGE
Throughout marriage there is every reason for self-examination to
continue so that both partners never lose sight of their divinely
directed mission in the spiritual life; because if marriage begins
to lose its spirit of partnership, there is the danger that each
will go his own way to his own hurt and that of the children, if
there are any.
If anything goes wrong with a marriage, it cannot remain a private
matter, something which is the concern only of the man and wife:
it is the concern of God also. This needs constantly to be kept
in mind. Therefore a marriage must never be taken for granted; neither
partner must be heedless of the wishes or the welfare of the other,
and both need to remember that their marriage is a joint venture.
Self-Abnegation
It needs to be stressed that whilst marriage fulfills certain legal
obligations, gives the man and woman the opportunity to make their
vows before witnesses and enables them to receive exhortation, in
God's sight marriage is the joining of the man and woman so that
they become one flesh. Jesus emphasized this very clearly: ".
. . and the twain shall become one flesh. So that they are no more
twain, but one flesh." No more two persons, but one; no more
two directions, but one; no more two lives, but one in a divine
unity. How many fully realize the deep significance of this?
God was the husband of the nation of Israel and He desired them
to enjoy the blessing of family unity with Him, but the marriage
broke down because the nation went its own way, and became, in God's
sight, a harlot, suffering all the evil consequences of loss of
unity with her Maker.
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References
Matt 19v5-6, Isa 54v5, Jer 31v32
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