The Great Mystery of Marriage

How can a marriage truly reflect the mysterious relationship between Christ and His bride, The Church? There appears to be only one way; by living in such mutual harmony and submission that the oneness becomes evident to all. Now is that actually possible? With God, all things are possible!

In reality, most marriages wrestle with the three phases. The first phase is the honeymoon. This may last for 2 days, 2 weeks or 2 months. But sooner or later, married couples enter into the second phase:  The adjustment phase. During this phase, spouses are getting to know one another at a much more deep and intimate level. ‘Adjusting’ to one another’s habits and preferences is no small task. And then if children come along, well, that changes everything. Then other ‘adjustments’ come into play. Many marriages only make it this far and end up spinning their wheels without moving into the final phase. The final phase is ‘acceptance’. Acceptance has to do with allowing God to transform your spouse and realizing that God has given you your spouse as a transformation tool for you as well! This mutual submission to the Spirit of God is when marriage truly becomes beautiful. When love and respect rule, oneness and joyful intimacy follows and genuine teamwork is seen.

With the joys, trials and tragedies of life, God has intended that we live out our lives in the context of family for mutual mentoring and mutual support. That is the truly mysterious work of the Spirit which gives a picture to the world of the beautiful relationship of Christ and His Church.