Word by Mail

Introduction to God's Design for Marriage

Lesson 1

 

 

This is NOT a SELF-HELP marriage improvement series.

 

It’s US doing what we think is best for US that’s gotten us into the mess we’re in.

 

We must put all our own ideas and opinions aside, and seek to know and receive God’s Design for Marriage ONLY!

 

Will you commit to seek God’s Will and God’s Design alone for your marriage?

 

The problem will never be that God doesn’t have the power, or the desire, to strengthen and heal our marriages.

 

The problem will always be that our SELF-WILL stands in the way.

 

Isaiah 14 – Self-Will caused Lucifer to be cast out of heaven.

Genesis 3 – Self-Will caused the fall of man in the garden.

Every time Israel turned from God, it was because of Self-Will.

 

Has self-will ever caused problems in your marriage?

 

Do you understand self-will is sin?

(In fact, self-will is at the very root of sin)

 

But God has provided Himself as an answer to the sin of Self-Will. Jesus Christ took upon Himself your sin of self-will and paid its full price.

 

And If you will put your full faith and trust in Jesus Christ, He will give you righteousness before God, and the power to crucify your self-will. Which, in turn, will strengthen, or possibly save, your marriage.

 

So before we begin – you must decide:

1. Have you truly made Jesus Christ your Savior and your Lord?
2. Have you asked Him for the power of the Holy Spirit to transform your life, and thereby your marriage?

 

Our marriages must be supernaturally transformed by the God who designed them. For that to happen, we must first make two commitments:

 

1. We must make Jesus Christ our Savior and our Lord.
2. We must commit to daily walk in the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Titus 3:4-5 (NLT)

4 But—"When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love,
5 he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit."

 

We’re going to pray . . .

1. That Jesus Christ would give us a “New Birth” in Him, and
2. That He would give us the “New Life” through the Holy Spirit.

Please pray with me: "Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner. I know that my sin is damaging my marriage. I believe that you died for my sin. Please forgive me of my sin. Please come into my life, be my Savior, and be my Lord. Please give me new life, through the power of Your Holy Spirit. Today, I surrender my self-will, and ask that you transform my life, and my marriage. Thank you for saving me. In your name I pray. Amen".

 

The supernatural source of life for our marriages is:

1. Our daily surrender to Jesus Christ as our Lord
2. Our daily walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Any time you find yourself in opposition to God’s design for marriage, it will be because you’ve chosen your self-will over God’s will. It will be because you are not surrendering to Jesus Christ as your Lord,  or because you are not walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.

 

Our Foundation Scripture for God’s Design for Marriage

 

In the “Creation Chapter” - Genesis chapter 1,
SEVEN TIMES during the creation account, God says, “It is good” . . .

 

And then in Genesis 2:18, for the first time in the creation record,

God says, "It is NOT Good."

Gen 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.’ "

 

God said, “It is not good” because God wasn’t finished yet (not because He made a mistake & got it right the second time). Mankind was a work in progress. And in Genesis 2:20 God proves to Adam that something was missing in His life.

 

Gen 2:20

“So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him."

 

Gen 2:21-22

“21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place.

22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.”

 

What “state” was Adam in when God formed his wife to fit him perfectly and brought her to him? UNCONSCIOUS !

 

God is the Divine Designer and Creator

 

God first takes Adam out of the picture, and then, on Adam’s behalf, God forms his wife for him and BRINGS his wife to him.

 

Is God still powerful enough to do this today ?

 

And so, because Eve was custom made for Adam, we read in . . .

 

Gen 2:23

“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.

 

The Hebrew word “Taken” implies something has been left Missing.

 

God purposely left a void in man when He “carved out” a piece of man to make woman. Why didn’t God just make woman from the dust like He had man?

 

Because God designed a husband and wife to “Fit” together like a puzzletook” that piece from Adam to make Eve so that they could only truly be complete when put together. with a missing piece. God “

 

And so, we come to Gen 2:24, our KEY VERSE for the entire study:

 

Gen 2:24 (KJV)

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

 

Two drastically different, and perfectly equal individuals, designed by the creator to perfectly “fit together” – to become one flesh.

 

 

God designed you from His position of absolute knowledge.

And He made you and your spouse to perfectly fit together,

to complete each other in every way. THAT is His design !!

 

 

For the next 11 lessons . . .

 

 

We’re going to see the incredible things God wants to do in your marriage. But if you don’t believe He’s Sovereign enough and Powerful enough to do it, then you’ll leave this series with the same marriage you came in with.

 

 

God desires, and is powerful enough, to transform your marriage !!

He just needs you to join Him in the work He wants to do.

 

Let’s Pray: “Dear Heavenly Father, we believe that you are God, the Designer and Creator of our marriage. We believe You are sovereign enough to have put our marriage together. And we believe You are powerful enough to transform our marriage into the union You created it to be. We commit to You right now to crucify our Self-Will, and seek Your will alone for our marriage. Please give us the Holy Spirit for the power to be transformed in our marriage. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”