Including God in Your Marriage

You know, mankind has been on the earth for approximately 6,000 years. During that time, there have been millions of marriages. And most of them have been unhappy. They've not lived up to the potential that God has for marriage. What you find is that God, when He created man and woman, had a definite idea of what marriage should be like, the potential that man and woman should achieve in marriage. And what you find is that mankind has fallen far short of that. Today in the Western world, we find that one-half of marriages end in divorce. That's a numeric number. If there are two million marriages in a year, a million divorces. And the rest are not truly happy, or many of them are not. Many of them are miserable. People stay together for various reasons. Children, financial reasons. I mean, there are all kinds of reasons why people endure marriage. Yesterday, 75 years ago, there was very little divorce in this country. But that doesn't mean that people's marriages were exhilaratingly happy. You find that people were unhappy. They just stayed together and didn't believe in divorce. But with the advent of numerality, the 60s, the swinging 70s, the popular 80s, you could go on as you march through time. You find that people's attitudes have changed. And today, people get married with parachutes on. And anytime they're ready, they pull the ripcord and they jump. And they're out of a marriage. Our marriages, I'm talking about where both partners especially are in the church, are to be different from the worlds. And if we have two people in God's church, and they truly are converted, and their marriage is fails because we're not using God's Spirit, as we should, and because we're not living up to the Word of God and the standards that God has given to us. I think there's a key that many times we overlook when it comes to marriage. And that is, we need to ask God to sanctify our marriages. We need to ask God to set our marriages apart, that they be different, special, that it be elevated to a higher plane, a different plane than most people in the world. What we find in the latter half of the 20th century especially is that there has been a de-emphasis on the sanctity of marriage, and what marriage is all about. I remember as we progressed through the 80s that we had a marriage counselor, and this individual was quite well known at Ambassador College, who began to counsel people in the church that you could get a divorce for any reason you wanted. And he basically was sort of carte blanc. You know, you could divorce every marry.

In the 50s in the church, we didn't have a divorce in the church. It just didn't take place. I remember the first Ambassador College graduate who ever got a divorce, and this was sometime in the 60s. And what a shock it was! I mean, it was truly shocking at that time. But believe me, since that time, nobody is shocked, it seems, when those type of things occur. Is your marriage today a carnal marriage, or is it a spirit-level marriage? What level does your marriage function on? Is it on the just the human level, the carnal plane, or is it on the spiritual level? Just because we're church members doesn't mean that we automatically qualify to have a happy marriage. I think sometimes the idea is, well, if I can find somebody in the church, bingo! Happy marriage doesn't work that way. What you're looking for in the church is somebody who's deeply converted. There's a big difference between somebody who's deeply converted and somebody quote-unquote in the church, because not always are people in the church really converted. Our marriages should actually be a God-plane marriage, a God-plane relationship. Do we really understand what it means to have a God-plane relationship in any type of relationship, but especially in marriage? What is God-plane relationship in marriage, and how do we get God to truly bless our marriages? That's what we want to look at today. In Matthew 19, let's go over here to Matthew, the 19th chapter, beginning in verse 3. Matthew 19, verse 3. Fair seas came to him, testing him and saying to him, is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?

You know, any reason. And he answered and said to them, Have you not read that he who made them in the beginning made them male and female? So God is the one who created the sexes, male and female. And he said, Male and female. And said, For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.

So you find that we are to become one flesh. Now God is the one who ordained the structure of marriage. He created marriage. He created the laws surrounding marriage. Remember the sermon last week that I gave on wisdom? And I mentioned that if you want to achieve something, in this case, happy marriage over here, not only just a happy marriage, but a God-playing relationship in a marriage, and you start over here, how do you get over here? Well, wisdom is knowing how to go from point A to point B. The beginning, you know, you get married. Here's the marriage. What you have to do right in order to achieve what you want to do. Well, that's where God comes in. That's where this book comes in, because this is God's revelation to mankind to show us how to do that. And this is where the wisdom of God is revealed to us. So, without God, we need to realize that marriage just doesn't work as well as it should. We need God in marriage. And we've often spoken, and when I counsel people for marriage, I tell them, look, there are three parties to this marriage. Husband, wife, God. And God's got to be a part of that. And if He's not there, then there's a missing ingredient in your marriage. And as a result, you're going to miss out, and you're going to have certain problems. There are no spirit-level marriages in the world. Not unless you have God's spirit. I mean, it's an oxymoron.

