[0:00] In Jesus' name this morning, it's good to be here. It was good to be in Ohio last week, but it's very good to be home.
[0:17] And, you know, probably along the way, it might be a few weeks, but every once in a while, I imagine you'll hear a nugget or something that we brought home from the meetings in Ohio.
[0:42] But one of the things that I just want to mention now is the question, what is God's expectation?
[0:55] What does God expect of us? What does God expect of each one of us? What does he expect from us as a church?
[1:06] And maybe more specifically this morning and where we're going, what does God expect from your home and your church, your marriage?
[1:19] You know, God, you know, we have expectations and we have goals and we have thoughts and desires, but God does too.
[1:35] And is he realizing his expectation or is he being disappointed?
[1:49] This morning, turn to Genesis chapter 1 and 2. You know, when God created man, he created him in his own image.
[2:11] There's a verse in Colossians I want to read right now. We might come back to it later or we might just quote it.
[2:21] But it says here, Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.
[2:40] The new man says he is renewed in knowledge and he is after the image of God.
[2:56] He is after the image of him that created him. So when we read in the creation account that God created man in his own image, I believe that today for us to be really in the image of God that he desires, it must be the new man, the born-again man.
[3:25] In Genesis chapter 1, and we'll probably start about verse 26.
[3:39] But, you know, we live in a day when this is under attack. You know, God, we will read here in just a few minutes, God created man and he created us male and female.
[4:01] And today the devil is trying to mix things up and he's trying to pervert the human race. He's seeing a measure of success in that.
[4:16] But God created male and female. And there's no way to get away from that.
[4:28] That is the word of God. That is how he created. And anything that man does to tamper with that is perversion.
[4:41] And it's an abomination in the sight of God. Let's start.
[4:55] Let's start in verse 24. And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after his kind.
[5:07] And it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth after his kind and cattle after their kind. And everything that creepeth upon the earth after his kind.
[5:20] And God saw that it was good. And God said, Let us make man in our image after our likeness and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the fowl of the air and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
[5:43] So God created man in his own image. In the image of God created he him. Male and female created he them. And God blessed them.
[5:55] And God said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
[6:10] And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb-bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, every tree in the which is a fruit of a tree yielding seed.
[6:21] To you it shall be for meat. And every beast of the earth, to every fowl of the air, to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life. I have given every green herb for meat, and it was so.
[6:36] And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day. You know, so God created the whole of creation in six days.
[6:53] And it was literal days. You know, it says here, and we just read it, the evening and the morning were the sixth day. And so it's not a thousand years, like some would say.
[7:08] It's not a million years, like others would say. But it's a 24-hour day. The rising of the sun, or in the Old Testament, the days, they would mark the days, would start at sunset, to the next sunset.
[7:24] So God said the evening and the morning were the sixth day. And it was a 24-hour day. And after that, he rested.
[7:36] I want to look here. It says, God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
[7:49] And, you know, Satan is the enemy of God. And I believe that because man was created in the image of God, Satan hates humanity.
[8:08] And he does everything that he can to destroy humanity, and to destroy this image of God that we are.
[8:18] That is why he brings perversion. That is why he brings all these attacks upon humanity. That is why, that is why, that is why he pushes the gay agenda, is to get away from male and female.
[8:42] And all of those things that we see in our world today, it's perversion. And it's an abomination in the sight of God. And the reason, the reason that Satan is so hard against humanity, I believe, is because he hates us because we are made in the image of God.
[9:09] And we are made, we were created to worship him. We were created to, to have fellowship with God.
[9:21] You know, Adam, he walked in the garden with God. God came in the cool of the evening, and, and he walked with him, and he talked with him.
[9:32] And after Adam fell, he hid himself from God. Maybe we'll just continue reading here in chapter 2, rather than just skipping down to verse 7.
[10:03] Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the hosts of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
[10:20] And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
[10:31] These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens. And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew.
[10:49] For the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.
[11:01] And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.
[11:14] And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.
[11:28] The tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from thence it was parted and became into four heads.
