Roles in Marriage

Roles in Marriage

Genesis 2:18

“And the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”  

I’ve been meaning to really examine this concept of roles in marriage for a while now, because I think as a society we’ve gotten too far away from the concept of how marriage is really supposed to work.  Notice the key phrase- how marriage works.  Ultimately, there are supposed to be outcomes and progress as a result of your marital union and it only comes from consistent effort, i.e. work.  

Notice that in Genesis, when God created Eve, He created her from Adam’s side.  Literally from his something Adam had two of, God took one and fashioned Eve out of it.  She was always intended to be not only his equal, but a vital part of his life.  Here’s something else though that I noticed.  God called Eve a helper.  There’s only one other person in the bible referred to as “helper” and that’s the Holy Spirit.   

What does the Holy Spirit do?  The Spirit comforts, teaches, counsels, convicts, and connects us to God.  Consider how the Holy Spirit operates.  He’s not pushy, forceful, naggy, or overbearing.  As a matter of fact, the Holy Spirit in many ways embodies the gentler sides of God.  Without the Holy Spirit we wouldn’t have power or the love of God.  

When I think about the similarities between the role of the woman in marriage and the Holy Spirit in our lives, it makes me wonder.  I know there are many times God has been able to use my wife to speak wisdom in a moment where I lacked clarity, or where the love of God has flown more compassionately through her first rather than myself.  Knowing that I should consider my wife with the same kind of honor and respect that I consider impartations from the Holy Spirit changes my entire view of her role in our marriage.  Of course it’s not a perfect comparison, but in many ways, it’s just the tip if the iceberg for understanding how we should partner for purpose.  

SDW3

The Purpose of Your Marriage

The Purpose of Your Marriage...

Genesis 2:18

“And the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”  

Here’s the thing: your marriage has a purpose greater than your individual selves.  If you could accomplish what you needed to do in this life on your own, God wouldn’t have created woman for man, as a suitable life-partner.  Instead, He realized that Adam by himself wasn’t complete.  It’s more than just finding a companion who will be “your better half”.  It’s really about finding a partner in ministry, someone who will help you develop in the love of God and accomplish the will of God for your life.  

When I think about my own marriage, sure Samantha and I individually bring great strengths and talents to the table.  But, we also have glaring faults of our own.  Weaknesses, that if uncurbed will ultimately lead to our own downfalls.  We need someone to hold us accountable, we need someone to help develop us.  We need each other to believe that we can be a better version of ourselves.  But it doesn’t just stop there- partnership in and of itself isn’t the ultimate aim of marriage.  We’re partnering for a purpose.  

I believe that the greatest joy that a marriage partnership can have is when a husband and wife can raise godly children.  I also believe that afterwards, the greatest continual joy that a marriage union can have is to share the lessons learned from their own lives with others.  There’s no stronger union than the marital bond, and when a husband and wife are on one accord with God’s plan for their life- there’s nothing that they can’t accomplish.  I believe this is why marriage is under such an attack.  The enemy understands that marriages are one of God’s greatest tools to changing this world.  

So, the question remains, how are you viewing your marriage?  Are you shortchanging it by only considering the impact of your marriage on your individual life (say it all together folks: MY MARRIAGE ISN'T JUST FOR ME!)?  Or are you prepared to partner for a purpose in the greatest relationship vehicle on earth?  

SDW3