SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON ,FEBRUARY 7, TOPIC - BIBLICAL VIEW OF MARRIAGE

 SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON,FEBRUARY 7, TOPIC - BIBLICAL VIEW OF MARRIAGE  

 Memory verse: Genesis 2:24 

Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave Unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh (KJV) 

TEXT- GENESIS 2 V 18 - 24, MATTHEW 19 V 1 - 9

Central Truth The Bible reveals God’s 

Plan for marriage. 

The lesson outline 

1. Purpose of marriage 

A. Something missing 

B. Here comes the bride 

2. God’s plan for marriage 

A. The Perpetual Question 

3. Back to the Beginning Sanctity of marriage 

A. Hard Heart Miss the Truth 

B. A practical Approach

Teaching Goals 

1. Impart and reinforce knowledge Explain to you students God’s  eternal Purpose of making two to become one. 

2. Influence attitudes: encourage students to respect God’s original  design for marriage this has been perverted by the world. 

3. Influence Behaviour: challenge students to stay True to their marriage  vows, showing that indeed Marriage is honourable. 

Introducing the Lesson 

Like most everything else in society, view and ideas concerning  the marriage relationship are varied. These views run the spectrum from  totally conservative to wide-open liberalism. Yet a quick glance at  statistics show That sinful humanity’s approach to marriage is not  working Society has moved the wonderful institution of marriage away  From what God the creator meant it to be in the beginning. 

God intended marriage to be fulfilling. And it can be when we bring  ourselves into line with God’s design. But in order to be Fulfilling  marriage must operate according to the instruction manual, The Bible  We have an opportunity to strengthen our own marriages, And to help  other to strengthen their marriage relationships. This week's lesson give  us a biblical basis on which to build our marriage. 

Commentary Application 

1. Purpose of Marriage 

A. Something is missing

The creation week had almost ended. Everything God created had  been declared by Him as “good” But God the creator observed that the  man he had created was alone and declared it as “not good”. 

Give God response to Adam’s plight “I will make him a help meet for  him “the key word in God’s plan was “meet “meaning “suitable” Adam’s  counterpart had to be someone who would complete him in every way. 

Every living creature has been created in pairs. As Adam named the  animals, he must have become aware of this he had been created as a  single unit. Though distinct from the of creation, this uniqueness must  have made him realize his aloneness something important was missing  from his life in all of creation, Adam could not find the help he longed for  he was still painfully alone. 

B Here comes the Bride 

It became obvious that the only solution to Adam’s loneliness was to  create a “help meet”. The answer was not in what God had already  “formed” out of the ground but in what he was about to “make”. 

Question for application 

Why did god take a portion of Adam? 

To accomplish this special creative act, Adam was placed in a deep  sleep and a rib was removed from his side. The word “rib” can be  interpreted to be both the bone itself with the flesh attached to it. To the  Jews, this was significant because the rib came from near the heart  which they considered to be the seat of affection. The woman was not  made for inferior substance; rather she was a special creation. 

You can almost see a beautiful wedding as God, the Heavenly Father  of the bride, “brought her unto the man” and presented her to him. Adam  found what he had been missing a completeness nothing else could 

provide. Adam immediately recognize that his counterpart was intimate  part of himself she had been made from him and would become the  helper that was suitable for him. 

Through this passage, we see a clear picture of God’s purpose for the  marriage union. God intended man and woman to complement each  other and to work together as a single unit. It here that God stated his  purpose for marriage. 

From the beginning, God desired marriage to be an intimate  relationship. Makes a clear statement to this effect. Man’s responsibility  was that he was to “cleave unto his wife” in mutual and total commitment  and trust, this union was to be inseparable as they became “one flesh”  they were to find their identify and completeness in one another. 

2. God’s plan for Marriage  

A. The perpetual question 

Although God’s purpose for marriage was made clear from the  beginning, humanity’s sinful nature perverted it. God’s original design for  marriage was no longer revered by many. By the time of Christ, the  dissolution of marriage has become a common occurrence. 

The issue of divorce was further complicated by the controversy over  remarriage. These issues were causing so much divisiveness among the  Jewish people that the Pharisees following Jesus selected this topic in  an attempt to entrap Him. 

The question posed in Matthew 19:3 was clearly conceived. The  Pharisees wanted Jesus to say something that would make him taken  either too lax or too strict a view on the matter. They wanted to trap him  into perhaps saying something that would appear to contradict the Law

of Moses. And maybe the Pharisees thought they could get Jesus  entangled in the hero and Herodias scandal to the extent that might end  up like john the Baptist. 

Among the Jews, opinions on divorce and remarriage were almost  evenly divided between the teaching of two well respected Jewish  rabbis, Hillel and shammai. Their interpretation of Deuteronomy 24:1  forms the basis of controversy which Matthew brings up by using the  phrase “for every cause”. This phrase is significant since it is not found  in parallel passages. Gentile readers could not understand the Jewish  interest in this question. This phrase was the basis for a wide diversity of  opinion represented by Hillel and shammai. Both teachers permitted the  divorce of a woman by a man, but disagree sharply as to what constitute  justifiable reason.  

Shammai and his followers interpreted the “uncleanness” of  Deuteronomy 24:1 to refer to a gross act of indecency. This would  include adultery, although not limited to it. Hillel and his followers  interpreted uncleanness to mean any acceptable reason to any number  of real of perceive offences, including burning a meal. 