[11:46] And it goes through the names of these rivers. In verse 15, And the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
[11:57] And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil thou shalt not eat of it. For in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
[12:13] You know, and as I read this, it just jumps out at me that, you know, he especially notes here in verse 9 that the tree of life is in the midst of the garden and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
[12:31] Sounds like it's close by the tree of life. Well, God did not, that it's recorded, God did not say that, you know, anything about the tree of life, but he, but he did specify that they should not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
[12:54] For in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. And the Lord God said, It is not good that man should be alone. I will make him and help meet for him.
[13:08] And out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every file of the air and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them. And whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
[13:25] And Adam gave names to all cattle and to the file of the air and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found and help meet for him. You know, and then, you know, can we, can we imagine how this was for Adam?
[13:43] That was a big task to name all the animals and all the fowl and everything. And there they were, male and female, but there were, but he was by himself.
[13:59] He was by himself yet. And he named them. And then in 21, the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and he slept.
[14:10] And he took one of his ribs, closed up the flesh instead thereof and the rib which the Lord God had taken from man made he a woman and brought her unto the man.
[14:23] And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman because she was taken out of man.
[14:34] Therefore, shall a man leave his father and mother and shall cleave unto his wife and they shall be one flesh. You know, and so here we have God created Eve.
[14:48] He formed her and brought her to Adam. He brought her to Adam. And then we have this verse. Therefore, shall a man leave his father and mother and shall cleave unto his wife and they shall be one flesh.
[15:07] They shall be one. You know, and this especially is another area that is very much under attack and has been in the last 50, 60 years especially, I believe, as Satan has brought tremendous attacks against the home and against marriage, against the family.
[15:35] you know, when I, when I was in school, I, I'm not sure but I'm thinking it was probably sixth grade I was still in public school and in my grade, I believe there was, there was two rooms and I'm not sure how it was but there was like 30 some students in my class and out of, out of the hole there was, there was two students that were from, that their parents had divorced.
[16:11] That was back in the early 70s. You know, look at what the statistics are today. If you would go back to that same classroom today, what would it be?
[16:25] 50%, 70%, I don't know but it was very unusual 50 years ago. You heard of it here and there that oh, so and so, yeah, they divorced, they left their wife, they, on and on down the line but it was very unusual and, and everybody, everybody talked about it because it was that unusual.
[16:52] Not just, not just your friends, not just, but even, I mean, the whole community and maybe a bigger percentage of them went to church at that time than they do now.
[17:09] I'm just bringing out that in the last 50 years there's been a great moral decline in this country and I believe that Satan has been pushing this and he's brought it to the place that many churches will, will sanction divorce and remarriage.
[17:38] Those of us who don't are in the minority by far but it was not God's plan and we'll look at some of that. God's plan was for one man and one woman and to dwell together in unity for their whole life.
[18:01] Why that that the children can be brought up in a peaceful godly home and can be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
[18:15] Here in Genesis, God instituted marriage marriage and he made it a covenant between man and woman.
[18:29] It's a sacred union that God established. And you young people that are not married don't think that today is not for you.
[18:58] But God has a plan. He had a plan back in Genesis and he still has a plan today. He still has a plan today.
[19:13] Let's turn now to Matthew 19. We'll start in verse 3.
