Page 53 - Christ and Culture Textbook

illusions about reality. The fantasy of the perfect romantic and sexual relationship, the perfect lifestyle,
and the perfect body all prove unattainable because the reality never lives up to the expectation. The
worst fallout comes in the marriage relationship. When two people can’t live up to each other’s
expectations, they’ll look for their fantasized satisfaction in the next relationship, the next experience,
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the next excitement. But that path leads only to self-destruction and emptiness.
Clearly, God’s plan and pattern for marriage to portray the gospel have been denied, distorted, and
belittled in lives of those claim to follow Christ. We have forgotten that marriage is not only about
husband and wife. The ultimate goal for marriage is be a testimony to the union between Christ and the
Church.

Defining Biblical Marriage.
Within a scriptural context, marriage is a recognized union of Male and Female forming a basic unit of a
matrimonial structure. According to the Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology marriage is an
intimate and complementing union between a man and a woman in which the two become one
physically, in the whole of life. The purpose of marriage is to reflect the relationship of the Godhead and
to serve him. Although the fall has marred the divine purpose and function of marriage, this definition
reflects the God-ordained ideal for marriage from the beginning.

Marriage was divinely instituted. Gen. 2:24.

Marriage is covenant relationship. Mal. 2:4.

Marriage is designed for:
i. The happiness of man. Gen. 2:18.
ii. Increasing the species. Gen. 1:28. Gen. 9:1.
iii. Raising up a godly seed. Mal. 2:15.
iv. Preventing fornication. 1 Cor. 7:2.
v. Unity. The desire for unity is recorded in Genesis 2:24 which insist that a man and his wife
become one fresh.
vi. Companionship. The desire for companionship is also rooted in the creation ordnance where
God says, “It is not good for a man to be lone; I will make a helper for him” (Gen 2:18)
vii. Love and pleasure. In Ecclesiastes 9:9, the Bible says, “Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love”

Countercultural Marriage
What does it look like for a Christian to “counter-culture” in the area of Marriage? We must first accept
the fact that our marriages are not perfect. Any good marriage is to make a covenant with God. Paul
states, “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Eph. 5:21). The husband and wife are in love
with each other, but they require a shared love for God and reverence for him in order to stay strong.
The love for God needs to be much greater than their love for each other. It is God who has united the
two as one flesh and has made a covenant with them in his presence (Gen. 2:24). Jesus said
unequivocally, “Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate” (Matt. 19:6). It is the
responsibility of the married couple to nurture companionship together.

17 Ibid.,52.

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