ICS Daily Devotions
God’s Blueprint for Marriage
Genesis 1:28 (NKJV) Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
In an age where many young people are struggling with gender confusion and their identity, parents have the added responsibility to help their children to navigate the influences from media, social media, their peers, even the school system which may advocate values contrary to the Bible, and their feelings, throughout their lives because these negative influences don’t just stop in the formative years but can develop over the later stages of their lives as well.
God instituted marriage between a man and a woman, and it is sacred. God’s plan is for them to procreate, which can only happen with a male and a female. They are to establish the marriage covenant as a couple, and play the roles of husband and wife, father and mother on the earth.
The family unit is the most basic nucleus in society and it must be protected at all costs. If it is broken or changed, the entire society will suffer. In fact, the disintegration of the family unit is one of the reasons for all the gender confusion and LGBTQ issues that we see today.
If say a gay couple were to adopt a girl, this girl will lack a mother of the same gender. She won’t have a role model nor can either of her parents relate to her physical growth. The same is true for a boy brought up by two lesbian parents. These children are in confusion because they have been put into their situations with no ability to decipher right from wrong.
The Christian marriage must be strong, or constantly working out the minor differences to build a home founded on unconditional love, so the children can grow up in a safe and emotionally stable environment. The perfect love shown between a couple and to their children will help the children to feel accepted, loved, and emotionally secure. Moreover, the respective roles of the father and mother should be clearly demonstrated for the children. The father is to journey with and model for his sons what it means to be a man, a father, and a husband, and likewise for a mother with regards to her daughters. Parents should put their children above their careers so that their children are not denied the guidance that only parents can give.
Action speaks louder than words. The ability to reconcile, forgive, and reciprocate love between the parents will model for the children what a family should be like. This includes modelling of the spiritual leadership by the father and the mutual submission between husband and wife. Both parents are to journey with their children and bring them up in the ways of the Lord especially when faced with conflicting values from the world. It gives room for discussion, correction, rebuking, and training in righteousness because they understand that it is done out of the foundation of unconditional love.
Sermon Series: Natural or Unnatural? (PART 1 Gender Confusion)