Jesus refuses to allow himself to be trapped. Instead, he directed them  to the world of God for an answer. In the process, he was able to turn to  discredit himself into an opportunity to teach everyone about the divine  plan that God has for the marriage and relationship. 

B. Back to the beginning  

Jesus immediately took his questioners back to the beginning by  referring to the Bible. A principle of Jewish exegesis stated that the  further back one could go to gather facts, the weightier that argument  would be. So Jesus went back to the very beginning to present His 

arguments. One couldn’t go further back than the creation to learn the  responsibilities God had assigned to mankind. 

Jesus called on the Pharisees to remember what they had read and  had been taught from the Pentateuch. It was God who had created male  and female. By quoting from Genesis, Jesus clearly reminded them of  God’s plan for marriage. 

The words recorded in verse 5, “for this cause” is God’s statement  concerning what is to take place in the marriage relationship. A man is to  break his emotional and physical ties with his father and mother and join  himself to his wife and become one flesh with her. Each time this union  is formed, it is a testimony of the foundation of marriage as God  intended it to be. 

Question for Application 

What does it mean for a man to “cleave unto his wife”? 

The overriding plan and design for all marriages is permanence. The  word “cleave” describes a strong bonding that is to take place between  the husband and wife. Jesus again emphasised this when he restated  the “one flesh” concept. 

Jesus further indicated God’s plan for permanence. If God joins man  and woman together as one flesh, on man has the right to divide them. Believers today need to heed the importance of this command. When  the Church begins to take the marriage vows seriously, then it will be  able to influence the marriages of those outside of the Church. We can  be an example of what God had intended marriage to be. 

3. Sanctity of marriage 

A. Hard hearts miss the truth 

Not to be outdone, the Pharisees came back with a question suggesting that if Jesus was correct, Moses was infringing upon God/s  purpose by allowing for divorce. 

Jesus pointed out a flaw in the Pharisees’ understanding of Moses.  They said Moses commanded divorce. Jesus emphasised that Moses only permitted it. Jesus’ response demonstrated that in fact, Moses was  trying to restore sanctity to the marriage relationship. But Jesus  unmasked the real problem. It was not a concern for the Law, or for the  sanctity of marriage. The real reason for divorce was the hardness of  their hearts. 

Questions for Application 

What reasons do people today give for divorce? 

Christ took the side of the stricter interpretation and took a bold stand  for the sanctity of marriage. He allowed only one legitimate reason for  the dissolution of marriage “fornication” or marital unfaithfulness. 

In addition, the man who divorces his wife and shall marry another  committeth adultery. The word translated “adultery” is a general word for  sexual immorality, the same word translated “fornication”. The word  translated “commit adultery” at the end of the verse is the specific word  for “commit adultery.” 

Jesus recognised that any type of sexual immorality has already  broken the marriage relationship. But he was not commanding divorce,  only permitting it. We must realise that God can forgive and heal a  marriage broken by infidelity. 

B. A practical approach

The sanctity of marriage is an important issue for believers,. In his  first letter to the Corinthians, Paul instructed them concerning marriage relationships. In his teaching, we can find solid information to assist us  as we face questions concerning the importance of marriage in today’s  society. 

Paul addressed the union in which both parties are Christians. Christians are expected to stay true to their marriage vows, remaining  together as husband and wife as was originally intended. Paul made it  clear that this is a command from the Lord. He was simply repeating  what Christ had taught. 

It is interesting to note that Paul also directed his statement to the  women. In Jewish culture only men were allowed to initiate divorce. But  the Corinthian were under Roman rule which allowed for either party to  dissolve the marriage. However, if problems in the marriage arose, Paul  taught that Christians should seek reconciliation, not dissolution. 

Verses 12-26 are directed toward marriages in which a Christian is  married to a non-Christian. More than likely, one marriage partner had  been converted after their marriage. 

In marriages where both parties are content with their relationship,  marriage to an unbeliever is not a reason to initiate divorce. If dissolution  occurs, it should be at the initiative of the unbeliever. There is no  spiritual stigma on a Christian who lived with an unbeliever if they were  happy together. In fact, keeping the marriage together provided a  sanctifying influence on the family. 

In verse 15 Paul addressed the issue of the unbeliever refusing to  remain in the marriage relationship. Again, the departure was to be  initiated and completed by the unbeliever. The Christian partner was not  to encourage or promote this.

Question for Application 

When one marriage partner becomes a believer, what could be the  result of that decision? 

Paul reminded the Corinthian and us as well, that while a couple  together, there is always the possibility the unbelieving spouse can be  won to the Lord. While God has made provision for divorce, that decision  must be made according to the principles of God’s word and direction of  the Holy Spirit. 

Call to discipleship 

Have you ever noticed the photographs in the newspaper of couples  who are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary? Some of these  couples have the unhappiest looks on their faces. Could it be that over  the years the marriage relationship has become a burden than a joy?  God designed the marriage relationship to grow better and more  satisfying with time. And it will if we follow God’s word. 

The marriage relationship is some what like an orchestra that blends  all its instruments together to present a beautiful rendition of a musical  score. One person cannot make it reach that desirably place of beauty  and satisfaction alone. It is a joint effort. 

Each couple owes it to themselves to periodically evaluate the  relationship and see if each one is fulfilling his or her individual  responsibilities. Should problems be found, then actions should be taken  correct them. To ignore them will slowly drain the life out of the  relationship this relationship is fare too valuable to allow anything like  this to happen to it. 

Ministry in action

As class conclude, ask students to pray that God will help them to be an  example of what he had intended marriage to be.