Spirit-level implies there is God's spirit there to guide and to lead. Now, that doesn't mean that people in the world can't have good marriages. Some do. But generally, even in a good marriage, there's something going on. The dynamics within that marriage are not necessarily as they should be. There tends to be generally a martyr within a marriage of this kind. A martyr is one who is making the biggest sacrifices, giving up more, and constantly feeling that they're suffering. And then they begin to harbor certain resentment, certain bitterness. And then one day, boom, everything blows up. And you have this problem. One just simply gives in to the other, instead of having a relationship where they can talk, they love, they can express to one another their feelings, true emotions. When you get married, as we all know, there are vast adjustments that have to take place. Right? You don't just get married and all at once. Perfectly adjusted. Everybody's walking along, you know, in harmony with one another. It doesn't happen that way. You've got two egos, and you have selfishness. You also have vanity. You have pride. You have a pressure of living with an imperfect person. Now, I won't tell you which one is imperfect.

A husband normally thinks it's a wife, and the wife thinks it's a husband, and it's both, obviously. And you have the pressures of living, the pressures of a job, pressures of getting children, pressures of in-laws, pressures of having animals. You can go on and on, all kinds of pressures within the marriage. So that after a while, you begin to find that there are all kinds of situations that keep pulling and jerking at the marriage. And after a while, people begin to fight with one another. Men can become very abusive, and they can beat their wives. And what you find statistically in this country, one out of four men, is wife-beater. You know, there's verbal abuse, there's emotional abuse, there's physical abuse. And you find that women can become very abusive. Women tend to beat men down with their tongues, and you'll get the best of them in that way. Women win 90% of arguments. You know, they're just better at it. We men don't stand a chance when it comes to arguing. So you find that many times marriage is just two people coexisting, they're there for the sake of the family. And when it comes time when they don't need that any longer, somebody is out the door. Now let's notice in verses 7 and 8 here, Matthew 19 again, verses 7 and 8. They said to him, Why then did Moses command to get a certificate of divorce and to put her away? And he said, Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, that's why the carnality, the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives. He didn't command it, he permitted it, it was allowed. But from the beginning, it was not so. That's not the way God wanted it from the beginning. That's not the way God created it from the beginning.

Unconversion is simply the lack of God's spirit in action within marriage. Hardness can imply a coldness, an obstinate sea, a stubbornness, an unyieldedness that a person can have. And what you find, true harmony as God seeks to have harmony, is absent from human nature. Just not there in human nature. That's not what human nature is all about. Human nature is selfish, ego, thinking of the self, very seldom, you know, just thinking of the other. Now, there are brief periods of harmony within most marriages. People get along when it's to their good, you know, and they're able to do that.

Look at the way human beings treat one another, you know, just step outside of marriage. How well do nations get along? How well do management and labor get along? You know, how well do umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm umm vigilantesic groups. And you'll find that there's not a whole lot of harmony. What about political parties? Democrats and Republicans love one another! They're always hugging one another, you know, they're always praising one another. What about the races? What about families? Where do murders come from? Where do fighting and violence and all of these things come from? Well, 1 Corinthians 1433, you're all familiar with that Scripture, says that Satan is the author of confusion.

He's the one who authors, he's the one who generates confusion. But let's notice in 1 Corinthians 3, verse 3. 1 Corinthians chapter 3, verse 3.

The Bible very clearly says, For you are still carnal, for where there is envy and strife and division among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men, mere women? It's talking about the human race. In other words, we just act like carnal-minded individuals. For when one says, I'm a Pole, another I'm a Bepollos, are you not carnal? Aren't you reacting in a carnal way? It's not the way God created us and intended us to function. Let's go back here to Matthew 19 again.

Matthew chapter 19.

And let's notice in verse 4.

Matthew 19, verse 4. And he answered and said to them, have you not read that he who made them in the beginning made them male and female?

And said for this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, or as King James version says, cleave to his wife, be joined to her, be glued to her, and the two shall become one flesh. So then, they're no longer two, but one flesh. All you see is one. Therefore, what God has joined together, let not man separate. Now, once you find the word cleave means just that.

The word cleave refers to the fact that two things are glued, cemented, bonded. Maybe the word bonded is the best way of expressing it. Bonded together, just like epoxy glue, where you have one glue here, one glue here, and when you mix them and you put them together, they become one. And you can't separate them. Well, that's exactly the way marriage is intended to be. To be joined so closely together that you're united, you cling to one another, and you are joined. Actually, this word is used over in Luke 10, 11.

