Marriage is Ministry

What is the biblical purpose and intention for marriage? 

Marriage is defined as a union in both the natural and spiritual realms. Where two become one flesh and enter into a blood covenant, a commitment that is binding until death.

As husbands, how are we commanded to love our wives? Ephesians 5:25 tells us "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." Marriage requires sacrifice and was designed to reflect Christ. Recognizing this, treat your marriage as your greatest ministry. Cover your wife in prayer and be in the practice of dying to yourself for her benefit.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Hey guys, this is Major Henry Hastings, and welcome to the SMC podcast: Restoring Biblical Masculinity by Raising Up Modern Day Minute Men in the natural and spiritual realms. This is where we tackle real issues men face from leadership and purity to history, spiritual warfare, and discerning the times at hand like the sons of Issachar. So you can stand in the gap at a moment's notice. Let's get into it. All right, guys, our scriptural anchor for today is Ephesians 5.25. Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. Your marriage is way more than a piece of paper. It's a union that was made in the natural and spiritual realms. When you consummate your marriage vows, you become one flesh and enter into a covenant. In the ancient world, that covenant was considered a blood covenant. In other words, you were bound unto death to keep your vows. In fact, the wedding bride on the wedding night had the Sedin Betulim, which is a the translated cloth of virginity. It was placed under her when the marriage was consummated. The blood on the cloth was the sign of a blood covenant. This carried the same weight as the Mosaic Law, which was a blood covenant as well. In Exodus chapter 24, verses six through eight, it talks about this. It says, And Moses took half the blood from the sacrifices and put it in the basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the book of the law or the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, All that the Lord has said we will do and be obedient. So all the blessings for obedience and all the curses for disobedience they agreed to. And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to all these words. When you understand from Leviticus 17, 11 that the life of the flesh or animal is in the blood, you can see that when something is bound to something by blood, it's for life. This is why marriage is way more than a flimsy piece of paper called a marriage license. It's an actual covenant, a blood covenant. This is why we're commanded in Ephesians 5 25 as husbands to love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her. That phrase for her is whoper outes in the Greek, which conveys that he handed himself over as a sacrifice for her benefit. So we can actually see as husbands, marriage is a landscape of sacrifice. It's a place where we must die to ourselves, a vital ingredient in our own sanctification. In Ephesians 5, 28 through 33, it says in the same way, husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. Why? Because you became one flesh when you consummated your marriage. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. Therefore, a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is profound, and I'm saying that it refers to Christ in the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself and let the wife see that she respects her husband. So loving your wife the way Christ loved the church means sacrifice. Marriage is fertile ground for sanctification because it requires sacrifice, laying down your life for the benefit of another. When you cover your wife in prayer, you're protecting her. So your marriage is an actual, it's a wonderful mystery with natural and spiritual blessings. Make sure it reflects Christ, not the world's view. So, Father, we come to you and ask that you would give us compassion and tenderness for our wives. We ask that you would bless them, Lord. May your spirit fill us to love them like you loved us, to be mindful of them, revive the marriages that need to be revived. And we ask this in Jesus' mighty name. Amen. Thanks for tuning in to the SMC Podcast. If today's conversation encouraged you, share it with another man who needs to hear it. And don't forget, you can connect deeper inside the Forge, our free online community, or take your training to the next level with the loyal nine inside the SMC Tribe. Visit SMCTribe.com to join the Brotherhood. Until next time, trust God, keep your powder dry, and remember, as sons of God, liberty is our birthright.