I once heard a joke that Wal-Mart considered opening wedding chapels in their locations as part of their one stop shop model for business, but they decided against it because the return lines were already too long. Though many people will chuckle at this little joke, the truth which drives the punchline is a sad testimony to our culture’s failure to properly respect the most fundamental human relationship of all. Because of the high percentage of failed American marriages, an ever-increasing number of people have decided to avoid marriage altogether. What, if anything, may help to alleviate the rate of failed marriages in our culture? While it may not be the popular answer, the biblical concept of marriage once again provides the solution.
In Genesis 2:18, God said, “It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.” Did God not know this before He created Adam? To ask is to answer. So, why not just create man and woman at the same time? The answer is in Genesis 2:19-24. After declaring Adam’s need for a mate, God paraded all the animals before him to see what he would name them. Who was this exercise to benefit? It had to be Adam because God already knows all things.
After naming all the animals, Adam realized he was the only one of his kind. The significance of this is seen in his response to seeing his new bride for the first time. In Genesis 2:23, Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Why did God not create Eve from another lump of dirt as He had Adam? It seems God wanted to impress upon Adam the closeness of his relationship to the newly formed woman, much the way we bond with our children because they are part of us. In 1 Corinthians 11:8-12, Paul reminds us of the interdependence of man and woman in God’s plan.
Had Adam not realized he was the only one of his kind, he most likely would not have properly appreciated the woman God gave him. Likewise, Eve being aware of her origin would be more likely to reciprocate the love in the relationship. If we remember this fundamental truth about marriage, perhaps we will come to respect our marriages for what God intended them to be. Maybe more husbands will love their wives as Christ loved the church and cherish them as their own bodies (Eph. 5:25-29). Perhaps because of this love, wives will find their call to submission to their husbands the blessing God intended it to be, rather than the curse pop culture has portrayed.
Unfortunately, so many people enter marriage with the same mentality with which they approach their purchases at Walmart. Walmart is quick to let you return or exchange any item you purchase should you get it home and no longer find it desirable. Jesus, on the other hand has a much stricter return policy regarding marriage. Apart from death (Rom. 7:1-2), He gave but one reason which allows an innocent party to put away his/her spouse and remarry, the sin of fornication (Mt. 5:31-32; 19:9; Mk. 10:10-12). This is not just some burdensome law given by the Lord. It is based on the fundamental truth that when a man and woman marry, they are no longer two, but one flesh (Gen. 2:24; Mk. 10:6-8). What God has joined, we must not sever (Mk. 10:9).
In Genesis 2:18, God said, “It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helper comparable to him.” Did God not know this before He created Adam? To ask is to answer. So, why not just create man and woman at the same time? The answer is in Genesis 2:19-24. After declaring Adam’s need for a mate, God paraded all the animals before him to see what he would name them. Who was this exercise to benefit? It had to be Adam because God already knows all things.
After naming all the animals, Adam realized he was the only one of his kind. The significance of this is seen in his response to seeing his new bride for the first time. In Genesis 2:23, Adam said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.” Why did God not create Eve from another lump of dirt as He had Adam? It seems God wanted to impress upon Adam the closeness of his relationship to the newly formed woman, much the way we bond with our children because they are part of us. In 1 Corinthians 11:8-12, Paul reminds us of the interdependence of man and woman in God’s plan.
Had Adam not realized he was the only one of his kind, he most likely would not have properly appreciated the woman God gave him. Likewise, Eve being aware of her origin would be more likely to reciprocate the love in the relationship. If we remember this fundamental truth about marriage, perhaps we will come to respect our marriages for what God intended them to be. Maybe more husbands will love their wives as Christ loved the church and cherish them as their own bodies (Eph. 5:25-29). Perhaps because of this love, wives will find their call to submission to their husbands the blessing God intended it to be, rather than the curse pop culture has portrayed.
Unfortunately, so many people enter marriage with the same mentality with which they approach their purchases at Walmart. Walmart is quick to let you return or exchange any item you purchase should you get it home and no longer find it desirable. Jesus, on the other hand has a much stricter return policy regarding marriage. Apart from death (Rom. 7:1-2), He gave but one reason which allows an innocent party to put away his/her spouse and remarry, the sin of fornication (Mt. 5:31-32; 19:9; Mk. 10:10-12). This is not just some burdensome law given by the Lord. It is based on the fundamental truth that when a man and woman marry, they are no longer two, but one flesh (Gen. 2:24; Mk. 10:6-8). What God has joined, we must not sever (Mk. 10:9).