I won't turn there, but Luke 10, 11 talks about the disciples, and that if they go into a city and they're not accepted, that it says that they're to come out and to brush even the dust that clings to their feet, or clings to them. Well, it's the same word. And so, you find here, it's talking about being glued or welded together. In 1 Corinthians 6, you might hold your place here, because we're coming back, but in 1 Corinthians 6, beginning in verse 16, we find where the Apostle Paul clearly elaborates on this principle even more.

Says, do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For the two, he says, shall become one flesh. But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. Now, I want you to notice very closely the marriage relationship is supposed to be an example of what takes place between Christ and the Church. That we are joined to the Lord, we are one spirit, not one flesh, but one spirit.

By one spirit, we are baptized into one body. So, God's Spirit unites with us. So, you and I have to come to the point, the principle is simply this, that we, when we're baptized, we receive God's Holy Spirit, we are to cleave to God. Just like in a marriage, a husband and wife are supposed to cleave together and be joined together, so you find when we are baptized that we become joined to God.

We are cleaving to Him. And there should be nothing that would separate us from God. I don't care what comes along, what happens, we are bonded together. And there is nothing that will pull us apart. Two human beings can become one in purpose, one in approach, one in attitude, one in dreams, one in hopes. More than just physical, we're talking about when the Bible refers to cleaving and joining, it's more than just a physical union.

That's part of it, certainly. But it's talking about being mentally united, emotionally and even spiritually. And this is where the Spirit of God comes in. You can't have that without the Spirit of God being there and being a part of the approach. In the world, you may find people cleaving together physically. And a lot of times people will do that very well. A few may even cleave together emotionally, maybe even mentally. But when it comes to the spiritual cleaving together, that is not there. It's missing. So you find that from God's perspective, oneness glorifies God.

Have you ever noticed that when people leave the church, and I've had many expresses to me, they walk out the door, they leave the church, and they say something like this, free! Free at last! And they're expressing the fact that they are free from what they consider burdens and the stringent laws of God. They're free. They interpret what they think grace is. But how often do you find that someone who, where a marriage breaks up, feels the same way? That they're free. Well, certainly they're free in the sense that they're no longer married to that person. But we should not just be looking to become free. Let's go back to Matthew 19 again. Matthew 19, verses 9 and 10.

I want you to notice the disciples of Jesus Christ were absolutely shocked at a statement He made here. He says this, I say to you that whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, the word is parnea, and it refers to all kinds of sexual sins, except for sexual immorality, marries another, commits adultery, and whoever marries her who is divorced, commits adultery. And his disciples said to him, if this is the case of the man with his wife, well, it's better not to marry. And you know, they're thinking about this, and they're thinking, you mean I'm supposed to stay with this woman? You know, there's never a reason, unless there's sexual immorality for leaving. And they were astonished at it. They were shocked that Christ was saying there should be, you get married, it should be that one marriage, unless the covenant has been violated in this way. Now, we know the church teaches that there are two reasons for divorce and remarriage explained in the scriptures. Number one is this, porneia, where there's sexual immorality. And in a case like that, the mate can put away the other mate. The other is 1 Corinthians 7, where a person is married to an unconverted mate. That unconverted mate is not pleased to dwell with them.

As a result, you know, they can separate, they can be put away. There's another reason, but it's actually the marriage is never really by God been, let's say, legitimatized. And that is the, if some deception has taken place. And the example is used in the Old Testament. If a man thinks he's marrying a woman who's a virgin, and then he comes to find out she's not a virgin, he's been deceived, she used deception on him, then he can put her away. Now, that can happen in many different ways. It can involve, you know, things like mental illness, you know, what if somebody had a criminal record, was a murderer, been in jail for years, and just, you know, just never mentioned it to his wife, and, you know, she finds out about it. You know, would she want wanted to have married somebody like that? Well, probably not. And so she would have the opportunity to put him away.

