What exactly IS the purpose of marriage?

[gottabemore2life]

Flashlight gave me this idea...


Discuss...

 

[SonicBOOM]

thats a good quistion. I'm not sure how to answer that one.... marrege I think is a vow to love. so maybe it's simply a means to commit to someone you love "till death do you part"... but I dunno.

 

[GuacaMolly]

I heard a really good message on this topic, and what stuck with me is this.

Before you get married, ask yourselves:

Can we serve God better together than apart?

 

[gottabemore2life]

thats a good quistion. I'm not sure how to answer that one.... marrege I think is a vow to love. so maybe it's simply a means to commit to someone you love "till death do you part"... but I dunno.

I know what it IS. But why do people do it?

 

[Laurie919]

For the extra paycheck????

 

[gottabemore2life]

It's weird... my whole life I have always wanted to be a mom and a wife... I couldn't imagine being anything else. I really do think it is my purpose in life.... to take care of people. And I WANT to get married... but would it glorify God any less if I didn't? Am I getting married for selfish reasons--because I think it will make ME feel good to have someone to love and cherish and take care of and provide for?

I am way confused now. There is nothing in the Bible that says one MUST get married is there? I mean the disciples had to leave their families and everything they know to follow Jesus. Maybe the world would be better without marriage, without that kind of "love"... I know we still need compassion and brotherly love and yada yada yada... But do we really need the love that society says two people that marry should have for each other?

Really... What purpose does marriage serve besides our selfish, psychological, HUMAN need to be needed and loved?

 

[fishin4christ]

It's weird... my whole life I have always wanted to be a mom and a wife... I couldn't imagine being anything else. I really do think it is my purpose in life.... to take care of people. And I WANT to get married... but would it glorify God any less if I didn't? Am I getting married for selfish reasons--because I think it will make ME feel good to have someone to love and cherish and take care of and provide for?

I am way confused now. There is nothing in the Bible that says one MUST get married is there? I mean the disciples had to leave their families and everything they know to follow Jesus. Maybe the world would be better without marriage, without that kind of "love"... I know we still need compassion and brotherly love and yada yada yada... But do we really need the love that society says two people that marry should have for each other?

Really... What purpose does marriage serve besides our selfish, psychological, HUMAN need to be needed and loved?

It's not selfish at all. God wants us to get married. The bible makes that clear for us several times. It doesn't necessarily command us to get married, but he says that its definitely a good thing. I mean you think about it, you marry a Godly spouse, and raise your children to Glorify the Lord then why wouldn't he want you to get married ?

 

[gottabemore2life]

It's not selfish at all. God wants us to get married. The bible makes that clear for us several times. It doesn't necessarily command us to get married, but he says that its definitely a good thing. I mean you think about it, you marry a Godly spouse, and raise your children to Glorify the Lord then why wouldn't he want you to get married ?

I don't know... maybe I just feel as if all of MY reasons for getting married are too selfish at this point and don't necessarily glorify God... not that they are bad.... just... I dunno.... indifferent? I guess.

That's why I am having a hard time understanding... I could glorify God by myself, or with someone else... basically. So why NOT get married, is what you are saying?

 

[SonicBOOM]

It's weird... my whole life I have always wanted to be a mom and a wife... I couldn't imagine being anything else. I really do think it is my purpose in life.... to take care of people. And I WANT to get married... but would it glorify God any less if I didn't? Am I getting married for selfish reasons--because I think it will make ME feel good to have someone to love and cherish and take care of and provide for?

I am way confused now. There is nothing in the Bible that says one MUST get married is there? I mean the disciples had to leave their families and everything they know to follow Jesus. Maybe the world would be better without marriage, without that kind of "love"... I know we still need compassion and brotherly love and yada yada yada... But do we really need the love that society says two people that marry should have for each other?

Really... What purpose does marriage serve besides our selfish, psychological, HUMAN need to be needed and loved?

I think God often cares about those things that we call "worldy" or "selfish" though. The glory of God is man fully alive.

 

[gottabemore2life]

The glory of God is man fully alive.

OOooo. I like that one.

 

[SonicBOOM]

OOooo. I like that one.

it's a quote by St. Irienious and I think it's spot on I think God cares more about our happiness than we give him credit for. I just think sometimes our timing is wrong and we fail to see the big picture. A freind of mine once told me that life is like walking backwards. You walk backwards and you can see everything thats behind you... but you can't see whats in front of you. how do you know your not gonna run into something or fall down a hole or something? Because you trust God to guide you

 

[Leechness]

to have sex

in one of paul's letters to the churchers he mentions if you cant wait then get married.