[19:36] the Pharisees also came unto him tempting him and saying unto him is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? And he answered and said unto them have ye not read that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female and said for this cause shall a man leave father and mother and shall cleave to his wife and they twain shall be one flesh wherefore they are no more twain but one flesh what therefore God is joined together let not man put asunder what God has joined together let not man put asunder you know I believe that God recognizes marriage whether whether the people that are getting married are Christians or not God recognizes that marriage and you know just for an example we have we have Herod married his brother
[20:37] Philip's wife and John the Baptist came and told him that it's not lawful for you to have your brother's wife well it cost him his head but he was speaking the truth and you know that if we need proof that God recognizes marriages of unbelievers then I believe we could take that let's look at this again so he's he's quoting Genesis somewhat here he says for this cause because God ordained this God created us male and female and God ordained this and so a man shall leave father and mother you know so we look at a home and we look at at the husband the head of the home and then the wife and the children and so you know there's there's verses like children obey your parents and and on down the line there's much admonition we probably won't see a lot of that this morning but there comes a time when children grow up and it says for this cause shall a man leave his father and mother it doesn't say a boy or a girl we often call it boy or girl but it says a man so I believe
[22:15] I believe he's looking for maturity to a certain extent before before we get married but he says for this cause shall a man leave father and mother and when a man leaves father and mother and marries a wife and they establish a home then he is the head of the new home he is the head of that and he's he's no longer under the direct headship of his earthly father like he used to be but he is now he is now established a new home and it's his responsibility it says a man shall leave his father and mother cleave to his wife and they twain shall be one flesh and when when they come together in marriage says God is joining them together yes we have an earthly ceremony and all of that but in heaven it's recorded
[23:24] God has joined them together and he just states in so many words let not man put asunder let not man put asunder you know well let's just read on here a few verse 7 they say unto him why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement and to put her away he saith unto them Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives but from the beginning it was not so so Jesus is going back to the beginning he's going back to Genesis he says yes Moses he allowed you to do that but that was not the plan of God the plan of God was was one man and one woman for life from the beginning it was not so and I say unto you whosoever shall put away his wife except it be for fornication and shall marry another committeth adultery and whoso marrieth her which is put away doeth commit adultery so I want to read this almost word for word in
[24:55] Mark in Mark chapter 10 verse 2 and the Pharisees came to him and asked him is it lawful for a man to put away his wife tempting him and he answered and said unto them what did Moses command you and they said Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement and to put her away and Jesus answered and said unto them for the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept but from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female for this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife they twain shall be one flesh so then they are no more twain but one flesh what therefore God has joined together let not man put asunder and in the house his disciples asked him again of the same matter and he said unto them whosoever shall put away his wife and marry another committeth adultery against her and if a woman shall put away her husband and be married to another she committeth adultery you know and just just reading this and thinking of what's going on in our day you know
[26:23] I mean you hear all kinds of things you know a couple separates and divorces and before you know it you see on social media the one or the other will say oh the Lord is providing a companion for me and all of that and they're you know they're living in what Jesus calls adultery and they're crediting God for bringing them a new companion I believe it's an abomination in the sight of God now I want to look at Malachi I know let's just read here Malachi chapter 2 and here the prophet he's talking about Judah and how they left
[27:27] God and served idols and and how they're misusing and dealing wrongly with one another let's start in verse 11 he kind of sums up what he's saying about Judah here and then he goes on into into marriage Judah hath dealt treacherously and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem for Judah hath profaned the holiness of the Lord which he loved and has married the daughter of a strange God the Lord will cut off the man that doeth this the master and the scholar out of the tabernacles of Jacob and him that offereth an offering unto the
[28:28] Lord of hosts and this have you done again covering the altar of the Lord with tears with weeping and with crying out insomuch that he regardeth not the offering anymore or receiveth it with good will at your hand so here we have a people they they they're following other gods and and so on and and but yet they come to God this says here in verse 13 they come to God and they cover the altar of the Lord with tears and with weeping and crying and and so on but he does not hear them he's not hearing them he's not answering them and why not yet ye say wherefore why doesn't the Lord hear why doesn't he hear me when I cry because the Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth against whom thou hast dealt treacherously yet is she thy companion and the wife of thy covenant and did not he make one yet had he the residue of the spirit and wherefore one that he might seek a godly seed therefore take heed to your spirit and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth for the
