Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Is Traditional Marriage Valid In the Eyes Of God?



As Christians, there are many times we find ourselves wondering about what is right or what is wrong especially on issues where the bible seem to be silent such as marital sex, masturbation, dating etc.

In the wake of this, there seem to be so many opinions on what ought to be and many among us just go with what is logical. The things of the spirit don’t necessarily have to do with reason, if it were, then it’ld be understandable if two people that are committed towards getting married just get to having sex even before the solemnization. It makes sense to go into the word of God and ask for the guidance of the holy spirit.

The financial consequence of getting married these days is no child’s play. Asides from the financial consequence, the mental and physical preparation can fast take a toll on one that didn’t prepare well.

So it is not uncommon to see couple nestling together just after they must have done the traditional rites.Traditional marriage in this sense is restricted to the ceremony where both families come together to witness the sealing of the union between the couple involved. Some couples also perform the civil marriage which involves the couple taking an oath before an officer of the court or Justice of Peace and two or more witnesses.

What seems to be the grey area is whether relationships such as this are acceptable in the eyes of God since there is no involvement of an anointed man of God? Can one still be said to be living in sin even after one of such ceremonies? Or can one's marriage be considered unholy?

Jesus said in Matthew;4-6

And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made[a]them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’[b] 5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’?[c] 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Going by this, one can deduce that what is mostly important is the consent of the two people involved. If we look into the marriage examples in the bible, we’ll find that there is no particular place where it was expressly stated that marriages have to be contracted only in a particular way. The union between Adam and Eve can be said to be the first union in the bible and it can be rightly said that God was the sole witness in that union. However when we consider other unions such as that of Rachel and Jacob or the wedding in Cana, we can conclude that they were not all done in uniform ways.

Going by Romans 13;1-2, it can be said that God intends for us to follow and respect whatever earthly laws that may guide our activities which makes marriage contracted in a Registry genuine.
What we know for sure is God takes marriage as a covenant that ought not to be disrespected by either persons in the union or any other persons from outside and it really doesn't matter if it is in the church or out of the church. Once two people make that covenant, God is already a witness.
Church blessings are desirable but marriages contracted in the Registry or traditionally are no less covenants. What matters is for both parties to understand the importance of what they are getting into and stay committed to one another. Some people also have the wrong opinion that having church blessings has to be glamorous, it needn't be. You can have a quiet ceremony with a few witnesses before your clergyman if you so desire. It is important to also bear in mind that marriage certificates gotten from some churches are not considered binding licences in some jurisdictions. 

Whatever you do, always remember God wants us to be law abiding citizens.




2 comments:

  1. I think u are right, this is what my fiance always tell me that marriage is an agreement btw two people who undstd each other and are ready to be committed to the task ahead, that church wedding and marriage registry are just a way of showing u are a good citizen/a committed member.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think u are right, this is what my fiance always tell me that marriage is an agreement btw two people who undstd each other and are ready to be committed to the task ahead, that church wedding and marriage registry are just a way of showing u are a good citizen/a committed member.

    ReplyDelete

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