"Let marriage be had in honor among all, and let the bed be undefiled: for fornicators and adulterers God will judge" (Heb. 13:4). One of the Marvelous Doings of the Lord (see this morning’s sermon – Psa. 118:22-24) is that he made and gave us marriage and the home. There can be no doubt that this is one of God’s greatest gifts, for it fills the deepest of man’s fleshly needs.

When man was created, at first he was alone. "And Jehovah God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him" (Gen. 2:18). The exact meaning of the term "help-meet" has been lost in our usage of the term to merely assign the role of "wife" to a woman. The thought expressed by God here has to do with one who is fit, or able because of her peculiar qualifications, to help man, especially with the problem of being alone. So God brought all of the animals to the man to see what he might call him, but none were fit to be a life-companion and fill the needs of man (vs. 20). So he cause a sleep to come upon the man, he took a rib from his side, and from the rib he fashioned the woman (vs. 21-22). So begins the history of marriage.

Of course, one of the needs man had was that of sexual expression and procreation. If man would have any descendants, he could not have them by himself. God, knowing what he would do, created man alone, and the result was a realization of the need for that which was missing – somebody to make children with. " And 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: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, …" (Gen. 1:27-28).

But, contrary to the doctrines of some men, there is a purpose in sexual expression other than having children. Man has a sexual appetite, which is separate and apart from the need to procreate. This is a part of the physical nature of man, as surely as eating or sleeping. "This is Jehovah's doing; it is marvelous in our eyes" (Psa. 118:23). The sexual appetite is a gift from God and is the source of great pleasure, and it is in the marriage relationship that it is to be fulfilled (Heb. 13:4).

Man also has a need for union with another. The marriage covenant and the close proximity it enforces, and the bonding that occurs in sexual activity contribute mightily to the unity man needs with another human. "And the man 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. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh" (Gen. 2:23-24). This is not merely a statement describing sexual union. It is an affirmation of the unity of two people in a relationship that includes so much more.

The higher aspects of this union are described by Paul. "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself up for it; that he might sanctify it, having cleansed it by the washing of water with the word, that he might present the church to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish (Eph. 5:25-27). Husbands loving their wives is not merely a sexual thing. Neither is the notion of "bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh." The context of this passage is brimming with words like "love," "gave himself up," "cherish," and "nourish."

There is more to marriage and its consummation than sexual activity. There is love (agape), there is communion, there is trust. Show me a man who says that sex is the foundation of his marriage covenant, and I will show you a man who has misbehaved in his marriage.

That which the Lord abhors has become common-place and accepted. Living together without the benefit of legal formality has become a popular alternative to morality. The reasoning goes, "We won’t be any more committed just because of a piece of paper," or "I’m not really sure if we are really compatible."

The fact is, according to the dictionary definition of fornication, that is one of the ways that it is committed. Fornication comes from the Greek word porneia. It is "used of illicit sexual intercourse in general" (Unger's Bible Dictionary). There are other ways to commit fornication, but sex outside of the marriage formality is one. "Let marriage be had in honor among all, and let the bed be undefiled: for fornicators and adulterers God will judge" (Heb. 13:4). "For this ye know of a surety, that no fornicator, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God" (Eph. 5:5).

To live together without the "piece of paper," the legal sanction, is to dishonor marriage, God, and his word. You can’t go to heaven and live that way.

There is no such thing as "same-sex" marriages. I know that the term is used, and I know that people engage in homosexual union and call it marriage. But the Bible has somewhat to say about all of that. " And 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: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, …" (Gen. 1:27-28). Marriage is a union of a male and a female.

God has spoken sufficiently on the subject for everyone to be informed. "For this cause God gave them up unto vile passions: for their women changed the natural use into that which is against nature: and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another, men with men working unseemliness, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was due" (Rom. 1:26-27). The condemnation of homosexual behavior is unmistakable. "… they that practise such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but also consent with them that practise them" (Rom. 1:32). The bible teaching is clearly that those who practice homosexual behavior are fornicators who will not go to heaven unless they repent.

What does God think of divorce? "For I hate putting away, saith Jehovah," … (Mal. 2:16). Jesus attributed the marriage union to God and said, "… What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder" (Matt. 19:6). Divorce is sinful. The only exception is when an individual is motivated by their spouse’s fornication to put the unfaithful spouse away (vs. 9). Divorce otherwise will condemn one.

Repentance is sometimes a difficult issue with regard to divorce. Sometimes a divorce occurs and there is no way to repair the damage. Paul addresses this problem: "But unto the married I give charge, yea not I, but the Lord, That the wife depart not from her husband (but should she depart, let her remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband); and that the husband leave not his wife" (1 Cor. 7:10-11).

Marriage is one of those Marvelous Doings of Jehovah. It is one of his greatest gifts.