[29:54] Lord the God of Israel saith that he hateth putting away for one covereth violence with his garment saith the Lord of hosts therefore take heed to your spirit that ye deal not treacherously ye have wearied the Lord with your words yet ye say wherein have we wearied him when ye say everyone that doeth evil is good in the sight of the Lord and he delighteth in them or where is the God of judgment this last verse is something that we hear and we see all the time here in our day in our land he says everyone that doeth evil is good in the sight of the Lord and the Lord delights in those that do evil you know we hear that all the time people are calling good evil and evil good there there's professing
[30:57] Christians that are making that are now openly making room for sin and for for allowing things that God has condemned there's there's many churches today that would have a homosexual in the pulpit not just in the pulpit and it's an abomination in the sight of God it's an abomination in the sight of God but let's look at this a little more you have dealt treacherously with the wife of your youth yet she is thy companion the wife of thy covenant you know marriage like we said before marriage is a covenant it's a covenant between between a man and a woman and he asks the question did not he make one
[32:03] God made them one when they became married he made them one but yet now you are separating you're tearing apart what God has put together verse 16 the Lord the God of Israel saith that he hateth putting away God hates putting away he hates that but yet men do it and they make excuses for it and they say it's okay it's not okay you know there's in the amplified is it the amplified no it's not it's in the new English translation verse 15 where it talks about the spirit that that version says no one who has even a small portion of the spirit in him does this no one that even has a small portion of the spirit of
[33:27] God in him would do this God hates putting away he says therefore take heed to your spirit that you deal not treacherously and then back to verse 17 this thing of evil calling evil good and good evil we live in a day when that is we hear that all the time people justifying what is evil justifying what God has condemned justifying a life of sin psalm 119 126 says they have made void thy law actually let me just there's more to it let me just get that verse they have made void thy law it is oh
[34:36] I like this it is time for thee lord to work for they have made void thy law you know they've rejected his law they've walked away from it they've said it doesn't matter that's for that's for that's not for our day it's for another day it's for it's for the old times it's not for our day they have made void the law of God but the psalmist says here it is time for thee to work lord for they have made void thy law do we love the word of God not one child or one tittle of this will pass until all be fulfilled you know this word will stand forever it will stand the test of time it will stand eternity yes this word it will abide forever and men can explain it away they can make excuses they can say whatever they want to say but in the end this word that they explain away is going to judge them
[35:43] God wants godly children you know and I I read that but let me point that out again there in Malachi verse 15 and wherefore one he asks a question did not he make one yes he made he made us one when we were married and when we made those vows when we made those vows for better or for worse until death do us part we made those vows and when we made those vows God made us one and wherefore one why does
[36:44] God make us one because that he might seek a godly seed God is looking for godly children to be born and to be raised up in a godly home that is not very normal in broken homes broken homes lead to broken children not knowing where they're at not knowing what's next being rejected God is looking for a godly seed godly children that will live this word and will carry this word let's turn to
[37:52] Ephesians chapter five and this portion this portion he talks about husband and wife and but he also talks about the church and many times in the old testament you know and in the new but there's often the two are brought together why because I believe that first we as individuals people will drift away from God and then it's noticed in the church then it's noticed that the church is going the wrong way the home the
[38:55] Christian home is the basis for God's working through the church where should we start let's start let's just back up a little bit let's start in verse 14 wherefore he saith awake thou that sleepest and arise from the dead and Christ shall give thee light see then that you walk circumspectly not as fools but as wise redeeming the time because the days are evil wherefore be ye not unwise but understanding what the will of the Lord is he admonishes us to redeem the time and he admonishes us that we need to know the will of
[39:56] God and that starts with finding the will of God for our own life and for us today as we are walking as we are walking led by the spirit of God we can understand the will of God and be not drunk with wine wherein is excess but be filled with the spirit of God you know and why does he bring the two together in the same verse you know I believe I believe that you know if someone is drunken with wine he doesn't always talk and he doesn't always walk in a sensible way it doesn't make sense to us as we watch him and sometimes if we're filled with the spirit of God and we're led by the spirit it won't always make sense to this carnal mind to our human thinking it won't always make sense in how we walk but he admonishes us to be filled with the spirit of
[40:59] God speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord giving thanks always for all things unto God and the name of our Lord Jesus Christ submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God wives submit yourselves unto your own husbands as unto the Lord you know and wives submit yourselves to your own husbands you know there's other places I don't know how many of these will read but where there's an admonition to the wife and it says it specifies to her own husband you know sometimes it might be easier for a woman to submit herself to someone else's husband but that's not the order of God the order of
