WHAT IS MARRIAGE........REALLY

WHAT IS MARRIAGE.........REALLY?                    

There has been a lot of coverage in the media for many years about the push to legalize gay and lesbian marriage, and a lot of countries have done so, but what is this ‘legality’ of marriage anyway, whether it’s homosexual or heterosexual?? The licensing of marriage, via a government’s ‘marriage act’ was introduced a few hundred years ago to enable governments to control things within ‘legal’ parameters, such as claims for wealth assets and child custody etc, if and when there was a divorce. This was necessary because of peoples’ dishonesty; saying they were married when in fact they weren’t! Prior to government licences the churches controlled (or tried to!) marriage and death registering. However, these days, ‘defacto’ or non-license relationships carry the same legal benefits as a licensed marriage, so in actual fact, from a legal aspect there is no need to have a license at all!?? When you fill out a form that asks for marital status, and you tick the ‘married’ box, have you ever been asked to provide a license to prove it?? I bet not!

The truth is, the marriage license is not biblical; there is no requirement anywhere in the bible for a license! However, that fact doesn’t allow us to go ‘woohoo’ now I can just shack-up with someone, because that would be ‘fornication’; sex before marriage, which is also a sin! ‘Marriage is honourable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge’ (Hebrews 13:4)

Before licenses, marriage was a simple 'witnessed' ceremony between families and possibly a church; probably based on the biblical instruction to do everything using two or three witnesses. Some cultural marriages are still performed this way.
The apostle Paul stated in 2Cor 13:1, “This will be the third time I am coming to you. By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established”. Jesus made the same statement in Math 18:16. These were a reiteration of Duet 19:15.
So what does all that mean? It tells us that getting married under the ‘witness system’ of man is acceptable as long as it’s genuine and honoured before God; we don’t need a man-made document to call it a marriage, but for some reason couples who have lived together for years and years, suddenly decide to get married with a license?! What for? Do they have some distrust of themselves or the need to see a self-assuring document???
From a biblical perspective, God determined that a marriage can only be between a man and a woman (Genesis 2:23-24, compare Math 19:4) and later introduced laws to protect that!
The law about homosexuality was laid down in Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13, but there are some who say that Jesus never said anything about homosexuality, so therefore it’s OK, but in fact he did address it, albeit indirectly!
In Mark 7:21-22 his list included sexual immorality and lewdness, so judging by Lev 18 and 20 it was included? Homosexuality is therefore part of sexual immorality and lewdness!
However, wasn’t the apostle Paul called by Christ himself (Acts chapter 9:1-30) to continue with his work, therefore making Paul’s writings valid; with Paul speaking against homosexuality (or sodomy) repeatedly! Three stand outs are Romans 1:26-27, 1Corinthians 6:9-10 and 1Timothy 1:10.

So, given that homosexuality itself is obviously against the scriptures, it would surely follow that gay and lesbian marriage is also against the scriptures!
Governments that refuse to change their marriage act to include same sex marriage are being accused of discrimination and inequality! If it's discriminatory to be against gay marriage, then every gay person is saying that God is discriminating! Of course for atheists, the latter isn’t a problem!

But, aside from all that, there was much more said about heterosexual relationships in the scriptures than homosexuality! I can’t for the life of me understand why Christian groups’, churches and individuals have so much to say about same sex marriage, but are strangely quiet when it comes to adultery and divorce???
There were very strict rules applied to marriage, adultery and divorce. God said He hates divorce!? (Malachi 2:16) But a certificate of divorce was introduced by Moses originally and for just any reason!! (Deut 24:1) Adultery is in the Ten Commandments! (7th)
When questioned by the Pharisees about the right to divorce via Moses command, Jesus said Moses allowed it because of pressure from the people; he then corrected that, to only if adultery has been committed.
So the rule is, via Jesus Christ, that if a husband or wife, divorce their spouse for any reason except adultery, when they marry a new person they not only commit adultery themselves, they also cause the new person to commit adultery! So, it comes down to this; if there is divorce without adultery neither spouse can remarry!! The disciples thought this was a bit tough, but Jesus basically said it should be accepted! Please read, Math 5:31-32, Math 19:3-12 and Mark 10:2-12.
However, if adultery is the reason for the divorce, the one who committed the adultery is the only one who can’t remarry!
The obvious reason for this strictness was to protect families from the wrecking ball of divorce problems we see today!! Children are the real victims; some don’t even know who their real father or mother is?? All this caused by selfish and self centred adults! (See my article THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT) Jesus warned not to ill treat or cause children to sin, otherwise there will be a consequence! (Math 18:6)
Why didn’t our civil laws on divorce maintain the conditions that Jesus insisted upon, instead of returning to the corrupted version of Moses? They say it’s because adultery was too hard to prove, which brings us back to obeying God in these things, not just man’s laws.

Obviously God wanted us to be faithful in marriage from the heart and mind; to know that once a commitment was made in front of witnesses we are effectively married, without having to go under a law! Otherwise wouldn’t God have included a marriage license with all His other laws??
The apostle Paul explained the morality of relationships and how it should work in 1Corinthians chapter 7. However, a woman can live separately due to something like domestic violence, but can’t divorce or have a new relationship based on that alone, (verse 11).
Using Romans 13:1-7, and 1Peter 2:13-17, some could argue about obeying civil authority, but there is no civil law that says you can’t live together as husband and wife without a license, so that argument wouldn’t hold water!! The churches seem to put up a charade of holiness about the marriage ceremony, but why aren’t they holding to the rules Jesus set out that I quoted above? It’s probably because the individual ministers simply have a celebrant’s license, the same as any private celebrant, so perhaps the fee has become more important than the biblical rules??
What about those government officials, who sign those divorce certificates, they may be in trouble on judgement day? Jesus said, “Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate”. (Math 19:6, Mark 10:9)
It seems that we need the government to provide a law for everything we do??

To conclude, and biblically speaking, there is nothing wrong with being married with a license, but anyone that says a marriage is not a marriage without a license in place, is simply wrong, and that’s what makes the request by homosexuals to be allowed to marry so frivolous! They will only achieve a man-made document; their marriage will not be recognised by God!
Maybe the world’s population wouldn’t be as high as it is now, if there had never been any sex before marriage or adultery and divorce and remarriage????...... but that’s just my little pipe dream!!
I may have ruffled some feathers by this, but the truth does tend to do that!!
So unless you are an atheist, a marriage is simply a commitment between a man and a woman and God, not between a man and a woman and the government!?

Peace to all, Colin Bowater.