Marriage... Is what?

In the movie "The Princess Bride", our family always laughs when it gets to the part where the man of the cloth says, in his pompous, haughty way, "Marriage... is what brings us together today."

Who would have ever thought that in our society we'd be saying, "Marriage is what tears us apart today"? A firestorm of controversy has erupted over the simple concept of marriage. Widely divergent views on the nature of marriage are dividing perople into two very different camps. Perhaps it would be good for those of us who have committed ourselves to living by the standards and the principles of the Bible to review what this God-breathed book says about marriage.

"Adam said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man; For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh"

Marriage is God's plan for a woman and a man

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The Great Lies

The following is a list I gave to each of my sons. I call it "The Great Lies of Our Times".

1. I can be like God (the world's longest-running lie).
2. I don't need God.
3. Science has disapproved the existence of God.
4. The Church is outdated and unnecessary.
5. The bible is meaningless in our times.
6. Jesus is irrelevant to modern life.
7. Love is sex (and its revers: Sex is love).
8. "Safely" engaging in promiscuity, homosexuality, and adultery is no threat to my body, soul, or spirit.
9. Maintaining virginity until marriage is unrealistic.
10. Marriage fidelity and commitment are outdated.
11. Sex will make me happy.
12. Material things will make me happy.
13. Fame will make me happy.
14. The world owe me a living.
15. My wroth depends on my wealth, intelligence, skill, and/or physical attractiveness.
156. Allowing myself to be constantly entertained by depictions of human sinfulness (TV movies, video games, books, magazines) is no threat to my soul or spirit.
17. I am better than you.
18. I can get along fine by myself.
19. I can ignore life's rules and not suffer consequences.
20. Liberty means I'm free to do whatever I want.

We are exposed to these lies all the time, but the devil makes sure we seldom hear them expressed in plain and simple terms. He tries to deceive us, yet his lies remain the same.

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From Aliens to Citizens

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Philippians 3:15-21 " But our citizenship is in heaven.And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body"

In my country, Singapore, a person is a citizen if he's born here. But a foreigner can obtain the status of citizenship after he meets certain conditions set by the government. In either case, he carries certain documents to prove that his citizenship is legally accepted. But besides the supporting documents, the real test of citizenship is whether a person obeys the laws of the land and fulfills all the responsibilities required of him. To me, no loyal citizen will disparage his own country and leaders and behave in a way that is contrary to the good standing expected of him.

In the same way, Christians are citizens of heaven. By the death and our resurrection of Jesus, God changed our status from aliens to citizens. We are forgiven and legally declared as "children of God's Kingdom." But as individuals, there is still a lot of change that is needed, since we are not perfect yet. Our daily living has a long way to go to match out current standing before God. With the help of the Holy Spirit and God's Word, we grow to become committed citizens of heaven; loving and obeying God as our King and fulfilling our responsibilities as His loyal subjects.

In his letter to the Philippians, Paunl wanted believers to understand that heavenly citizenship affects the way we think and live. Our destination is different from those in the world. Our desires should be different too. Christians should not be obvious about these things, because citizenship has its responsibilities.

But there is something fascinating about Christians Living out our responsibilities as believers and struggling against sin are not actions without hope. Unlike many who are bogged down with uncertainties, we can eargerly look forward to the future, Jesus will transform us to be perfectly righteous. This hope should keep us walking faithfully as heavenly citizens on this earthly journey.
~Lim Chien Chong

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