[42:00] God is for for each woman to have her own husband and every husband to have his own wife as Corinthians says and for the woman to submit herself to her own husband for the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church and he is the savior of the body therefore as the church is subject unto Christ so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything husbands love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word that he might present it to himself a glorious church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that it should be holy and without blemish saw it men to love their wives as their own bodies he that loveth his wife loveth himself for no man ever yet hated his own flesh but nourishes and cherishes it even as the
[43:11] Lord the church you know as we look at this you know he repeats himself that the wife is to submit to her own husband and even as the church is subject to Christ so let the wives be to their own husband you know I believe that that's one of the big issues in our day we have many professing churches that are not subject to Christ they're not walking in obedience to Christ how do I know that they're not walking in obedience to the word of God and so they're not walking in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ and this submission that we're talking about the wife being submissive to her husband it's not a dictatorship no but if you look at this husbands love your wives even as Christ loved the church if you love your wife as
[44:16] Christ loved the church I dare say it won't be hard for her to submit to you Christ gave himself for us for the church that he might sanctify and cleanse it that he might present it to himself a glorious church oh hallelujah the church of Jesus Christ this is his desire this is the will of God that to have a glorious church that is not spotted by the world that is that does not the garment is not wrinkled or any such thing but holy and without blemish that's what God desires that's the heart of Christ is that the church that's his desire for us that we are holy and that we are without blemish and unspotted by the world unspotted by the world and he doesn't stop with that but he says so it's connected to this verse so ought men to love their wives as their own bodies listen if you men love your wife as the bible teaches here she will love to submit and she will love you what is it
[45:53] Titus says the older women should teach the younger to love their husbands hopefully hopefully you women love your husbands even though sometimes it might be difficult but let us love one another love your husband love your wife even as Christ loved the church no man ever yet hate it his own flesh but nourishes and cherishes it even as the Lord the church the Lord loves us and he cherishes his church he nourishes it he feeds us he brings us what we need that we might grow and that we might flourish and we might prosper for we are members of his body of his flesh and of his bones for this cause shall a man leave his father and mother and shall be joined unto his wife and they too shall be one flesh this is a great mystery it's a great mystery how this all happens it's a great mystery but I speak concerning
[47:26] Christ and the church are we at one with Christ that is what he's after that is what he desires that is the will of God that is his desire for us is that we are one with Christ and that we are one with our companion nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself and the wife see that she reverends her husband respect reverence you know there's other places talks about that too you know Sarah called Abraham Lord I'm not asking that my wife call me Lord but there is a place for due respect and reverence no man has ever yet hated his own flesh
[48:58] He that loveth his wife loveth himself. Do you love your wife as yourself? Amen.
[49:08] Proverbs says, Whoso findeth a wife findeth a good thing, and obtaineth favor of the Lord. The Lord sanctioned marriage.
[49:20] The Lord, the Lord established it. And if you look at it today, in our modern time, and all the perversion that is out there, it even makes sense that when a man takes a wife, and they come together in a godly union, that God can bless, that he will bless that union.
[49:56] Why? Because I believe every godly marriage is a beacon, a bright light out there that the devil hates.
[50:07] He hates it. But it reminds him of a holy God. It reminds him of the plan of God. And it reminds him that he's defeated.
[50:20] Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Here, Ephesians 5, 22.
[50:37] This verse, Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands as unto the Lord. Thy Amplified says that your wives, you adapt to your husband.
[50:51] You adapt. You know, there's... Today, when we see people getting married, and they try to be two separate people living in the same house, and he has his career, and she has her career, and they're out there, and then they come in in the evening or in the weekend or whatever it is.
[51:15] They live their separate lives. That's not the Bible. The Bible says that the wife is to adapt to her husband.
[51:27] I believe that it is God's will. That the calling of God is upon the husband, and the wife will come along and adapt to that calling, and will be a support in whatever that calling of God is.
[51:51] Yes. Yes. Not saying that they don't ever do things on their own or whatever, but I believe that that is a place that God would have.
[52:12] There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
[52:30] We're seeing so much of that today. Men making excuses. Men hiding their sin, or even now it's not so much hiding their sin, but openly, openly living in sin, and saying that the grace of God will take care of it.
[52:54] I believe that's a fulfillment of this verse in Proverbs. There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
[53:06] And as I was looking at Proverbs, I realized that there's at least twice where that exact same verse is in Proverbs.