So you find, again, for 6,000 years, there only been a few people who have really had the type of marriages that God wants us to have. Now, with all of that in mind, let's go back to the very beginning. Let's go back to the beginning to find out what marriage was supposed to be like. In chapter 2 of the book of Genesis, verse 18, chapter 2, verse 18, the Lord God said, it's not good that man should be alone. I will make him a helper, someone who can help him, assist him, because men, we need help. I think we all realize that. So God says, okay, I'll make somebody who can be a helper, comparable to him, like him. See, Adam looked around, named all the animals, and there are orangutans, and monkeys, and baboons, and dogs, and cats, and chickens, and so on. But nobody looked like him. And God did that, I think, for a reason. So the man would realize, hey, I'm alone. I need somebody comparable to me. And so God created a helper. Now before you women begin to feel bad and say, well, I'm just a helper, this word is used quite frequently in the Bible about God. That God is our helper, that he comes to our aid. He assists us. And David, throughout the Psalms, uses that expression that God is our helper. Now in verse 25, it says, they were both naked, the man and his wife, and they were not ashamed. And so you find that God is the one who married them, and they had the potential, at that time, to have a God-playing relationship. Now in order to do so, they had to do something. They had to partake of the tree of life. Guess what happened? They partook of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And so now, instead of taking to the tree of life, where they would have understood, had God's Spirit understood the laws concerning marriage, now they were driven out of the garden, cut off from God, cut off from the tree of life, and they had knowledge good and evil. So, you know, they had some right knowledge mixed in with wrong knowledge. And so that's the way marriage, that's the way all relationships have been from that time to this. They had a small taste of what it could have been like, living in the garden, having a relationship with God. See, God was there. There were three of them, you know, at that point. And he was there to instruct them, to tell them what to do, but they didn't take the tree of life. And so what you find is they were driven out of the garden. Now, in verse 23, we find literally what God wanted in the marriage.

Adam said, this is now bone of my bones, flesh of my flesh, she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. Literally, they were one flesh. God took flesh out of Adam, created Eve. She was the only one not taken specifically out of the dust to the ground. All the other animals, plus Adam, were created from the dust. She came out of the man. Now, you might remember, I gave a sermon on this at one time, and I explained the analogy there that you and I, if we're going to get into God's kingdom, are going to be taken out of God, or God is going to be in us. And just as Adam gave part of his flesh, Christ gave his life so that you and I could become one with him and with the Father. Then in verse 24, Therefore man shall leave his father and mother, be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. For as man was to leave his father and mother, cleave unto his wife, be joined to her, be one flesh, cleave to his mate, no longer dependent upon his parents, but a separate union. And then they were to increase and multiply and replenish the earth. They were to have families, as the Bible very clearly shows. So they were to cleave, not clash. Today we have clashing going on. We have all kinds of wrong approaches. Adam and Eve sinned. They got away from God. They disrupted their own relationship. And the cleaving was not there in the way that it should be. In Genesis 3.16, notice what happened.

Genesis 3.16, they were driven out and he said to the woman, I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception. In pain you shall bring forth children, your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you. God was no longer in their marriage in the way that he wanted to be in the beginning. See, the Garden of Eden, pictured the very, you might say, the very heart and core of where God was. God was with them and having a right relationship. Now they were driven out of the Garden into Eden. So they weren't totally driven out. They were now in Eden. And then later on Cain sins and he's driven out of Eden. He goes over and denied. So he's completely away from God. The more man sins, the further away he gets from God, God's revelation, what God wanted. And so the same is true today. And you'll find that there are whole societies that are geared in a way where they're totally away from God, any knowledge and understanding of his laws. And look at what marriage has been like down through the centuries. In most societies, women have been looked upon as chattel, as property. If a man's in charge, if he beats his wife, if he kills his wife, well, he has a right to do so. And in many societies, they think nothing of it. And so there's not this relationship that there should be between a husband and wife. You see, without the Spirit of God to guide both of them, there will be a lack of the true godly love that should be there in the marriage. There's a love on the human level. Remember that there is human love. There's a love of a mother for her children, the love of a husband for his wife and children, wife for her husband and children. But there is also a deeper love that should be there, a deeper harmony that should be there, on which the marriage can be based. The structure of marriage was still there. A man was to still leave his father and mother, cleave to his wife, but they were cut off from God's Spirit. And that makes it doubly difficult for them to obey. So you have sorrow in marriage, in many cases, down through the ages. Marriage is not that complex. Bad marriages have a basic theme with a few variations. Men tend to be selfish and lack love, and women tend to be selfish and maybe a little rebellious. I mean, that runs on both sides. The carnal mind creates problems.

The Bible says the carnal mind is an enmity against God. It's not subject to His law, and neither indeed can be. Well, part of God's law deals with relationships, how we treat one another. These are spiritual problems.

In searching through some information I had, I came across an article that Mr. Herbert Armstrong wrote several years ago.

I won't read all of this, but three or four paragraphs I'd like to read. He says the human mind is essentially self-centered, but the human mind is an empirical mind. Self includes whatever one thinks is his or hers. His clothes, his home, his property, his children, his parents, his team, his country.

Self expands to include what belongs to the self. As long as he feels, he selfishly gets from whomever or whatever it is.