...to be intimate and have companionship.

marriage is a blessing. a commitment before God. its spiritual as well, unifies us. and probably gives us more knowledge and experience about wat the church body should be like.

 

[mina]

hmmm i think the purpose of marriage is to have a protected and committed family unit- even if it's just a man and wife and there are no kids. I think God is for marriage rather than against not marrying. I think marriage is a beautiful thing and an important thing and to want it is not a selfish thing (it could be but not in all circumstances). I have no verses off the top of my head. I think it's a good thing to want marriage for the right reasons. jmo I think that in this day and time within the church, people have totally over spirtuallized singleness and marriage and turned into some churchy thing that God never intended for us to see it as. I think certian people do have a gift of celibacy and they know it. I don't think it's wrong, if you desire marriage, to pray for it and to pray that God will make you and your future spouse ready for one another and to be able to recognize that you belong together when you do meet.

 

[gottabemore2life]

Soo... am I not selfish for wanting to get married because I think it will make me happy?

 

[Leechness]

I don't know... maybe I just feel as if all of MY reasons for getting married are too selfish at this point and don't necessarily glorify God... not that they are bad.... just... I dunno.... indifferent? I guess.

That's why I am having a hard time understanding... I could glorify God by myself, or with someone else... basically. So why NOT get married, is what you are saying?

reading proverbs may give you some reasons or goals to aim for within a marriage, to build a godly character.

i feel (and this may change through experience) my role within a marriage would be to build/support my significant other. have their best interests and encourage them to become the goldy person God has intended them to be.

 

[gottabemore2life]

reading proverbs may give you some reasons or goals to aim for within a marriage, to build a godly character.

i feel (and this may change through experience) my role within a marriage would be to build/support my significant other. have their best interests and encourage them to become the goldy person God has intended them to be.

So the purpose of marriage is to have your own personal cheerleader?

 

[SonicBOOM]

Soo... am I not selfish for wanting to get married because I think it will make me happy?

I don't think your selfish to desire something like that.... as long as it doesn't consume you and become something you put before God. I think you can desire alot of things and not be selfish.... but I think the key is to go to god for our needs and not try to get stuff on our own. this was the sin of Eve. She refused to trust God's heart and saought after the tree against God's wishes. God has a good heart and has your good in mind he's not selfish and he wants to give you your hearts desires but.... he wants you to trust the wellbeing of your heart to him and not seek your desires on your own terms. i don't think it's God's will for you to give up your desires in order to "glorify him". Because thats not the essense of Christainity. christainity is an intamate relationship with someone who loves us deeply. not a meeting of slaves who must wrap themselves up in chains to serve a great Chair Man of The Bourd

 

[gottabemore2life]

I don't think your selfish to desire something like that.... as long as it doesn't consume you and become something you put before God. I think you can desire alot of things and not be selfish.... but I think the key is to go to god for our needs and not try to get stuff on our own. this was the sin of Eve. She refused to trust God's heart and saought after the tree against God's wishes. God has a good heart and has your good in mind he's not selfish and he wants to give you your hearts desires but.... he wants you to trust the wellbeing of your ehart to him and not seek your desires on your own terms. i don't think it's God's will for you to give up your desires in order to "glorify him". Because thats not the essense of Christainity. christainity is an intamate relationship with someone who loves us deeply. not a meeting of slaves who must wrap themselves up in chains to serve a great Chair Man of The Bourd

That makes a lot of sense! Thanks Chris

 

[mina]

Soo... am I not selfish for wanting to get married because I think it will make me happy?

i don't think so. There are lots of people in marriages that are happy with their spouse and happy with being married. Are they selfish? I tend to think it's only selfish if you are being happy at the expense of someone else or outright and blatently defiying God. I don't think the desire to be married is a blatent defience of God- I think it's a natural thing that God intends for most people to want. There are a lot of issues that come out of this one. But i don't think that simply wanting marriage is selfish. Maybe banking your entire happiness on it is wrong, but who does that? a Beautiful marriage is a decent thing to want, imo

 

[gottabemore2life]

Although I guess we are still a bit off topic... argh...