LOVE AND LOVE Reflections

The major reference to the institution of marriage in the Bible is the statement “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Gen.2:24 KJV). But a word in this statement that many of us have somewhat overlooked is the first word of the statement: “ therefore ”. The word “therefore”, which the statement begins with alludes to the fact that there is a reason for which a man shall leave his parents, and cleave unto his wife to be one flesh. So, what will make a man who stays comfortably with his parents, and having no “obligations and responsibilities” leave them to cleave unto his wife (with all its associated responsibilities)? What will make a woman well protected, and who probably is surrounded with “maids and servants” to do all the household chores in her parents’ home leave them to get married to a man and “burden” herself with these obligations and responsibilities? Why do males and females so ...

You would not abandon your car and buy a new one just because your fuel is exhausted, you will definitely refill the fuel tank; and you would not dispose off your mobile phone just because the battery is flat, you will recharge it. These items, though not in any way equated to marriage, but if you would fix these challenges that come with them, then why would you move out of your marriage which is more valuable when challenges arise that can be resolved? God never instituted marriage as a “shuttle” or “transit” where you “hop in and out” at your will. Jesus, answering the Pharisees question about divorce said, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder” (Mtt.19:6b). It is inferred from this that God is directly involved in the marriage as He joins the two together, and He makes the marriage for life.  The Pharisees after, said unto Jesus that Moses allowed divorce, but He pointed out that Moses allowed divorce because of the “hardness of their ...

Source: istockphoto.com Indeed there can be no marriage without leaving, but one major challenge that many couples face is “leaving” their relationship with their parents, families, friends and their single adult lifestyle, to cleave to their new family.  They are torn between the responsibilities of their “new home” and their “previous home”, thus creating a lot of tension. Leaving is Hard Leaving is a fundamental principle of marriage but it is very hard and actually a bitter pill to swallow by both parents and children. The thought of not “seeing” each other cause pain in the heart and sometimes tears are shed.  Normally the mothers (of the men) are the culprits to the point that some even get depressed. They keep thinking and asking themselves: “Will she be able to wash his shirts well?” “Will she even know how much salt or pepper he likes in his soup or stew?” “Can she make him happy?” (You and I can relate with The Vodafone Advert of a moth...

Marriage is God-designed, God-instituted, God-made, God-ordained, God-enabled, and God-owned. He thus has the manual or plan guiding its operation. God’s guiding principle of marriage otherwise known as God’s plan for marriage is a statement repeated about four times in the Bible: “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife and they shall be one flesh” (Gen.2:24, Mtt.19:5, Mk.10:7-8 and Eph.5:31 KJV). The principle has three elements; what I call “The Three-fold Mystery of Marriage”: Leaving, Cleaving and One flesh/Unifying. Leaving There can be no marriage without leaving – your parents, friends, old habits and lifestyle, and anything that could interfere with your marriage.  The word “Leaving” means to loosen . A public and legal act is performed for you to be under “wedlock”. Marriage is never a private affair! – It concerns more than just the two individuals getting married. Physically it means you ...