Defining Marriage

Like many folks, I avoid conflict. So, right off let me say, I'm not looking for a fight, okay? But so many people are debating the merit or lack of merit of a Marriage Amendment and I do have something to say about that topic. I want to thank you in advance for taking the time to read my views even if you don't agree with them.

Defining Marriage

Marriage has been a part of the human experience since the dawn of time. But was the concept of two lives joined as one birthed in the mind of man, or in the heart of God?

If marriage is a human institution, then men have the right to altar or change the definition as they wish. However, if the concept of marriage originated with the Lord God, and is given as a gift to the human race, then only He has the authority to decide what constitutes a marriage.

For those who believe that the Bible offers God’s voice and His view, it’s clear that marriage is the idea of the One whose thoughts and ways are higher than any human.

First, the Creator fashions humankind in His image as male and female. He molds their physical bodies to fit together perfectly. The natural result of this joining of bodies is the birth of more little human beings. This is as He intended, for after forming this first couple He blesses them and says, “Be fruitful and increase in number,” (Genesis 1:28). This is His first command to the first couple, and He designed them to be able to do what He instructed.

Having kids is not the only reason God established the relationship of marriage. We see, in Scripture, that He was the One who said, “It is not good for the man to be alone,” (Genesis 2:18). The Lord God saw Adam’s need for companionship and met it by creating Eve. When Adam first saw her, (and really liked what he saw), their Creator said, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh,” (Genesis 2:24).

In this declaration, God established His definition of marriage. It is a man and a woman, each leaving their families of origin to form a new permanent union. Later, when Christ Jesus walked the earth, He repeated and endorsed this ideal.

Marriage meets two basic needs with reproduction as the natural outcome. First, our need for companionship is met when we are united in marriage. Next, God said that in marriage husband and wife would become one flesh, which refers to our sexual needs.

While many relationships of various kinds might provide for our relational needs, and can even address sexual drives, only the joining of male and female has the additional outcome of producing the offspring, which God desires.

In our day, the meaning and definition of marriage is being questioned and debated. But legally altering the existing definition of marriage won’t change God’s mind about what marriage is and is not. His original design will stand when all else passes away. It’s good to remember that when our lives pass away we will each stand before Him and give account for the choices we made that defined our lives.