[53:17] It could even be more. I don't know, but I know there's two times. I believe God wanted to give a message. He wanted to make sure that people see that.
[53:32] He gave it a second time that it might soak in, does it? Romans chapter 7, verse 1 and 2, 3.
[54:01] Know ye not, brethren, for I speak to them that know the law, how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth. For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth.
[54:18] But if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress.
[54:31] But if her husband be dead, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. Very, very plain and clear.
[54:46] In 1 Corinthians, chapter 7, this whole chapter deals with marriage. And, we'll just read a few verses here and there.
[55:08] We'll start with verse 1. Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me, it is good for a man not to touch a woman, nevertheless to avoid fornication.
[55:23] Let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence, likewise also the wife unto the husband.
[55:36] And, you know, looking at this, it is good for a man not to touch a woman. that is, of course, outside of marriage.
[55:53] It is not good for a man to touch a woman. You know, and there's, and there's more to it.
[56:08] You know, there's also this thing of, this thing of, this thing of flirting, this thing of talking.
[56:29] You know, you know, it's not necessarily wrong to talk with other women if you're a man, or other men if you're a woman, but it needs, it needs to be guarded.
[56:50] It needs very much to be guarded. If you're not married, it needs very much to be guarded.
[57:02] Your relationship with girls, here he says, it is good, it is good for a man not to touch a woman.
[57:17] I would add that it is good to not touch her emotions. there's, many hurts have happened.
[57:33] Many people have gone astray through those types of things. Flirting, it's a tool of the enemy.
[57:52] On down talks about, talking about marriage and then you know, and the apostle here, he put something here that I don't know, I don't remember seeing it anywhere else.
[58:14] in verse 10, he says, and unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord.
[58:28] The apostle knew that this is the heart of God and God is commanding this. let not the wife depart from her husband, but and if she depart let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband and let not the husband put away his wife.
[58:51] Again, talking about divorce and how it is wrong. It is not the heart of God. in verse 39, the wife is bound by the law as long as her husband liveth.
[59:10] But if her husband be dead, she is at liberty to be married to whom she will only in the Lord. You know, this is what I see here is that the apostles, they taught what Jesus taught.
[59:29] nothing changed from Genesis to now.
[59:43] Nothing changed. It's still the same. It's the word of God. It's the plan of God. It's God's desire.
[59:58] It's his expectation. humanity has deviated from God's expectation, from God's will.
[60:11] Why? Because mankind has chosen to rebel. God hate us putting away.
[60:26] God wants godly children raised in a godly home. That's his will, that's his desire. And you know, when there's disagreements, just work it out.
[60:45] You know, separating is never an option. I believe that when it became an option, that's when people started doing it more.
[61:01] I don't know if I fully shared my heart this morning, but you know what what really struck me the last while is how that men seemingly they don't care what this word says.
[61:27] they just find a way to explain it a way that sounds reasonable to the carnal mind.
[61:41] And people accept it. There is a way that seemeth right to a man, but the end thereof is the ways of death.
[61:54] Let's remember that. You know, when you go on social media and you read that here's this couple that came together.
[62:06] They're both divorced and now they come together and they testify of how God brought them together and how he's providing for them. No.
[62:19] God's provision is back there with their first companion. you know, and I don't remember ever hearing some of the things we hear in our day.
[62:31] Like a young woman being married for some years and all of a sudden she just decides she doesn't want to be married anymore and so she up and leaves.
[62:44] You know, where's God in all of this? Let's keep God in the throne of our heart and let's live for him.
[62:59] Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for your word. We thank you for your plan. We thank you for the beauty of marriage and that you have made us one.
[63:15] Thank you, Lord. Help us, Lord, to be that bright shining light on a hill that this world will see, that the principalities and the powers of darkness will see that there is still a God in heaven and that there are still people that honor you and live for you.
[63:42] Lord Jesus, might this world see Jesus in us and through us, O God, that we will be that bright shining light that you desire us to be, Lord.
[63:59] Help us to be that, to be what you desire us to be. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. May the Lord bless.
[64:10] Amen. May the Lord bless.