FOR MARRIAGE TO BE THE JOYOUS RELATIONSHIP

FOR MARRIAGE TO BE THE JOYOUS RELATIONSHIP

For marriage to be the joyous relationship that God intended, the husband and wife must never take one another for granted. We must allow the light of love to endure within our hearts.  Thoughtfulness, gratitude, and concern for one another must be ever present in a marriage.

Perhaps these following practical rules for a happy married life will make your marriage the lifelong union that God intended it to be.

Ø  NEVER BOTH BE ANGRY AT ONCE.

Ø  LET EACH ONE STRIVE TO YIELD MORE OFTEN TO DO THE WISHES OF THE OTHER.

Ø  NEVER TAUNT WITH A PAST MISTAKE.

Ø  NEVER MAKE A REMARK AT THE EXPENSE OF ONE ANOTHER.

Ø   NEVER PART FOR A DAY WITHOUT KIND WORDS TO THINK OF DURING ABSENCE.

Ø  NEVER MEET WITHOUT A LOVING WELCOME.

Ø   NEVER LET THE SUN GO DOWN ON YOUR WRATH.

Ø   NEVER FORGET THAT MARRIAGE IS ORDAINED BY GOD, AND THAT HIS BLESSINGS ALONE CAN MAKE IT WHAT IT OUGHT TO BE.

Rest in that promise; be diligent in all He has commanded you to do, and remember above all that He is THE MASTER BUILDER. If you depend on His strength and rest in His grace, your labour will not be in vain and your marriage will succeed in Jesus name.

The Lord declared that it was not good for the man to be alone. From the beginning it was His determination that man and woman live in companionship, not in isolation, loneliness or divorce.

In the Old Testament even the High Priest married (Lev. 21:13), the Levites married (Num. 6:1-6), and in the New Testament the men of God were to be the husband of one wife (I Tim. 3:2).  And Paul speaks of those in the last days who will give heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, and part of their false doctrine is that they forbid couples to marry (I Tim. 4:3).  

Marriage is normal and proper.  In the Old Testament marriage serves as an illustration of the relationship between God and Israel: “For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name” (Isa. 54:5);

“And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isa. 62:5);

“I remember you, the kindness of your youth, the love of your betrothal, when you went after Me in the wilderness” (Jer. 2:2)

 “Return, Oh backsliding children,” says the Lord; “for I am married to you” (Jer. 3:14); “I am your husband”; also see: (7:34; 16:9); and 25:10 where judgment is associated with God taking away the sound of the groom and the bride.

“. . . in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them” (Jer. 31:32).

“And it shall be, in that day,” says the Lord, “that you will call Me, ‘My Husband’ ” (Hos. 2:16);

“I will betroth you to Me forever; yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in loving kindness and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord” (Hos. 2:19-20; see: Mal. 2:10-16).

Marriage was dignified by Christ when His first miracle was performed at a wedding (Jn. 2:1-11).  He turned the water into wine so that there would be joy and happiness for the man and woman coming together, and for the friends who were celebrating their union.

By His attendance and deed, the Lord bestowed His sanction and blessing on the joining of the groom and bride. The presence of Jesus at the visible merriment surrounding their consummation reminds us of one of the two fundamental aspects of marriage-marriage is private between a man and a woman who are before God—in another sense, marriage is public with a declaration before others of the relationship that is being established and a recognition by the culture of the covenant that the two have made.

Furthermore, marriage is elevated by the scriptures because it is used to serve as an illustration of the relationship of Christ to the individual believer and to the church:

“For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ” (II Cor. 11:2);

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing” (Eph. 5:25-27; see vs. 22-32).

Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.  And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints (Rev. 19:7-8; see vs. 6-10 and 21:2, 9).

From Genesis to Revelation, marriage is spoken of in Theistic and creational terms; it is always lifted up in importance and practice. It is never demeaned nor made optional, except when a believer does not marry and gives himself fully to the Lord’s work because the Lord has imparted to him the gift to live such a life (I Cor. 7:6-7); rather it is God’s plan for the continuation of the race, as well as for fulfillment and mutual enjoyment by the couple.

The book “The Other Woman In Marriage” is a touching life stories of alarming crumbling marriages put together by the author Israel Onoriode Ugbo.  It stressed on the followings; 1. Knowing Who To Marry 2. Protect Your Marriage 3. Strange Women and Men In Marriage 4. How God Feels About Divorce – the divorce cases on the rise in Africa and the rest of the world.  How Politicians, celebrities, business moguls, anointed men and women of God are increasingly divorcing. 

It also prepares singles for marriage - Read the book “The Other Woman In Marriage” on www.okadabooks.com