Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers. Hebrews 13:4
“It’s just a piece of paper.”
"We’re married in God’s eyes.”
“We live together, but we’re not ready for marriage yet.”
“Marriage is an out-of-date concept.”
God commands us to honor marriage because HE honors it. God likes marriage. He invented it (Genesis 2:21-24). But each of those statements is an example of the way a culture dishonors marriage. If want a relationship with God, we have to get on the same page. We don’t get to redefine what He created, abolish it, or trample all over it if we expect to be right with Him. He’s already defined it, put boundaries around it, and given us instructions about how to make it work.
But notice the warning lights flashing in this verse. Immediately after telling us to honor marriage, God goes straight to sex. He puts sex and marriage in the same sentence because they are inextricable. To have one without the other is to dishonor marriage. Premarital sex, affairs, homosexual unions, living together, and spouse-swapping all dishonor marriage because they step over the lines God has drawn. A quick glance at scripture shows us He’s serious about it. He reserves judgment for those who insist on drawing their own lines. So the first step toward honoring marriage is to honor sex as God’s gift to spouses.
Final Thought: If you have or are now violating God’s sexual boundaries, He offers forgiveness when you repent and stop it.
Prayer: Father, does my attitude about sex indicate that you are Lord of my life? In what ways have I dishonored marriage? I repent now and ask you to cleanse my heart. Purify me so that I honor marriage in every way. In Jesus’ name, amen.
But notice the warning lights flashing in this verse. Immediately after telling us to honor marriage, God goes straight to sex. He puts sex and marriage in the same sentence because they are inextricable. To have one without the other is to dishonor marriage. Premarital sex, affairs, homosexual unions, living together, and spouse-swapping all dishonor marriage because they step over the lines God has drawn. A quick glance at scripture shows us He’s serious about it. He reserves judgment for those who insist on drawing their own lines. So the first step toward honoring marriage is to honor sex as God’s gift to spouses.
Final Thought: If you have or are now violating God’s sexual boundaries, He offers forgiveness when you repent and stop it.
Prayer: Father, does my attitude about sex indicate that you are Lord of my life? In what ways have I dishonored marriage? I repent now and ask you to cleanse my heart. Purify me so that I honor marriage in every way. In Jesus’ name, amen.