Information Related to "A Divine Institution"
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A Divine Institution
by David Hulme
"Marriage is a natural union, but a divine institution, ordained of God." These are introductory comments to the marriage ceremony conducted by ministers of the United Church of God, an International Association, which publishes The Good News. Yes, we are an organization with a biblically based core of beliefs, some of which pertain to marriage and family. This issue contains helpful advice on how to build a happy marriage; we hope you find it inspiring and otherwise beneficial. What once was common knowledge can be surprising, simply because few express it anymore. The Bible does contain essential truths in the critical area of human relationships. Indeed, the truth about marriage is one of the most profound.
A man who was not married when he wrote about marriage penned some of the most meaningful and beautiful words about marriage ever composed. Often wrongly thought of as a woman hater, the apostle Paul said to men: "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her" (Ephesians 5:25). Paul understood that marriage is a divine institution with great underlying significance. Whatever good happens within the marriage relationship is intended to teach us about God Himself and in particular about Christ. This is a dimension few of us ever hear about.
Paul’s counsel to women matched the wisdom he gave to men: "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body" (verses 22-23). Paul passionately believed that husbands and wives should serve each other. To husbands he also said: "So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church" (verses 28-29).
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