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God’s Frame for Marriage
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ… Wives, to your husbands as to the Lord. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. Eph. 5:21, 22, 25
This past week as I was preparing for this message on God’s gift to his people of marriage, I quickly discovered that people love looking at and sharing their wedding pictures.
On Wednesday morning I called the women who attend the 9:00 a.m. Bible Class. They were given only 15 minutes notice that they should bring along their wedding picture. Everyone who was called brought their picture to share. I was especially impressed by one particular picture of a woman named Bernice who is now in her 90’s. You might think that after all these years her picture would be faded, or worn or a little ragged along the edges. But it isn’t because it was protected by the frame.
Did you know that God has provided a frame for marriage? It is what keeps our marriages safe. It is what helps make us stand out and be a picture of what marriage is to be like to the world. It keeps your marriage from becoming old, faded or ragged edged.
An important part of this frame has to be: Complete and Total Forgiveness. You can’t just speak a word of forgiveness. You also have to live it. It’s not OK to say, “I forgive, but I won’t forget.” That disconnects your heart from your head and that type of action only brings a slow death to your relationship.
The bible describes it this way in “Eph. 5:25-27.” Christ loved (his bride) the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
How fare did Christ go in loving and forgiving the church? He gave himself up. Jesus set aside his rights, and he concerned himself with restoring righteousness. Jesus gave up his rightful pride and took up humility. It meant suffering, and ridicule and pain. It meant being rejected and appearing foolish by those who watched him at the cross and thought, “Who would ever, who should ever give themselves up so completely?”
But there was no other way. There is no other way. And what is the result? The bible says, “The bride- the church- becomes radiant again, without any stain or wrinkle or blemish.”
So dig out those wedding photos. Check the frame and make sure it is strong…especially God’s frame for your “marriage picture” for all to see.
Until next time…. Pastor Schudde
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