Honoring Marriage

Let marriage be held in honor among all, and the bed undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge. (Hebrews 13:4, RecVer)

Today, the Lord led us to have a special fellowship to cater to the need of the married couples in the church. In fact, of late I had received a report that some couples were not going on well as they ought to, in their marriage relationship. This was rather a shocking news to me. It even alarmed me and woke me up to cater to the need of the saints in the church. Though I have had experiences of trying to help married couples in their relationship in a way of fellowship, I took it for granted that the church in my locality need as much care as I rendered to the outsiders. As I would not handle this solemn matter in a light way, I brought the matter to fellowship with the brothers and also prayed concerning fellowshipping with the married couples and the ones on the next in line.

Yesterday, as we were fellowshipping with a brother who had come after a long long time, the matter of marriage was brought up as he was very concerned for His daughter who is forty and is not yet married. This initiated the burden to pursue an article on marriage with excerpts from the ministry. Then, we brothers realised that this was the timely speaking of the Lord and that we should lead the saints to this kind of fellowship.

Later in the night, I posted an exerpt and the link to the church group with a note:

https://shepherdingwords.com/holding-marriage-in-honor/

Let marriage be held in honor among all, and the bed undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge. (Hebrews 13:4, RecVer)

Dear Saints,

Since the Lord just blessed us with a marriage in the church, it is also important for all the married couples to have a proper view of marriage. Here is a link on "Holding Marriage in Honor", please read this article.

An excerpts from the same article is below:

“Whether a church is sound and healthy or loses its element and essence is very much dependent upon the marriage life. Do not consider the matter of marriage to be a light thing. We must hold it in honor” (Life-study of Hebrews, 613). 

We should not treat marriage as common, as those in the world do; it is something of God’s ordination. We should cultivate our relationship with our spouse as co-heirs of the grace of life and forsake the worldly view of marriage as being merely for self-gratification. In this way we can avoid the terrible damage of adultery and divorce, thus preserving ourselves and our spouse in a proper condition to participate in God’s move on the earth. May marriage be held in honor among all the saints in the Lord’s recovery for the strengthening of the churches and the fulfillment of God’s economy in the present age.

Today after the Lord’s Table Meeting and lovefeast, we had a special fellowship where all the married couples sat together, couple by couple, and the yet to be married ones in twos and threes, and we all pursued an article on honoring marriage. We began by pray-reading the verse, "Let marriage be held in honor among all, and the bed undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge." (Hebrews 13:4, RecVer)

Then, we had mutual and organic fellowship where brothers and sisters shared their enjoyment of the truth concerning marriage relationship of loving one another with the love of God, one with one another in the oneness of God, and fellowshiping and doing things together in oneness. As married couples need to honor the marriage God ordained by not allowing the bed to be defile with fornication and adultery, we also emphasied on this point where our lust need to be dealt with thoroughly. Then, by having mutual honor and submission to one another, and by enjoying the grace of life together, we honor the marriage God blessed us with. 

I also used the verses below in 1 Peter 3:7 and Ephesians 5 to bring out some crucial points of truth concerning marriage relationship as written in the Scriptures. 

Husbands, in like manner dwell together with them according to knowledge, as with the weaker, female vessel, assigning honor to them as also to fellow heirs of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered. (1 Peter 3:7, RecVer)

Being subject to one another in the fear of Christ: Wives, be subject to your own husbands as to the Lord; For a husband is head of the wife as also Christ is Head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the Body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also let the wives be subject to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her That He might sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing of the water in the word, That He might present the church to Himself glorious, not having spot or wrinkle or any such things, but that she would be holy and without blemish. In the same way the husbands also ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his own wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ also the church, Because we are members of His Body. For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall be one flesh. This mystery is great, but I speak with regard to Christ and the church. Nevertheless you also, each one of you, in the same way love your own wife as yourself; and the wife should fear her husband. (Ephesians 5:21-33, RecVer)

As a caution, I also warned the married couples to be open to another in fellowship and keeping nothing secret between them, and also not to, in fact, never to expose the hidden weaknesses of one's spouse. Of course, only with the exception that when one needs help and need to bring the matter to matured saints who can cover, pray fellowship, and help in resolve the marital issues. Then, we all prayed together and ended the meeting. Still, some couples wanted to fellowship their experiences and the fellowship went on and one for another hour. The fellowship on honoring marriage was with much testimony and edification for all. Hallelujah!

The Lord knows the timely need of the church and gave us His words at the right time. In fact, the critical situation of a couple concerned l has been also been resolved through the fellowship in the Body and the Lord coming into their relationship. The Lord sovereignly uses even the outward situation to deal with the inward being of the couple. Praise the Lord!

Lord, by Your grace and mercy, preserve the marriage life of all the married saints with the cooperation of the husbands and wives for the testimony of Your church in Gurugram.