Biblical Marriage Is Under Attack: How Should Christians Respond?

What is occurring here and the way can we respond, help, and possibly de-escalate this mass corrosion that appears to be currently going down at warp speed? When we don’t have the answers, we must dig into His Word. Then seek His wisdom on methods to respond, especially as a pair. Friend, in the event you are married, construct in a while this week to debate your heart and open up about some tough topics, because your marriage is determined by it. 

The Cultural War on Marriage

Let’s start with an issue. Turn to your hubby one night this week and ask him how Jesus is moving in his life. While he may provide you with an ungainly side grin and even wonder why you’re asking, there may be a really valid point to all this. Sis, we want to envision in on our husbands and the character of their hearts, letting them know we deeply care about their faith journey. Asking this query periodically opens up dialogue on how we are able to share and show our appreciation for all of the things they do, while also finding ways to wish for them. 

Here’s the thing: We are in a full-blown war here. Really! It is that serious. Marriages which can be striving to live by God’s design are under attack, big time. Maybe you’ve personally felt the warmth from it. Now, I’m not intending to stoke any fear or cause you to enter panic mode; I’m simply inviting you to attach more deeply together with your husband than you ever have before and lean in closely to Jesus as you form a tightly woven chord of three (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

The truth is that our current culture is bending into norms which can be all too acquainted with Sodom and Gomorrah. Sadly, Jesus tells us that the end-time events would parallel their destructive ways, and people who reject Jesus will eventually endure suffering like never before (Matthew 10:15). 

Technology is currently developing at a rate faster than we are able to sustain with, allowing for increasingly more inappropriate content and pictures to be laid before our eyes. We must guard our hearts and temper our minds. The issue has turn into so concerning because it has proven to sway the eyes of many, bringing on hidden and secretive temptations.

Not only that, however the uprise of same-sex marriages and a growing community of distorted views have now bent our society towards much more sinful and lustful ways. Sadly, many Christians are falling into the trap of embracing equity as a method to declare that Jesus loves all, yet they’re failing to see that these views are removed from God’s design for us, placing us all in very dangerous territory. The image of a biblical marriage is now often seen as a soft spot for ridicule and those in charge for not accepting all types of affection.

This is why we must communicate with our husbands and share how Jesus is moving in our lives to carry one another accountable, clinging to Jesus in these brutal times. We must speak about how God sees marriage and cling to that Truth. While we’re called to like all, we must stand firm on our faith and for what’s true, noble, right, and just in God’s eyes. Read the verses below together with your husband, discuss the meaning, and allow them to be the reality on which you stand:

“Marriage must be honored by all, and the wedding bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all of the sexually immoral.” Hebrews 13:4

“As a young man marries a young woman, so will your Builder marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.” Isaiah 62:5

“Husbands, in the identical way be considerate as you reside together with your wives, and treat them with respect because the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, in order that nothing will hinder your prayers.” 1 Peter 3:7

“Wives, submit yourselves to your personal husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the pinnacle of the wife as Christ is the pinnacle of the church, his body, of which he’s the Savior. Now because the church submits to Christ, so also wives should undergo their husbands in all the things. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or some other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands must love their wives as their very own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.” Ephesians 5:22-28

Satan’s Plan to Destroy Marriage

Satan’s attack on marriage is straightforward. Make sin look normal and make God’s design for marriage seem outdated, too restrictive, or strange. The truth is, Satan’s strategy hasn’t modified much. Just as he tempted Eve within the garden and made that apple look utterly delicious, proving that it could open her world as much as a wealth of information, he does the identical to us on this very day and age. 

That being said, why would he attack or waste his time on marriages which can be already fallen away or broken? He doesn’t. Instead, he fully attacks the union (or spouse) that loves God. The ones which can be attempting to do the proper things, the couples which may be hanging on but need to honor God, or the person and woman who reside a faithful life to at least one one other, on a mission to spread God’s love – those are his targets. Basically, anything that God deems nearly as good and brings together might be exactly where Satan strives to divide, separate, and infest with evil. He uses distraction, temptation, and all those “little things” that add as much as put us at odds with each other. Which is why we must concentrate on his malicious ways, call them out, and lean into God’s Word for protected refuge and protection.

According to Google, lack of commitment is the leading cause for a lot of marriages to fail, followed closely by arguing, infidelity, and getting married too young. The average marriage in America tends to last 8 years, and January is supposedly being dubbed the “divorce month.” Just the sound of all that sounds heartbreaking. So, what will we do?  

Find the potential threats to your personal marriage and put up a barricade to the partitions of your heart from the evil one’s invasion. Talk together with your husband about his inner struggles and share your personal. Be as candid as possible and take time to really take heed to each other so you’re employed as a team to fight to your marriage.

How Should We Respond?

Here are two questions that you just and your spouse will probably want to answer and judge as a pair methods to respond. Then dig into God’s Word and invite God into your discussion as you seek His will and way, together.

1. As believers, how should we reply to the cultural view on marriage?

2. How will we respond when our friends, family, or our own marriage is the present goal of the deceiver and under brutal attack?

Read John 15:19, John 17:14-16, and 1 John 2:15. Currently, the world loves and seeks after selfishness and lustful desires reasonably than honoring and pleasing God. Since we’re told not to adapt to those ways, after we stand for Jesus and His way, we must realize that we could potentially be hated for it. In other words, we must always expect others (especially non-believers) to feel uncomfortable around us, because it flips the script on how they need to live. But, on the identical token, it opens up a major opportunity to listen and show compassion for the lost. As we interact with others and are available across those that place value in the present cultural view on marriage, we are able to respond in love, as Jesus commands us to, but additionally show by the fruits and actions of our own marriage what a stupendous gift God gives us within the sacred union. 

When we see those trails affect our family and friends or our own marriage, we must tread calmly but additionally react quickly, in search of God’s wisdom and guidance in every step. Reflect on Ephesians 5:22-28. It calls each a husband and wife to totally undergo Christ. Wives submitting to their husband’s role as head of the family with a view to lead and protect, while husbands are called to honor their wives as Christ loves the Church, cherishing and adoring her, only having eyes for her. Lean on this verse and confer with it often when attacks arise. Be sure to surround yourself with fellow believers and a community that may form an alliance. That way, when attacks come, you’ll be able to pray for each other and fight the enemy together.

Communicate and Stay Committed

Here are a couple of topics/inquiries to openly seek advice from your spouse. Carve out time to handle these this week, and pray for God to guide and direct your marriage to do His will:

-Where do you see us in two, five, ten years?

-How can I encourage you to be a greater man/woman?

-What do you would like most from me on this season of our marriage?

-Talk about one in every of your favorite memories you shared together.

-Do I speak your love language, and if not, how can I do higher?

-What are the challenges we face in our marriage, and what can we do to work through them together?

-How can we serve God together and love others higher?

-What are some boundaries we want to place into place to higher protect our marriage?

As you open up and share your heart with each other, take time to actively listen, then take it a step further and do your best to work towards the wedding you each want, and more importantly, the attractive union God wants for you two. May God richly bless your union and protect you each as you fight to your marriage. 

Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Vasil Dimitrov