What you find is the carnal mind, as long as it feels it can get from that relationship, whatever it might be, it stays with it.

One human spirit can be compatible with another human spirit, especially when it's to one's selfish or pleasing advantage.

Thus, an unconverted husband can get along with an unconverted wife. So long as there is no attitude of hostility, competition, displeasure, incompatibility, annoyance, or dislike. But the carnal self, actuated by the human spirit, is essentially self-centered and loves primarily itself.

It loves another when it gains, receives pleasure or satisfaction from, and or feels the other as part of his or her empirical self. That explains why marriages succeed even when both are unconverted. Because if they can get for the self, for the empirical self, then they're satisfied.

When one is converted and the other is not, it still may succeed as long as it is satisfying and seems advantageous to the unconverted. But the mind led by the Holy Spirit will have an attitude of love toward another so long as he is truly being led by the Spirit of God. That's saying, as long as we have the Spirit of God and we're being led by that Spirit, we will have love for the other person. If one has not the Holy Spirit of God and is not motivated and led by God's Spirit, he or she may still live compatible with a marriage as long as such person is selfishly pleased with the relationship.

Now, the reason I read that is because I thought it expressed quite well what we're talking about here. You see, all relationships, marriage, husband-wife, parents, children, nations, I don't care what, all relationships are based upon spiritual principles. When those spiritual principles are followed, there's a blessing. When they're not, then you have problem. Now, in the book of Ephesians, Ephesians chapter 5, we find some of the basic principles governing marriage.

Ephesians chapter 5 and verse 22. Wives submit to your own husbands as to the Lord. And as the husband, for the husband is the head of the wife, as also Christ is the head of the church, and he is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands and everything. So that's one of the relationship principles mentioned in the Bible.

And in verse 28, it says, so husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies.

He who loves his wife loves himself. Now, what you find, a husband and wife are both to love one another. This doesn't mean what's only incumbent upon the husband to love the wife. Wife doesn't have to worry about loving the husband. No, that's not true at all. There are times when a husband has to submit to his wife or to her wishes. You see, when you have two who are converted, truly converted, then they're willing to give, to work together, submit to one another on occasions. But the wife always realizes when it comes down and the final decision has to be made that the husband is there and God holds him responsible.

The husband, though, if he loves his wife as he loves his own body, you know, nobody ever hates his own body. You love yourself. I don't mean you necessarily love the shape, size, and all of that, but we love ourselves. And so, therefore, if we love our mate as ourselves, we're always going to do what is best, what is good for that person. That's what we're going to strive for. And then verses 29 through 32 shows that marriage was instituted by God to help us learn a lesson. No one ever hated his own flesh, verse 29, but he nourishes it. He cherishes it just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of the body and of his flesh and of his bones. So this helps to explain the principle of becoming one flesh. For this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother, shall be joined to his wife. The two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. And so you find that what we do in marriage is supposed to teach us about Christ and the church. Our marriages should be on a higher level. What level is that? It's called a God-playing relationship. Now, what does that mean? It means we should treat one another like gods treat one another. God-playing. Who's on the God-playing right now? Father, Son. How do they treat each other?

Does Christ always rebel against the Father? Is he always talking back to his father? Is the Father always mistreating the Son? Well, we know that that's not true. You see, God is a family. You go back to the book of Genesis and you find Eloween is used. You have a Father-Son relationship. That's family. You have in the church a husband, Christ, a bride or a wife, the church. Eventually, you will have children, those who come into the kingdom in the millennium and the white throne judgment. Animals do not have a family relationship.

Angels don't have home life. They're not married. They don't have children. They don't have little angels. They don't have marriage. You find family and marriage are a God-playing relationship.

God enjoys that type of relationship and He's allowing us on the human level to begin to enjoy that level of existence with one another. Mankind alone was created for marriage, for home, for family life. Family and marriage is a type of the relationship that eventually we will have in the kingdom of God.

What is the attitude that God has and Christ has towards one another? Well, back here in John, chapter 10, verse 29, John 10, verse 29. Notice, Christ said, My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. So notice, Christ acknowledged the Father as being greater. So being under authority is not something that is inferior. Christ is under the Father. All of us are under Christ. Within the marriage, God has simply placed the man there, ultimately, to be responsible for the family. I'm not saying to be a dictator, but to be responsible for the well-being, happiness, and the way the marriage is going. So He says He's greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hands. I and My Father are one. So they're one. You and I, when we get married, we are to become one. And so you'll find we are to be one as the Father and Jesus Christ are. In John 17, at the Passover, we read this every year. John 17, verse 20, I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who believe in Me through their word. Verse 21, that they may be one as you, Father, and Me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us, that the world may believe that you sent Me. And the glory which you gave Me, I have given them, that they may be one just as we are one. We are to become one as a family, as a group, just like the Father and Christ are one.

