Sunday school was back this past week with the series on marriage. This time, Brian was the one who taught, and he taught on the role of husbands and wives. He started off with talking about the foundational principles of marriage. The key to marriage is Christ. He needs to be the center of our lives. we were created and exist for Him. Marriage is designed for Christians. Although it is legitimate for unbelievers, God's design for this is for Christians. It is designed to flourish in the context of a man and woman who are both living for Christ. The familiar passage on love (patient, kind, etc) in Colossians 3:8-13 is manifested in a marriage. Marriage is designed by God. It's not a human invention; it's a "God thing." This goes back to Genesis 2. Marriage is fundamentally about the gospel. Ephesians 5:22-33 talks about husbands and wives, but verse 32 tells us what the priority is: "This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church." And the weighty responsibility on my part? God-willing, when God provides me with a wife, I will be called as a husband to love my wife as Christ loves the church. What a weighty calling!
The second part of the lesson focused on love: Marriage's success primarily involves love. Love is a priority, not only in a marriage, but more importantly in the life of every believer. It is the central aspect in the two greatest commandments mentioned in Matthew 22 - love God and love your neighbor. It is the mark of a Christian and is an evidence of a changed life. And it is the glue that holds relationships together. Brian also talked about some misunderstandings about love. He gave a definition of what infatuation is (the state of being completely carried away by unreasoning passion or addictive love into extreme absorption with another person) and distinguishes this with what love is. Love is not a feeling, although emotions and feelings are definitely present. But as was mentioned in Colossians 3, love is an action. Lastly, some myths about true love. Love is not something that you "fall" into it; it is something that you make a decision to do. "Falling in love" has more to do with infatuation than it does with love. Love doesn't happen at first sight. Not that I'm trying to degrade the idea of romance, but "love at first sight" has more to do with attraction; again, love is an action. Lastly, love is not blind. It is a conscious decision that is made. An appraisal is made of the entire person, then a decision is made to love that person.
The lesson ended with what love looks like, but we didn't get to finish because we ran out of time. We'll probably cover more of it in next week's Sunday school class.
I am by no means an expert on marriage and on what love is, but I am grateful for this series and what God has been teaching me through this. And being one who is unmarried, these principles are just as applicable in loving the brethren and in loving others.
The second part of the lesson focused on love: Marriage's success primarily involves love. Love is a priority, not only in a marriage, but more importantly in the life of every believer. It is the central aspect in the two greatest commandments mentioned in Matthew 22 - love God and love your neighbor. It is the mark of a Christian and is an evidence of a changed life. And it is the glue that holds relationships together. Brian also talked about some misunderstandings about love. He gave a definition of what infatuation is (the state of being completely carried away by unreasoning passion or addictive love into extreme absorption with another person) and distinguishes this with what love is. Love is not a feeling, although emotions and feelings are definitely present. But as was mentioned in Colossians 3, love is an action. Lastly, some myths about true love. Love is not something that you "fall" into it; it is something that you make a decision to do. "Falling in love" has more to do with infatuation than it does with love. Love doesn't happen at first sight. Not that I'm trying to degrade the idea of romance, but "love at first sight" has more to do with attraction; again, love is an action. Lastly, love is not blind. It is a conscious decision that is made. An appraisal is made of the entire person, then a decision is made to love that person.
The lesson ended with what love looks like, but we didn't get to finish because we ran out of time. We'll probably cover more of it in next week's Sunday school class.
I am by no means an expert on marriage and on what love is, but I am grateful for this series and what God has been teaching me through this. And being one who is unmarried, these principles are just as applicable in loving the brethren and in loving others.
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