God ordained
Marriage is first and foremost a God ordained gift, given to man for his pleasure, the good of society and ultimately the glory of God. To divorce God from marriage, strips it of its real intention and purpose. When God created Adam He saw that Adam was alone and declared that it is not good for man to be alone. So God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam and from his rib He created woman. Adam saw her and he named her Eve. (Genesis 2:4-25) This is the first marriage recorded in human history and God is at the center of it all. He is the one who orchestrated the relationship, He is the one that literally gave Eve to Adam, this was God’s idea, and it is good. In a sense God officiated the first wedding ceremony ever and acted as Father of the bride (giving Eve away), officiate (overseeing the ceremony), witness, and of course Himself!
One Man and One Woman
Marriage is between one man and one woman. Everything that is outside of that is counterfeit, regardless of what man, or the state says. Two men, or two women cannot be married, it is an impossibility in the eyes of God. Life-Giver Church rejects all forms of marriage that do not conform to God’s original intent of a life-long monogamous relationship between one man and one woman. We reserve the right to not participate in, advocate or enable in any way a “marriage” that is contrary to God’s biblical pattern for marriage as described above.
God’s Plan for Sexual Intimacy
Marriage is Gods plan for sexual intimacy. All sexual activity outside of a one man, one woman marriage is sinful in the eyes of God. Paul instructs us that it is better to get married then to burn with lust (1 Corinthians 7:9). All other forms of sex are dangerous and often end in heart ache. Gods plan for sexual intimacy is not meant to cramp our style, but instead to protect us from the destructive consequences of sexual sin. The only legitimate, God-honoring expression of sexuality is in a monogamous, heterosexual marriage.
A Picture of Christ and the Church
Like most other concepts in the Bible, marriage also points us to Jesus Christ. A large part of Ephesians 5 has to do with marriage. Paul ends the section on marriage by writing this,
Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. (Ephesians 5:31-33)
Ultimately, the relationship of husband and wife in a God ordained, God pleasing marriage is meant to reflect the relationship of Christ and His church. This is why Paul instructs Christian men to love their wives as Christ loves the church, and Christian women to respect their husbands and submit to him as to the Lord.