Marriage: Adultery - Disclose to Defend

Greetings folks,

Up to this point I haven't blogged on anything related to marriage. Although, I have tweeted and retweeted on the subject [@Wordman138 and @Wordman137 on Twitter]. Of course, prior to my own marriage I didn't necessarily feel propelled to do so. However, the time has come. I'm excited!

Let's get started...First, we'll quickly look at dating.

Dating
Usually people date before they commit to marrying someone. Some date one person, some date a few people, and some date many people. Moreover, some just casually have sex (e.g. fornicate), but wouldn't exactly call those relationships dating relationships. Whatever the case, to God, and to most people, those relationships wouldn't be considered marriages. Of course, if you lived in Biblical times or live in a region that observes similar Biblical customs, you'd probably never date. You'd just select one person or have someone selected for you to marry and eventually get married. That's it. Interestingly enough, dating is really not acknowledged in scripture. This is not to suggest that dating does not matter to God, because it does matter. People matter and what they do and whom they do it with seriously matters to Him. He's a God of purpose and we are people of purpose whether we know it or not. Think about it: Everyone has a purpose and "purposed-people" they're suppose to interact with. Besides, there can be some negative long term effects from our dating decisions. Some of which, impact our lives significantly. Therefore, we need not down play dating as immaterial, especially if sex is involved. To put it frankly- to God, before marrying, anyone that haves sex with someone is considered a whore. Man or woman. Biblically, the emphasis is not so much on the number of sex partners that makes them a whore, but the fact that it's sex outside of marriage. Even if the sex partners plan on marrying each other- it's fornication which is whoredom. So if you're a person that attempts to make others feel bad because of the number of their sex partners, think again- evaluating yourself carefully in light of the scripture. Besides, we ALL have things that we need to repent of...TODAY!

Now, although very important, dating is not a covenant nor covenant-producing arrangement designed by God. There are no legal vows or documents involved. God does not directly sanction such relationships from the throne of Heaven. Additionally, dating does not spiritually represent anything in God's grand scheme.

Marriage
Marriage, on the other hand, does have spiritual representations and significations. It's a covenant relationship, including vows and is legally binding on earth and in the court of Heaven. This covenant relationship was created, designed, and introduced by God beginning with the first humans, Adam and Eve. From God's perspective, it is the most serious covenant relationship that mankind can enter. As a matter of fact, it's not only the first covenant relationship of mankind, it's the first human relationship of any kind. Friendship, parenthood, church affiliation, etc. all came after this relationship. Therefore, marriage is clearly God's idea. It's His institution- He owns it. It's His covenant arrangement for male and female reproduction. It's His tangible display of the covenant between Himself and the church. It's a covenant and it is law.

Con't in next blog post...