That means Christ acknowledged His Father as being greater. What does that show? Well, it shows an attitude of humility, doesn't it? It shows an attitude of submission. Being one is not fighting. It's not divisive. It's not hatred. It's not rebellion. Not arguing, but it's cooperation. It's harmony. It's working together to accomplish the same goal and purpose. It has to do with being faithful, being loyal. See, like Christ said back in verse 4, I glorified you on the earth. I have finished the work that you gave Me to do. God is love, and love is outgoing concern for the other person equal to the concern you have for yourself. So, it is a way of giving, a way of service, not of selfishness and self-centeredness. Everyone knows that in a marriage, you don't always get your way, and neither should you. There are many times when your husband and wife sit down and talk about something, and maybe you'd rather go do something else, but you decide, well, you know, the last time we did what I wanted to do, this time we're going to do what my wife wants to do. That's just a little example, but I'm talking about the fact that we work together, we cooperate, and then we come to the point of working together, and we try to get away from the selfishness and the vanity and the ego. You find in 1 Corinthians 15, 28, that Jesus Christ is under authority. He is in submission and will be for all eternity to the Father. In chapter 15, verse 28, And when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him, who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all. So we will all be under the Father, in Christ's will for all eternity. A God-playing relationship is above all based on the way of love, on harmony, on cooperation, on respect, on submission to authority, on faithfulness, on a way of giving, way of service, way of helping. And this is the way marriage should be. This is the way we should treat one another. We should be outgrading one another. Christ said, if you want to be great, do what? Serve. And so, in the Church, it's not a matter of who's in charge or necessarily who's responsible. Although the Church is sort of like a marriage, ultimately, I've got to make the final decision when it comes to what might be best. But I don't just do that precariously. If it involves the whole Church, we normally try to find out what people would like to do. I'm talking about socials or activities, you know, these type of things. But ultimately, somebody is responsible. And when I say responsible, somebody has to be judged. And I will be judged for how well things go. In a marriage, a husband will be judged for how that marriage will go also. So will the wife, because she has her part. When you and I are born into the family of God and we're resurrected, how will we treat one another? How will we treat the Father and the Son? We will have to apply these same principles at that time. It's got to be based upon love and respect, cooperation, submission. God has given us marriage now to help us to develop that type of character, to learn those lessons. I find that there are lessons that you learn in a marriage that you don't learn any other way. You have to learn, here's two people, and how are you going to get along? And you have to learn to apply God's Spirit and God's law in His way of love. So, this miracle in marriage does not happen overnight, does it?

I don't know any couple that ever gets married, lives happily ever after. Never had any disagreement, never had any type of problem, thereafter. It doesn't work that way. No, it is a blending together. You grow together. And this is why it is so important, and this is especially true for our young people, if you're looking for a mate. Again, it's not just finding somebody in the church. It is finding somebody who is deeply converted. Now, how do you know if they're deeply converted? Well, we're going to be covering that in some of the Bible studies. When we get our Bible study and youth programs up and running. Now, I think one of the first lectures that I would like to give deals with the subject of how do you know and what do you look for? And so, you know, that's something that you, all of us, need to think about. We need to ask God to sanctify our marriages, to set them apart. We need to ask God to bless our marriage. We need to ask God to help us to do what we need to be doing so that that marriage will flourish. See, God wants us to have a marriage in which two human beings flourish. It's a marriage in which the two of you grow to your fullest potential, where you're able to share with one another. You're able to increase and magnify the happiness and the joy that each other have, and where you just delight in one another and being around one another. And you're there to serve and to help. And you give, but you're given too. And, you know, there's a blessing that comes from it. Ask God to be a part of your marriage. Any marriage in the church can be and should be elevated to a higher plane. And it can be elevated to a higher plane by submission, by love, by applying the principles given in the Scriptures. So, some future time, we will concentrate on that in the sermon. On how do we go about applying the principle of love and giving within a marriage in the way that God would want us to, so that we can truly have a God-level marriage. So, brethren, remember God has called us to develop a relationship, God-playing relationship, on all levels. And we have the opportunity within the church, and especially within a marriage, to practice and learn what it means to have a God-playing relationship.