2010-09-22 - The Seventh Commandment

The Ten Commandments ~ Part 45
Seventh Commandment, Part 8

If we do not hold up the institution of marriage, who will? If we do not show marriage can work, if worked on, who will? If we do not show a faithful marriage is grounded on a dependency on the Lord, who will? If there is ever a time in the history of this society, where the importance of marriage and family is most evident, it is now.

And the foundation of faithfulness is obedience to Christ’s commands to love. If we obey Him and love God with all of our heart and mind, then we will be faithful. If we obey Him and love others as ourselves, then we will also be faithful to our spouses. If we strengthen our relationship with God and our spouse, we won’t have to worry about being unfaithful; we will be too busy being faithful.

“You shall not commit adultery.” for we are created “to be united to …” our spouses, and “… become one flesh.” For one “… who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys …” themselves.

Our marriages are to picture Christ and the Church:

“Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ is the head of the church, His body, of which he is the Savior.

"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to Himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

"For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.’ This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church” (Exodus 20:14; Genesis 2:24; Ephesians 5:22, 23, 25-27, 31-32).

Comments or Questions?
Geoff

GKragen@aol.com
http://www.cfdevotionals.org

Additional studies by Geoff
Podcasts of Studies in Matthew can be found at www.GKragen.com