Part 5 · Belief 23 — The Doctrine of the Christian Life
Marriage and the Family
What we believe
Marriage was divinely established in Eden and affirmed by Jesus to be a lifelong union between a man and a woman in loving companionship. For the Christian a marriage commitment is to God as well as to the spouse, and should be entered into only between a man and a woman who share a common faith. Mutual love, honor, respect, and responsibility are the fabric of this relationship, which is to reflect the love, sanctity, closeness, and permanence of the relationship between Christ and His church. Regarding divorce, Jesus taught that the person who divorces a spouse, except for fornication, and marries another, commits adultery. Although some family relationships may fall short of the ideal, a man and a woman who fully commit themselves to each other in Christ may achieve loving unity through the guidance of the Spirit and the nurture of the church. God blesses the family and intends that its members shall assist each other toward complete maturity. Increasing family closeness is one of the earmarks of the final gospel message.
Of all the gifts God gave in the very beginning, one of the tenderest was companionship. When God looked at the newly made world, again and again He called it "good" — until He saw the man alone, and said, "It is not good that the man should be alone" (Genesis 2:18). So God made marriage, and with it the family, as a place where love is learned, given, and received. Wherever you find yourself today — married or single, in a happy home or a hurting one — these words are for you. God's design for the family is not meant to shame anyone, but to show us all the kind of love He longs to pour into our relationships. Behind every family God draws near, gentle and patient, ready to heal and to bless.
A gift from the garden
Marriage is not a human invention or a passing custom; it was God's own idea, given before sin ever entered the world. God formed the woman and brought her to the man, who rejoiced, "This at last is bone of my bones" (Genesis 2:23). Then Scripture sets the pattern: "a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" (Genesis 2:24). Jesus pointed straight back to this beginning: "He who created them from the beginning made them male and female... So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate" (Matthew 19:4-6). Marriage is the lifelong, loving union of a man and a woman, designed by a loving God.
A picture of Christ's love
There is a beauty in marriage greater than romance: it is meant to be a living picture of how Christ loves His people. Paul writes that husbands are to "love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her" (Ephesians 5:25), while both spouses are called to "submit to one another out of reverence for Christ" (Ephesians 5:21). The deepest love is not about getting, but about giving oneself away for the good of the other. This sacrificial love flows into the next generation too: children are to honor their parents, and fathers are not to provoke but to bring them up "in the discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:1-4). A Christ-shaped home becomes a place where everyone is safe to be loved.
Grace for every family
If your family does not look like the ideal, take heart — God meets us right where we are. Many homes carry wounds, broken relationships, and regrets, yet no situation is beyond His tender reach. Scripture's closing promise is that God will "turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers" (Malachi 4:6) — a promise of healing and reconciliation. Wise nurture still matters: "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6). Whether you are building a marriage, raising children, or simply longing for the family you wish you had, bring it to Christ. He is patient, He is gentle, and He specializes in restoring what was broken.
Search the Scriptures
Gen. 2:18-25; Exod. 20:12; Deut. 6:5-9; Prov. 22:6; Mal. 4:5, 6; Matt. 5:31, 32; 19:3-9, 12; Mark 10:11, 12; John 2:1-11; 1 Cor. 7:7, 10, 11; 2 Cor. 6:14; Eph. 5:21-33; 6:1-4.
Reflect
This week, take one relationship in your family — a spouse, a child, a parent, a sibling — and ask God to help you love them the way Christ loves you: patiently, sacrificially, without keeping score. Then take one small step: a kind word, a request for forgiveness, an unhurried moment together. God draws near to every home, including yours, and He delights to begin healing one heart at a time.
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