Since the 70s, views of marriage in society, and the nature of it being a life-long durable commitment, have gotten progressively worse in the U.S. These shifting attitudes towards marriage have taken away much of the societal supports that used to exist to encourage the durability of marriage. These shifting views have really hurt marriage’s durability and even its quality in our world. It’s time for God’s people to put forth the truth that Jesus put forth, and stop being twisted by society around us. Let’s do some twisting of our own in the direction of Christ’s words, “…the two shall become one flesh…Therefore, what God has joined together let no man separate” (Matthew 19:5,6).
We ought to remember what God says about vows, “If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth” (Numbers 30:2). Vows are a serious matter before God and He expects us to perform exactly as we have vowed and promised! A vow is not to be a useless formality as the sinful society around us has portrayed it! The whole world these days doesn’t seem to care much for keeping vows, and unfortunately too many of God’s own people have bought into the lies. Enough is enough! Let your word be your bond. “Til death do us part” means exactly that, and so does “for better or worse.” Society doesn’t seem to take or hold those words seriously anymore, viewing them as little more than a formality. That’s a challenge to weaken anyone’s resolve for sure! In fact, even the world of social sciences is telling people they owe it to themselves to “divorce” from anyone who doesn’t make them “happy” all the time. That is baloney from the devil himself.
The world is all about self-serving these days, as always, and they care nothing about integrity, righteous resolve or enduring commitment! While the world is living for the moment, let God’s people live by God’s eternal principles and remember that Christ taught us to give “self-sacrificing” love which looks out for the good of others and is bestowed even upon the most unworthy, in a continual endeavor to awaken true love in the cold hearts of those receiving it.
Just listen to these telling statements from a book by Linda Waite, “…adopting favorable ideas about divorce actually tends to lower the quality of a person’ marriage. …Using data from a survey of almost 1,300 married couples, two scholars found that ‘those who adopted less supportive attitudes toward divorce reported a decline in marital conflict between 1983 and 1988, whereas those who adopted more supportive attitudes toward divorce reported an increase in marital conflict.’ …When people aren’t certain their marriage will last, they invest less time in the relationship and take fewer steps to resolve disagreements” –The Case for Marriage, p.181-182.
Our attitude towards marriage greatly affects the quality of it, and also the chances for its success. After all, when failure is not an option, then failure is not an option! Thus, we better work to get it right! Let’s take Christ’s words more seriously, and throw out the twisted ideas from a godless society. “…the two shall be come one flesh…Therefore, what God has joined together let no man separate”-Jesus (Matthew 19:5,6).
